Is the bass guitar even necessary in metal?

[Krigloch the Furious]

gotta have the bass. but I do like it to where you cant hear it. its still there though. Long live metal!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ffanatic]

Metal needs to have more bass. If it suddenly became a rule that metal would no longer have bass, I'd stop listening to it and never look back. Bass is what should (in the classical sense), make the music.

 

[baldyboy]

its all about filling out the sound-pretty much every band (in this genre anyway)writes their stuff live,together,or at least finishes it that way.it just doesnt sound the same without the bass.you instinctively dont like it as much.
the bass player in my band likes playing stuff away from the guitars-it can even be a bit jazzy at times,but the sound is allways there and its cool.
btw,profanity,i love the avatar-in a kind of standing outside the offy at nine in the morning type way.

 

[Tool]

You'd be surprised. Bass is essential to most metal. THe few times our bassist can't come to band practice, it just sounds empty. Believe it's not the same.

 

[Life Sucks]

I agree with everyone. Without bass, it would sound like something is missing from the music. It just wouldn't sound right. Even if the bass is so low in the mix that you can't make out the bassline, it gives the music a complete, full sound. Metal would sound like shit without bass.

 

[SculptedCold]

Agreed. Even when guitars are tuned so low they ape bassguitars, they still can't match the subsonic pulse that provides the stealthy rhythm behind the guitars. Basses are unsung heroes.

 

[The Sound Gardener]

Agree with all. You're forgetting bands like Kayo Dot and Opeth and all those other proggy-type bands that use the bass not just as an underpinning like black metal or something like that, but as a somewhat separate entity. Just listen to the last third of "Birth Pains of Astral Projection" by maudlin of the Well, you'll understand what I mean. Plus, I love a depp pounding bass in death metal. I'm just listening to some Cryptopsy, and it's beautiful. And the middle part of Compelled to Lacerate by Cannibal Corpse that goes Bount...Bount...Bount just fucking kills. So yeah, the bass is extremely necessary.

 

[anonymousnick2001]

Bass definitely fleshes out the sound.

I'm a classical composer as well(as of recently, but still..). Bass adds another dimension to the music, even if it's doubling something else.

Bass should be harmonzied, though. Some bands do it. Dream Theater, Iron Miaden, Steve Digorgio's many projects, Gordian Knot, Black Sabbath, etc.

 

[Episteme]

Like a friend of mine once said, "Metal without bass is like having a penis with no testicles"

 

[SADUDE]

Metal in it's current state for the most part should not have a bassist if they do not utilize him. Just copy and paste the guitar parts over and over and in the studio you will get your dense sound. I am a bassist for the record. Bassists are good scapegoats. Lets not give them room and then blame them for their uselessness...

 

[chemicalburn]

You know, I've actually been thinking about this topic a lot lately. Even if you can't make the bass out individually, it is still important to "fill out" the sound like others have said. Plus there's the tactile element that the bass provides- play the music loud enough and you can feel it vibrating in your chest cavity. I love it.

Still, I do enjoy a good funky bass line.

 

[andrew_plamondon]

It depends of what you're listening to. I can't imagine Spiral Architect without a bass player, and as I'm listening to a lot of technical stuff, I feel like it is almost necessary.
Some bands do pretty well without any bass, like Electro Quarterstaff, but I'm sure that a bass would still be able to stick in their music and add another dimension.

 

[DarkHeiress]

I think the bass makes the guitar sound better. You need one, that's for sure.