"music shop" slapping

[crez5150]

The thing with Slapping is.... you get a much better idea of how the bass sounds for that technique if you do it acoustically. You get a good idea of how the bass sounds slapped without all of the electronics/pickups adding to it. If you have a bass that sounds great slapped without being plugged in then it will sound fantastic amplified.

[mrtcat]

Surely you should just play what you intend to play on that guitar if you buy it. If you intend to play slap then cool play it. If you intend to play Beatles covers that's fine too. If you want to sit at home playing scales - rock on! Horses for courses I guess. However if you are trying out basses purely to impress the staff and other customers you're clearly a tool and need to get a girlfriend.

[Fuzzbass2000]

Don't slap... won't slap.

If there's a whole lot of slappin' going on, Summer Loving is my go to bass line.

[GBass]

I saw this kid getting a slap from his mum in a music shop, she had a lighting fast hand..... I wonder if she plays slap Bass...

[risingson]

[quote name='Doddy' post='1319702' date='Jul 28 2011, 08:11 PM']You can get a lot of dynamic range when slapping. Contrary to popular belief,you don't have to
hit the strings as hard as you can in E minor. The problem is that lots of people don't seem
to realise this. It says more about the player than the technique.[/quote]

I understand but you are definitely dynamically limited when slapping, after all the necessary force required to get the desired attack from the note is more substantial than when playing with your fingers. Often the impression of dynamics comes from the space that the good players leave in between what they're playing. Case and point would be F Washington's groove on 'Forget Me Nots'. It's a bass line that breathes instead of being clogged down with the kind of rhythmic nonsense that other players you hear in shops on a Saturday afternoon like to play for everyone to hear.

[Chris2112]

I don't see what the big deal is with some gratuitous slapping in a music shop. Especially the 16th note machine gun party trick stuff. For one thing, you're probably not going to have a drummer present and unless you're a regular performer of various classical pieces, graceful [i]sonatas[/i] and [i]etudes[/i] are likely to be beyond you, especially sitting there with a bass you're unfamiliar with on an amp that probably isn't as good as the one you've got at home.

In lieu of a drummer giving it 4/4 and a band to back up, I don't see the problem with this sort of slap. It at least lets you test the threshold of the bass, namely that, should you ever be required to play some absurdly fast slap it'll perform. For example, if you pick up a Thunderbird and slap it'll sound like dung so you'll leave that bass at home when Mark King sprains his wrist and you get the call to fill in for him.

I guess pretty much every bassist loves some music shop [i]game[/i], whether they admit to it or not. If you feel that you don't like it, you're likely drawn towards it at a subconcious level simply because someone who can slap with a high level of technical profficiency is entertaining and cool.

[bubinga5]

quote>>> Often the impression of dynamics comes from the space that the good players leave in between what they're playing.<<<quote..

bang on.. slapping for the music as Mr Washington does in that great tune says it all... there is a wide line between tasteful slap and lesser so.. i wouldnt agree that you cant get certain desired dynamics from the technique though.. ive heard some wonderful slapping from Randy Taylor.. you wouldnt even know he was slapping until you looked for it... Chuck Rainey on Peg is a good example too..

[wombatboter]

[quote name='4000' post='1319767' date='Jul 28 2011, 09:10 PM']I don't slap much. I mainly widdle. But seriously, if I don't try playing a bass fast, how do I find out if I [i]can[/i] play it fast? As I believe Chuck Rainey said, you don't want the instrument to hinder your expression. Therefore you have to see what you can do on it. When I'm trying an instrument I want to see how little it limits my expression, not whether I can play a blues in A; being able to play it with as little hindrance as possible is very important to me.

