LOW-FREQUENCY LEARNING

A new column in which a bass player shares their playing philosophy

First and foremost the bass content has to be ‘musical’. Bass players are not there just to provide a certain frequency. A lot of the melodic content of our songs is provided by the bass. I try and create bass-lines that are hummable. Technique alone is not enough. There are bassists who have jaw-dropping technique that’s not always matched by musicality and feel. Slap bass is anathema to me and I don’t listen to music that embodies that style of playing. No doubt there are some very skilful exponents of it but I’m happy to leave them to it. Knowledge can be a wonderful thing but ‘paralysis by analysis’ isn’t. The most talented creative people are largely self-taught and self-motivated. It comes from within.

Drew Dempster, New England www.newengland-prog.com