Sometimes I wanna throw my bass...

[phizz]

Ok so wanting to become a better entertainer I was thinking what can I do that will really catch peoples eye during a show? Then I remembered when I saw Wooten play he did this kind of throwing the bass type thing, where the bass slung around his shoulder and he caught it. Since then I've seen several other people do it, so I was wondering is there a technique to this? I've been to affraid to do this so far because I have no idea how to do this. Do any of you guys do it? Do you have any tips for this, like should my bass hang real low, real high when I throw it? That type of thing...

 

Thank you all for your help..

[pumpcat]

WAIT!

 

Before you try this, get a locking strap system! I used to jam with a guy in high school who thought it would be cool to try it because he saw it in a Cinderella video. He spun his guitar around behind his back and the strap came unhooked, sending it headstock first into the floor and basically destroying the guitar. At that moment, I decided he was too stupid to play in my band.

 

You'll probably need a wireless system too, with the transmitter taped to the guitar body to avoid strangling yourself with the cable.

 

... and high ceilings...

 

... and make sure you're standing well away from your fellow musicians...

[cornbread_medhotmail.com]

Well, I've never tried it. Something about sending a $2000 custom bass airborne doesn't appeal to me. But, if I were to try it after several mind-altering beverages, I would suspect that you need to unplug the instrument unless you have a wireless system built in. I would lower the strap to give more clearance for my noggin and throw it really hard in the same motion it takes going around my neck and shoulders and do a lot of praying that my strap is securly in place. Of course, I would leave this to the rock stars and the wannabe's and rely on my playing and normal stage presence to get me noticed. If I have to rely on a gimmick to gain attention, I would sell my bass and become a clown or an infomercial host.

[_Sweet Willie_]

You may want to listen to a wonderful John Hiatt song about a "Perfectly Good Guitar" before you try this. When I saw Vic do it with his Fodera, I couldn't help but catch my breath and hear some of the lines from that song in my head. At least Vic is successful and doesn't smash up his bass...but the fear is there.

[SteveC]

Dude, don't do it.

[phizz]

It's not as though I plan on doing this with a good bass, maybe an el cheapo thing that I get cuz I wanna see how much stuff I can learn about electronics and bridges and something that I have little or no intention of using as my main bass.

[phizz]

I don't really care about being a rockstar or getting attention it just looked cool and would be neat to pull out at a gig when no one was expecting.

[Cup]

Well Phizz, it looks like the majority have spoken. Personally I think you should try it out. I've it seen on the Hives video, and I have to agree, it does look as cool as &*%% !!

 

For entertainment value Moving and playing is probably the best thing. We recorded on video our last gig. The band before us were so hot. This always puts me on a defensive mood (ohh God, how can we top that??) They had their songs down to a tee, moved brilliantly and basically just rocked.

 

We went on and I just felt enormous pressure. I forgot about the camera and really tried to just nail every note. Afterwards we were told we played them of the floor.....MUSICALLY. But looking at the video, it was just so evident that they were the band of the night. Entertainment is the key. They looked like they meant every note.

We looked frightened, sure we moved, but these guys had stage craft down to an artform. I'm sure they must have devoted 1 practice a week simply on movement.

 

Any tricks that get the audience moving or standing open mouthed (without wrecking the overall sound) can only be great. Let me know how many basses you break !!

 

CupMcMali...this monkey's gone to heaven

[davebrownbass]

He does this trick in the middle of his solo on "Sinister Minister" with was arguably the Flecktones biggest hit.

 

He plays an incredibly beautiful solo and has built in a one measure stop precisely in the middle...between the question and the answer, so to speak.

 

Throwing the bass is fine; I'd prefer to make my statement with what happens on either side of the toss.

[The Bear Jew]

OK...

