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Metal bass, I really don't understand the fun.

#63
A lot of bass guitarists really get stuck on the whole "i want to stand out" thing around here.

Sometimes to me, it can be fun to play along to a fat metal riff and make it even fatter sounding. Some riffs just need that and the bass guitar does a good job of it.

If you want to have more fun and make yourself stand out then....do it? Add your own bass lines, leads, melodies. Just remember that it may not sound that great to the rest of the world...
 
#64
Epitaph04 said:
A lot of bass guitarists really get stuck on the whole "i want to stand out" thing around here.
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Not many bands pay enough for us to simply sit down and shut up. ;)

I think there's a nice healty balance of playing something that is unique, challenging to play, and still fits within the confines of a given song.



This isn't the most brilliant song of all time and the bass parts aren't blisteringly difficult, but they're pretty darn cool if you listen.
 
#65
For me I could be playing the simplest root bassline line possible through a whole song and I will still enjoy it in metal as long as it makes the song as a whole sound good. I have a lot of simple parts in my new metal/hard rock band and I have alot of more complicated parts, but either way I love playing it because I just enjoy making music. That feeling when a song comes together weither it being a difficult or simple piece is an amazing feeling.

It is the same when I play old school country. Straight root fifth jumping the whole time with a variation every once in awhile, but I loved every second of it. The music just spoke to me no matter what I was playing.
 
#66
nickrs540 said:
For me I could be playing the simplest root bassline line possible through a whole song and I will still enjoy it in metal as long as it makes the song as a whole sound good. I have a lot of simple parts in my new metal/hard rock band and I have alot of more complicated parts, but either way I love playing it because I just enjoy making music. That feeling when a song comes together weither it being a difficult or simple piece is an amazing feeling.

It is the same when I play old school country. Straight root fifth jumping the whole time with a variation every once in awhile, but I loved every second of it. The music just spoke to me no matter what I was playing.
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Yeah, it's funny how people on here talk about "serving the song", but when it comes to certain genres it's suddenly the wrong thing to do.
 
#70
Some guitarists are spotlight-addicted, thin-skinned wankers who can't stand someone else maybe being heard over (or under) them. You generally don't to be in a band with them.

Some aren't. They are more fun, to varying degrees. For example...

 
#71
I enjoy playing in metal bands for the whole experience, not the bass playing brilliance (though obviously in many songs this exists)

There's a primal sort of energy to a good metal band that just doesn't exist in other genres.

It being a part of the experience, not a stand out that's important to me in metal
 
#72
dozicusmaximus said:
Seriously if you don't enjoy the music and are standing there looking bored nobody watching is really going to enjoy it.
That's one thing that sucks about technical metal. They all stand there and stare at their instruments. The ability to do such things is awesome but can be dull to watch sometimes.
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Another stereotype. Not all stand around.
Go see Dillinger Escape Plan. Pleanty more do not stand around. I have seen more jazz bassists stand around then technical metal players.

Metal is like a lot of genres, you need to take time and listen. Sometimes it sounds like a buch of distorted noise but if fact could be realy interesting music, on speed.
 
#75
KingCrimson said:
So I recently joined one of my best friends metal band, and they seem to be gaining a good following in my city (for a metal band).

I've played in a metal band before for 3 years but thats all my experience. For 3 years i also went to school for music as well learning about jazz and its in these years that I really gained a fondness of playing stuff like funk and jazz.

Getting to the point I really don't understand how bassists have any fun playing metal anymore, its the most bass line dry genre I've heard, a lot of it is just fast riffage or galloping over the root notes, not much pocket playing or groove.

And yes you can give me the examples Death, Iron Maiden, early 80s metallica, black sabbath, obscrura, necrophagist etc... But these bands are only a handful in the sea of "follow the guitar" bassists in the genre.

Seriously for the most part bass is just a lower guitar without leads in metal. I guess thats fine to have but how does anyone have fun doing that? There is nothing creative to it.

In funk, jazz, classical, pop and even rock there is space for separate and groovy bass lines. I hear more interesting bass in the beatles and the rolling stones than in most modern metal songs.

And there is the odd time bass plays something a bit interesting but i almost see it as the drummer and guitarists taking all this space and leaving some scraps of attention to the bass player.

Guitarists in metal can play melodic leads, and solo every song but when the bass tries to pull of the same its called "overplaying".

I tried playing melodically, to play how I feel... then i was told to shut up.


Metal ****ing sucks.
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If playing bass in a metal band is boring, that's all on you. It's up to you to make it interesting or not. If your bass lines suck, that's not anyone's fault but your own.

If you can't make interesting, fun bass lines in a metal band, maybe the problem is you, not the genre. If you want fun, exciting bass lines, nobody's stopping you, and if they are, find a different band. If you can't find a way to make an interesting bass part, then maybe you're not as good a bassist as you think you are.
 
#76
KingCrimson said:
Seriously for the most part bass is just a lower guitar without leads in metal. I guess thats fine to have but how does anyone have fun doing that? There is nothing creative to it.
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There's nothing creative about it if the guitarist writes all the riffs, and you just copy him an octave down, which seems to be the way it's working for you, but it's not that way for everyone else, and not how it needs to be for you.

The guitatist doesn't have to do all the writing. In many bands, where the guitar and bass are riffing together the guitarist is just playing a higher version of the bass line, and the bassist was the creative force.

A guitarist once told me he didn't think much of Jack Bruce's playing, because on Sunshine of Your Love he just doubles the guitar. He was pretty put out when i told him Jack Bruce wrote the bass line first, and Clapton was the one doing the doubling : )

So for me, i'd suggest that the issue isn't genre or style, it's the fact you feel the need to be a creative force, and that need isn't being met in this band.
 
#77
Make yourself a bigger part of the writing. I'm normally a funk jazz or rock kind of guy as well but I've started a metal/prog rock band and it is seriously keeping me on my toes. I actually have to practice my own parts!

I don't know what the band dynamic is like either but for us we've got 2 guitars and the me on bass and they are all doing cool stuff in relation to each other, it is never boring putting everything together
 
#80
bolophonic said:
Actually, if I recall, it devolved into you completely losing your mind when someone criticized your band. But here you are, lending your opinion in another thread about the same genre of music that you still probably don't understand.
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The thing with metal heads is that they are unashamed know-it-alls and generally take one or two steps too far. I didn't think Metallica had the best bass mastering in the world. He listened to ONE track and took some undue pot shots that may have violated some posted TB rules. So, feel free to say that my music sucks if you disagree with my opinions. I dare ya.

FWIW, for people claiming to be the most open minded musicians on the planet, that wasn't very open minded, eh? Anyone who doesn't "understand" metal is somehow inferior or a troll. Does this sound about right?

Somehow every metal musician playing dropped C (or lower) chug chug riffs thinks they're the most sophisticated band on the planet.
 

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