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Repetitive lines that repeat repetitiously
- Thread starter larrysb
- Start date
I've found that learning to engage the audience has made it easier to stay in tune to songs I might not otherwise be into. Dance a little, make occasional (but not creepy) eye contact, and really force yourself into the same groove they're in and it becomes a sharing experience.
This works for me, anyway.
This works for me, anyway.
'Suicide Blonde' by Inxs.
Intro, verses, chorus, breakdown, outro,...all the same. You just keep doing it lol
Good point...
Repetitive bass lines can be fun and I enjoy playing them if there is a good solid groove going with the drummer. The problem is finding a drummer that can groove like that. The majority I've run into cannot.
Sometimes its not about us and what we actually want to play, and more about laying down a solid foundation so that other people in the band can sound great, and so that people dancing can lock into a groove.
I've said it before:
boredom is a symptom of not listening or paying enough attention to the music / performance.
In a live performance there is no shortage of things that will benefit from your attention and improve the performance.
Strive to find them.
boredom is a symptom of not listening or paying enough attention to the music / performance.
In a live performance there is no shortage of things that will benefit from your attention and improve the performance.
Strive to find them.
I would place an ad in a local paper saying,
"I'm a good bass player but I don't play the riff-based and repetitive bass-lines.
Please don't offer me any gigs if it involves playing repetitive bass lines".
I don't play the following type of music - the bass line is too repetitive.
The following track is also full of repetitious bass-line patterns.
But...
I can play the following kind of music.
(Plus, any kind of Phil Lesh songs
)
"I'm a good bass player but I don't play the riff-based and repetitive bass-lines.
Please don't offer me any gigs if it involves playing repetitive bass lines".
I don't play the following type of music - the bass line is too repetitive.
The following track is also full of repetitious bass-line patterns.
But...
I can play the following kind of music.
(Plus, any kind of Phil Lesh songs
)
There’s a reason people I play with used to call me the unstoppable bass monolith.Till they wake you up and tell you it's 4 am and everyone's gone home
Groove Master
Commercial User
- Apr 22, 2011
- 1,808
- 1,291
- Disclosures
- Author of Groove 101, Slap 101 and Technique 101
There is more than just notes you know.
How about you learn how to play the chorus with a little bit more energy, change a bit the note values, change the phrasing and accents where you attack the strings and so on.. These are subtle but in every basslines.
You've got to learn how to bring dynamics, time shifts and musicality in what you play even if it is the same thing over and over because the songs have sections, build-ups and releases..
Hope this helps
I'm not sure if this post is a positive one or not, but every time we come across a song that actually does exactly that and that is to repeat, I'm reminded of an interview I once read featuring Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel) where the interviewer asked him, "why do you like playing bass?" And Tony's reply was:
"Because I like playing the same thing over and over again."
Poetic irony I guess......
"Because I like playing the same thing over and over again."
Poetic irony I guess......
AAAhhhhchhhh! this is probably my WORST weakness!!! keeping track of overly repetative parts!
ughhh!it brings back so many painful memories! I was in a band with a terrible drummer who could not play a shuffle for the life of him!! & he refused to believe he was at fault! he played lit ike a polka beat(ompah!,ompah!)sheerRHthym madness!! try playing the roadhouse blues over a polka beat!!
One trick that ifigured out was to do something a "little different" every measureor so, like play the octave, or a Simple little Lick to signify "thats 2 or 4 or 16, 32! it helped me keep track of where i was in a super repetative song!
I agree having a good drummer would've really helped! as Ive said I had to buckle up, figure it out & rely on my self not on some delusional band mate! I was forced to concentrate ,but it made me much better & really helped my timing/groove! Just think a really bad drummer helped my playing! how Ironic! I must admit I cheated a little by getting a drum machine to nail(ingrain)a shuffle into my dna!GL!!
PONDEROUS! Great word & usage! I have a friend who chronically misuses the term! He decribes people as ponderous took me a while to figure out what he was saying! LOL!
