Why is it that the bass guitar is so unemphatic in many modern music genres?

[Ħ]

There's all sorts of jokes about how bass guitarists get no attention, no one remembers their names, and they never get any girls. But why is this, exactly? What is the root (npi) of the issue here? Inherently, there's nothing wrong with the instrument itself. It obviously has great potential as a rhythmic force, but it can also be used effectively for melody. It's a very versatile instrument. There's a number of music genres that it can support, and there's a number of styles the bass can be played in.


But it is too often the case that the bass guitarist is the least well-known and least recognized for his talent. Why is this? Is there a cultural reason? Has the standard for writing and producing songs developed in such a way that the bass has been pushed to the background?


Most radios, built-in computer speakers, and built-in cellphone speakers simply don't have the capacity to accentuate bass tones very well. So I wonder if that plays into the situation, because artists want to sell a product that is accessible to people by as many means as possible.


If there are any who are informed about the bass and its history, could you share your take on this? And anyone else, of course. It's just strange that an instrument which has the capabilities of being catchy, funky, and cool gets mostly ignored in today's music culture.

[Adami]

Because in rock and pop music, the bass is generally (not always, so please don't start listing examples to the contrary) limited to following the root notes of the guitar. So they are often just doing what the guitarist is doing, but with out the chance to play a solo. On top of that they are usually (this I'm not sure why) mixed very low in the overall sound, whether that be on the record or live.

So essentially you have a guy who is just playing a simpler version of what the guitarist is doing, but no one can hear it. Thus he doesn't get a whole lot of love.

Obviously this isn't the case in a lot of prog since prog bassists get a ton of love from their fans.


Also drummers usually get the "not really a musician" joke. I hear a lot of bassist jokes, but it's always the drummers that are designated to the role of "hanger on".


Edit: I think it depends on what the bassist does. I've been in bands where the bassist just follows along, and he (like me, the drummer) gets ignored. But I was in a band where the bass was a lead instrument, and he got ALL of the love.

[Ħ]

Because in rock and pop music, the bass is generally (not always, so please don't start listing examples to the contrary) limited to following the root notes of the guitar. So they are often just doing what the guitarist is doing, but with out the chance to play a solo. On top of that they are usually (this I'm not sure why) mixed very low in the overall sound, whether that be on the record or live.

Why is it that bass guitarists started playing this way, and continue to do so?

[Big Hath]

your comment about being hidden in the mix is well founded.  Lower frequencies by their nature don't cut through like a wailing guitar, the whack of the snare, or clang of the cymbals.

Also, I think the traditional use of the bass as the bedrock of the harmonic structure as well as the beat makes it less noticeable.  When's the last time you looked at a house and said "man, that is one great looking foundation"!  No, you comment on the windows, or the brickwork, or even the landscaping.

There could also be some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy stuff at work where the instrument attracts people that don't necessarily want or need to be in the spotlight.


Although:

[Orbert]

Bootsy!

I think the biggest factor is that the bass part is, by its very nature, the least apparent most of the time.  If there are vocals, the singer has most people's attention.  The guitarist is probably next, since most rock music is guitar-based and most instrumental solos are guitar solos, so he gets a good share of the spotlight.  The drummer might get a lot of shit about not being a "real" musician, but you can't ignore the guy back there hitting things for living.  His job is easily the most physical and the most obvious.  If you have keyboards, they're probably in a support role and second only to the bass in terms of being overlooked.

Musicians know how important the bass is to grounding the music, giving it its foundation, and providing rhythm and motion along with the drummer, but regular people don't think about that.  The singer is hot, the guitarist is awesome, that's all they care about.  They're vaguely aware of some other people onstage.

[Moonchild]

Well it's the bass players fault.. or lack of ego or songwritting abilities to make a song compass around the bass guitar.

There are plenty of bands that use bass to the fullest.

[crazyaga]

Also drummers usually get the "not really a musician" joke. I hear a lot of bassist jokes, but it's always the drummers that are designated to the role of "hanger on".

How do you know if the stage is straight?
The drummer is drooling from both sides 

[DebraKadabra]

 

[Pols Voice]

I'm glad a lot of prog utilizes the bass guitar to its full potential. I totally love bass. I wonder if a lot of bassists are naturally not very in-your-face and attention-seeking since they usually play a supporting role musically.