One other thing, people always seem to assume that people playing fast in shops (slapping or otherwise) are showing off/attempting to show off. Why? I'm usually in my own little world (see first para), and unaware of most people around me. I know plenty of other people who are the same.[/quote]

+ 1... Maybe it sounds a bit too busy for other customers what I play but that's what I do. The things I play in a shop might seem to be over the top but I need to know the response of the instrument to fingerstyle, tapping and even some "fast" slapping. Sometimes I want to be sure that the instrument brings out the best in me and makes fast playing feel easier.
If I would buy a Status King bass, no way I'm not going to try and play what it'll be needed for..
If one calls this "slapping like crazy", too bad....early this week I used these techniques during a gig and I got a nice response from the public.
I used to work in a music shop and I know what visitors do but it's part of the enthusiasm of certain players...You can't blame someone when he finally has the opportunity to play the bass of his dreams to unpack everything he's got..

[4000]

[quote name='wombatboter' post='1320013' date='Jul 29 2011, 07:39 AM']You can't blame someone when he finally has the opportunity to play the bass of his dreams to unpack everything he's got..[/quote]

I like this!

One other point; some people like busy, fast playing. Obviously some don't. However there's nothing actually wrong with it unless it's out of context (i.e. used where it isn't appropriate). Surely when you're trying out a bass in a shop there is no broader context so anything goes?

Edited July 29, 2011 by 4000

[dave_bass5]

[quote name='bubinga5' post='1319626' date='Jul 28 2011, 06:46 PM']trust me.. you dont need to slap in a shop at any time anywhere.unless you want actually hear what the bass sounds like slapped......do your thing and try out the bass.. i cant stand people who slap/w*** in shops.. i went into guitar guitar to try a sadowsky and the guy got it down and started doing 100 miles an hour slap before i got to play it.. total idiot..

i dont go into a guitar shop to show everyone my chops.. your buying a bass not there admiration[/quote]


Like the OP i can do a very small amount, and i only do this because a couple of our songs (all covers) require it.

If im in a shop and need to try a bass out ill make sure i play some lines that i play at gigs, after all, thats why im trying it out. A bit or Motown, some modern stuff, heck, even Stuck in the middle.
I do wish i could be one of those annoying slappers, i am impressed with it when its done well, but as its rarely actually needed in my life its not something im going to devote hours to but i do find it a bit intimidating in a shop environment.

Once you start slapping all basses sound more or less the same, its an effect IMO and you can get that out of any bass (ok, i know there is some variation but to my ears a slapped bass is a slapped bass). I guess if you are in to that style then it makes sense to play that, and i would imagine the feel of the neck is quite important for that style of playing so i can understand people doing it.

[paul_5]

I'm something of a gentleman in this respect - in that I [i]can[/i] slap, but seldom do. I agree with the posts regarding playing it slow; how else do you know if there are any dead-spots if you don't let the notes sustain?

Also a huge +1 for plying a bass acoustically without an amp when you first pick it up. You need to know that the instrument plays properly before being seduced by what it sounds like.

[Chris2112]

[quote name='wombatboter' post='1320013' date='Jul 29 2011, 07:39 AM']I used to work in a music shop and I know what visitors do but it's part of the enthusiasm of certain players...You can't blame someone when he finally has the opportunity to play the bass of his dreams to unpack everything he's got..[/quote]

This hits the nail right on the head. And with all due respect, I suspect aside from Mike Flynn that Geert is probably the best bassist on Basschat. If you've ever seen his youtube videos you'll know what I mean! So if he is ok with it...

[MB1]

MB1.
Ive been in some music shops where the sales staff deserve a good slapping!

[crez5150]

[quote name='MB1' post='1320393' date='Jul 29 2011, 01:15 PM']MB1.
Ive been in some music shops where the sales staff deserve a good slapping![/quote]


Like

[xilddx]

[quote name='Pete Academy' post='1319638' date='Jul 28 2011, 07:03 PM']Working in a music shop, I find the most annoying thing that bassists and drummers do is play as fast as they can. I always feel like saying, 'But what if someone asks you to play a slow blues or a groove?'

[b]Why the need for speed? [/b] [/quote]
Because a lot of kids probably feel if they can't display some playing ability, the shop staff won't take them seriously or perhaps sneer at them. I think people understimate the courage it takes some people to go into a music shop.

