One Direction...

[PeaveyPlayer]

8th grade punk you?
Lol
i feel like we are around the same age

Look it’s music
doesn’t matter if it’s birthed in an office or your couch you smoked pot on

It’s music feel it
Embrace it

Do you know what the hardest songs to play are? The easy ones
Because you get distracted, mind wanders and you wanna add things

To play with discipline takes work
Just play the song
Sometimes if you want work also
You gotta play what you don’t like

 

[Heiwa]

8th grade punk

This song is really REALLY close to pop punk

 

[Michedelic]

So I have to learn 'What Makes You Beautiful' by One Direction for an audition Saturday. I keep telling myself, 'sure, it's a soulless, corporate-birthed, focus-grouped, algorythmed, overproduced, lip-synced bit of slop designed to sell merch to tweens, but, in the end, it's just a song', but then 8th grade punk me appears and tries to punch me in the junk.

Any suggestions?

I’ve heard worse; cliche chord changes, used in a billion songs, but at least there are chord changes, crunchy guitars, and no gratuitous rapping. Are you going to have to play that as a regular part of the set?
I know where that beach is, haven’t been there in ages.

 

[Heiwa]

soulless, corporate-birthed, focus-grouped, algorythmed, overproduced, lip-synced

It's simple and fun, only three composers (whereas nowadays you see nine in pop songs), they were kids (it's okay), algorithms in 2011? YouTube was different back then, the production was great, they were good singers (you can see their auditions).

And I’m typing this as I listen The Mission UK and Strung Out. Not a fan of 1D..

 

[Ostie]

I know a guy who is a full-time GP. He taught me the “Hamburger Factor.” It goes like this: When the number of hamburgers that go into your mouth is directly related to the music that you play, the bar is lowered to the ground.

 

[Dincrest]

It's a fairly easy song on bass, for sure, but it's one of my favorites to play because whenever I do the entire room is up and jumping, dancing, etc. And that's what it's all about for me.

This year I've been learning "Golden" from K-Pop Demon Hunters (which is deceptively simple; not easy to play all those rapid-fire 6/8 triplets cleanly), and I know that one will be a crowd pleaser that will get the crowd jumping as well.

I love playing pop songs or rock/rock-ish versions of pop songs. I remember one time my old band (best described as Breaking Benjamin with a female singer) was playing on a bill with more metal/hardcore bands. Our opening song (despite being decently heavy) was not br00tal enough for the guys so many of them walked out while their girlfriends were sitting bored on their phones... then we broke out various pop covers and our poppier tunes, and the girlfriends were all bopping along with us. We were derisively called "girlfriend metal" that night, but we wore that moniker proudly because who doesn't want ladies in the crowd dancing at shows?

And lemme tell ya, "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction will get ALL the ladies out on the dance floor.

(I used to play in punk and metal bands, my favorite kind of music to listen to is metal, but my favorite to play on bass is pop because I'm a performer and love playing for an audience, and the audience, especially the ladies, love pop. Taylor Swift's bassist Amos Heller does some sick metal covers on his YouTube channel, but has the best gig in the world with the #1 pop singer. Britney Spears' guitarist at her Vegas residency started out playing shred metal, like most guitarists do, but enjoys a great gig playing pop. I would happily back a pop artist and rock his/her/their crowd every damn night!)

I'm actually pushing for our teacher band to play "What Makes You Beautiful" at the school talent show. We're kinda between that and "I'm A Believer" but I'd be WAAAAY more excited to play One Direction. The whole auditorium would be jumping and we'd attract more non-musician teachers to be up on stage with us.

 

[Winton]

So I have to learn 'What Makes You Beautiful' by One Direction for an audition Saturday. I keep telling myself, 'sure, it's a soulless, corporate-birthed, focus-grouped, algorythmed, overproduced, lip-synced bit of slop designed to sell merch to tweens, but, in the end, it's just a song', but then 8th grade punk me appears and tries to punch me in the junk.

Any suggestions?

You’re not in 8th grade anymore. Man up and play One Direction, lol.

 

[P. Aaron]

I sing Wagon Wheel at almost every gig. We all have our own little hells.

We do this too and everyone loves it. The phone rings and we pack up and go there and gig it again.

Just think, the pros that put Wagon Wheel together had to play it for likely no more than one day.

 

[P. Aaron]

We were derisively called "girlfriend metal" that night, but we wore that moniker proudly because who doesn't want ladies in the crowd dancing at shows?

Chick retention means dudes will suffer and stay 'cause dudes like to hang out where chicks are. THAT's what activates the cash register. Good job.

 

[Muttleybass]

So, you can play that to a hundred young girls screaming bouncing up and down for maybe some decent money, or you can play your favourite 8th grade prog/punk anthem to an empty dance floor and unimpressed crowd for nothing.

Perhaps this band isn't for you? Next you'll have to learn Justin Timberlake or Jonas Brothers. Nobody wants THAT! ...Except big money corporate bands... F'n sellouts.

