Miscellaneous - July 2010

  by Lisa Torem

published: 25 / 6 / 2010

intro

In 'Rock Salt Row' Lisa Torem talks to another Pennyblackmusic writer each month about a different issue in rock. In this edition, she talks to Adrian Huggins, who plays bass in the Newcastle-based dance/rock group Delta Sound, about the often under acknowledged role of the bassist in groups

Two Writers Season Two Historic Moments LISA There’s always the girl sitting in the corner, at the dance, who is bright, talented and dependable, but whose lipstick blends in so well that we forget she’s there. Some of our favorite bass players stand there, not under the bright lights, but looking a bit lonely, more like side men. But, can you imagine what would happen if their steady backing, or more importantly, their jagged-edged, step-wise gyrations ceased to exist? “None of us wanted to be the bass player. In our minds he was the fat guy who always played at the back.” Paul McCartney “Now they have banging guitars and no bass and call it rock, but that’s not what I call rock.” Little Richard Rock Salt Row recently celebrated a first birthday, so I figured I could get away with using two quotes this time around. Both of these rock legends seem to identify the paradigm that surrounds that most working-class hero of instruments; the bass. But, for some reason, this sometimes buxom, but often shapely instrument is too often relegated as the hidden-in-the- corner wallflower – the intelligent, but, predictable girl that nobody bothered to ask to get up and dance. But, let’s backtrack before we dive in. First of all, do young musicians choose bass as their first instruments, or, as McCartney points out, does the future Hendrix join the band and get elected because no one else steps up? Secondly, is it true, these days, that the bass is losing its grip and is becoming a shadow of what it once was in the golden age of slap happy rock and roll? Growing up, I rarely noticed the bass player. I was more intrigued with the artist who could manage a really sophisticated solo. The honking sounds of the sax, the wails of the Stratt, the breathiness of those rapid passages on the flute, were, for me, what hit pay-dirt during those jam band renderings. But, recently, listening to a classic rock station, I began to realize how many songs actually owed their existence and staying power to imaginative and potent bass lines. Okay, so the range of the instrument is limited, that is true. But, isn’t that true, as well, of some of the most expressive vocalists? Dusty Springfield pretty much evoked emotion without exhibiting an expansive range; was there something missing because she couldn’t reach a high E? I don’t think so. And, even though the bass player has the tough role of keeping up with the drummer, is it only so that the glamorous lead guitarist can bend a few precise passages meant especially for mammals with high-pitched hearing? Tina Weymouth, founding member and bassist of Talking Heads, says, “I play bass. I don’t have to go out there and screech.” No, she does not. Even more eloquently, the legendary Suzi Quatro explains, “The bass player’s function, along with the drums, is to be the engine that drives the car, everything else is merely colours.” Geezer Butler, bassist of Black Sabbath, and one of the first bassists to use a Haw-haw pedal on his instrument, adds, after being exposed to classic rockers, “Jack Bruce, as soon as I saw him, it changed me. I didn’t even know what bass players did until I saw Cream.” I dare any mortal to listen to ‘Sunshine of Our Love’ without passionately tapping out its jack-hammer pattern on the nearest coffee table. The classic rock period exalted the bass line. ‘In-A-Gadda-Di-Vida’ by Iron Butterfly was a quintessential example. That fine bass line is the perfect wainscot against those grimy vocals. ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ is John Entwistle screaming, “Why buy the cow, when you can get your milk for free?” Chris Squire plays his heart out in the album ‘Fragile’ – enough to make the toughest callous bleed. Now, don’t forget, in the days of yore, that Bill Black made ‘Don’t Be Cruel’ a song that the King could turn upside down. Oh, Adrian, shall we talk about weird, but great? I’d have to suggest ‘Pork Soda’ by Primus and ‘XYZ’ by Geddy Lee’s Rush. Pete Cetera’s ‘I’m a Man’ sounds so simple, but it’s less is more approach is more captivating than most. Funky always work wonders, and the F word saturates, “I Can’t Turn You Loose,’ when Otis Redding sings against Duck Dunn’s flamboyant framework. Queen’s John Deacon nails ‘Another One Bites the Dust’, a tune which is so contagious, you’d be hard-pressed not to hopscotch on your mum’s lacquered linoleum floor. ‘Juicebox ‘ by the Strokes is like the Ventures, years before, but this time, up-dated for the 21st century. ‘Panic Attack’ by Dream Theatre and ‘Hysteria’ by Muse are two amazing songs that use the bass to illustrate extreme anxiety in a way that no six-string slacker possibly could. And, along those eerie lines, ‘Domination’ by Symphony X explores the inner-sanctum of emotional derailment better than any Freudian can. I can’t imagine any track on Jethro Tull’s ‘Aqualung’ without the gnawing persistence of gothic-tinged bass, Adrian, can you? ADRIAN It is funny that I should be up here given the chance to defend my (sort of) livelihood and give it some credibility as, only last month, the fine programming folk at the BBC deemed the bass player to be merely the “other one” in their ‘I’m in a Rock n’Roll Band’ series. Other than this episode, it was a thoroughly enjoyable series which charted the various band members