Im in a new project with a few written songs. its all very simple straight forward four four timed music nothing crazy. but im have a very hard time writing simple bass lines or music. my background is in jazz metal grindcore ect. and everytime i sit to write music i come up with some simple stuff but i cant hear the rest of it. it all sounds so boring when im playing a very simple bass line without a guitarist or drummer that i end up adding to it and adding to it that it becomes unrecognizable and overtly complicated. any advice?
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Writing Bass Lines
- Thread starter Glassjaw20
- Start date
Yep... time to build yourself a little home stuidio.. That recent addition to my musical 'toolbox' has added years to my continuing interest. Just need an inexpensive audio mixer board, a rather robust PC or MAC and some recording software like Sonic, Cakewalk, ProTools.. even the free ones work well. Your writing issues will soon be a lot easier to deal with once the studio is debugged to your satisfaction.
Recording is great. A little music theory also goes a long way to helping come up with interesting basslines that accentuate the music rather than overwhelm it.
1) Force yourself to write via the me recording setup, as previously mentioned
2) Some music theory
3) Play with other players. Get out of your stylistic box, do some jamming/writing in another sphere than what you normally operate in.
Best,
JMJ
2) Some music theory
3) Play with other players. Get out of your stylistic box, do some jamming/writing in another sphere than what you normally operate in.
Best,
JMJ
Agreed on above said advice.
Pick up an instrument beside the bass. It will open your ear up to new frequencies and reinforce the lower ones that you are used to. Plus, for me, when I pick up a guitar or sit at the piano, I feel differently when I play. Difficult to describe because it will remove you from your comfort zone, but it does help quite a bit.
The micro home studio is a must have. Even if it consists of a basic stand-alone daw with a simple rhythm programmer...randomize the beats and change up your riffs until you find something that works/or until you're not thinking about filling up the empty space and you're just playing.
Pick up an instrument beside the bass. It will open your ear up to new frequencies and reinforce the lower ones that you are used to. Plus, for me, when I pick up a guitar or sit at the piano, I feel differently when I play. Difficult to describe because it will remove you from your comfort zone, but it does help quite a bit.
The micro home studio is a must have. Even if it consists of a basic stand-alone daw with a simple rhythm programmer...randomize the beats and change up your riffs until you find something that works/or until you're not thinking about filling up the empty space and you're just playing.
