Elementary Slapping And Popping

Wintermute · 11-18-2003, 04:27 PM

Slapping

Slapping is a sound made by striking the string with your thumb.

- Hold your thumb parallel to the string
- Twist your wrist sharply so that the thumb hits the string, and pull away again immediately.

I've often thought that slapping was closer to a Drumming technique than a stringed instrument technique. You're looking for the same kind of bounce off the string as if you were drumming.

Slapping is easiest on the E string, so start there and work your way onto the other strings.

You don't have to slap hard, as a general guide I slap the back of my left hand with my thumb, and if it hurts AT ALL I'm slapping too hard.

I personally slap near the fretboard, but experiment with this.

Popping

Popping is a technique commonly used in conjunction with slapping. Usually slapping will be used on the lower strings, with popping covering the higher ones.

- using your index or middle finger, pull the string away from the fretboard, perpendicular to it.
- release.

This doesn't have to be hard either, you are not trying to break a string.

The beauty of slapping and popping in conjunction is that a slap sets you up for a pop and vice-versa.

A good exercise for slapping and popping is the song 'Higher Ground' as covered by the RHCP.
A tab is included here. Slap the lower notes, and pop the high ones. Build up speed until you can play along with the song. Incidentally, this song uses octaves almost exclusively, going two strings up and two frets up like this is an octave and is a handy tool in songwriting.
Other good songs for demonstrating slap include:

Oysterhead - Little Faces, Mr. Oysterhead
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Can't Stop (during the guitar solo), Aeroplane, Higher Ground
Primus - Antipop, Golden Boy, Tommy The Cat (Hard) Awakening, most other songs
Wooten - Classical Thump (Extremely hard)
Marcus Miller - Teen Town (Hard)
Ella Fitzgerald - Slap That Bass (Easy)
Mudvayne - Dig

If you have any questions or comments, I check this thread most days and will reply as soon as I can.
If you ask a question here and I can't help you out properly, feel free to add me to your MSN (gehennaprophet@hotmail.com) and I'll try and help one to one.

www.soundclick.com/apgmxmusic.htm - download 'Slap Demo'. This is a brief demonstration of the technique. I first slap each of the strings, then pop each of the strings, then have a quick run through RHCP's 'Higher Ground' and Oysterhead's 'Little Faces'

* * * * * * * * * *
Addendum

This is an addition about gear. People ask questions such as which basses are best, and similar. So here are some important points.

NEVER slap on a fretless bass unless you are VERY sure you know what you are doing. It can tear the neck apart, unless it has been made from a select list of hardwoods, or has a slap plate. You see, when you slap, the string hits the frets hard. This is what causes the characteristic noise. If there are no frets, the string hits the wood, and this can quite quickly cause noticeable damage.

As for which basses are good/bad for slapping, no high end basses are bad for slapping. (bar fretless models) Some say the Fender Jazz isn't good for it, but it's good enough for Marcus Miller, one of the masters of slap...
However if one must be chosen as best, the Ernie Ball MusicMan Stingray is often acclaimed as the greatest standard production bass for slapping.

EQ - I personally use a 'scooped' EQ setting for slapping,
Low:6, Mids:3 High:7
though I can think of at least one MXer who uses a very high Mids - experiment with this for yourself!

jacksloadedgun · 11-18-2003, 04:46 PM

nice but you forgot to mention that when you slap you nead to make sure that you slap on where the neck ends.

NewFoundBassist · 11-18-2003, 07:32 PM

dumb question by a slap n00b, but when I start to slap fretted notes, the strings keep tapping the bottom fret for an annoying 'dead' metallic tap rather than the actual note. any ideas on whats wrong? any help/advice would be appreciated.

chimp_and_zee · 11-19-2003, 01:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by NewFoundBassist
dumb question by a slap n00b, but when I start to slap fretted notes, the strings keep tapping the bottom fret for an annoying 'dead' metallic tap rather than the actual note. any ideas on whats wrong? any help/advice would be appreciated.

