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bass players you'd rather not know

#62
mutedeity said:
The way I see this whole thing is that dueling contests are pointless not to mention myopic. Once again we find ourselves in the world of arbitrary opinions. If you think music is a contest you can win you are watching too much TV. This is where you seperate those that play from those that create. At the end of the day what is heard is all that matters. It's not a matter of playing more or less either. I totally disagree with the statement someone made that the more you know the less you play. I'm sure I could name hundreds of examples that contradict that assertion. The difference is that the more you know the more you know when it is time to play more and less and what the point of playing either way is.

I don't know, but 4StringFury here seems like a lot of young players that probably feel overwhelmed by the standard of some of the bass players out there that he admires and feels he needs to prove himself. The reality is that he doesn't seem to get is that those people are what they are because they spent years of hours at a time day after day week after week doing nothing but practicing and learning about music. They probably didn't get there by trying to burn everyone else with an arrogant attitude that they were experts who knew more than people who clearly had more experience and knowledge than they do. The whole "I have a problem with older musicians" attitude is pretty null to me. I think he is missing the point that older musicians tend to know more because they have had more time to learn from their mistakes and to develop their technical, theoretical and conceptual approach. I mean honestly who do you think people are going to pay money to, a versatile musician with 20 years of experience or some 19 year old guy that has trouble with harmonics when they slap? Trust me Les Claypool and Victor Wooten, for example, are quite a bit older than 19. [edit] By the way age is really not the issue, it has more to do with being mature enough to respect those with more experience and humble enough to be open minded to anyone, young or old that might have something of value to say when they present their opinion in a thoughtful and intelligent manner.

Sure jamming with other players is fun, I am working on a two bassplayer project at the moment myself and trading licks and so on is cool. On the other hand I don't really care who is "superior" as a player. There is no definitive criteria for what makes a superior player anyway, it's as arbitrary as what makes the criteria for a "metal" band. I mean I don't know, I have been playing a long time and I can play a lot of stuff, sweep arpeggios, double thumb, tapping, hell I have even been working slapped sweep arpeggios, but at the end of the day if I can't use a particular technique as part of a composition I won't lose too much sleep over it.

There is really a culture of competition among bassplayers in particular these days, which I think can be healthy, but when it comes to the whole "I am better because I can do this" or "this proves my worth as a musician" attitude it really just becomes pointless. Most of the time you see people playing the same diatonic box shapes or major/minor arpeggios ad nauseum just to showcase some new trick. It really doesn't push the boundaries of the music and really makes half of these techniques redundant. Sure it might impress someone on youtube for a few minutes but at the end of the day what is the point of it unless it's for the sake of being heard. My point is that technique should probably be for the sake of being heard, not seen.

Anyway that's my position on things. I'm not really trying to burn 4StringFury and I hope he can deal with my comments in the spirit that they were given. I can't help but think that some of his comments were somewhat given with past dialogue in mind, but whatever. I think that really sometimes we just have to accept our limitations before we can grow beyond them and understanding that concept is the key to making us all better musicians and people in general.

I'm off to change out my 500k suck potentiometer for a 250k lameometer....
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youre easily the smartest person to contribute to this thread. I was the one who made the comment "the more you know, the less you play":( But it is true in my experience. In the beginning most players are like "look what i can do!" on bass, or any other instrument for that matter, and try and show off. This usually doesn't work well.
 
#63
BellBottomBlues said:
I was the one who made the comment "the more you know, the less you play":( But it is true in my experience. In the beginning most players are like "look what i can do!" on bass, or any other instrument for that matter, and try and show off. This usually doesn't work well.
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Sure, and I won't try to deny you your point of view. I do agree that sometimes trying to prove yourself when you are new to what you do can be more your motivation than when you mature and gain more experience, in which case you tend to strive to do what is more appropriate. What I am pointing out is that it does not necessarily mean you play less.
 
#64
Well you can get Audacity. Its free. All you need to do is hook up your amp to your soundcard through your headphone or speaker out. Easy stuff and we can see what you're capable of.
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Where do I get this? Link Please.

In regards to mutedietys comments, I didnt read them. We had a dispute a while ago, and he is invisible as far as Im concerned.
 
#67
I personally think its all about what the bass sounds both isolated and in the mix. It has to fit in with the song, adding to it and keeping the groove, but I honestly don't see myself listening to quarter note walking basslines for hours. Groove is great, but with some melody and flash, your basslines will be more fun and memorable.
 
#70
IMHO, you should start playing bass and stop being an a-hole.

If you're having a hard time to pay your college, then try to get in a band and get some gigs, and I'm sure that with that approach to the bass, you're not going to get a single gig.


We haven't heard you playing, but your vision about the bass talks for itself, I'm afraid that I have to tell you that... NO, you're NOT good.
 
#71
Yup your right I suck. :hyper:

I havent got enough time in my day to try to form a band, hold practices, and play gigs. Its simply not an option for me at this time. I will probably get something going on this coming summer, but that is a ways off. Right now my focus is school. In my spare time Im working on my compositional skills and refining my techniques, also like I said I have a small project right now dealing with synthsised music. Im also not looking to form a traditional type band. To make the music I want to make, I have to find a violinist, a soprano singer, and a banjo player. Not exactly an easy task.
 
#72
That is so unbelievably childish and helps your case none. If you want to talk about maturity, be a man (or woman) and stop holding stupid internet grudges.
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Basically our dsipute ended with Him saying he was done talking to me, and I said that I was done talking to him. Unlike him I actually ment what I said. I think my decision to ignore him rather than get into stupid internet disputes that go nowhere and only serve to derail threads is a mature decision.
 
#73
4StringFury said:
Basically our dsipute ended with Him saying he was done talking to me, and I said that I was done talking to him. Unlike him I actually ment what I said. I think my decision to ignore him rather than get into stupid internet disputes that go nowhere and only serve to derail threads is a mature decision.
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That's right, I forgot the internet is serious business. :rolleyes:

Ignoring someone over an internet dispute is about as childish as it gets. It's best to not hold grudges over petty things. :bassist:
 

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