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Rock bands with no bassists

#61
Bands I like without bass players;

Jon Spencers Blues Explosion
The Doors (although, some of their best recordings had a bass player on them)
Soulive
Bigger than a Breaddbox
The Black Keys


Albeit, all of these acts play bass lines via other methods......Keys and Foot pedals being the most common, whacked out guitar tuning and effects being a part of it as well
 
#63
chungweishan said:
I've been thinking about this for a long time. We've been limiting ourselves on expectations and preferences within certain styles of music, then ridicule anything that tries to be different.

Most of the time bands are made up by pure coincidence of networking. The sound is limited by talent and/or choice of instrumentation not creativity. People get used to that certain sound, and believe that's the only way to do it. It becomes a style. Then it becomes a requirement. It's only until someone willing to be creative, and popular, do people realize they can do something different and still be within a recognized genre.

Even within our own discipline of bass guitar, we are prejudiced by gear and technique.

Some folks cite The Doors. Sure, they initially didn't have a bassist, they rocked, they became popular. Eventually, they decided they needed to conform to the standards of having a true bass guitarist.

The Presidents of the United States, they rocked. They didn't have a true bass-guitar, just modified guitars while one player was delegated to "bass lines."

The White Stripes would play without a bass-guitarist. Most likely bass playing in studio recordings (beats me, I don't listen to them), but I've seen live videos with just the two playing and they do that rock and the roll.

It makes me wonder how should I define "rock." The musical end-result? Or the specific instrumentation used to make it? Certainly if I want to mimic a previously done sound, it helps to mimic the instrumentation. I do realize "rock" incorporates a lot of styles, genres, sub-genres... whatever. My current definition of what rocks can be entirely different from another person's.

Technologically, we have things that can mimic a bass guitar. Not perfectly, but just enough so an audience will hear what most modern music uses: low rhythmic harmonies. I just refuse to believe a genre can only be acceptable by incorporating an amplified plucked (or picked) thick metal string.

Fortunately, most people don't think like I do, so I retain my bassist job.
Click to expand...

Brilliantly written. :thumbsup:
 
#66
A) Bands without bass players bite!
B) Everytime I saw Roxy Music, mostly in the 80s thru 2000s they had a bassist.
C) There's a big hole in the sound of both the Black Keys and the White Stripes, except the Keys drummer can actually play!
Ok, let the haters begin.
 
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#69
I have a theory that with modern PAs bands don't need bassists to fill out the low end anymore. Guitars and kick can make all the lows you'll need. Therefore, bands need bassists to keep from looking like losers who couldn't convince a bassist to play with them.
 
#73
lfmn16 said:
Yes, I found a lot of other sources on the internet that said the same thing. I guess they are all wrong. ;)

Proving once again that there is no point that can't get argued about and debated on TB. I guess I'll continue to use them as an example and you can continue to say they aren't.
Click to expand...

John Densmore, the drummer of the doors, says in his own biography that by the second album they used a bassist on every track.

Yes, the internet is wrong compared to the guy in the studio that played on the albums. Sorry.

Also, here's the internet clearly being RIGHT about that fact:

Who played bass for The Doors? | Yahoo Answers

"On their studio albums (with the notable exception of their eponymous first record), The Doors did, however, use bass players, such as Jerry Scheff, Doug Lubahn (who also played with Clear Light), Harvey Brooks, Kerry Magness, Lonnie Mack, Larry Knechtel, Leroy Vinnegar, and Ray Neapolitan."

Who played bass guitar for The Doors both on stages and in studios? | Yahoo Answers

"Strange Days and the next two albums, were recorded with studio musician, Douglass Lubahn, on bass. They used a bass player for all of their studio albums. Door's keyboardist Ray Manzarek felt that his keyboard bass was better for live situations, and "live" bass was better suited for studio recording. They often used more than one bassist on the same album. Other bass players with whom the doors worked are Kerry Magness, Leroy Vinnegar, Harvey Brooks, Ray Neopolitan, Lonnie Mack and Jerry Scheff."

Weird that you're arguing something that I've known as fact since the 9th grade. Clearly you have not read a single printed biography on the band.

Odd since I do see you calling people out for "speaking without real experience".

Always assumed the rumor about Manzarek using keyboard bass only was clearly understood to be a rumor. I guess you didn't get the memo.
 
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#75
For all it's worth, I am a one man band without a bass player. At least not a real bass. I split my guitar signal four times. It comes out two guitars, one organ, and one bass. Drum machine, but no backing tracks.......ever. Got tired of all the BS. For now anyway. At least I play guitar like a bass; I don't play bass like a guitar. I don't add lead guitar because as a bass player, I realize you can do without lead guitar, but you can't do without the bass. It doesn't really bother me that some people look down on me for doing it this way. I can actually put out a good danceable tone. It is a lot more work to do it my way than someone might think. It took me over 5 years to learn to play guitar this way.

On the other hand, I am also a bass player waiting for a competent guitarist to come along. May never happen in my lifetime. I would be so content playing bass in a "real" band.
 
#76
17minslater.jpg


:oops:
 
#77
A buddy of mine distributed the "Athens Georgia" film, back in the day. A very cool film well worth checking out, which focused on the Athens scene that gave us REM, The B52's, and other great bands ... including the Flat Duo Jets! I defy anyone to say they don't play rock 'n' roll!



No bass, just drums and guitar, but they be rockin'. Of course the bass is not a necessity for rock. Though it does generally help to have a bass player, no doubt about that.
 
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#78
Spirit of Ox said:
The Frogs. i can't believe nobody mentioned them.
Click to expand...
SLightly off topic: I would like to add that the two times I've seen the Frogs, they did have a guy on bass. The shows were pure, beautiful chaos, but the Frogs could play the hell out of their instruments. One show ended when an audience member came on stage and sang 'Brown Sugar' with them, unplanned, and the second ended when a drunk woman heckled them so much they finally just called it quits, after about 20 minutes of brilliant onstage insanity.
 
#80
Another bassless band that hasn't been mentioned yet (unless my eyesight is going) are The Kills. They also don't have a drummer. Lineup is vocals/guitar/drum machine. I like their groove, but every time I listen to them I just feel like it's missing something. To me, every track sounds like an intro that's building up and I expect a bass to kick in at the first chorus or the first verse, or even the bridge, but it never comes and I'm always left feeling cheated.
 

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