starting with the singer, then guitarist, then drummer. After watching the drumming episode, I awaited the previews for the next instalment as eagerly as when I’m playing bass guitar in a band myself. I have a vested interest in this particular episode, but then the words, “tune in next week where we look at “the other one…” THE OTHER ONE? The fucking other one? What? Was Paul McCartney “the other one”? Was Peter Hook “the other one?” Sid Vicious, John Paul Jones, for Christ’s Sake? Name a member of KISS in 10 seconds? What’s that you say? Gene Simmons, yeah, I thought as much – “the other one?” I think not. Utterly offended, I continued to sulk, up till now where I can give my people a little bit of the limelight. Well, maybe. Speaking of limelight, it would make sense to start from my own very humble musical beginnings, around nine years ago, when I got an electric guitar for Christmas. I got a fairly standard squire, modeled on the Stratocaster and began to play around and learn some tunes. Although it was less playing and more a drunken fumble, maybe that of two 13 year olds’ first sexual encounter. There were certainly no orgasms coming from my fret board, let me tell you. It’s not to say I was totally incapable. I think what I lacked, and anyone wishing to pick up an instrument take heed, it was a lack of motive. I had no band to join, no real inspiration to properly play, because learning by yourself is really hard. Really, really, hard. Flash forward about five or six unmusically productive years and I decided to get a bass guitar. Based around the fact that I was living in another country, had an electric guitar back home, but felt the need to have a bit of a play, it seemed pointless getting another guitar, and, from my experience, people were always looking for bassists. So I did, thus fulfilling most of the old bassist jokes/stereotypes simultaneously – couldn’t play guitar, so chose to try bass, because no one else wanted to. Well, yes, kind of, but in fairness, I have always had a more rhythmic impulse than tuneful and I was right to make this choice, now. Upon returning home to blighty, an old friend of mine ("The old friend Adrian mentions is coincidentally Pennyblack writer Jonjo McNeill-Ed) who has been in bands from the age of about 17 (he was 26 at this point), had returned to the North East where I was living, after spending three years in London trying to make something of his old band. He’d done okay, but had really fallen out of love with the music scene, with all its jumping through hoops and effort for nothing and the constant struggle of band members who aren’t willing to give 100 % all of the time, or even some of the time. So, upon returning, he had no immediate plans to get back in a band. By the time I’d returned, he’d got the bug again and had begun a new quest for a band. When mentioning that I had taken up bass, he asked if I fancied popping along for a jam one night, just as a sort of fill in, until they found someone else, as I was still pretty much learning. As anyone taking the leap from bedroom “musician” to band member will know, the first few practices are very daunting, but I got through them and gradually improved with the help of my good friend and the fact that I had to learn to play; four years later and Deltasound are still going strong. The reason I think it has worked is the reason some bassists and basslines are classic, but do get overlooked. We’ve kept it simple. The bass is just that, a bass - a sturdy plateau for the rest of the music and, yes, this isn’t always as technically impressive to some, but if you don’t hear the bass, you really notice it. After around a year of gigging, I also started to get a lot more confident and certainly didn’t want to just be the guy at the back, and, inspired by another local band that we gigged with quite a lot, Facia, we decided to line up with myself in the middle of the stage, singer/guitarist to the left, guitarist to the right. This was also down to the amount of peddles those 6-string types had to bring on stage with them, but it all worked well. Now, down from a four piece to a three piece, this has given me an even more developed role musically in the band, and, as such, I have a deeper appreciation for the instrument and those that have mastered the art of it. LISA It seems, then, Adrian, that playing bass requires not just musical stamina, but habitual internalized cheer-leading. But, your healthy dose of anger after observing the BBC’s slight, makes me feel that, despite earlier growing pains, you’ve come full circle in acknowledging the merits of this unsung instrument, and, your recognition that you enjoy rhythm more than melody seals your fate. That remark about rhythm was inspiring. I’ve always been attuned to melody, but truthfully, melody without the backbone of the bass, is like Gregorian chant without the mysterious addition and textual layering of other voicings. But, getting back to the dynamics of the band, there seems to be this odd, but obvious, host-parasite relationship grinding itself out here. As you implied, I simply can not imagine, say, Led Zeppelin sans the dark hellish John Paul Jones twists that he brings to ‘Kashmir’ or the rhythmic lift he imbues on the ‘Immigrant Song.’ Imagine ‘Riders on the Storm’ without that creepy crawly weirdness. Could Jim Morrison have poured such passion into his vocal lines without that steadfast clamminess? ‘Helter Skelter’ or ‘I Want You (She’s so Heavy)’ certainly put the bass on a sizzling pedestal. ‘Come Together’ was a classic example of cool, but with no low end, it would have simply been a clever word salad screaming for tangy dressing. All I can really say about this next one is, “Day Tripper, yeah.” I’ve also been recently charmed by the brilliant Jah Wobble who seems to veer in every possible musical direction. It seems that he’s taken this instrument in a whole other realm. It’s more than just rhythm. It’s more than just a repeated line. What makes the bass unique and not just the cog to the lead guitar’s illustrious wheel? Also, when does a bassist graduate from “skater boy” to Olympian? When did you decide that the bass really was your instrument; something integral to your soul? Did a certain cover or original inspire you? And, if you and that sexy instrument were stranded on a desert island with just enough juice in the amp to last for a New York minute, what would be your swan song? How have you injected your own personality into Deltasound? Finally, can a bassist be a showman? ADRIAN There are some very good points and questions there. I guess looking back, I never really distinguished one instrument or particular parts in songs before I was into making my own music, apart from the odd solo here and there. In all honesty, it was the overall feel of the songs that grabbed me. The classics have always been there and I guess I'd never considered them to be 'classic bass lines' I just saw them as songs, but things like 'Another One Bites the Dust' by Queen, 'Welcome to the Jungle' from Guns 'n Roses and 'Whole Lotta Love' by Led Zeppelin, all looking back, are unimaginable without those deep tones. When I really started being a total music lover it was when I got into much heavier stuff in the late 90's, Machinehead, Korn, Deftones and Incubus, among many others, and one thing a lot of them did was down tuning so it really did all lead from the low end so I could also pin point a bit of my influence to that. The way I see my own playing is that I am still very much learning and can only attribute any of my qualities down my band mates. My own personal swan song, well out of Deltasound's songs, it would have to be one of the first we wrote together really, and in fairness the bass line was brought to me, but I play, so I'll take that one and it's a song called 'Angel from Heaven' and is as simple as you can get, but I think it works a treat. I'm not sure when one graduates to fully fledged bass Olympian. Some would say it is when you find your style or your sound, but for some these things change and develop with time, so I think it's different for all. Incubus and Deftones are two of my favourite bands of all time. The original Incubus bassist Dirk Lance had a really funky sound that really set the band apart and what I love about what he did with the band was the way himself and the drummer Jose Pasillas really played off each others off beats and didn't just play the straight rhythms you'd expect with songs like 'Skin', 'Pardon Me' and 'Vitamin' at times giving it an almost drum and bass feel rather than just doing the normal rock thing. With Deftones I always loved the really low and deep sounds that Chi Cheng came out with and I will probably forever be trying to emulate his sound as it is simple, minimal but shakes your bones to the core and that's what I personally love. For the uninitiated, check out the likes of 'Minus Blindfold', 'My Own Summer (shove it)' and 'Cherry Waves'. One thing that is prevalent with both of those bands is the fact that they both have always let the music speak and pretty much worked as a unit without any real big shot stars like some of the classic bands. I have always admired bands like these and would hope that people would see my own band in this light. I do, however, believe the bassist can be a show man. They just don't really have the same scope as guitarists do. People like Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Hooky from Joy Division/New Order are obvious personalities when it comes to bass players and of course Gene Simmons of KISS, but in my mind he's a minimally talented human who would put his bass down and sell socks if he thought it'd make him more money, so I ignore him. On the total flip side in my mind, the great bass frontman ever, if not best bassist ever, is Les Claypool of Primus. There is a band that are way out there and the way he plays is like no other and you instantly know them with his lead slap bass style, songs like 'Laquer Head' and 'Winona's Big Brown Beaver' really show this and there is no better bass solo/intro when 'Eclectic Electric' kicks in . Both his voice and his bass playing in Primus sound like no other. Now I think the only way to end is to list my top 10 bass lines in no particular order, apart from the top one which I will give a special to as I doubt it'd come up very much on these such lists. Queen – 'Another One Bites the Dust' Deftones – 'My Own Summer' Incubus – 'Skin' Faith No More – 'We Care a Lot' Primus – 'Laquer Head' Prodigy – 'Climbatize' Chemical Brothers – 'Under the Influence' Glassjaw – 'My Empire' New Order – 'Blue Monday' And my favourite: Candi Staton – 'You Got the Love'. Seriously, that is one of the best bass lines ever, it is so recognisable and just shakes the place to the foundations and I personally love that. So what makes a great bass line and bassist? I don't quite know, many things, but the fact that we can discuss it in this detail should dispel that whole 'unnoticed' member thing once and for all. LISA Adrian, Your bird’s eye view of this unsung instrument has turned a hazy hypothesis into a world class proof. I’m a bit sad that my Led Zep faves and Jah Wobbles didn’t make the grade, but you’ve opened my eyes as to why the all too often modest bassist deserves centre stage.