Help with my technique and practice habits please.

[13lues]

Divide and conquer. I rarely learn a song by learning the song all the way through. I'll break it down into manageable phrases, then use a metronome or drum machine to play that phrase over and over until it's burned into my thick skull. Gradually piecing them together until i'm playing the whole song all the way through.
Even with that I still forget the easy stuff sometimes. At practice the other day I actually forgot how to play "House of the Rising Sun" for the first couple of bars , which is a really fun and easy song if you've never learned it.

 

[mat666]

I was a saxophone and occasional acoustic guitar player before ever picking up a bass. I taught myself how to play by learning the entire first Rage Against The Machine album!!

First album I played "by ear" no tabs

 

[Biggbass]

It really helps to have some musical education, even at a beginner or intermediate level. With that knowledge and understanding of the 'language' in your arsenal then it just comes down to the physical application of transferring the knowledge to the instrument and developing technique, doesn't matter what the instrument is. In that music is fundamentally based on math, consider that, without knowing number values one cannot accomplish addition, subtraction, etc., and similarly, that scenario applies to learning music and songs.

Reminds me of so many times hearing guitar teachers complain about how their students just want to learn songs and ignore the fundamentals that, once learned, will allow them to play all of their favorite songs. Its the old "teach a man to fish" thing.

However, I've twice had a similar "forget this" experience with the pedal steel. Although I know the language of music and understand what that instrument can do and how it works, the physical process of learning to play that instrument, with both legs, both feet, both hands, two differently tuned necks, pedals, levers, picks, slide bar.... AHHHHHHH!!!!!! was more than I was willing to take on. I do have a tiny musician brain, after all.

 

[sotua]

Zeng - I play a lot of Tool. For example on Schism, on the main riff I mess it up by muting the notes or missing a hammer on. On Sober I still sometimes miss the strings when playing the main riff. Don't even get me started on 46&2. I mess that song up bad.

It's. Mostly tool stuff I mess up. I still am not accurate on other songs if I have to do a long slide.

I play pick and finger style. I picked up the bass cold with no previous experience

Sounds to me like you're playing along and making the same mistakes over and over again, instead of practicing it slowly first. Try that. Learn the riffs, then play them by themselves (or slowing the song with software, if you want/need a base track) at a slower tempo, until (This is important!) you get them perfect. Every time. Then, you can increase the tempo a little more and do it all over again. That way, you will actually LEARN how to hit all the notes correctly. If you're just running through it at full speed, you're probably learning how to keep it mostly in time without hitting everything correctly.

 

[Bluto]

I'll add that I didn't start with tool but they are my motivation. They are the reason I started playing. There are many songs I play by other bands that I rarely mess up

Have you ever looked into Rocksmith 2014? I would have to think there are DLC's out there by now for Tool's songs and you get to use your bass. I realize its a game however, is can help when learning songs since the songs start out easy (with missing notes) and progressively gets harder (notes are added) as you get better until you learn the whole song. Additionally it has a riff repeater where you can zero in on the segment you have problems with. Also, the better you get the notes will disappear so that in the end you will be playing the songs with no note ques at all. The only thing that sucks IMO is that they list the fret # but not the note names. If they had included the note names along with the fret # the game would be great for learning the fretboard. Again I realize it is just a game but I admit that I have use it to learn a couple songs the band was wanting to play and I was struggling with. Doesn't replace playing with others as others suggested but it might be what you are looking for.

 

[FrankLowend]

Ok that practicing should be good for you, but I think that you need to do classes. If you have a teacher to show you some exercises for the right hand first, after for the left hand...
Maybe after some theory studies cold bo good too...
Start playing easy songs, basic Rock N Roll or Blues.
Doing the exercises you will ser your improvement.
A decent bass and amp will energize you too.
And no give up!

 

[fclefgeoff]

I've been playing 25 years and make mistakes all the time. Part of being a good musician is being able to make a mistake and recover quickly. As far as making mistakes while playing Tool covers, unless your name is Justin Chancellor or you are playing in a Tool tribute band, I wouldn't sweat it too much.

 

[TheBassWizard1]

As far as my practice goes, I simply walk in my room plug in and start playing songs. I sometimes practice scales etc but not often

As soon as I read your original post, I figured this would've been the case. Knowing how and what to practice is very important in order to see any progress in your playing. If you don't have a method for practicing and you're not specifically working on the techniques that you're having a hard time with, then you'll never improve. I wouldn't call plugging in and playing songs practicing, but rather, jamming. That being said, you haven't really been "practicing", just jamming, which is why you haven't progressed.

