Bass in music

[Satosuke]

I was curious how important people though bass, as in bass guitar, was in music. ......... I'd like ya'll to be honest as to weather or not you care/think its important/listen for it/ect.

Once again I'm able to summarise my opinion with the use of an instrumental.

I'm surprised this thread is still going on considering this discussion was over the moment someone mentioned Rush, particularly Geddy Lee. That's it. Bass is just as important an instrument as guitar, keyboard, or drums, sometimes even more so. And I say this as a guitar player myself. Sure, a guitar player can BS his way through basic bass lines, but bassists are a whole different breed.

End of discussion, really.

 

[Spawny0908]

That is all

 

[SwimmingRock]

Matter of personal taste, I imagine, but I personally don't care about bass. Truth be told, I usually don't hear it unless I try. I have a fondness for high pitched sounds, so I naturally kind of drown out things like bass, drums, tuba etc. Also, I mostly listen to classical music, which doesn't exactly favour the bass guitar.

 

[KingofallCosmos]

Well yeah Claypool is king. Some others I like are Dirtbombs, Rancid and Battles.

I know there's two or three already, but this is my favorite video:


edit: ow yeah Death frome above 1979 are awesome.

edit (I just turned 30, alright?): Ron Carter, damn, can't remember the rest ( alright it's the weed)

Surprised nobody mentioned Bootsy Collins. Don't know that much m'self about him, so...

As for critical listening? Well, let's just say there's a reason my sound system has a subwoofer.

Ain't that the truth.

 

[RandomHer0]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXImi2etl7I

Godlike in execution. I started playing just to be able to execute one riff from this song.
Still nothing...

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I was curious how important people though bass, as in bass guitar, was in music. I play bass, and I've had a lot of stabs taken at me from friends and roommates telling me that 'bassists don't matter', or 'no one listens to the song for bass'. While I know this isn't true, I was curious as to what everyone else else though. I'd like ya'll to be honest as to weather or not you care/think its important/listen for it/ect.

Speaking as a rhythm guitarist, the bassist is the lynchpin of the entire band. The lead guitarist listens to the rhythm guitarist for cues. The Rhythm guitarist listens to the drummer. The drummer listens to the bassist. If the bassist screws up, the whole song falls apart.

As for critical listening? Well, let's just say there's a reason my sound system has a subwoofer. I balance it properly, so it's just clean extension all the way down (not boomy), but still, those lower frequencies are important. Anyone who doesn't pay attention to the bass has probably never heard a live band, a decent soundsystem, or any headphones better than the ones that come with their iPod.

 

[Ham_authority95]

I was curious how important people though bass, as in bass guitar, was in music. I play bass, and I've had a lot of stabs taken at me from friends and roommates telling me that 'bassists don't matter', or 'no one listens to the song for bass'. While I know this isn't true, I was curious as to what everyone else else though. I'd like ya'll to be honest as to weather or not you care/think its important/listen for it/ect.

Bass (the sound frequency, not the instrument) is important because humans like low notes. For the first 9 months of our lives, we hear a "BUMP BUMP" bass sound almost constantly, so we've be trained to be moved by low, rhythmic beats. Why do you think dance clubs are so popular?

Now with bass guitar, the normal popular music audience doesn't notice it when it's there, but they sure as hell notice it when it's gone. It's important.

 

[Thatguyky]

People that say bass doesn't matter are dumb as shit, and more than likely don't play or understand music. Pretty much any band out there needs a bass or some sort of bass instrument. Bass doesn't stand out as much as most instruments, but is pretty much as essential to a band as any other instrument in a band.

 

[A Free Man]

I was curious how important people though bass, as in bass guitar, was in music. I play bass, and I've had a lot of stabs taken at me from friends and roommates telling me that 'bassists don't matter', or 'no one listens to the song for bass'. While I know this isn't true, I was curious as to what everyone else else though. I'd like ya'll to be honest as to weather or not you care/think its important/listen for it/ect.