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

I'm just starting out in a band and playing bass. I refuse to play just the same the guitar does because of my hatred of sounding too secondary.

[theseoafs]

Well it's the bass players fault..

It may sound silly, but yes.  It's mainly the bass players' fault that it's earned a reputation as being an uninteresting and unessential instrument, since many bass players in rock bands are happy to play uninteresting and unessential lines.

[The Letter M]

To me, bass players get a chance to shine in genres that aren't currently considered mainstream - jazz, prog, fusion...these things were all popular many decades ago. Heck, even disco has some good bass guitar in it, with really great grooves and melodic bass parts. Once the 80's hit, popular music drifted towards punk, hair-metal rock, and early rap, all of which took the attention away from the musicianship of instrumentalists and gave it all to the visual and personal aspects of musicians/performers.

There was a resurgence of instrumentally-oriented rock music in the 90's and 00's, but nothing that, I think, really let the bassist of any band really shine. Unless you were a fan of the band, you probably didn't know anyone in it besides the lead vocalist and/or the guitarist(s). If you were lucky, the lead vocalist was ALSO the bassist, but those are rare cases these days.

I think the above analyses about where the attention lies is quite correct - the people up front, meaning the vocalist(s) and guitarist(s), get the most attention, in the studio mix and on stage. Drummers come next because, let's face it, people love drummers and love to air-drum and watch drummers play - there's a lot of movement and sound there. Keyboardists come next because their sounds are unlike guitarists, and often provide cool chords to back-up guitarists, or do crazy-sounding leads. After that, there's the bassist, who often acts as the guitarist's root notes/lower strings, and also the keyboard's left hand. If you're lucky, there might be an exposed bass solo during the bridge, or some crazy bass part there (like Cee Lo Green's "Fuck You", AWESOME bass part in the bridge).

It's sad that virtuoso bassists' only output can be bands that allow that sort of playing, like jazz and fusion, or prog and maybe some genres related to metal, where speed and technicality are important. Pop music often relies on synthesized bass notes, done on keyboards or other instruments, and with the recent advent of "dubstep", the bass sounds in songs have been relegated to womping-wubbing sounds. Bass, in popular music, has become something that is now only usually done to be felt rather than appreciated, which is why many people install huge bass speakers into their cars so everyone in the neighborhood can feel their bass.

For me, bass (be it guitar or string bass or any sort of bass-sounding instrument) is meant to be heard, not felt, but it's cool if you can do both and still be tasteful and creative. Rock bassists get forgotten and go under-appreciated, and it's a shame really.

-Marc.

[Ben_Jamin]

Some riffs where the bass follows the guitar are written on Bass originally.

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

Well it's the bass players fault..

It may sound silly, but yes.  It's mainly the bass players' fault that it's earned a reputation as being an uninteresting and unessential instrument, since many bass players in rock bands are happy to play uninteresting and unessential lines.

Agreed. This is why I refuse to play the same as guitar. I try to be as interesting as possible and improvise stuff at times.

[philmcson]

When you go to a concert, what do you hear the most and best from the mix of music?

The vocals, because the singer is, of course, ever-present and everyone sticks to the vocals of the song.
The guitar(s), because they cut through the wall of sound and everyone notices a great solo.
Most often the drums, because they make a lot of noise and if the drummer shows off like MP or Minnemann, they'll be noticed to.

The bass guitar produces most often sounds to deep to be recognized so....

[Ħ]

What's interesting is that there's been an incredible emphasis on bass sounds in recent pop music. Particularly dance music, which doesn't have much of a melody at all. And isn't dubstep all about "dropping the bass"? I wonder if this renewed interest in bass tones will inspire bass guitarists to come to the forefront, or for popular songwriters to write neat bass lines.

[The Letter M]

What's interesting is that there's been an incredible emphasis on bass sounds in recent pop music. Particularly dance music, which doesn't have much of a melody at all. And isn't dubstep all about "dropping the bass"? I wonder if this renewed interest in bass tones will inspire bass guitarists to come to the forefront, or for popular songwriters to write neat bass lines.