 

[jsowers]

One of my favorite things about bass is that it guarantees you a seat at the table for virtually all genres and contexts of music. Even in ways that guitar can no longer provide. Every now and then, there is a monkey's paw moment, but the benefits still outrange the drawbacks, by far imo.

 

[J Wilson]

Living here in Nashville, I've gotten to know a few guys who do lots of sessions.

Among the obvious, specialised gifts/skills guys like that possess, one that is rarely ever mentioned:

They can play endless amounts of music they really don't care for personally, but they let it roll right off their back without a care in the world, and make it sound great and have fun doing it.

Not everyone is wired that way.

 

[Hot Rats]

We do this too and everyone loves it. The phone rings and we pack up and go there and gig it again.

Just think, the pros that put Wagon Wheel together had to play it for likely no more than one day.

Exactly. It always goes over well. Mustang Sally too.

 

[P. Aaron]

Living here in Nashville, I've gotten to know a few guys who do lots of sessions.

Among the obvious, specialised gifts/skills guys like that possess, one that is rarely ever mentioned:

They can play endless amounts of music they really don't care for personally, but they let it roll right off their back without a care in the world, and make it sound great and have fun doing it.

Not everyone is wired that way.

I'd like to have a Nashville vacation where I could just sit in a corner and watch the studio guys bang out tunes for a week. I'm really curious as to their method(s) of focus and the creative processes that happen.

 

[pbass2]

I’ve heard worse; cliche chord changes, used in a billion songs, but at least there are chord changes...

+1. Most modern rock and pop has no actual songwriting in it. No thoughtful changes, no bridges, no harmonic movement of any significance, no arc to the damn thing. I'll take older poppy drivel that at least has some song craft over the modern stuff that's just the same 3-4 chords just going around and around, getting a little louder in the chorus and that's the extent of it.

 

[J Wilson]

I'd like to have a Nashville vacation where I could just sit in a corner and watch the studio guys bang out tunes for a week. I'm really curious as to their method(s) of focus and the creative processes that happen.

I can tell you this: If there's a 'This Week's Top Country Countdown' on your radio (or you can just listen to any of the current country stations in your area, they're all programmed by the same consultants!), you'll see:

. . . Of course, a lot of them sound a lot alike. This is partly playing to whatever's the deal right now, and it's usually the same rotating batch of players and producers.

. . . And since they work together a LOT, things can go pretty quickly, since the records sound so similar because they all work together a lot, things can go pretty quickly, since the records sound so simil . . . . . you see where this is going.

. . . And while there are still the big label master sessions with everyone in the room and the booths at the same time, a lot of it is now done directly from home over internet sync-ups. Probably half or more of the commercial studios here, like a lot of places, have closed and yielded to smaller (cheaper) rooms. The technology has allowed this to where the big rooms, massive consoles, reverb chambers, all of this is now not nearly as common.

 

[Michedelic]

+1. Most modern rock and pop has no actual songwriting in it. No thoughtful changes, no bridges, no harmonic movement of any significance, no arc to the damn thing. I'll take older poppy drivel that at least has some song craft over the modern stuff that's just the same 3-4 chords just going around and around, getting a little louder in the chorus and that's the extent of it.

The thing is, that’s got several chord cycles from a long time ago…the verse is the classic 1/4/5 as heard in, for example, “Hang On Sloopy”, then at some point I briefly hear the chorus chords to “More Than A Feeling”.
Here, man up and listen up…

 

[pbass2]

Living here in Nashville, I've gotten to know a few guys who do lots of sessions.

Among the obvious, specialised gifts/skills guys like that possess, one that is rarely ever mentioned:

They can play endless amounts of music they really don't care for personally, but they let it roll right off their back without a care in the world, and make it sound great and have fun doing it.

Not everyone is wired that way.

I gig and record for a living and I can't think of a session I would turn down because of something like genre, or even material that is meh, or an artist/client that is amateur. It's all work. You get something different out of each scenario. I've done some lately that are those vanity projects where the client is an amateur and they want to spend a boatload of $ to go into a big-time pro studio with pro session cats. Did a couple where the poor guy could barely sing, the songs were barely even sketches on cocktail napkins when we started. But between the producer and the players, we made the music sound great, and got vocals down that are somewhat passable. Satisfying on a different level. The only real downside is I wouldn't use it for my own self-promotion 'cause of the vocals.

 

[DCErik]

So, you can play that to a hundred young girls screaming bouncing up and down for maybe some decent money, or you can play your favourite 8th grade prog/punk anthem to an empty dance floor and unimpressed crowd for nothing.

Perhaps this band isn't for you? Next you'll have to learn Justin Timberlake or Jonas Brothers. Nobody wants THAT! ...Except big money corporate bands... F'n sellouts.

They do say the best way to ruin a pursuit you love is to go pro.

 

[dfp]

Suggestions? Post a video here of yourself slaying the bass part at the audition later this weekend. Just a suggestion!