What is a "modern" bass sound...? Discuss...

[gweimer]

Not exactly recent, but I think this is what we're talking about.



Even older, but the same thing.


If you want modern rock bass, I think Muse pretty much sums it up nicely.

[gweimer]

And having said that, music and sound run in cycles.  What we call modern might not really be modern, but just current favor.  I see a big shift back to older sounds from the '60s.  These guys do it so perfectly, too.  Right down to FOUR strings.   

[luve2fli]

Define "modern". If you're comparing a Duck Dunn-esque tone to that of, say, the bassist for No Doubt - sure, that's a helluva contrast both in terms of tone and style. Or Maca to Fieldy from Korn, same thing. Drenched in effects, definitely not your Precision-through-a-B15-tone, that's for sure. It really depends on what you call traditional and what you call modern. To me, you do not necessarily have a "modern bass sound" just because you play a 5-string, use rounds or play a Musicman, all of which have been around for 30+ years.

I believe that really modern bass sounds reside (largely) outside of the rock and roll genre (there are, of course, some exceptions). Let's face it, most mainstream rock today still has a driving, round, big 'n fat bass sound. Some of the bass tones have less mid, some are a little more "zingy" but generally, it's a big bottom meant as a foundation for the band. Not alot of room for experimentation, in my opinion. If you listen to some of the Fusion, Acid-Jazz, R&B or cross-over genre releases over the last 20 years, however, it's a whole other ballgame. Some examples - Mark King of Level 42, John Pattitucci with Chick Corea, Victor Wooten from the Flecktones, Flea from RHCP, Marcus Miller, Les Claypool of Primus, Tony Levin, Oteil Burbridge from the Allman Bros., Billy Sheehan, Ben Richardson from Grady, Norwood Fisher, Stuart Zender from Jamiroquai, Alain Caron from UZEB, Tony Hall from the Neville Brothers ...... the list goes on and on.

What I see in common with many of these players is boutique basses, high-end amplification, a myriad of effects and - most importantly - the willingness to experiment with it all - which is something that's been lost over the last several years, sadly. I love the fact that Flea - for all his faults (and he has many) - puts the bass up front and centre and does alot of experimentation. That's not to say I like his tone - quite the contrary - but at least he makes an attempt. I'm very much of a mind that if the music calls for it, the bassist should be able to step out and shine using whatever tools are available. John Entwistle certainly did it as did Stanley Clarke and Jaco.

I'll refrain from sharing my opinion on the state of the mainstream music scene today. Suffice it to say, it just doesn't seem condusive to achieving a "modern" bass sound most of the time. As much as I love old-school styles (I'm currently playing in a Country band and a Classic-Rock cover band), I gravitate towards bands/artists that break down the barriers and allow for more expression - in whatever style of music. It's these types of bands that help to evolve and move the music forward and it's these types of bands where you'll find what you're looking for.

[hieronymous]

Don't forget that a big part of the "modern" bass sound was Alembic-related. They really pushed the boundaries in the late'60s through the '70s, both with basses and with PA systems. The early "Alembic sound" is probably unlike what we usually think of when we say "modern bass sound" - Jack Casady & Phil Lesh were the two big guys during the early development with their Guild Starfires with Alembic guts and flatwound strings. The next one I think of is Stanley Clarke, which gets us closer, but his sound is actually pretty unusual too.

As for the "modern bass sound" - I'm not sure, is this close:



Or this (it hits at about 1:23):

[Highlander]

I'll come back on those as-soon-as...

"boutique" and high-end gear has been mentioned, as was Flea... at least he deliberately took the tack of the "budget" bass to work with so those that have the interest (not me, although my daughter rates him) can go down that road "cheaply" ...