Ah, it seems that either you arn't taking ur thumb away quick enough or your bass has too low action, that problem can be fixed quite easily by a guitar/bass tech

Anyway, I found its also possible to slap using any of the fingers on your right hand instead of your thumb, simply put the finger at a right angle with the fingertip just above the string and do that sterotyped gay guy limp wrist thing real quick and as it goes with using your thumb, ur looking for minimum contact time with the string. Actually its a pretty useless technique and i cant find any good uses for it but i thought id post it neway

Wintermute · 11-19-2003, 09:43 AM

Jacksloadedgun, I'm not sure what you mean but I think I mentioned that.

pinkbass · 11-19-2003, 10:10 AM

took me awhile to get the sterotypical gay guy's wrist thing. but i figured it out!

Offspringer · 11-19-2003, 03:56 PM

What part of my thumb should I be hitting the string with? Like the side kind or right on the bottom?

morpcat · 11-20-2003, 06:02 AM

The left side of your right thumb (or v.v.) - unless you wanna be WeIrD!

muthagoose · 11-20-2003, 07:23 AM

http://www.warwickbass.com/basssurvival101/lesson_5slap.htm should be added to the first post

Wintermute · 11-20-2003, 11:23 AM

Offspringer - outer side of the right thumb, on the outer knuckle. It may hurt a bit at first but you'll soon build up a callous.

piecekeeper · 12-08-2003, 02:45 PM

ok, i have a dendancy to pull my hand back as soon as i slap and its making my popping slow. any suggestions?

Wintermute · 12-10-2003, 03:53 PM

You should be able to hook your finger into place as you slap, ideally.

Seems like a facetious answer but 'don't' is about all I can say. Work on not pulling your hand away. You need to pull your thumb off the string, but not your hand away from the bass, for exactly the reasons you've already discovered.

Try popping twice in rapid succesion, going for the bounce I described earlier. If you can get that right then you won't be pulling away from the bass too much.

popinfresh · 12-10-2003, 10:32 PM

Just a question. How do i mute E when slapping D ? i always hit the E srting a little and it buzz's. Thanks for that but, that and the warwick page. i can slap now

madthumbs · 12-10-2003, 10:37 PM

you have to practice and make sure that you don't hit the E string when you are popping the D, if you mant tryign to mute it and making a mute slap then just put presure on the string and slap it not to hard otherwise you will get some buzz.

Blink'd · 12-21-2003, 03:13 PM

to mute the strings so it doesnt buzz for too long, get your sisters or your prison mates hair tye- the scrunchy fuzzy ones, and wrap it around the neck, like a capo for bass, this is what such bassists as victor wooten and p-nut do! cheers

popinfresh · 12-22-2003, 05:55 AM

^^Wouldnt that get annoying but?^^

I can slap great now, playing stuff like coffee shop-RHCP. Once you get the hang of it, it's not hard at all really (shhh, everyone that doesnt play bass, or can't do it, thinks its like the hardest thing in the world and are mega impressed when you do it

)

Wintermute · 12-22-2003, 02:56 PM

^^^
Isn't it great?

the14yrold with the bass · 12-30-2003, 11:05 AM

yeah, but remember its one thing to hit the string with your thumb but its another thing to get it to sound good

trev913 · 12-31-2003, 02:45 PM

Two questions.

I'm sitting here with my bass around me and am doing this, and am getting it. But I've come to see that slapping and popping sound essentially the same no matter where you do it. Can't you just do one or the other for a full song? For example, I point to (insert random song full of slaps and pops). Could you just slap the entire song or pop it?

And secondly, does it really make a difference where you do your slaps? I've tried this, too. I like to stay...er...I guess "central" with my playing. As in if I start out playing between the pickups (why? theres about an inch freedom, but just exemplifying), I want to stay there, even if I have to slap and pop and so on. So does it make a difference?

BlessTheMartyr4 · 01-01-2004, 11:21 PM

Okay I've read all this watched that movie on that site and read that. And I'm still clueless on what to do. I put my hand over the bass sharply turn my wrists, using the knuckle of my thumb I hit the string right where the neck ends and when I bring my finger up I pluck the string...if I'm doing this right it sound just like if I were to play normally. I don't see a difference in tone or anything except for the annoying metal click.

