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The 'feel'

#21
Not sure if anyone mentioned this, but why not ask the guy in the band what he meant by "feel." It might sound stupid, but there's a lot of subjectivity, even among people contributing to the thread here. That's not really a bad thing in this context, because there's really some good insight into playing with others. But the person you really need to ask is the guy who gave you the feedback in the first place.

FWIW, I tend to equate "feel" with words like groove and the idea of playing in the pocket. Two people can play the same notes at the same tempo and play with a completely different feel. I'd guess "finesse" and "nuance" may be words used to explain the differences.

To echo other posts, the more you play, the closer you'll get to feeling more competent and comfortable. It will come with time and experience. It's good that you're thinking about your playing and asking for feedback. If you get the opportunity, ask the people you play with to get more insight.
 
#22
vlxyooper said:
FWIW, I tend to equate "feel" with words like groove and the idea of playing in the pocket. Two people can play the same notes at the same tempo and play with a completely different feel. I'd guess "finesse" and "nuance" may be words used to explain the differences.

To echo other posts, the more you play, the closer you'll get to feeling more competent and comfortable. It will come with time and experience. It's good that you're thinking about your playing and asking for feedback. If you get the opportunity, ask the people you play with to get more insight.
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He mentioned that, playing in the pocket. I get that much and I've been there before with my other band. The drummer went and flaked off and it was me and two guitarists. One hopped on the drums and played a simple pattern. I played some obscure augmented scale riff and the guitarist followed. Just came together and coagulated. Been there but with this band, I don't know, maybe I'll ask XD
 
#24
Michael Case said:
I'd also add, learn songs and play along with the recording. When doing so, try to capture the feel of the original. It takes a lot of time and a lot of work. Feel is huge and it takes time to get there. The best advice is to stay off the internet asking these questions and practice. Another suggestion, get a teacher.
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If I don't ask questions, I don't get answers and where else can I get answers from bass players around the world?

I'll keep practicing but sometimes I just need direction. Get a teacher? Yeah, I should but I seem to be doing alright on my own for now.
 
#25
Disappear said:
If I don't ask questions, I don't get answers and where else can I get answers from bass players around the world?

I'll keep practicing but sometimes I just need direction. Get a teacher? Yeah, I should but I seem to be doing alright on my own for now.
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The reason why I said what I did about asking questions online is we don't know your playing and have no real sense of what you time, note choice or musical knowledge is. A teacher who is face to face and can hear what you're doing and see how you're doing it will serve you better. I do think this site is a great resource and know for a fact that many worthy people offer their experience for free, but using this forum alone and not getting face to face guidance from a teacher is an incomplete approach. Of course this is all my opinion.
 
#26
Michael Case said:
The reason why I said what I did about asking questions online is we don't know your playing and have no real sense of what you time, note choice or musical knowledge is. A teacher who is face to face and can hear what you're doing and see how you're doing it will serve you better. I do think this site is a great resource and know for a fact that many worthy people offer their experience for free, but using this forum alone and not getting face to face guidance from a teacher is an incomplete approach. Of course this is all my opinion.
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Sorry if I seemed snappy. I agree, I should see a teacher but I'm hard pressed to find a good one who listens to what I play. I've had a bad experience with 2 teachers who tried to teach me notes and payed no attention to my playing. Chucked the Mel Bay beginner book at me but didn't mention anything about my plucking/fretting/fingering. Sure teach me bass clef but I think it's better done on my own.
 
#27
Disappear said:
Sorry if I seemed snappy. I agree, I should see a teacher but I'm hard pressed to find a good one who listens to what I play. I've had a bad experience with 2 teachers who tried to teach me notes and payed no attention to my playing. Chucked the Mel Bay beginner book at me but didn't mention anything about my plucking/fretting/fingering. Sure teach me bass clef but I think it's better done on my own.
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You weren't snappy at all, I'm a big boy and can handle it. :D

I'd say you need to take charge with a teacher. Remember you are paying him/her, if you feel he/she is not meeting a need you need to say so. On the other hand, maybe you need to be a little patient and let lessons progress a little and see where they may go. Sometimes teachers have an agenda that they feel is important and want to address that first. My recommendation is get in contact with a teacher and tell that person what you want to work on, give it a few lessons to see where things go. If you don't feel like your needs have been met, then express this to the teacher, if things don't change, move on.

In the meantime just try:

Listening to as much music as possible, as both a student of music and a listener.

Playing along to CD's that have the feel you're looking for or need to cop.

Seek out players that will push you to get better without making you feel like a clown for not being on their level.
 