It doesn't take long at all when you have a system and you're dedicated. I've taken students in your situation and gotten them to improve tremendously and make amazing breakthroughs in as little as a month. But if you're approaching practice in the wrong way and just trying to play songs, you'll end up running in circles for years on end and possibly developing bad habits on the instrument along the way. I've seen it many times and it's a very common problem amongst many self taught players.

 

[Ric5]

I've been playing almost 2 years now. I have no desire to be in a band, this is just a hobby.

I STILL make some of the very same mistakes on songs I learned when I first started playing. What's it take? I want to stop making the same mistakes. Does it really take this long to play songs perfectly? I feel like I am wasting my time practicing this crap every day.

I have been playing since 1968 and I still make mistakes. The key is to not let your mistakes ruin the song.

To get good you need to put in your 10,000 hours ... 10,000 Hours of Practice - WisdomGroup

 

[bking0217]

I've been playing for 20 years. I still have problems with basic stuff. What's easy for one player can be difficult for another.

 

[boristhespider9]

 

[z009]

two octave major, minor, harmonic minor, and melodic minor scales are really good for helping your technique... those have made me a lot faster and more accurate

 

[Toolmybass]

First album I played "by ear" no tabs

Me too!

 

[Ragoo]

Slow it down a lot. Play with a metronome. If it goes at 180 bpm, take it at 120. Then 132, then 126, then 138, then 132, then 144, etc, until full tempo. And if you can't get it clean at 120, keep going until you can. Get stuck? Wait an hour or a day and approach it a different way, with a different mindset. Reps, reps, reps, reps.

Basically, if you think you have it down, you probably don't. So keep going at it until you KNOW you have it down. Until you can't get it wrong.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

As far as my practice goes, I simply walk in my room plug in and start playing songs. I sometimes practice scales etc but not often

Bingo!
More time on scales and patterns. You should do 1/2 hour of exercises before you even think about a song, at least for now. Your brain is getting it, but the fingers don't understand. You have to train your fingers as if they were an athletic team and your brain is the coach.
And when you are learning songs, do...them...very...slowly and think about every note and how both hands are positioned in preparation for playing the note. Think about what note you played before and the one coming after it. That is to help you decide which fingering will be best for you.
Remember, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
When you are repeatedly making the same mistake, that means you have learned the part with the mistake in it and that is how you want to play it. You should really go back and relearn all your songs once you have gone through the very slow to slowly, to a little faster to full speed on the parts. It will be harder because now you have to unlearn each song so you can learn it correctly.
Good luck.
And join a band.

 

[T-MOST]

Everyone has their own learning curve and natural ability. The two combined (along with practice) will determine how well and how fast you learn. Some people learn very quickly and others have to work very hard and still learn slowly. All I can say is keep at it. Keep practicing.

 

[Ballin'bass]

When you keep making the same mistakes over and over on a piece is because you've trained your muscle memory to do the wrong thing and you must reprogram your brain to send your fingers different signals. The method my piano teacher taught me when I kept making the same mistakes was to keep slowing it down until I could play it without any mistakes. Do it over and over and over and over until I could start playing it correctly a little faster and a little faster. Then you've retrained your muscle memory and you can continue on.

 

[wisconsindead]

2. What is your motivation/reason for playing if not to perform?

One would think that a desire to express ones self through music would precede the desire to perform in front of people. But then again there is that American Idol thing

 

[Sixgunn]

One would think that a desire to express ones self through music would precede the desire to perform in front of people. But then again there is that American Idol thing

Troo dat. I love home recording and playing for the joy of playing but playing out is definitely my favorite!

 

[Ianhin]

Watch vdo s on utube with good bassists covering the songs ur struggling with. That s what i do. I ve been amazed many times on how much i m NOT doing compared to the original bass. Dont take much notice of guys overplaying though, or that ll REALLY freak u out!
I recently downloaded for eg Black Night by Deep Purple being covered by a guy called Jecks....he plays it PERFECTLY. Taught me a lot.
Also download AB repeat vdo and audio players (for android) and u can repeat just the section u struggling with...and slow it it down too.
It ll help big time.