Slapping

[chris998]

ok i can sorta slap, getting there, but i find if i slap my b string that i get a kettle load of fret buzz, i also get a bit with the e string, pretty much none with the a, d and g

also, i sometimes hit other strings while trying to slap, if i keep practising will i end up not doing this

and a third thing, what exactly is poping?

Thx

[RHCPaddict]

I was wondering about this too.
Sorry I can't help

[chris998]

which? 1st, 2nd or 3rd question?

[JBass]

everything will sound cleaner with practice. remember that slapping is not about how hard you hit hte string, its about how fast you can slap your thumb back and how solid you can hit the string. once your muscle memory develops you wont even have to look at the strings when you slap and you'll be hitting every one straight on, just practice forl ike 5 minute day and slap your scales and stuff. Popping is the accompanying pluck that usually goes with a slap. Its basically putting ur finger under teh string, getting a really good grip of it, and plucking up. If your hand is in the right position when you slap, your index and middle fingers should be set up for a pop. Slapping and popping octaves is good practice for this

edit: with pops, people are usually afraid they are going to snap the string,but it rarely happens, usually you can pluck it pretty hard and get a nice sharp tone out of it, which is what you want

[TheBassStylee]

^^ 123

look up some larry graham stuff. it is excellent for the slap pop stuff and sounds cool with some nice drum beats.
Remember to always keep your thumb straight back and dont let it loose after you slap a string (one mistake i made when i started slapping)
also with the sound jus play around and use different areas on your thumb to find the best spot that makes the "meatiest" sound. then paractice it till you play it great.

also about tone: what bass do you use?

[darrell]

What's a good slap line similiar to Red Hot Chili Pepper's "Aeroplane"... a lot of slapping I don't like, but that song just grooves like a mo'fo'. :)

I think it's because most people don't write good slap lines... I know I don't. I want to learn some more because it's just a cool thing to play around with.

[Dez_Axer]

any song by Red Hot Chili Peppers off of their Blood Sugar Magik album can have the living crap slapped and popped out of it

[thelowsoundofbass]

naked in the rain is flea's best slap work

lowsound

[Kayetan]

any song by Red Hot Chili Peppers off of their Blood Sugar Magik album can have the living crap slapped and popped out of it
bssm didn't really have a whole a lot of slapping in it. Still great basslines though.

[FruscianteFan08]

bssm didn't really have a whole a lot of slapping in it. Still great basslines though.
Yea, Flea said going into the album that he was tired of getting his technique ripped off by other people, so he decided to change his playing style for that album

[FruscianteFan08]

But back to the questions, first of all, hitting other strings at the same time will go away with practice. As for the buzzing, there might be a problem with your amp and/or bass, just mess around with the treble controls and it should solve itself.

[chris998]

its the sound of the strings hitting the fret i believe maybe im hitting a bit to hard

im using an Ibanez BTB 405 QM

[Jim Hull]

Could be your action is a little too low. That noise could also be the result of a loose nut.

[TheBassStylee]

i dont know how you have the tone, but balance it betweenn the 2 pickups if you have one tone knob, and if theyre seperate.. try both all up:thumb:
-it could help the buzz, but it might not

[BassVirtuoso]

^Yo there are probably 50 New Jersey MXers who are active. They are popping up everywhere. Where in NJ do you live?

[TheBassStylee]

central nj.. middlesex near eb

[BassVirtuoso]

I live in Central Jersey, like, dead center, right on the tip of Burlington near Hamilton.

[Chameleon]

What's a good slap line similiar to Red Hot Chili Pepper's "Aeroplane"... a lot of slapping I don't like, but that song just grooves like a mo'fo'. :)

I think it's because most people don't write good slap lines... I know I don't. I want to learn some more because it's just a cool thing to play around with.

If you have any P2P software, search for larry graham. I believe that Aeroplane rips off an old Larry Graham riff. Whether it was a riff in a Larry Graham song or if it's just from the live solo I have, I can't say.

[e p]

Yea, Flea said going into the album that he was tired of getting his technique ripped off by other people, so he decided to change his playing style for that album

if flea actually said that thats pretty egotistical. yeah so many people are ripping off his genious octave work! for shame.

and when you slap make sure to mute the other strings not getting slapped so you wont get that sympathetic buzz. also, I find it easier to not hit other strings if you thumb is (close to) parralel with the string.

[Luchesi]

Yea, Flea said going into the album that he was tired of getting his technique ripped off by other people, so he decided to change his playing style for that album

That's awfully funny, seeing as Flea ripped off his style from Bootsy Collins.

[TheBassStylee]

lol whats with "ripping off"..
i dont like that term.. more than one guy can have a nice style that is similar

[bbbbass]

About the B string...

The B string can be "floppy", causing it to vibrate with a higher amplitude. This can be solved in many ways, but buying a thicker B can help (130 should be fine) would be the easiest. Then check your action and the bow of your neck.

[FruscianteFan08]

That's awfully funny, seeing as Flea ripped off his style from Bootsy Collins.
Wow, that's completely right! I never thought of it that way... good point :thumb:

[Manticore Guy]

^Yo there are probably 50 New Jersey MXers who are active. They are popping up everywhere. Where in NJ do you live?
:p NJ pride, I'm from West Orange. I was the guy with the marching band who did the last samarai music.

[chelsea713]

try moving your thumb faster, i dont know any exercise that would help that except practising, or shaking your hand really fast like you're trying to dry nail polish.....and poping, its like a really hard plucking of a string that normally comes after a slap...uhh a really good easy song to practice slaping and poping... Pretty Little Ditty by the Red hot chili peppers, or Nobody Weird Like Me...those two really helped me

[Jody LeCompte]

About the B string...

The B string can be "floppy", causing it to vibrate with a higher amplitude. This can be solved in many ways, but buying a thicker B can help (130 should be fine) would be the easiest. Then check your action and the bow of your neck.
.130 is stock, but you need ATLEAST a .135

[roee_co]

flea didn't say that
flea said people were overusing the technique but he didn't say people copied him

[bbbbass]

.130 is stock, but you need ATLEAST a .135

Almost ever bass I have encountered have .125 gauged low b's. On all my basses, a 130 fixed the flop. IMO, a .135 is pushing it.

[Stuey_bass3]

keep up the practice and try to keep your thumb straight across the sting

[jordan-z]

listen to the guy up there who said to keep your thumb just about parrellel with what ever string your about to attack... it will come in handy when you start learning how to thumb pluck.


(i learned to play slap from probly one of the best bass players in my town and he always emphasized the thumb being parrallel)

he also taught me this really awesome muting technique that he invented, it's like tripple mutes all lined up in a row go REALLY fast

[FruscianteFan08]

flea didn't say that
flea said people were overusing the technique but he didn't say people copied him
well, one way or another he did say that that technique had been overused even by himself in the past and that he wanted to change up his style for that album

P.S.- I think he did some of his best work on that album, slap or not