I've done some wacked shit onstage -- playing the guitar/bass behind my head, throwing my guitar/bass across the stage, played while the guitar/bass with it over another person's shoulders, between my legs, played w/my teeth, etc -- but I've never tried that "throw the instrument around the back" thing. Odd as it might sound, I've never had the confidence for that. I'm sure I'd find a way to conk myself in the head and hear about that from my bandmates for the rest of my life. As it stands, I sometimes get crap from them about my other onstage antics and between-song speeches. I tend to get caught up in the moment.

 

"Thank you guys so mutherfucking, cocksucking, asslicking, goddam much! This next song is about becoming more than what the shit-talkers think you are... If anyone deserves to be recognized for being something special, it's you."

--Actual excerpt of something I said onstage in front of a crowd of about 100 in South Carolina. What the fuck was I thinking? Sadly, this lil' speech was videotaped, so the other guys have been breaking my balls about it for about 4 months. Just imagine what they'd say if I got knocked out with my own guitar.

[phizz]

cdmn

I've taken my abuse from my old band quite alot for my on stage antics. They still have a picture on the website of me doing this weird spinning of my arm as I introduced the band. I've done other crazy stuff such as putting my bass down and teaching the crowd how to "skank" and if we include the amounts of stupid speaches I've made before/after/during our songs. I've only owned one bass at a time so I can't afford to try throwing may bass.

 

-------------------------------------------------

 

I'm surprised that with the amount of pro's we have here know one has tried this.

[The Fonz]

with all the jaco loving that goes on in here no one thinks about his bass chucking? he liked for it to come crashing down and he only had the one bass.

 

in high school band, some of us had a little ongoing competition. two of us would duet at every show (my partner was a cellist)and every duet tried to out-do the last. one of the coolest things was a pair of guitar players who tossed their guitars two each other during their act. the guitars were airborne simultaneously. it looked pretty sick.

 

why not try it, it's your bass. i just recommend doing everything possible to safeguard against the thing crashing to the floor disasterously. try bolting your strap to your bass. and PRACTICE. who knows, this could become a big part of your performance.

[Adamixoye]

Perhaps you have heard of the band Blindside...post-hardcore, modern-rockish outfit from Sweden; "Pitiful" is their radio and MTV single right now.

 

They do the guitar sling all the time. It is cool. I don't think they use wireless kits, though I'm sure they use locking straps. A variant of the move that they do is kind of a side-half-flip-spin while the guitar remains stationary.

 

Speaking of "stationary", I tried to come up with an Einstein/frame of reference joke here, but I gave up.

 

I'm outta here like I've got a Lorentz factor of 77.

[Wickerman]

Yeah, but Blindside is special. They're the greatest Christian hardrock band EVER! Way back from their first release on Solidstate Records they've been touring and being a typical insane hardcore band. Now they've calmed down so much... SO good though...

 

Anyway! Guitar throw! First time I tired it, I had a friggin Telecaster smash my neck. OW! Things to remember...

• BE CONFIDANT!
  If you get scared, you'll wimp out and it'll either only go half way and slide back and you'll look silly or it'll smack you!
  
• Throw hard
  If you have a good set of straplocks, it won't come out but you need to put power into it.
  
• Straplocks - Without them, you're risking far too much
  
• Stay clear
  Keep away from walls, ceilings, amps, people, drums and such...
  
• Timing
  Timing is everything. It's a fun trick to use but you HAVE to do it at the right time. Do it at a time when you're not playing and just before you come back in, throw it. Then, as you catch, hit your first note. My second guitarist and I used to do this. Great fun, looked awesome!
   
  

[The Bear Jew]

Now that I think of this move, I seem to remember that a lot of the "hair" bands from the '80s did similar things as well. I'm pretty sure the guys from Warrant and Poison did it. I know I've seen Steve Vai do it, too, when he was in Whitesnake.