#28
When you say playing along to cds to you mean finding out what notes are being played or simply just playing anything along to try and get practice of playing along to a song, im not good enough to be in a band but i jam with my mate who is good at guitar, problem is when im at home i can make up quite catchy bass lines on my own and play quite well, asoon as i get with my mate i just cock everything up, keep hitting notes wrong playing wrong speeds etc
 
#29
trust24 said:
When you say playing along to cds to you mean finding out what notes are being played or simply just playing anything along to try and get practice of playing along to a song, im not good enough to be in a band but i jam with my mate who is good at guitar, problem is when im at home i can make up quite catchy bass lines on my own and play quite well, asoon as i get with my mate i just cock everything up, keep hitting notes wrong playing wrong speeds etc
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I mean learn the lines being played on the recording. Get them under your fingers and practice them with the CD trying to cop the feel.
 
#30
As you surely know by now, 'feel' is the hardest thing to quantify or break down into bits that you can talk about.
I have spent a huge amount of effort and time developing good feel in my playing, and am often complimented on it. And I would say...
The single biggest factor is time. Or 'timing' if you prefer.
And possibly the worst thing you can do is rush. Rushed fills sound particularly awful. Dragging is bad, but rushing is worse.
And as stated by others, to achieve great 'feel' you absolutely have to relax, and know the material. Don't overthink stuff, let the music play you.
 
#31
if you want to help find the feel, RECORD!

get a video camera and record yourself playing everything. playing by yourself, playing along to records, songs youve written, free improv...

notice how you sound and look. and when i say notice how you look i dont mean from a vanity standpoint, i mean look for tension, look for posture, look at what everyone else looks at, and listen to what everyone else listens to.

it can be very hard to do all that objectively while you are playing, but it becomes much easier if you can just watch and listen.

you will know you are getting somewhere when you start to enjoy what you have recorded. good luck!
 
#33
DogPlaysBass said:
if you want to help find the feel, RECORD!
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this was huge for me when i first started playing. i used to set up a boombox next to me and hit record while playing along with songs i was learning. i would listen back and if it sounded like someone was playing along i knew i had to keep working. was i ahead of the beat on certain notes? are my fingerings sloppy? is it just stiff overall? that was pretty sobering for a while.
 
#34
Feel is also knowing when something is not right, experience will give you the way to deal with it. I have met lots of players who know they are playing something and it feels wrong, but don't know why. When you have lots of experience under your belt you will be able to put a finger on it and address the 'feel' issue.

As for your confidence this job was not yours at this moment in time so move on. In one week in 1984 i was put up for over forty jobs, FORTY JOBS, and got none, some even dismissed me when i walked in the room as i did not look right, so don't lose confidence just understand that it was not you this time.
 
#35
I tried the recording thing but I don't want to play like someone else. I really want to make it my own. Maybe that's the problem, too much of what they want and not enough of what I want. I mean, if I start playing the way I'd like to, then my confidence would improve as my feel hypothetically would.
 
#37
dvh said:
Your gear list suggests someone who has been playing for a while. Is this not the case? How is your fretless capability? I'd say playing that more often will help build your feel.
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If you call 3 years a while. Just never been with musicians who have been in the gave for half their lives. I'm happy on my fretless but I wouldn't use it for classic rock. Perhaps practice on it...
 
#38
Disappear said:
I tried the recording thing but I don't want to play like someone else. I really want to make it my own. Maybe that's the problem, too much of what they want and not enough of what I want. I mean, if I start playing the way I'd like to, then my confidence would improve as my feel hypothetically would.
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Recording anything will help. Whether that is your own original music, or playing along with a record. The point is to listen to what you play from an objective point of view.
 
#39
DogPlaysBass said:
Recording anything will help. Whether that is your own original music, or playing along with a record. The point is to listen to what you play from an objective point of view.
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So true, so true, i don't think i have ever met anyone, myself included who has ever recorded, and been happy with it. We always believe we can do it better, or should have done that or wished i hadn't done that.
 
#40
Disappear said:
I tried the recording thing but I don't want to play like someone else. I really want to make it my own. Maybe that's the problem, too much of what they want and not enough of what I want. I mean, if I start playing the way I'd like to, then my confidence would improve as my feel hypothetically would.
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Not to sound like a d***, but that's a cop out to avoid putting in the work.

Here's an old saying that always rings true in music:

First, you imitate.

Second, you integrate.

Third, you innovate.

Nobody wants to be a clone, but starting out learning from the greats is what gives you the abilities to grow. Anthony Jackson studied James Jamerson for years, does he sound like Jamerson?

Plus you'll never sound like someone else, YOU'RE NOT THEM! You've never had their experiences, you don't feel like they do, or hear music like them. Even if you're copying them 100% you'll come through. The point of playing with the recordings is it does half the work for you. Why do love the music you do? Because of how good looking the players are? Well maybe, but it's the sound and feel that usually gets us hooked to music we love. So what's the harm in trying to learn from those people?

Believe me, playing with recordings is a really great education in time, harmony, line construction, ear training, and feel. You wont walk away sounding like anyone else, you'll gain a deeper understanding of what YOU do and how to sound like YOURSELF.
 
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