OFF/HW: double bass...who's on first? what's on second?

[Jon Jarrett]

On Sun, 5 Aug 2001 DASLUD at AOL.COM wrote:

> <<
> Have you ever heard speed metal, thrash metal, etc.? Drum sound in these
>
> styles is based on using double bass kit.
>  >>
> ====
> you're right.
> i've been living in a cave all these years -_-
> was nixon re-elected?
> is vietnam over?
>
> and, indeed, i quite understand the significance of double bass in in that
> music.
> never mind that this is a significant digression from talk of keith moon,
> simon king etc
>
> more to the point
> i _really_ dislike the genres you mention
> with, of course, a few exceptions. [yo, rmayo!]
>
> personally, i would much prefer the sound of 'driving straight ahead'
> to the sound of a hovercraft or helicopter.
>
> to rock is to be driving straight ahead.

        This interests me for two reasons, and though to the best of my
current knowledge <> will not be reading this, I wonder if anyone else
might care to pitch in. Firstly, I got played some Mayhem a while back and
that really did sound as if they had a helicopter in the studio. Drums too
but this bass-register wub-wub-wub-wub noise all the time. I must be
getting old, I couldn't see what it was supposed to achieve.

        But, more deeply. A bass-playing friend of mine can get quite
lyrical, or at least, gesticulates very expressively, about the shapes of
music. Bends in riffs, slopes and curves, she sees and enthuses about. She
doesn't really have much time for music that just goes, as Larry has it,
"straight ahead"; I on the other hand do. So I'll put something saying
"this ROCKS," and wig out for five minutes and she'll still be wondering
when the good bit starts as it finishes. It's no good to her without some
kind of shape, straight lines don't do it.

        And my question is, does anyone else understand this sort of
language or is it just that I've successfully picked up her idialect
without really feeling much of what she's talking about? Apologies if this
is too OFF. Yours,
                   Jon


--
           Jon Jarrett                     "Two men say they're Jesus,
          (01223 514989)                   One of 'em must be wrong..."
   jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk              (Mark Knopfler)