11-18-2003, 04:27 PM	#1
Wintermute There Can Be Only One Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lancaster, UK - Coldest place in the Universe Posts: 13,885	Elementary Slapping And Popping Slapping Slapping is a sound made by striking the string with your thumb. - Hold your thumb parallel to the string - Twist your wrist sharply so that the thumb hits the string, and pull away again immediately. I've often thought that slapping was closer to a Drumming technique than a stringed instrument technique. You're looking for the same kind of bounce off the string as if you were drumming. Slapping is easiest on the E string, so start there and work your way onto the other strings. You don't have to slap hard, as a general guide I slap the back of my left hand with my thumb, and if it hurts AT ALL I'm slapping too hard. I personally slap near the fretboard, but experiment with this. Popping Popping is a technique commonly used in conjunction with slapping. Usually slapping will be used on the lower strings, with popping covering the higher ones. - using your index or middle finger, pull the string away from the fretboard, perpendicular to it. - release. This doesn't have to be hard either, you are not trying to break a string. The beauty of slapping and popping in conjunction is that a slap sets you up for a pop and vice-versa. A good exercise for slapping and popping is the song 'Higher Ground' as covered by the RHCP. A tab is included here. Slap the lower notes, and pop the high ones. Build up speed until you can play along with the song. Incidentally, this song uses octaves almost exclusively, going two strings up and two frets up like this is an octave and is a handy tool in songwriting. Other good songs for demonstrating slap include: Oysterhead - Little Faces, Mr. Oysterhead Red Hot Chili Peppers - Can't Stop (during the guitar solo), Aeroplane, Higher Ground Primus - Antipop, Golden Boy, Tommy The Cat (Hard) Awakening, most other songs Wooten - Classical Thump (Extremely hard) Marcus Miller - Teen Town (Hard) Ella Fitzgerald - Slap That Bass (Easy) Mudvayne - Dig If you have any questions or comments, I check this thread most days and will reply as soon as I can. If you ask a question here and I can't help you out properly, feel free to add me to your MSN (gehennaprophet@hotmail.com) and I'll try and help one to one. www.soundclick.com/apgmxmusic.htm - download 'Slap Demo'. This is a brief demonstration of the technique. I first slap each of the strings, then pop each of the strings, then have a quick run through RHCP's 'Higher Ground' and Oysterhead's 'Little Faces' * * * * * * * * * * Addendum This is an addition about gear. People ask questions such as which basses are best, and similar. So here are some important points. NEVER slap on a fretless bass unless you are VERY sure you know what you are doing. It can tear the neck apart, unless it has been made from a select list of hardwoods, or has a slap plate. You see, when you slap, the string hits the frets hard. This is what causes the characteristic noise. If there are no frets, the string hits the wood, and this can quite quickly cause noticeable damage. As for which basses are good/bad for slapping, no high end basses are bad for slapping. (bar fretless models) Some say the Fender Jazz isn't good for it, but it's good enough for Marcus Miller, one of the masters of slap... However if one must be chosen as best, the Ernie Ball MusicMan Stingray is often acclaimed as the greatest standard production bass for slapping. EQ - I personally use a 'scooped' EQ setting for slapping, Low:6, Mids:3 High:7 though I can think of at least one MXer who uses a very high Mids - experiment with this for yourself!

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11-18-2003, 04:46 PM	#2
jacksloadedgun I'm more scene then you Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Orldando Florida Posts: 415	nice but you forgot to mention that when you slap you nead to make sure that you slap on where the neck ends.

11-18-2003, 07:32 PM	#3
NewFoundBassist Just Another Victim Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: London, UK Posts: 142	dumb question by a slap n00b, but when I start to slap fretted notes, the strings keep tapping the bottom fret for an annoying 'dead' metallic tap rather than the actual note. any ideas on whats wrong? any help/advice would be appreciated.

11-19-2003, 09:43 AM	#5
Wintermute There Can Be Only One Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lancaster, UK - Coldest place in the Universe Posts: 13,885	Jacksloadedgun, I'm not sure what you mean but I think I mentioned that.

11-19-2003, 10:10 AM	#6
pinkbass Mind Your Throats Please Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Primus Says the Internet Really Sucks! Posts: 268	took me awhile to get the sterotypical gay guy's wrist thing. but i figured it out!

11-19-2003, 03:56 PM	#7
Offspringer Registered User Join Date: May 2002 Location: At the computer Posts: 229	What part of my thumb should I be hitting the string with? Like the side kind or right on the bottom?

