Members Gammy Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Ok I mean no disrespect to anyone who plays an instrument that I love and have played myself many times but... Is bass really necessary? Seriously a lot of the time bass plays a minimal role, and the audience (generally) pay no attention to the bassist. Also, speaking personally, I don't think bass is essential. Take Metallica's 'And Justice For All' album. This famously has no audible bass, but most people will agree this album is a metal classic. Discuss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastplant Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 You could say the same thing for drums. If the band is in time, why have drums? I think it's not a matter of any one instrument, it's a combination of all parts that make a song. I can think of MANY songs that would sound awful without bass. It's part of the overall sound. A band would sound very thin and empty without a bass. And Justice For All makes that example as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rhat Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Ok I mean no disrespect to anyone who plays an instrument that I love and have played myself many times but... Is bass really necessary? Seriously a lot of the time bass plays a minimal role, and the audience (generally) pay no attention to the bassist. Also, speaking personally, I don't think bass is essential. Take Metallica's 'And Justice For All' album. This famously has no audible bass, but most people will agree this album is a metal classic. Discuss. I dont think a bass is a must ,,but i do think a bass adds so much to the sound that most acts are far better when they have a bass ...... The whole instrumentation thing really all depends on the act. I know duo that sound great ,, but typically its a deal with a very talented member than can hold down a couple roles. An example would be a guitar player ,, with a 12 string ,, and a second guy who plays congas, blows harp , sings harmony and plays steel drum. Or a duo with a very talented guitar player and a bass ... that has really good with the chord voicings and is able to slip in a few accents of lead along the way. Even great power trios tend to have holes in their sound you can drive a mack truck though. Cream was a great band ,, with lots of talent but the lack of a full time rhythm gave the group a thin sound alot of the time . My personal favorite for a band is , drums , keys, lead guitar, bass and horns..... Nothing quite gives you that full house sound like a full on set up like that. Good vocals with harmony is pretty well a must for a band with more than one person. rat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members geoffo Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by fastplant You could say the same thing for drums. If the band is in time, why have drums? I think it's not a matter of any one instrument, it's a combination of all parts that make a song. I can think of MANY songs that would sound awful without bass. It's part of the overall sound. A band would sound very thin and empty without a bass. And Justice For All makes that example as well. Exactly! The bass is an integral part of the rythym section of a band, especially in any rock band. It's an integral part of most forms of current music, whether it be Classical, a nice walking bass in a 3 part Jazz band, swing band, whatever.... The drums and bass go hand in hand and almost act as one instrument. It is when this rythym section is tight sounding, do you have a good basis to build a band. I sequence drums and bass for my band, and sometimes (when Im running late finishing sequences) i turn up to rehersals with just the drums (or maybe other instruments added) but no bass, the song just sounds incomplete. Luckily for me, my band trust me that any given song will be ready for the gig even if no so for the rehersal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members THX1138 Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 hang on a sec... gonna go ask the chics sittin on the sub cabinets what they think. Hmmmm, they seem to think its pretty important. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Terry Allan Hall Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Well, with Metallica (and other bands that strive to sound like a chainsaw chorale), bass may not be important, but it is in real music... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members THX1138 Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Take Metallica's 'And Justice For All' album.This famously has no audible bass, but most people will agree this album is a metal classic. And thats the very reason why I just can't listen to it. Call me nuts, but I prefer the band to sound like a band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members albert visick Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 to state the obvious, it really depends on the music. for the most part, in rock music, even if you don't consciously follow what the bass is doing, without it it sounds significantly "different". that is not to say it never works (case in point, this Radiohead song called "optimistic"has no bass coming in till near the end, and IMO it works great because of it), but you do have to expect that it would sound different and experimental than what you are used to listening to (as most every kind of music out there employs some sort of bass instruments). there's nothing inherently wrong with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members caveman Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 It's not necessary if the sound you're looking for is "thin". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members albert visick Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 one thing interesting about the bass GUITAR is that it's also a rhythm instrument as well as a melodic instrument (the same thing can be said about guitars in general). so that's why - as a guitar player - i've always wanted to play a rock song with a cellist (without a bassist) and see what happens. while a cello can handle rather low notes, it is usually strictly melodic, so that's kinda interesting how that change the playing and songwriting. it's damn hard to find a cellist though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vanlatte Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Often the bass is like a good soundman; you only notice when it is not there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vanlatte Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Ok I mean no disrespect to anyone who plays an instrument that I love and have played myself many times but... Is bass really necessary? Seriously a lot of the time bass plays a minimal role, and the audience (generally) pay no attention to the bassist. Also, speaking personally, I don't think bass is essential. Take Metallica's 'And Justice For All' album. This famously has no audible bass, but most people will agree this album is a metal classic. Discuss. Metallica is a HORRIBLE example for bass. For some reason they always have the mixed so wierd that it may as well not even be there. Listen to some of the greats like John Paul Jones, Entwistle, Chris Squire, Tony Levin, Geddy Lee... None of the music they are involved with would sound the same without the bass. On the other end of the spectrum, look at all of the catchy, easilly recognizable bass lines that are the main hooks; Another one Bites the Dust, Down on the Corner, Brown Eyed Girl (sorry folks, sad but true!). etc... I subscribe to the theory that any band is the sum of its parts, and no one piece is more or less important than another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jackcheez Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 In his book A Cure For Gravity, Joe Jackson said "Bass players are the unsung heroes of pop music". