The Dark Side

Bridgehouse

For various reasons... I ended up having a conversation with Mrs B yesterday which resulted in her saying:

"Why don't you get a Fretless Bass and learn that as a side project?"




I am now seriously considering this. *Runs and hides*

blobb

Ha! Do it.

I picked up a Cort Curbow fretless to scratch my Richard Sinclair wannabe itch. Great fun.

Sporky

She sounds like a wise mentor.

I happen to have a Dean Edge Fretless that I could spare...

axisus

Go for it. I have about 5 basses (I forget how many!) including a fretless. To be honest I haven't really been playing bass for about 5 years, I keep thinking I will return to it at some point, probably when I build my own.

wrinkleygit

easy on the fingers & I would never give up the opurtunity to buy something else,

slacker

Bridgehouse said:

For various reasons... I ended up having a conversation with Mrs B yesterday which resulted in her saying:

"Why don't you get a Fretless Bass and learn that as a side project?"




I am now seriously considering this. *Runs and hides*

Buy a 1980s Wal and tell her you needed a good one to learn on. 

Seriously, go for it. I had an unmarked Warwich Thumb for about 6 years. I only sold it when I had a midlife meltdown and sold all my bass gear. Then I got the NXT...

Cut out the half measures and go for a double. Lots of fun. or get a double as well as a fretless. 

octatonic

It is an excellent idea but requires actual work, rather than just dicking around on the instrument.

Funkfingers

This is a plot. As soon as we hawk our fretless bass guitars, we get banned. :-p

I have a Yamaha RBX200F that looks terrible but sounds glorious. I also have a certain 1978/79 factory fretless Fender Precision. The Yamaha fingerboard is lined. The Fender is not. I navigate by the bumps and troughs in the poly finish.

VimFuego

out of curiosity how does a fretless bass differ sound wise to a fretted? I get how an bull fiddle bass sounds different from a "guitar" bass. 

octatonic

VimFuego said:

out of curiosity how does a fretless bass differ sound wise to a fretted? I get how an bull fiddle bass sounds different from a "guitar" bass. 

It can sound a bit different or a lot different.
If you play pretty much as you do on the fretted instrument then it sounds a bit different because pitching it usually less perfect.
You rely on your ear more than you do on a fretted bass, so results can be variable.

If you take advantage of the lack of frets then playing with glissando (slides) affords a very different sound to the fretted instrument.
Check out Jaco for the best of fretless playing.

Bridgehouse

Naturally I am a bitch to gas and so I want a hand built uber custom exotic wood fretless

EricTheWeary

octatonic said:

VimFuego said:

out of curiosity how does a fretless bass differ sound wise to a fretted? I get how an bull fiddle bass sounds different from a "guitar" bass. 

It can sound a bit different or a lot different.
If you play pretty much as you do on the fretted instrument then it sounds a bit different because pitching it usually less perfect.
You rely on your ear more than you do on a fretted bass, so results can be variable.

If you take advantage of the lack of frets then playing with glissando (slides) affords a very different sound to the fretted instrument.
Check out Jaco for the best of fretless playing.

Jaco, Mick Karn ( in Japan or solo), Tony Franklin used one on all sorts of rock stuff, Sting used one a bit, Percy Jones ( mostly fretless with various jazz fusion bands and Suzanne Vega) and the classic bass burps made by Pino Pallidino on old Paul Young records ( like Wherever I lay my Hat). 

proggy

Bridgehouse said:

Naturally I am a bitch to gas and so I want a hand built uber custom exotic wood fretless

You don't need custom built, exotic woods and all that malarkey, what you actually need is a Fender Jazz Special in burgundy mist. And funnily enough I know where you can get one!

Seriously though, if you just want to borrow it to see how you get on with no frets, you're more than welcome mate, it's only gathering dust.

Bridgehouse

proggy said:

Bridgehouse said:

Naturally I am a bitch to gas and so I want a hand built uber custom exotic wood fretless

You don't need custom built, exotic woods and all that malarkey, what you actually need is a Fender Jazz Special in burgundy mist. And funnily enough I know where you can get one!

Seriously though, if you just want to borrow it to see how you get on with no frets, you're more than welcome mate, it's only gathering dust.

I’m surprised someone on tfb doesn’t understand GAS - I’m def. liking the custom ones on aesthetic grounds only

Thanks for the kind offer - I will see where I am at!

Funkfingers

proggy said:
funnily enough, I know where you can get one!

Who do you think you are kidding, Private Walker?

Bridgehouse said:

I ended up having a conversation with Mrs B yesterday which resulted in her saying: "Why don't you get a Fretless Bass and learn that as a side project?"

The obvious question is context. What music style(s) are you playing that could benefit from fretless bass? For relatively easy listening, singer/songwriter, Folk, Country and other non-deafening genres, the answer might be another semi-hollow Ibanez.

Bridgehouse

Funkfingers said:

proggy said:
funnily enough, I know where you can get one!

Who do you think you are kidding, Private Walker?

Bridgehouse said:

I ended up having a conversation with Mrs B yesterday which resulted in her saying: "Why don't you get a Fretless Bass and learn that as a side project?"

The obvious question is context. What music style(s) are you playing that could benefit from fretless bass? For relatively easy listening, singer/songwriter, Folk, Country and other non-deafening genres, the answer might be another semi-hollow Ibanez.

There is no context.

I don’t need another bass. I certainly don’t need another fretted bass.

I see plenty I would like to have. 

However, the conversation started by me saying I wanted to challenge my musical development and push it forward. We saw fretless as an opportunity to try something new, something to learn and something to challenge me. 

Let’s hope @HarrySeven never gets asked the musical context for his purchases - I suspect the internet would self combust..!

Funkfingers

IMO, H7's context is technological rather than musical. 

Bridgehouse

Funkfingers said:

IMO, H7's context is technological rather than musical. 

Possibly. My context is "I want to try something a bit different, challenge myself, and further my skillset"

I think..

HarrySeven

Mine is more curatorial...

Like a museum of dead technology.

Funkfingers

JezWynd

If you still have a couple of P basses, why not try putting a fretless neck on one of them, probably the simplest way of trying it out.