I was thirteen the first time I picked up a bass guitar. I was “relegated” to the bass because I was the worst guitarist in the band. I didn’t find it funny then, but I do chuckle about the Paul-McCartney-esqueness of it now.
I had a problem though: I played the bass like a guitarist. I had rhythm but lacked groove. I tried to insert myself everywhere, play as much as possible, and fill the empty space.
Our school’s band coach pulled me aside after our first practice and told me “less is more”. I had no idea what he meant, and annoyingly, he didn’t elaborate either.
During the next couple months he’d repeat “less is more” to me over and over. I’d walk away puzzled time and again.
But one day it clicked.
The purpose of the bass is not to shine, it’s to lock in with the drums and provide a foundation for the rest of the song and instruments to build on.
The fewer notes I played, and the more I played those notes in sync with the kick drum, the better our songs sounded.
It was a lesson in restraint, taste, craft, and listening before acting, all wrapped up in one.