 

Funny how the ol' "guitar throw" never seems to go out of style. I still don't think I'm gonna do it. To be honest, this move never occurs to me. Then again, I also missed the "jumping in unison" and "synchronized headbanging" crazes as well. It must be all about perception, though, as a very sedate friend who came to see us asked me how much we had to practice our choreography. I had no idea what he meant until I saw a video of our set. At certain times, our singer, #5 and I all did the same "moves" together. We never planned this -- it just kind of comes naturally to us. I guess we must be synched up mentally without knowing it.

[_Sweet Willie_]

Of course, while the "jumping in unison" thang is pretty cool, it's doubly cool to have one band member jumping in syncopation while the others jump in unison. If you're really good, you can get kind of a "piston" look going on stage with everyone jumping in time at different times.

 

(If you're really super good, you can turn it into a grand trick on your drummer and screw with his/her understanding of where the beat is! )

[Adamixoye]

Originally posted by Wickerman:

Yeah, but Blindside is special. They're the greatest Christian hardrock band EVER!

Just for the record, I will cast my vote for Project 86 here, but Blindside is second in the 'hardcore' genre, and in my top five overall.

 

I LIKE LOUD ROCK MUSIC!

[jeremy c]

I have a video of a live concert of Bela Fleck showing Wooten spinning his bass around his head and I've seen him do this live.

 

Jaco used to put talcum powder on the stage floor so he could throw his bass on the floor and then do a big running slide over to it.

 

Anytime I've tried swinging my bass around, I've managed to take out a spotlight or a cymbal or microphone. I think I need bigger stages.

 

Personally, I'd rather grab the lead singer and throw her around my neck but I don't think I'd get away with it.

[wraub]

Originally posted by jeremyc:

Personally, I'd rather grab the lead singer and throw her around my neck but I don't think I'd get away with it.

In my last band, I usually wanted to throw the lead singer out a window...

 

Peace,

 

wraub

[Christopher]

You know, I've heard that even Wooten has had an "accident" or two doing that trick. Then again, he has a credit line with Fodera.

 

If I tried that, I'd probably wind up knocking out a tooth.

[g.]

Don't leave out the lighter fluid and flash pot tricks if you've come this far ; }

[Wickerman]

Originally posted by Adamixoye:

Just for the record, I will cast my vote for Project 86 here, but Blindside is second in the 'hardcore' genre, and in my top five overall.

 

I LIKE LOUD ROCK MUSIC!

Project? Really? Ghetto metal was never really my deal... Although Truthless Heroes has some good stuff on it. They're getting better with age. I just love Blindside. They're not really hardcore anymore though. They're just great rock and roll... Zao (from Liberate til now) is one of my favorite hardcore bands. They're tied with Underoath for my #1 Christian metal slot. Then is Anah Aevia . Check them out. They've from my area. I'm lucky enough to have them locally so when they're not touring they're right down the highway.

 

Have you heard the new Training for Utopia? Oh wait, they renamed themselves... Demon Hunter. SO good! They've got a track or two on MP3.com too...

 

"Christian metal never dies"

[Adamixoye]

Originally posted by Wickerman:

Project? Really? Ghetto metal was never really my deal... Although Truthless Heroes has some good stuff on it. They're getting better with age. I just love Blindside. They're not really hardcore anymore though. They're just great rock and roll...[/QB]

I dunno, for my tastes, very few bands channel anger and emotion quite like P86. Dunno what you mean by "ghetto metal." Their first album was very, very good and Drawing Black Lines and Truthless Heroes are both excellent. Chevelle is my other favorite band, they just don't quite fall into "hardcore." "Metal" perhaps just a little.

 

I really like Blindside's second album where they were still pretty hardcore (but with some melodies), but their new album is also very good. There is still just a hint of hardcore with the occasional unnecessary scream/yell, but yeah, they've "matured" (whatever that means) and they're still extremely good.

[Wickerman]

lol I forget that a friend and I made up the term

"Ghetto metal" Yeah, it's just his vocal style. Sounds like he's straight out the ghetto. It's not an insult or anything.

