okusman Posted 16 hours ago Posted 16 hours ago Which instrument, in a standard band formula, is most destructive and obvious when it is being overplayed; not serving the song? Quote
Downunderwonder Posted 16 hours ago Posted 16 hours ago Harmonica, lead guitar. Can't decide which gets the title. Quote
Downunderwonder Posted 14 hours ago Posted 14 hours ago Thread title could benefit of a change. "Most unwelcome overplaying guest soloist at open jam". Quote
Steve Browning Posted 11 hours ago Posted 11 hours ago 4 hours ago, Downunderwonder said: Harmonica, lead guitar. Can't decide which gets the title. I'd put forward the same two candidates. Quote
Doctor J Posted 11 hours ago Posted 11 hours ago Oversinging has very much become a thing people think they need to do, all the time. It needs to die in a ditch. 1 Quote
Mrbigstuff Posted 10 hours ago Posted 10 hours ago The drunk who says they can play the triangle Quote
bassbiscuits Posted 8 hours ago Posted 8 hours ago Keys. I’ve been in too many bands where the keyboard player felt obliged to fill any hint of quiet with pointless flourishes adding nothing to the song. Quote
42Hz Posted 7 hours ago Posted 7 hours ago Drums, e.g. overdoing double kickdrumming actually ruins the sense of groove. 1 Quote
lemmywinks Posted 6 hours ago Posted 6 hours ago 8 hours ago, Downunderwonder said: Thread title could benefit of a change. "Most unwelcome overplaying guest soloist at open jam". We had a guy who used to come to jam nights and pub band gigs here, harmonica player (using the term loosely) who always wanted to get up on stage for a guest spot. Played the same 3 cheesy blues licks on repeat regardless of the song, pretty sure he thought he was some sort of local celebrity. Sounded awful every time. 2 Quote
chris_b Posted 6 hours ago Posted 6 hours ago Harp players never know when to stop blowing. Guitarists never have control of their volume. Neither do drummers. Drummer are always putting in fills that don't fit. Keyboard players don't understand that 2 bass lines don't work. . . . in any song. . . . ever!! Last week, I saw a quote from an engineer; "The best engineers have the simplest solutions". You could say the same about musicians, and definitely about bass players. The simplest lines are always the best. The spaces say more about your ability than the notes. Overplaying is a curse and the only way to fix it is to play with guys who don't. 3 1 Quote
chris667 Posted 6 hours ago Posted 6 hours ago If you think you never overplay, it might be you. 1 1 Quote
Dan Dare Posted 5 hours ago Posted 5 hours ago (edited) Has to be keyboards. They have enormous harmonic range and can play up to ten notes simultaneously (more if the keys player uses a foot...). Fine if you're playing a solo piece. You can have a bass part, chordal accompaniment and melody all at once. In a band context, it can be a nightmare. We've been having this discussion with our keys player recently. He's good, but not very experienced. A a result, he tends to fill too much space, clashing with the other instruments. We're educating him slowly. Edited 5 hours ago by Dan Dare 1 Quote
SICbass Posted 5 hours ago Posted 5 hours ago I can’t believe we’ve gotten this far into the thread without any mention (@chris_b excepted) of the most obvious candidate, bass. Quote
snorkie635 Posted 4 hours ago Posted 4 hours ago 1 hour ago, Dan Dare said: Has to be keyboards. They have enormous harmonic range and can play up to ten notes simultaneously (more if the keys player uses a foot...). Fine if you're playing a solo piece. You can have a bass part, chordal accompaniment and melody all at once. In a band context, it can be a nightmare. We've been having this discussion with our keys player recently. He's good, but not very experienced. A a result, he tends to fill too much space, clashing with the other instruments. We're educating him slowly. This exactly. Oh, for a subtle wash of Hammond. 1 Quote
ian61 Posted 4 hours ago Posted 4 hours ago 2 hours ago, chris_b said: The simplest lines are always the best I understand where your coming from tho I beg to differ... cite "Darling Dear" and a whole tone of additional Motown lines as one collective example. Simple can actually get in the way of the musicality of the piece. The best line will support the melodic shape of the tune and can be either busy or simple. 1 Quote
tauzero Posted 4 hours ago Posted 4 hours ago 1 hour ago, SICbass said: I can’t believe we’ve gotten this far into the thread without any mention (@chris_b excepted) of the most obvious candidate, bass. It's impossible to overplay bass. I've found it's not so much an instrument as a person. There's always someone who's got to be making a noise all the time. Candidates from my experience have been percussionist, gob-iron player, and acoustic guitarist. 1 Quote
chris_b Posted 3 hours ago Posted 3 hours ago 11 minutes ago, ian61 said: I understand where your coming from tho I beg to differ... cite "Darling Dear" and a whole tone of additional Motown lines as one collective example. Simple can actually get in the way of the musicality of the piece. The best line will support the melodic shape of the tune and can be either busy or simple. There are always examples of players who can excel when being busy, but that's not the same thing as overplaying. A good player like Jamerson does both simple and busy. Overplaying is almost always negative, and comes with a lack of rhythmic ability, lack of good note choice and clarity of execution. Jack Bruce and Francis Rocco Prestia are more examples of very busy players who got it right. 1 Quote
Mykesbass Posted 3 hours ago Posted 3 hours ago Harmonica and solo sax (as opposed to horn section) are predominantly lead instruments, and many of these players don't seem to know what to do when it's not 'their turn'. Really good players will be able to riff with the guitarist, which is why, if you find one that does, hang on to them! Quote
Beer of the Bass Posted 3 hours ago Posted 3 hours ago Amplified blues harmonica can really grate when overdone. Part of the problem is that many insist on cranking bigger amps than most guitarists use in those settings (often a 4x10" Fender Bassman derivative), the other thing is overblows. Overblows have some sort of prestige status as the advanced technique that a good player must have, so once players have mastered them they'll shoehorn them in wherever they can. But what overblows do is get you a harsh toned, usually slightly out of tune note that's outside of the key you're playing in, so absolutely excruciating if overused. Quote
prowla Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago 6 hours ago, bassbiscuits said: Keys. I’ve been in too many bands where the keyboard player felt obliged to fill any hint of quiet with pointless flourishes adding nothing to the song. Jools Holland on Later tries to turn every song into a "featuring me doing meaningless widdles". 6 hours ago, 42Hz said: Drums, e.g. overdoing double kickdrumming actually ruins the sense of groove. Some might say this is overdone, but I like it! Quote
Grahambythesea Posted 3 minutes ago Posted 3 minutes ago Drums every time. For a while I was playing bluegrass, what a pleasure no drummers at all. Quote
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