Remember when jewellers used to have blacked out windows and an air of exclusivity in the 1970s? I would not have dared set foot in one at the time. But then Ratners came along with an air of inclusiveness and openess, so people took the leap. Same with old pubs with stained glass windows above eye level. Many now have huge clear windows so you can see in, that was to encourage women to feel safer and go into the pub.

A lot of music shops still have staff with bad attitudes, I sometimes feel like I've walked into their house.

Edited July 29, 2011 by silddx

[Randy_Marsh]

[quote name='silddx' post='1320414' date='Jul 29 2011, 01:30 PM']A lot of music shops still have staff with bad attitudes, I sometimes feel like I've walked into their house.[/quote]

This. I havn't been in a music shop to try a bass for years for this reason. Only really go in to get some strings or a new strap when needs must

[dave_bass5]

[quote name='Randy_Marsh' post='1320452' date='Jul 29 2011, 02:00 PM']This. I havn't been in a music shop to try a bass for years for this reason. Only really go in to get some strings or a new strap when needs must[/quote]


Yep, same here. If i can ill buy on line, and that also gives me the option to send it back after a few days if im not happy with it (sorry Pete, i know thats not good for smaller shops.)

[Michaelg]

slap bass is for wannabe drummers

[MB1]

[quote name='Michaelg' post='1320471' date='Jul 29 2011, 02:23 PM']slap bass is for wannabe drummers


[/quote]

MB1.
..like meat is for vegetarians?

Edited July 29, 2011 by MB1

[fatback]

[quote name='crez5150' post='1319798' date='Jul 28 2011, 09:51 PM']The thing with Slapping is.... you get a much better idea of how the bass sounds for that technique if you do it acoustically. You get a good idea of how the bass sounds slapped without all of the electronics/pickups adding to it. If you have a bass that sounds great slapped without being plugged in then it will sound fantastic amplified.[/quote]

+1 And that goes for all techniques imo.

I always try out unplugged on the principle that a/ I'm crap and would prefer to keep that fact to myself, and b/ I don't care what the shop amp sounds like and I can always change the pups if I want. It's how the bass feels that matters to me.

But i never seem to buy them anyway

[bubinga5]

[quote name='Chris2112' post='1320365' date='Jul 29 2011, 12:52 PM']This hits the nail right on the head. And with all due respect, I suspect aside from Mike Flynn that Geert is probably the best bassist on Basschat. If you've ever seen his youtube videos you'll know what I mean! So if he is ok with it...[/quote]so why are they the best then?

[Ross]

I go for a bit of improv myself, but i rarely go into a music shop, I buy all my gear second hand.

[Chris2112]

[quote name='bubinga5' post='1320664' date='Jul 29 2011, 05:18 PM']so why are they the best then?[/quote]

Just listen to them play...!

[LeftyBiskit]

[quote name='MB1' post='1320393' date='Jul 29 2011, 01:15 PM']MB1.
Ive been in some music shops where the sales staff deserve a good slapping![/quote]
+1
Yep,
I can think of one sales assistant in a local shop who needs a good slap-
And he's not even LOCAL

[wombatboter]

[quote name='bubinga5' post='1320664' date='Jul 29 2011, 04:18 PM']so why are they the best then?[/quote]

FYI I rarely am satisfied with anything I do on bass but if it pleases other people that's just great..
When I used to work in a music shop it depended a bit from customer to customer.
There were bass-players only playing slap and not even checking out fingerstyle parts, they would just plug in and started slapping (often with a proud girlfriend next to them which seemed to urge them to play even more crazy parts (often sloppy but as long as it was fast..)).
Then you had the other type of customer : checking out every sound including slap and often I noticed that these people had a better rythmic feel on their instrument : the timing was better, the phrasing more musical.
If one only includes slapping in his style, it is to be pitied... I also know these occasions (like everyone) that you walk into a shop or a hall and it's the only thing you hear (makes me want to leave quickly).
I like slap and I try it out in shops but to be honest : there aren't too many occasions to use it in a live setting anymore. I don't want to force a musical idea in a song where it doesn't belong. I just want to be prepared in case I have to come up with something and then I want to have my slap chops together.