deej Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Ive been playing bass for around 6 years now, and for the first time i feel like im starting to lack inspiration. I pick up my bass and just...dont feel it. Its like im stuck in a "same old, same old" mind set. Dont get me wrong, I dont think I could ever give up playing bass! But I just seem a little empty at the moment. Maybe its due to stresses in real life (job searching, again!), maybe its because I havnt played in a band for years, maybe its because i havnt spent any savings on GAS for a good while! I just dont know. Ive tried listening to songs/artists i normally wouldnt, to try and new learn things, but it just doesnt seem to be happening. Im not really having fun when i play anymore. It feels too repetitive. Has anyone else felt like this before? What do I dooo?! I think a new bass might help Quote
josh3184 Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 new basses always help! I find I'm always in this mindset when I'm not in a band, when I'm in one I feel very content! Get a band! Quote
fragility Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Having been through this recently I was re-ignited after see one of my all time favourite bands live and last night I someone had really pissed me off and i can't remember the last time i had so much fun rocking out and venting my anger...so perhaps have a few days off, and find someone who annoys you ? Quote
Adrenochrome Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 IMHO you need to be writing, recording or performing. Since first picking up bass I've never had more than about 2 weeks without doing 1 of those 3 and I'd go nuts if I did. Even going to your local jam night once a month is a lot better than sitting at home. Quote
deej Posted March 6, 2009 Author Posted March 6, 2009 Yeah, i havnt been to any gigs for a while now either. Maybe that is having an affect. And i find it easier to write something when i have a purpose for it. ie, a band. Right now i'll sit here trying to put ideas together, but dont really have the enthusiasm for it. Quote
deej Posted March 6, 2009 Author Posted March 6, 2009 [quote name='fragility' post='427507' date='Mar 6 2009, 07:45 PM']...so perhaps have a few days off, and find someone who annoys you ?[/quote] I like that thinking.. Quote
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Like everything else , you can get bored or in a rut etc. I've been there ,and alot of people here have too. Back in the mid nineties, I got fed up with the ''usual band hassles/crap''.I took a few years break . I still messed around at home half-heartedly. A great friend of mine (who's a superb guitarman btw) Got me to play a gig for my 40th birthday and since then I ' ve got back into that side of things. I'm trying to get my head (and lazy a**e!) into recording some stuff on my mac . New equipment and EFFECTS PEDALS etc. may inspire you. If you do sell,someone on here will buy your stuff whatever it is you have. You can always buy stuff again if you get the hunger again. Quote
Al Heeley Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Take a few days off - no playing, don't even look at the bass. Go see a good band. Pick up the guitar, play the keyboards. Dig out an old favourite record you haven't listened to for ages. Music has a great power to rekindle positive memories. this will inspire you. Quote
thisnameistaken Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Send your bass(es) to a trusted friend's house for a couple of weeks, just two or three weeks, then take them back. I bet you'll not only be dying to play, you'll also find you've improved. Worked for me a couple of times anyway. Quote
Eight Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 If you're in a funk generally - I mean, looking for a job just sucks so much ass - you'll find your motivation for everything just goes through the floor. If noone's suggestions work then you just have to fight through it; and when your life sorts itself out a bit and all is well away from the bass, all will be well at the bass. Failing that... buy new gear. Quote
Hector Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Dude, get out there and get playing with other people. Even if it's just jamming out covers, it gets you going out and gives you the fun of musical interaction! You wouldn't learn French never to use it to communicate or interact with others, so why would you learn to play an instrument that thrives on feeding off and supporting other peoples' ideas with your own and then not do so? You need to remind yourself why you love it so much! Quote
skankdelvar Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 Get into a room with a biggish rig and turn it the f*** right up to 13. Feel the ground move. Clear your sinuses. Watch strong men weep. Regurgitate the last thing you ate. Now hook up with some like-minded yahoos and lay waste to your local venues. Bass playing is the means, not the end. Quote
josh3184 Posted March 6, 2009 Posted March 6, 2009 [quote name='YouMa' post='427618' date='Mar 6 2009, 09:56 PM']Smoke some drugs.[/quote] this Quote
EdwardHimself Posted March 7, 2009 Posted March 7, 2009 Yeah i really can't suggest any more than just having a purpose to play really. A band is really good for this. I'm not in a band atm and it really puts a downer on things in terms of bass. Quote
thepurpleblob Posted March 7, 2009 Posted March 7, 2009 Never underestimate the potential of simply stopping playing for a while. You get bored with anything if you do it too much (well, ok, maybe not *everything*). Go and do something else for a while. When you're ready come back to the bass. Quote
Delberthot Posted March 7, 2009 Posted March 7, 2009 [quote name='YouMa' post='427618' date='Mar 6 2009, 09:56 PM']Smoke some drugs.[/quote] Exactamundo. I find that if I am lacking, I see what other people are listening to. Watch someone like Bill Dickens . I'll never play anything like it but I laugh my ass off listening to it cosits so damn fast. Get on Youtube. I can spend days on there listening to stuff. I could begin with Stanley Clarke and end up at Bon Scott era AC/DC Quote
Bay Splayer Posted March 8, 2009 Posted March 8, 2009 [quote name='skankdelvar' post='427609' date='Mar 6 2009, 09:47 PM']Get into a room with a biggish rig and turn it the f*** right up to 13. Feel the ground move. Clear your sinuses. [b][color="#000000"]Watch strong men weep. Regurgitate the last thing you ate[/color][/b].[/quote] Quote
Hoppo75 Posted March 8, 2009 Posted March 8, 2009 [quote name='Al Heeley' post='427556' date='Mar 6 2009, 08:44 PM']Take a few days off - no playing, don't even look at the bass. Go see a good band. Pick up the guitar, play the keyboards. Dig out an old favourite record you haven't listened to for ages. Music has a great power to rekindle positive memories. this will inspire you.[/quote] +1. Give it a week mate, lock the bass away and forget about it. Towards the end of the week, take a few hours listening to all of the music that made you want to start playing in the first place....I'm sure your urge will return. Quote
Rogerio Rosario Posted March 9, 2009 Posted March 9, 2009 i also had some months that i did not wanted to play the bass, and that was when i was not in a band. Then i started to play with friends, and was nothing special , i felt not very excited..but then i notice that week after week, i started to enjoy it more expecialy when we dedicated some minutes for Jam ! So i think if you play it more with a band and you like the music ..it will be adicted !! just give it a try www.MakeMusicNews.com Quote
Davemarks Posted March 12, 2009 Posted March 12, 2009 I made a video discussing this very topic... perhaps it may help a little. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df0sFG7FqSQ"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df0sFG7FqSQ[/url] d Quote
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