Every one of your sentences ends with an exclamation mark! I don't know why! You must be excited! Maybe you had too much caffeine! Please stop!
I sort of made light of it, but the real question is getting in the right mindset to tightly play a repetitive line.
This particular song comes to mind, because the line is the absolute foundation of the song. That repetitive, hypnotic foundation is what makes it recognizable. As soon as the thunder samples get played and the bass starts, pretty much everyone recognizes it. Step away from it intentionally or accidentally, and it is almost guaranteed to turn into a turd in a punchbowl.
The vocal parts have some chord changes and something to musically connect with. The keyboard solo does as well, but it goes on a tonal exploration which is cool. But as the bassist, you are the foundation and need to lay that line down as straight as possible while the rest of the band is reaching. Even the drums during the instrumental portions tend to explore a bit.
It gets even more out there during the guitar solo. Unfortunately, if you're in a band situation and the guitar player(s) are wont to 'explore' (one might call it noodle) endlessly on multi-verse long solos, thats where it gets too hard for me. It would be best to just loop it, because I'm just human, not a sequencer.
I know there are players who can become sequencers and lay it down perfectly even surrounded with non-melodic noodling. My hat's off to them. I don't know how to do that.
This particular song comes to mind, because the line is the absolute foundation of the song. That repetitive, hypnotic foundation is what makes it recognizable. As soon as the thunder samples get played and the bass starts, pretty much everyone recognizes it. Step away from it intentionally or accidentally, and it is almost guaranteed to turn into a turd in a punchbowl.
The vocal parts have some chord changes and something to musically connect with. The keyboard solo does as well, but it goes on a tonal exploration which is cool. But as the bassist, you are the foundation and need to lay that line down as straight as possible while the rest of the band is reaching. Even the drums during the instrumental portions tend to explore a bit.
It gets even more out there during the guitar solo. Unfortunately, if you're in a band situation and the guitar player(s) are wont to 'explore' (one might call it noodle) endlessly on multi-verse long solos, thats where it gets too hard for me. It would be best to just loop it, because I'm just human, not a sequencer.
I know there are players who can become sequencers and lay it down perfectly even surrounded with non-melodic noodling. My hat's off to them. I don't know how to do that.
We are creatures of repetition, are we not? Since the first hollow log was struck, the first skin was stretched. And then a taut string plucked, tone was found, and it has been stirring us ever since. Calming, exciting, mesmerizing and entrancing people ever since, it's in our psyche. The base of music, if you will, pun intended. There's noting wrong with repetition, in it's place.
Hey, if my writing (it's how I make my living, such as it is) elicits that kind of response, I'm a happy camper.
It honestly depends upon the song and the bassline. Repetitive isn't bad if the song is good, and ostinato is a worthy tool.
Take anything by Michael Jackson. That stuff grooves, is fun to listen to (whether you're playing or not), and fun to play.
Take Green Grass and High Tides by The Outlaws. That's an awesome song with awesome parts all around - fun to listen to, fun to play. The bass line is repetitive during all the solos but the entire thing is just awesome.
Take a lot of funk and motown lines. There's enough going on all around that the music is actually good. (In fact, in these styles, many of the instruments are doing ostinato stuff - we're all in the same boat.)
Now, on the other hand....
Take something like Zappa's Watermelon in Easter Hay. Guitarists and Zappa enthusiasts love to get hot and bothered about that one, but if you aren't a guitar player it's just not really that interesting. There's little groove and little interest. Playing bass to that song made me want to die. (Contrast with George Benson - Affirmation or Breezin'. Not even in the same category in my opinion.)
Take something like Down with the Sickness by Disturbed. It's repetitive, and not actually a bore to play in parts, but it's not really interesting to listen to.
Riders on the Storm - the song referenced by the OP - I do like the song, but it definitely keeps going, and going, and going. I'd rather listen to it than play through it.
