IME bass can primarily be either... or both. Many consider it a bridge between rhythm and harmony. I agree.
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IME bass can primarily be either... or both. Many consider it a bridge between rhythm and harmony. I agree.
One of my go-tos when "rules" are being discussed...
Not on the one, the bass is locked but not limited to only what the kick is doing. Downbeats? Neither boring nor predictable. Might even have been a coffee table bass, who knows?
Not on the one, the bass is locked but not limited to only what the kick is doing. Downbeats? Neither boring nor predictable. Might even have been a coffee table bass, who knows?
This is honestly something I never thought about and when I first heard about it wondered if I had been doing something wrong. I either read the music given to me, learned the bass part to a cover the way it was originally played, or I was playing jazz and just doing a walking bass line. Never thought of the drums outside of “are we playing the same tempo?”
In the the shortest possible answer I would have to say because drums/percussion existed long before bass so they are fundamentally responsible for the development of many popular rhythmic styles of different cultures and therefore dictate a lot of what we as bass players do. As someone mentioned with samba in this thread, the original groove was all orchestrated by percussion and bass was added later. The bass is mimicking what the surdo drum is doing in a samba groove. The same way a tuba in a marching band is emulating what the bass drum does in the percussion section of marching band.
The bass and the bass drum makes the women shake their booties. And if their butts are moving and grooving I am doing my job.
A bass and kick drum locked together is a beautiful thing. On the other hand, Gene Simmons said he could give a S%#t about the kick drum, and he's made millions doing so.
In dance music dancers need the kick to stay in rythm. That gets extended and connected to harmony by the bass. Generally the drum is the engine and the bass is the flywheel. We together keep running a harmonic movement.
Yes, besides the "show and nice faces", Gene has been known for playing straight 8ths and 4ths, while the drummer was playing straight 8ths and 4ths, which unwillingly (against Gene's will) resulted into locking in.
Not always true at all, especially with the early stuff.
(P.S. I'm not a big fan of KISS
, but I've listened to their first one.)One track with some different activity on the bass.
Their second album has "Parasite" that could be named as "the exception that proves the rule".
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(P.S. I'm not a big fan of KISS
One track with some different activity on the bass.
Their second album has "Parasite" that could be named as "the exception that proves the rule".
Strutter was the first example of what I was talking about that I was thinking of. His walking bass lines in the verses don't walk in lockstep with Peter's drums.
Best answer. Kick gives needed punch on bass attack without distorting. M
Here is the Strutter's bass transcription.
You are correct. I found a few 16th notes.
(from here: )
Here is the drum part.
(From here: Strutter Drums Transcription by KISS)
It also has a few 16ths.
One of my go-tos when "rules" are being discussed...
Not on the one, the bass is locked but not limited to only what the kick is doing. Downbeats? Neither boring nor predictable. Might even have been a coffee table bass, who knows?
It's all about syncopation.
I would call it a "delayed offbeat syncopation at the division-level".
(from here: Get Rhythm: All About Syncopation | Musical U)
1. Offbeat syncopation - Beat level.
2. Offbeat syncopation - Division level. That's what is happening in your provided example.
More about it.
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