Graham Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 I'm really digging fretless players in metal at the moment, so I thought I'd share a few tacks To start with the obvious, Steve DiGiorgio and his work with Chuck Schuldiner - Death and Control Denied Then one of my favourite players Sean Malone of Cynic Here's the man himself playing through one of their classics They've dropped the death metal influences these days, but are still making brilliant music I'm really enjoing Obscura's new record at the moment, it channels the spirit of both Death and Cynic. It looks like he's playing a fretted bass in this video, but it sounds fretless, particularly in the middle section. This is from Ihsahn's second solo album and features Lars k Norberg of Spiral Architect and Satyricon on bass, and guest vocals from Opeth's Mikael Akerfeldt On the back of looking up who played bass for Ihsahn, I came across Spiral Architect Anyone got some cool fretless metal to share? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 I think that you loop the loop. 😕 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted November 17, 2018 Author Share Posted November 17, 2018 1 hour ago, Hellzero said: I think that you loop the loop. 😕 I don't quite understand that, old chap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 There are not other full time fretless bass player in metal, except Tony FRANKLIN who has been playing in some hard rock bands... Loop the loop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 You will know Jeroen Paul Thesseling I imagine from his work with Obscura, check out his bass work for Pestilence. For my taste fretless sounds great in any style, certainly metal too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 4 minutes ago, Hellzero said: There are not other full time fretless bass player in metal, except Tony FRANKLIN who has been playing in some hard rock bands... Loop the loop. I have to disagree my friend. Tony F is most certainly the godfather of fretless in rock. But he is to metal what Sabbath is to Hard Rock. The bass players above are pretty much 100% fretless players, and have brought fretless into metal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 That's way I wrote hard rock and not metal, Harry. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted November 17, 2018 Author Share Posted November 17, 2018 10 minutes ago, Hellzero said: There are not other full time fretless bass player in metal, except Tony FRANKLIN who has been playing in some hard rock bands... Loop the loop. I find that a very odd position, most fretless players in metal also play fretted, therefore fretless players in metal are irrelevant? there are bands and players who play fretless exlusively within the project, sure they probably own fretted basses but are known as fretless players. Steve DiGiorgio is again the obvious candidate - there's a video of him on YouTube recording with a Ric, presumably because that's what the bandleader/producer wanted, but that doesn't change the fact that he's known as a fretless player or the huge body of work he's compiled on a fretless. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted November 17, 2018 Author Share Posted November 17, 2018 24 minutes ago, HazBeen said: You will know Jeroen Paul Thesseling I imagine from his work with Obscura, check out his bass work for Pestilence. For my taste fretless sounds great in any style, certainly metal too. Was he the original bassist, the one who played the Thumb? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 I'm basically a fretless only player and have been for at least 2 decades a fretless only player, so I'm interested in fretless whatever style it is. And I'm no fretted bass player, I even can say that I'm not liking playing fretted instruments. I listen to any kind of music as long as it's music, and metal is music. It's not an odd position at all, but to me, the only fretless player in metal is Steve Di Giorgio who is almost unknown outside the metal nor fretless world. His playing is, to me, hallucinating, but burried in the mix, very strange for the guy who almost invented the death metal genre !?! Playing fretless on a tune or two doesn't make you a fretless player as, most of the time, you are playing just what you played on a fretted bass on a fretless. In your list, you can add Svante HENRYSON who is basically a fretless player, but played fretted bass because of the music he was in. He is also a terrific double bass player. And what about Jack BRUCE who has been playing fretless metal bass even before the genre was ever named... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 1 hour ago, Hellzero said: There are not other full time fretless bass player in metal, except Tony FRANKLIN who has been playing in some hard rock bands... Loop the loop. I read my sentence again and think it's been misinterpreted. I should have added : "than the one you mentioned" to "player". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurhenry Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Oxymoron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Thanks for the compliment, but there is no opposition in the terms I used in my sentence, nor anything inconceivable. Or maybe, is it just the thread title itself that you consider an oxymoron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 6 hours ago, Graham said: Was he the original bassist, the one who played the Thumb? Bingo, I think he now has a 7 string fretless Thumb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 (edited) - Edited March 1, 2022 by Jus Lukin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Hmm. My suggestions would have been Death and Cynic, but you are already aware of them! Thanks for Spiral Architect. I shall check out more of them. Obscura, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurhenry Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 5 hours ago, Hellzero said: Thanks for the compliment, but there is no opposition in the terms I used in my sentence, nor anything inconceivable. Or maybe, is it just the thread title itself that you consider an oxymoron. A (hopefully) humorous observation that on a fretless, much of the metal has been removed. 2 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 28 minutes ago, arthurhenry said: A (hopefully) humorous observation that on a fretless, much of the metal has been removed. Well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 (edited) Way back in about 2001 I saw the late Randy Coven playing in a prog metal band, Ark. They were supporting the UK band Threshold at a little rock club in Belgium called Biebob. Wonder if @Hellzero knows it? Not so far from his neck of the woods! For the whole gig he was playing his Zimmer Silly fretless Bass. What an amazing player! Was doing some amazing stuff on the bass. Nice guy too. Ended up chatting to him in the bar later on in the evening. Edited November 18, 2018 by TrevorR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted November 18, 2018 Author Share Posted November 18, 2018 I'm trying to decide if I love that bass or hate it, I genuinely can't decide! 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrevorR Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, Graham said: I'm trying to decide if I love that bass or hate it, I genuinely can't decide! 😁 The cutaway looks horrible but it allowed him to do some astounding bass playing! Absolute “stunt bass” but with great taste and melodic content. Sounded great too! Edited November 18, 2018 by TrevorR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totorbass Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 11 hours ago, arthurhenry said: A (hopefully) humorous observation that on a fretless, much of the metal has been removed. There are some exceptions. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 12 hours ago, TrevorR said: Way back in about 2001 I saw the late Randy Coven playing in a prog metal band, Ark. They were supporting the UK band Threshold at a little rock club in Belgium called Biebob. Wonder if @Hellzero knows it? Not so far from his neck of the woods! For the whole gig he was playing his Zimmer Silly fretless Bass. What an amazing player! Was doing some amazing stuff on the bass. Nice guy too. Ended up chatting to him in the bar later on in the evening. Yes @TrevorR, I know the place in Vosselaar, it's the Belgian metal church. I've seen one or two or maybe three concerts there in the late 90's early 2000's. I know the owner is called Bob, but I have no idea what the Bie means... That said it's because of Randy Coven and loop listening of "Funk me tender" that I had a beautiful Kramer DMZ 4001 slaughtered to receive a Kahler bass tremolo... In fact it wasn't slaughtered at all as the job had been wonderfully done by the greatest French luthier Christophe LEDUC. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hellzero Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 1 hour ago, totorbass said: There are some exceptions. Or this beauty, as I already owned 2 Delta Metal fretless Vigier, the LeFay Remington Steele, but with 6 strings : Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 (edited) 'The beach on Bass', played fretless in Rockbitch. ok, the profanity filter changed that. Her chosen moniker was 'The B1tch on Bass'. Edited November 19, 2018 by MacDaddy profanity filter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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