Definately important. Sure I've listened to songs without bass that I've liked in the past but they never really quite seem to get it perfect. Bass is like a soundtrack in games, sure you can do it without one or with a really bad one and the game will still function normally but it will never be as good.

 

[StalkCityBaby]

Reasons why Bass Guitar is awesome:
#1 Victor Wooten - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tygz5q9G2no
#2 Jaco Pastorius - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXOnhzoC-i8
#3 Les Claypool - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gfo-2qUOzeE
#4 This Kid - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUvkGzZ0-I4&feature=related
#5 This Guy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RpOfc9ERm8

And the list goes on...

 

[uhddh]

Bassists aren't usually noticed but every band needs one. I started guitar and then ditched it because I didn't like it. I started Bass and enjoyed it. Basically you need a drummer to keep the beat so the bass isn't the most important. Since the bass is at such a low tone it's hard to hear easily because it's drowned out by the higher pitched guitar. Also people headbang to the bass no the guitar or the drums... 'cept maybe the bass drum

 

[coolman9899]

I think that the bassist holds the beat and song together, but thats my op.

 

[tg851]

I was curious how important people though bass, as in bass guitar, was in music. ......... I'd like ya'll to be honest as to weather or not you care/think its important/listen for it/ect.

Once again I'm able to summarise my opinion with the use of an instrumental.

you forgot one of there best bass tracks yet(it starts out gutar but transitions to bass about minute in)


and dont forget this one too

Ahhhh, a fellow Rush fan.

Alas there are far too few of us in this world.

too true,too true....
I weep(or rather spam my music at full from my headphones) every morning when my school put on another piece of auto-tuned crap for the pre-anthem hurry up music,whats even sadder is that I live in the very birth-town of rush.....

 

[Naeo]

Depends on the band. As I see it there are four ways to do bass:

1. So it doesn't matter. A lot of bands do this.
2. It adds "foundation" to the song. You don't notice it, but you'd notice it if it were gone. Most bands do this.
3. It's played like the lead guitar, given relative prominence, and has musical complexity. Tool is the first (and only, can't think well right now) band to consistently do this.
4. It adds atmosphere/power/emotion/whatever to the song, without necessarily being musically complex. Sigur Ros's album Agaetis Byrjun does this a lot--playing it with the bass cranked up on good speakers is an incredible experience.

I, personally, absolutely love number 4 the most. But I'm into a lot of atmospheric stuff, so naturally I'm gonna like the one that adds atmosphere.

 

[JasonKaotic]

Very. Even though you can barely hear bass in most songs, and most of the time you have to listen really carefully to notice it, if you take it out it just doesn't sound the same. I don't get why.

 

[Golden Hawk]

As one of those multi-instrumentalists that no one tends to like, I play bass, electric guitar, keys, drums and I do live mixing.

Bass is my primary instrument, and this is my evaluation from years of playing:
> If the bass sounds good and is played well, no one notices
> If the bass sounds average or is played poorly, the entire band sounds bad

Just sayin'

 

[thatguy105]

4. It adds atmosphere/power/emotion/whatever to the song, without necessarily being musically complex.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za01QWLXisQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVEmRnaGu7U&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GVzsuDsxW8

 

[Flig]

The bass isn't there to be heard, it's there to be felt.

It's one of those things most people don't notice unless it isn't there, in which case they will miss it dearly. Of course, like any other rule, there are exceptions to this, for instance a great bassline can make any song a standout.

 

[UnderCoverGuest]

I live for bass. Those strong, deep thrums are what I love to hear. They make my heart beat more than drums, they convey emotion more than other guitars. They're low and powerful, and that's what I'm all about.

 

[dangitall]

I've played in concert band a lot, and I think bass is what really turns the 2-dimensional melody into a 3-dimensional musical piece. In my band there were too much melodic instruments (flute, oboe, clarinet, etc. adds up to about 20) versus 3 or 4 bass instruments. It just didn't sound "full" due to the ensemble.
Edit: here's a good piece. Listen to the double bass at around 0:33.