Hello fellow bass players,
I saw some posts on this website that often label our funky monk as an overrated player, so i just thought It would be nice to tell you my opinion, and i hope you'll also let me know yours without any trouble
What i found Is that people tell he Is overrated because of three main factors for the most part:
1)His technique
2)His tone
3)His lack of technicality
1) Starting off with the technique, i see the point people try to make: he uses a really heavy finger style Attack and also he slaps with his thumb pointing downwards (while also beating that bass pretty damn hard).
Both of these techniques are not exactly "correct" because they give the player a series of disadvantages, in fact, by attacking hard the bass you might get tired quickly and you might also limit your Speed and accuracy, while with downthumb slapping you are likely to be less accurate and you can't do any Francy double thumb.
However, flea's use of these "wrong" Styles of playing does't come out of ignorance, but personal choice, because of comfort, of what music he plays and mostly because of tone choices, which i'll talk about now.
2) Flea's tone, because of his playing, Is notoriously very growly, raspy and aggressive (as i'd like to define It) and the examples of this in RHCP are countless
Surely not the classic bass tone we all have in mind
But (to my ears atleast) if you take flea's tone in a live situation It sounds perfectly fine in the context. here's the same song but live, with the entire band
That's because his aggressive tone Is functional for a high energy band such as RHCP, which Is the reason why One might love or hate the chili peppers!
It's ultimately a matter of tastes, but what Is undeniable Is that his tone works.
However Flea Is no one-trick pony, he Is capable of adapting Is tone to the context creating very melodic and emotionally driving lines
And can also adapt to match another artist's work
And finally i'll cover what i think Is the main point of the criticism.
3) What Is interesting about this point Is that i agree with It.
Flea can't be considered a very technical player. Sure, he Is fast and knows how to play his instrument well but his Lines are mainly based on pentatonic scales and do not get as intricate as let's Say Jaco's or Wooten's, you name It.
However, Flea simply doesn't need to be technical, the music that he plays Is vastly popular, and popular music doesn't have to be technical in order to be good and nice to listen (and music in general also to my tastes, but that Is another story).
I mean, non-musicians do not understand what lies behind the creation of music and usually do not enjoy overly-complicated stuff, they Just want something easily dancable and singable for the most part.
And to add one more thing, he surely knows how to be technical, in fact, few people say the whole truth : Flea Is not an ignorant with only raw talent and great intuition , he, has in fact attended music lessons at the University of Southern California!
Q&A: Flea on New Chili Peppers Album - SPIN
I think that Is enough, i'll be waiting for your opinions, just remember to share politely and with respect if you wish to.
I saw some posts on this website that often label our funky monk as an overrated player, so i just thought It would be nice to tell you my opinion, and i hope you'll also let me know yours without any trouble
What i found Is that people tell he Is overrated because of three main factors for the most part:
1)His technique
2)His tone
3)His lack of technicality
1) Starting off with the technique, i see the point people try to make: he uses a really heavy finger style Attack and also he slaps with his thumb pointing downwards (while also beating that bass pretty damn hard).
Both of these techniques are not exactly "correct" because they give the player a series of disadvantages, in fact, by attacking hard the bass you might get tired quickly and you might also limit your Speed and accuracy, while with downthumb slapping you are likely to be less accurate and you can't do any Francy double thumb.
However, flea's use of these "wrong" Styles of playing does't come out of ignorance, but personal choice, because of comfort, of what music he plays and mostly because of tone choices, which i'll talk about now.
2) Flea's tone, because of his playing, Is notoriously very growly, raspy and aggressive (as i'd like to define It) and the examples of this in RHCP are countless
Surely not the classic bass tone we all have in mind
But (to my ears atleast) if you take flea's tone in a live situation It sounds perfectly fine in the context. here's the same song but live, with the entire band
That's because his aggressive tone Is functional for a high energy band such as RHCP, which Is the reason why One might love or hate the chili peppers!
It's ultimately a matter of tastes, but what Is undeniable Is that his tone works.However Flea Is no one-trick pony, he Is capable of adapting Is tone to the context creating very melodic and emotionally driving lines
And can also adapt to match another artist's work
And finally i'll cover what i think Is the main point of the criticism.
3) What Is interesting about this point Is that i agree with It.
Flea can't be considered a very technical player. Sure, he Is fast and knows how to play his instrument well but his Lines are mainly based on pentatonic scales and do not get as intricate as let's Say Jaco's or Wooten's, you name It.
However, Flea simply doesn't need to be technical, the music that he plays Is vastly popular, and popular music doesn't have to be technical in order to be good and nice to listen (and music in general also to my tastes, but that Is another story).
I mean, non-musicians do not understand what lies behind the creation of music and usually do not enjoy overly-complicated stuff, they Just want something easily dancable and singable for the most part.
And to add one more thing, he surely knows how to be technical, in fact, few people say the whole truth : Flea Is not an ignorant with only raw talent and great intuition , he, has in fact attended music lessons at the University of Southern California!
Q&A: Flea on New Chili Peppers Album - SPIN
I think that Is enough, i'll be waiting for your opinions, just remember to share politely and with respect if you wish to.
I hadn't played regularly in years at that time but we still vibe it out. Cyberspace is full people smack talking about how some popular extremely talented musician sucks...... I've seen dudes slam Hendrix, EVH, SRV,.Wes Montgomery jealousy is a Bit.......
