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So, I took some time away from bass...

bigjames

bigjames

Player of Smooth Lines
Jan 25, 2005
1,235
1,681
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Metro Vancouver, Canada
www.imdb.com
#1
Hey all,

As I was getting ready for work this morning I found myself humming / singing a bassline (specifically, "just the two of us"). I was enjoying some riffs I was coming up with in my head so I paused my morning routine, grabbed a bass off the wall, and played around with it a bit. I was rusty, but my fingers came to me...and I realized, I have not played any of my basses in a serious way since Nov 2022 when my most recent project dried up.

I think I have picked a bass up maybe 6 times in the last year to noodle for a few minutes, but nothing close to formal practice or meaningful playing. I just wasn't inspired. That said, something has been "missing" in my life and maybe this is what it is?

Perhaps some time off was what I needed...I am feeling a little excited to get some time in this weekend to play properly. I am hopeful this feeling stays with me. I have been playing bass now for 30 years and in the last 10 years I have acquired some really nice gear. Would be good to put it to use and get that creative outlet back; maybe write another song. We shall see.

That is all. Just random sharing.

Merry Christmas to all,

BigJ
 
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#5
I feel you. I haven't picked up the bass for maybe half a year either for serious practice or recreational playing.

I've still attended band rehearsals three times a week (different bands), but it has felt more like going through the motions because the material does not require much brain power. It's either 'just play the dots' or simple stuff you can either improvise over or play from muscle memory.

At least it keeps the joints warm, but I can still feel some rust accumulating. Maybe all the concerts starting January will kick my butt in gear again.
 
#6
I gotta ask... if you guys aren't playing, do you still hang around TB? If I'm not playing -- even at least by myself, writing, recording -- I don't even check-in. And if I am playing, I'm on TB when I'm not physically playing. Been that way since 2006.
 
#7
I didn’t touch my bass for 4 years. Interesting circumstances. However, my body has been changing and healing from childhood stress/trauma. Basically a lot of my muscles were stuck tight and tensed, and playing bass was hard work. I used to get “acid hands” where I’d kill a new set of strings in no time.

anyway, I’m slowly getting back into it and I can play with SO much more ease now. It’s exciting, and despite not playing for so long, I still listened to music and I can solo in my head so I’ve improved as a musician while not even touching my instrument lol

so yeah, a break can be a great thing!
 
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#9
davedamage said:
I gotta ask... if you guys aren't playing, do you still hang around TB? If I'm not playing -- even at least by myself, writing, recording -- I don't even check-in. And if I am playing, I'm on TB when I'm not physically playing. Been that way since 2006.
Click to expand...

I have actually been MORE active on TB in the last year while I have not been playing. Still like checking in and my favourite posts are the "ID this bass" or "ID these strings"...like Bass CSI.
 
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#10
In the interest of motivating myself, I stopped in at my local Long and McQuade today and had some fun. Tried three basses today for fun. Note that my threshold for basses is skewed now due to my two "boutique" basses (Sadowsky and Fbass), but I was pleasantly surprised today to find three basses that were both affordable and a lot of fun to play. Only took pic of the first one...

1. ESP LTD 6 string (USED): this one was fun to play and priced at $499 CAD for Boxing Week. At first glance, it looked great, but as I had it in my hands to play it I noticed where the build quality is low, especially with the tuners; they were not installed aligned and one of them was turning (de-tuning) on its own. The bridge had some space under where the body contoured.

IMG_20231229_120643.jpg


2. Ibanez Soundgear 6 string (NEW): this bass was surprisingly fun to play around with and was priced at $1300 CAD. The first 7 frets on all strings sounded tight and clean. Sounded like it would cut nicely through a mix. Focused sound, strong attack, nice string tension. It lost some clarity as you moved up the neck on the lowest strings, but the C string absolutely sang.

3. Ibanez Multiscale 5 string (NEW): this was a fun one as well. I didn't look at the price tag though (LOL). The B string felt great (37" scale) and the top end was really nice. The fanned frets take some getting used to, but it only took a few mins to get the feel for it. I think I preferred the Ibanez 6 string if I had to pick, but I have been GAS'ing for a multiscale, which made this one tempting.

Now, I am very tempted to sell one of my current basses and pick up something new for the inspiration that might come from that.
 
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