Some people say that you should listen to the folks around you, and that's not false. But repetition can be painful if the end product isn't worth it, and I think that's what happens in some of these cases. I definitely find it easier to stick to a groove when the music is not just solid, but musically interesting - meaning harmony, melody, rhythm, and syncopation. If I don't feel like I'm getting that, I definitely start to get antsy because I want to introduce something that makes the music better - introducing new harmony, a counterpoint, a new melody (perhaps via a fill or something), some syncopation (perhaps by dropping a beat or moving a beat, or changing the accent, or changing the groove entirely).
It's also worth noting that listening to a single instrument solo for an extended period of time comes with diminishing returns. It's why I don't like Watermelon in Easter Hay and other songs of that ilk; I'd rather listen to musicians trading fours, or executing some type of unison line that transitions into a different section, or something like that. (Bands like The Outlaws, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, and the Allman brothers are good examples of this - there's great guitar over music that is rhythmically and harmonically interesting so the entire thing is elevated, not just solo guitar over something boring. George Benson also did this incredibly well - listen to him.) "Guitar wankfest" is a real thing and let's just be honest; it sucks. Being a simple backing track for a wank guitar player makes me want to die.
I guess what I'm saying is I don't get bored because of repetition - I get bored because the music is uninspiring. While some music doesn't suffer from repetition, a lot of music does, and it leaves us wanting more. If I'm listening to what we're doing and I'm not liking it, then there's a good chance I'll want to change it.
Fight me.
Take anything by Michael Jackson. That stuff grooves, is fun to listen to (whether you're playing or not), and fun to play.
Take Green Grass and High Tides by The Outlaws. That's an awesome song with awesome parts all around - fun to listen to, fun to play. The bass line is repetitive during all the solos but the entire thing is just awesome.
Take a lot of funk and motown lines. There's enough going on all around that the music is actually good. (In fact, in these styles, many of the instruments are doing ostinato stuff - we're all in the same boat.)
Now, on the other hand....
Take something like Zappa's Watermelon in Easter Hay. Guitarists and Zappa enthusiasts love to get hot and bothered about that one, but if you aren't a guitar player it's just not really that interesting. There's little groove and little interest. Playing bass to that song made me want to die. (Contrast with George Benson - Affirmation or Breezin'. Not even in the same category in my opinion.)
Take something like Down with the Sickness by Disturbed. It's repetitive, and not actually a bore to play in parts, but it's not really interesting to listen to.
Riders on the Storm - the song referenced by the OP - I do like the song, but it definitely keeps going, and going, and going. I'd rather listen to it than play through it.
Some people say that you should listen to the folks around you, and that's not false. But repetition can be painful if the end product isn't worth it, and I think that's what happens in some of these cases. I definitely find it easier to stick to a groove when the music is not just solid, but musically interesting - meaning harmony, melody, rhythm, and syncopation. If I don't feel like I'm getting that, I definitely start to get antsy because I want to introduce something that makes the music better - introducing new harmony, a counterpoint, a new melody (perhaps via a fill or something), some syncopation (perhaps by dropping a beat or moving a beat, or changing the accent, or changing the groove entirely).
It's also worth noting that listening to a single instrument solo for an extended period of time comes with diminishing returns. It's why I don't like Watermelon in Easter Hay and other songs of that ilk; I'd rather listen to musicians trading fours, or executing some type of unison line that transitions into a different section, or something like that. (Bands like The Outlaws, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, and the Allman brothers are good examples of this - there's great guitar over music that is rhythmically and harmonically interesting so the entire thing is elevated, not just solo guitar over something boring. George Benson also did this incredibly well - listen to him.) "Guitar wankfest" is a real thing and let's just be honest; it sucks. Being a simple backing track for a wank guitar player makes me want to die.
I guess what I'm saying is I don't get bored because of repetition - I get bored because the music is uninspiring. While some music doesn't suffer from repetition, a lot of music does, and it leaves us wanting more. If I'm listening to what we're doing and I'm not liking it, then there's a good chance I'll want to change it.
Fight me.
I forgot - Stratus is a great song, but I raise you this live version, which takes some liberties with the bassline (in my opinion, for the better). (It's unfortunate that the guitar part isn't as good as the original.)