 

Drawing Black Lines had some cool stuff and Truthless Heroes is pretty good, just not my favorite. Chevelle is quite good too although a little simplistic. Good vocals and great guitar tone though. I've seen some live vids of them. They're quite tight. Not sloppy like a lot of bands tend to be these days...

[Jason Hoyt]

I'm not super into anybody preaching at me, but Tourniquet's album "Microscopic View Of A Telescopic Realm" rules... The "cornerstone" festival is near me, and I avoid it like the plague... Too bad so many people are so overtly trying to preach to the "unconverted", because I really dig bands like Chevelle too...

[phizz]

Jason where are you from, i've gone to conerstone the past two years... i'm from downstate illinois south of champaigne...

[The Fonz]

holy off topic batman.

 

as a veteran of the oooooooooooooold school h/c scene i can tell you that 99% of that shit is preachy. it was preachy by design. open up your favorite old albums (or mine, anyway) and look for the big black X on the back of the hands of EVERYONE in the pictures. youth of today was the worst with that shit. then all the straightedge kids "grew up" and became vegans, then krishnas, and they keep making music. oh well.

[Adamixoye]

Originally posted by Bastid E:

holy off topic batman.

Can't argue with that, but to further lose ourselves in the off-topic-ness of it all...

 

(a) Maybe Andrew Schwab is straight outta tha ghetto. I dunno.

 

(b) That Chevelle is too simplistic is a criticism I have heard more than once. But I would say two things to that...first, they're a bare bones band. Almost all of their stuff can be replicated by them onstage with no tricks. I kind of like that. Secondly, despite the simplicity, they come up with songs that strike me exactly the right way. I'll take simple and what I like over complicated and what I don't any day.

 

© On the topic of "preaching"...I think people in general are hypocritical about this. I'm not accusing Bastid or Jason of this, it's just a general statement. Good grief this bass forum contains a whole lot of "preaching"...people stating their own opinions, sometimes forcefully, in an attempt to convince others. You may not agree with the definition, but it only differs by degree.

 

When I went to see Chevelle, they were with Stone Sour. Now Stone Sour was offensive...the lead singer for Stone Sour taking the name of Jesus Christ in vain and saying m-f this and m-f that. I left after two songs. But I bet if Chevelle had said something about Jesus Christ or Christianity (which they did not), people would have felt that was "preachy".

 

Maybe I'm misreading him, but in this respect Bastid is absolutely right. Most music is preachy in some sense. Music is all expression, everyone's got something to say. Just because it's about religion doesn't make it anymore preachy. Any personal value is inextricably linked to someone's philosophy/religion (or lack thereof). Want a preachy band? Dude, try Tool. Or A Perfect Circle. Or Alice in Chains. Or Nirvana. Or anyone except maybe Weird Al.

 

I'm sure that someone could find a way to be offended by this, but try to just take it as food for thought.

 

After all, I don't mean to preach.

 

Ha ha ha. This really has nothing to do with throwing one's bass, does it?

[Cup]

O.K I'll sort of steer this back to chartered waters. Here in the U.K the national look of guitar bands is a sort of "singer in the middle and 4 others behind him". Maybe I'm over generalising, but American audiences seem to prefer bands that really move and put on a show. I'm thinking of videos I have featuring both American and British/European?Irish bands. Some of the Americans antics are embarressing because it's SO theatrical.....But nearly ALL of the U.K groups are so static it's boring, you can look away for 10 seconds, then turn back to the T.V and they'll be in the EXACT same spot. The "do the entertaining on the fretboard" is obvious (especially recorded) but a gig is visual too!! That's why the crowd look towards the stage.

 

Now, what was my point? ohh, I've forgotten.

 

CupMcMali...this monkey's gone to heaven

[Sandman]

This whole thread reminds me of an old accoustic guitar i have that i have wanted to smash on stage for the longest time.

 

It just screams "Kill Me!" before any show i go to play.