TheGreek Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 As far as I can tell the only purpose of bending strings on a bass is to add excessive wear to the frets. Personally I can't understand why players do it. Are you a string bender?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ped Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Yep, I think it sounds great... adds a nice accent to the note. Used sparingly, it can be really nice. I think you'd have to do it loads to cause any undue wear on the frets. Weirdly, it sounds much more pronounced on some basses than others. I'd like to be able to develop my technique to do those quick bends during faster parts, a mixture between bending and kind of shaking your fretting hand. Easier and sounds great on fretless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franzbassist Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 (edited) My name is Walbassist and I am a string bender. Edited April 13, 2018 by walbassist 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Browning Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I have used occasionally. Typical example would be Rocky Mountain Way in E. Pedalling the open E but sometime pulling up the F# to G before releasing it. Lends an extra bit of groove (IMHO). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JellyKnees Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 It's a great way of adding expression along with slides, pulls, hammer-ons/offs, slaps, taps, etc etc etc... Why would you not do it? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Regular string bender here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 (edited) I try. Sometimes it's just a reflex carried over from playing guitar. I've even found myself doing bends on fretless, where it's truly a pointless exercise. I can manage a semitone bend on the bass without thinking about it. I can do the full tone or more if I concentrate and significantly increase my left hand grip on the neck, but then it tends to bugger up the next section because generally I play with a light touch and the change in fretting pressure upsets the flow. I'm always quite impressed when I see a bass player casusally push the G almost all the way across the fretboard, even with maximum effort I can't get the string much further than halfway across the board without it pinging back from under my fingers. Edited April 13, 2018 by Cato Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alembic1989 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Yup...incorrigible bender. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Even a gorilla couldn't bend the gauge of strings I use. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Didn't think I'd be posting the words 'I AM A BENDER' today, yet here we are. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I've bent on occasions. Used sparingly though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 2 minutes ago, fleabag said: I've bent on occasions. After that bottle of gin, perhaps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 That and the JD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thepurpleblob Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Bass strings bend? Hang on...... no they don't, you're all crazy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thepurpleblob Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 ....just in the interests of full disclosure.... I've never been able to play pull-offs either. There are just some techniques my fingers are not interested in. I'll survive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chezz55 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Another member of the Esteemed Syndicate of Bass-String-Benders (North East Essex Chapter) here. BTW - Check out the sleeve of the Long Playing Record version of Humble Pie's excellent 1971 double live album - "PERFORMANCE - Rockin' The Fillmore" and you'll find a picture of Greg Ridley (ex Spooky Tooth, another great band) string-bending on a P-Bass. Ain't nothin' new under the sun. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monkey Steve Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Guilty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lojo Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Yep , subtle string bends sound great imo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Wobble on fretted, yes. Vibrato on fretless yes. Bending, no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassalarky Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Nope, but I do like a bit of vibrato.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I've got 50s on my Ray. I still bend them a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japhet Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Why not? It's just another sound the thing can make. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CameronJ Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Yup. I sometimes have to actively concentrate on not string bending as it seems to have become a bit of an unconscious habit these days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZilchWoolham Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 (edited) Yes, but very rarely beyond just the one semitone. Whole note bends I can only manage with the correct setup. Barry Adamson is a great bender. Edited April 13, 2018 by ZilchWoolham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 52 minutes ago, Chezz55 said: Another member of the Esteemed Syndicate of Bass-String-Benders (North East Essex Chapter) here. BTW - Check out the sleeve of the Long Playing Record version of Humble Pie's excellent 1971 double live album - "PERFORMANCE - Rockin' The Fillmore" and you'll find a picture of Greg Ridley (ex Spooky Tooth, another great band) string-bending on a P-Bass. Ain't nothin' new under the sun. Chris You win geeky, anorak fact of the week Performance is one of my favourite albums . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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