Probably not because, as I said in my post above, many of those bass tones are done with synthesized sounds, usually on keyboards or by tweaking existing samples in audio-editing programs. If they are done with real instruments, it's hard to tell, although Muse's recent live performance on SNL showed Christopher Wolstenholme using a bass-guitar with a touch-screen pad on it that produced the interesting bass "wubs" heard in the song "Madness".

-Marc.

[Ħ]

Ah I see. I missed that part of your earlier post.

[FreezingPoint]

To me, bass players get a chance to shine in genres that aren't currently considered mainstream - jazz, prog, fusion...these things were all popular many decades ago. Heck, even disco has some good bass guitar in it, with really great grooves and melodic bass parts. Once the 80's hit, popular music drifted towards punk, hair-metal rock, and early rap, all of which took the attention away from the musicianship of instrumentalists and gave it all to the visual and personal aspects of musicians/performers.

I must disagree with this to an extent. In terms of bass players you are right, but a lot of great guitar players, and to a lesser degree vocalists, came out of the 80s rock scene. Sure, image was important to them at the time, but many of them could play as well. However, you do make a good point about the 80s. Even if you just look at popular music during the decade, synthesized bass sounds became very much normal, changing the bass players role. Just listen to the difference in the Michael Jackson albums of that decade.

What's interesting is that there's been an incredible emphasis on bass sounds in recent pop music. Particularly dance music, which doesn't have much of a melody at all. And isn't dubstep all about "dropping the bass"? I wonder if this renewed interest in bass tones will inspire bass guitarists to come to the forefront, or for popular songwriters to write neat bass lines.

Probably not because, as I said in my post above, many of those bass tones are done with synthesized sounds, usually on keyboards or by tweaking existing samples in audio-editing programs. If they are done with real instruments, it's hard to tell, although Muse's recent live performance on SNL showed Christopher Wolstenholme using a bass-guitar with a touch-screen pad on it that produced the interesting bass "wubs" heard in the song "Madness".

-Marc.

I agree with this. The bass in modern music or dubstep seems to be less about the melodic line and more about the sounds or synthesis of it. I do not think this will effect bass players that much, unless those sorts of things make more of an entrance into rock music. While I believe there might be some experimenting with it in rock, I am unsure that it will catch on to widespread, constant use.

[Jaq]

It also depends on the bands you listen to. Yeah, a lot of metal bands just tell the bassist to play with the guitarist or bury the bass in the mix, but a whole hell of a lot don't-you'd be surprised how many tech death bands have stunning bass playing. And I agree that if the bassist decides to just be a background instrument, then you're not going to hear them. Reminds me of an interview with Jason Newsted when the Black Album was out, where Bob Rock basically told him "unless we can't avoid it, you're NOT following the guitar part on this album." Which, whatever else his faults in producing Metallica's music, earns him a thumbs up from me.

While it is true that bass has really changed in hard rock-listen to a 70s rock album to hear bassists really BOUNCING songs-it isn't totally gone. Much like shredding guitar leads, you just need to know where to look.

[carl320]

Another thing that doesn't help is that people in bands have this idea that the bassist is the guy who can't play guitar.  I've heard of people needing a bassist and recruiting a friend to play bass because "it's all root notes".

As a bassist myself, I agree with LLtWM.  I want to come up with basslines that are more than following the guitar.  Following the drums is a better idea anyway, being part of the rhythm section.

[skydivingninja]

As a bassist myself, I agree with LLtWM.  I want to come up with basslines that are more than following the guitar.  Following the drums is a better idea anyway, being part of the rhythm section.

Same here.

[LieLowTheWantedMan]

Ditto. Following the drums is usually what I go for.

[Ben_Jamin]

Another thing that doesn't help is that people in bands have this idea that the bassist is the guy who can't play guitar.  I've heard of people needing a bassist and recruiting a friend to play bass because "it's all root notes".

As a bassist myself, I agree with LLtWM.  I want to come up with basslines that are more than following the guitar.  Following the drums is a better idea anyway, being part of the rhythm section.

Exactly, its also about creating a feel and groove, look at Fleetwood Macs Dreams John Mcvie just plays about 2 main notes but creates a groove that makes the song basically, all their songs are like that.

Hell I like Battlecross because of mainly the Bassist. Mudvayne is another good example of a band who's bassist and drummer are more technical than their guitarist, the bassist especially, their songs are hardly covered because of the bass alone.