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 I know you need it in blues, as a transition between chord. It is the bridge between the drums and the melody. I can't imagine a slow blues or a solid shuffle without a bassplayer. In fact, the bass player can change the entire feel of a blues song just by whether he plays quarter notes or eight notes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TomcatMF Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 In rock band with a drummer the bass is a must. In the last band I was in, at first we had a guy playing bass that missed most of the practices, and I was the only guitar player. Needless to say I had to take over the bass player's duty of anchoring the song. The bass player is the mediator between the drummer and the rest of the band. He keeps everybody together, and helps everyone to where they are at in the song. Without the bass player it is very easy to get lost and wind up with a trainwreck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Outkaster Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Ok I mean no disrespect to anyone who plays an instrument that I love and have played myself many times but... Is bass really necessary? Seriously a lot of the time bass plays a minimal role, and the audience (generally) pay no attention to the bassist. Also, speaking personally, I don't think bass is essential. Take Metallica's 'And Justice For All' album. This famously has no audible bass, but most people will agree this album is a metal classic. Discuss. What kind of question is that...........??????????????? WTF? Good thing you do not play Reggae. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members caveman Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by Outkaster What kind of question is that...........??????????????? WTF? Good thing you do not play Reggae. Kind of like, "what primary color can we do without". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vanlatte Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by caveman Kind of like, "what primary color can we do without". Yea, or which part of your body is more important? Your eyes? Your ears? Your nose? Your hands, feet...they all serve some purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrcpro Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Is bass really necessary? Not on what my kids listen to. There's an obscene amount of low end, but it's usually an 808 or something similiar. 'Course, there's not much melody, guitar, or keyboards other than some greasy 303 line either. Makes you wonder where popular music is headed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members spdolan Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Bass is what gets the ladies movin on the dance floor. Yes, it is the bridge between rhythm and melody, but its the groove that drives the sound and makes it danceable. I can't stand playing an electric set without a bass - acoustic I can deal with it. Dolan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members flee Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by Terry Allan Hall Well, with Metallica (and other bands that strive to sound like a chainsaw chorale), bass may not be important, but it is in real music... Ouch. Metallica is definately real music. They have some of the best metal tones out there (Master of Puppets, The Black Album). Far from a chainsaw buzz. With AJFA they scooped the mids out so much that they really didn't need bass on the album. It sounds like there is bass in there already to an extent. I do believe bass is intregral to a bands sound. If my band and I are jamming and the bass player doesn't show, you can definately hear the difference. There's a lot thinner sound as people have mentioned. Bass can definately add a lot to a band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members squealie Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 No instrument or even voice, is necessarry. Proven by the Bilboard top 20 for the last 15 years. I love to hear a great bass player. Listen to the Sheryl Crow, Sarah McLauclin (sp?) Kate Bush records. Great bass playing in those. In rock, Bob Daisley immediately comes to mind. None of it is necessarry. If there is wardrobe, makeup, lights, and lots of dancers, the public doesn't really care about much else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Roy Brooks Posted June 27, 2006 Members Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by BlueStrat I know you need it in blues, as a transition between chord. It is the bridge between the drums and the melody. I can't imagine a slow blues or a solid shuffle without a bassplayer. In fact, the bass player can change the entire feel of a blues song just by whether he plays quarter notes or eight notes. Yet another thing I at least somewhat disagree with you about. Though I understand your point. I guess it depends on what kind of blues you are playing or what sort of sound you are going after. But I have seen T-Model Ford and Super Chikkan play with just a drummer and they did just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators BATCAT Posted June 27, 2006 Moderators Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by TheGammy Is bass really necessary? No, I dont think it's always necessary. It of course depends on the band. If you're talking about rock-based stuff, well obviously most people feel they need bass- look at most bands out there. But there's a lot of keys/guitar/drums bands, or even two guitars with no bass like Sleater Kinney... or even just guitar/drums One thing I don't think works is just to take the bass out of the equation and play as if it was still there. You have to rethink the role of every instrument carefully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators BATCAT Posted June 27, 2006 Moderators Share Posted June 27, 2006 Originally posted by Roy Brooks I guess it depends on what kind of blues you are playing or what sort of sound you are going after. I was always under the impression that it was pretty common (for early blues guys) to play with just a drummer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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