"I Can't Play X Music With X Bass" - A Rant

[koogie2k]

Honestly...I could care less about Jazz. Never was a fan of it but will say there is a tremendous amount of talent involved. I don't play it...don't listen to it...so I could care less. Just my 2 pennies and I am entitled. Nothing personal with you jazz cats...love what you can do. I am just not moved by it.

I hear some peeps with their "metal" bass (funny shapes and all) and I play metal with my bongo...funny shape and all. , tell me that they never thought the bongo could do that. Proof is in the pudding and in the player I say.

I don't care what bass or lineage of bass you use. Either you can play it or you can't. Simple as that. YOU will make it work for YOU.

I was told a zillion times if not once..."that bongo never struck me as a bass to use for metal". My reaction is simply...you can use whatever bass and play whatever genre. It is up to the player to use the tool in which they select to play the music they love.

I play Deathcore metal and I am proud of it. Does that make my choice less than those of the jazz genre...absolutley not. If they so say...come do what I do...haha. I will be the first to admit.....i don't play jazz....still, i love what you do.

IF I have offended anyone....get over it. Not my intent. Play what you want...the bass does not make the player...the player makes the bass. Simple as that.

 

[RaginRog]

I love adding some Mids...it totally makes my perfect Stingray sound...I'm not a jazz player, but my band just started playing Rikki Don't Lose that Number by Steely Dan, so that's about as close as I'll come to playing jazz. People just have to learn how to eq their MM basses. Once I figured it out, I don't think I can ever be satisfied with a passive bass. A nice feature on a Stingray would be a tone knob in addition to the 3 band eq.

 

[Powman]

People just have to learn how to eq their MM basses.

I agree. I am quite surprised at how versatile my Sterling is. (Its still only about 6 weeks old for me). I generally like a smooth tone, so I have lowered my high tones. But today at band rehearsal we were doing the Maroon 5 song "This Love". Just for fun, I turned up the highs quite a bit, and tried slapping the bass line. Everyone loved it this way, so now we are going to try to perform it with slapping now.

Point is, the bass went from sounding fairly smooth and mellow to agressive slap tone, all with just the eq. These are definitely versatile instruments.

 

[oli@bass]

[...] you can use whatever bass and play whatever genre. It is up to the player to use the tool in which they select to play the music they love.

That's how I always understood it.

 

[tkarter]

I can play any kind of music I want using the Bongo. Cuz I am a bongo snob. Anyone who isn't playing a bongo is the one that needs a change of bass.

tk

 

[Goofball Jones]

Just don't tell me what I can't do.

 

[J0ttem]

With my Bongo, I can switch from a fast, agressive song like Metallia's "Seek and Destroy" to a mellow, moody bassline like "Stars Die" by Porcupine Tree in a matter of seconds. Just turn the pan knob to 80% Neck Pickup and pluck the strings right above the 24th fret, it's mostly about the knob setup, but the playing style also greatly affects the tone.

 

[and lombardini]

90% of my gigs are contemporary jazz music, I've been playing a hollowbody for many years...now I'm playing with my Music Man's and I love it, I also get great response from other people...

I play a SR Redwood also because the natural look helps to fit in an acustic setting...this may sound silly but it's part of the game...I'd love to see more natural MM's, clean looking. (but I also have an olive gold bongo ehehe)

andrea