11-20-2003, 06:02 AM	#8
morpcat MX Techie - Share & Enjoy Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Singapore Posts: 5,872	The left side of your right thumb (or v.v.) - unless you wanna be WeIrD!

11-20-2003, 07:23 AM	#9
muthagoose Registered User Join Date: May 2003 Location: Sweden Posts: 743	http://www.warwickbass.com/basssurvival101/lesson_5slap.htm should be added to the first post

11-20-2003, 11:23 AM	#10
Wintermute There Can Be Only One Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lancaster, UK - Coldest place in the Universe Posts: 13,885	Offspringer - outer side of the right thumb, on the outer knuckle. It may hurt a bit at first but you'll soon build up a callous.

12-08-2003, 02:45 PM	#11
piecekeeper Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 3	ok, i have a dendancy to pull my hand back as soon as i slap and its making my popping slow. any suggestions?

12-10-2003, 03:53 PM	#12
Wintermute There Can Be Only One Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lancaster, UK - Coldest place in the Universe Posts: 13,885	You should be able to hook your finger into place as you slap, ideally. Seems like a facetious answer but 'don't' is about all I can say. Work on not pulling your hand away. You need to pull your thumb off the string, but not your hand away from the bass, for exactly the reasons you've already discovered. Try popping twice in rapid succesion, going for the bounce I described earlier. If you can get that right then you won't be pulling away from the bass too much.

12-10-2003, 10:32 PM	#13
popinfresh What's at the end? What's at the end? What's at the end of Satan's rainbow? Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: lollypop lane, land of chocolate.. or AUS Posts: 6,882	Just a question. How do i mute E when slapping D ? i always hit the E srting a little and it buzz's. Thanks for that but, that and the warwick page. i can slap now

12-10-2003, 10:37 PM	#14
madthumbs General Vic Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 6,246	you have to practice and make sure that you don't hit the E string when you are popping the D, if you mant tryign to mute it and making a mute slap then just put presure on the string and slap it not to hard otherwise you will get some buzz.

12-21-2003, 03:13 PM	#15
Blink'd i love donkeys penises Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: NZ Posts: 106	to mute the strings so it doesnt buzz for too long, get your sisters or your prison mates hair tye- the scrunchy fuzzy ones, and wrap it around the neck, like a capo for bass, this is what such bassists as victor wooten and p-nut do! cheers

12-22-2003, 05:55 AM	#16
popinfresh What's at the end? What's at the end? What's at the end of Satan's rainbow? Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: lollypop lane, land of chocolate.. or AUS Posts: 6,882	^^Wouldnt that get annoying but?^^ I can slap great now, playing stuff like coffee shop-RHCP. Once you get the hang of it, it's not hard at all really (shhh, everyone that doesnt play bass, or can't do it, thinks its like the hardest thing in the world and are mega impressed when you do it )

12-22-2003, 02:56 PM	#17
Wintermute There Can Be Only One Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Lancaster, UK - Coldest place in the Universe Posts: 13,885	^^^ Isn't it great?

12-30-2003, 11:05 AM	#18
the14yrold with the bass Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 6	yeah, but remember its one thing to hit the string with your thumb but its another thing to get it to sound good

12-31-2003, 02:45 PM	#19
trev913 Official Kid With No Legs Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: St. Louis, Mo Posts: 1,287	Two questions. I'm sitting here with my bass around me and am doing this, and am getting it. But I've come to see that slapping and popping sound essentially the same no matter where you do it. Can't you just do one or the other for a full song? For example, I point to (insert random song full of slaps and pops). Could you just slap the entire song or pop it? And secondly, does it really make a difference where you do your slaps? I've tried this, too. I like to stay...er...I guess "central" with my playing. As in if I start out playing between the pickups (why? theres about an inch freedom, but just exemplifying), I want to stay there, even if I have to slap and pop and so on. So does it make a difference?

01-01-2004, 11:21 PM	#20
BlessTheMartyr4 Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Florida Posts: 26	Okay I've read all this watched that movie on that site and read that. And I'm still clueless on what to do. I put my hand over the bass sharply turn my wrists, using the knuckle of my thumb I hit the string right where the neck ends and when I bring my finger up I pluck the string...if I'm doing this right it sound just like if I were to play normally. I don't see a difference in tone or anything except for the annoying metal click.