When I was too young a (female) friend was asked to join a local band because they needed a new bass player and figured it would be neat to have a woman. She couldn't play but ended up staying for almost 2 years. Since then female bass players always stand out to me.
So here's a list of some tracks I've liked with bands who fit the bill.
Surprise me with your own favourites
Holy shit. My spies found they're STILL going. Bonus for no-one - all the peel sessions
Bolt Thrower - World Eater + Cenotaph
Sonic Youth - Expressway To Your Skill
Khruangbin - A Calf Born In Winter
Ohholycrap I have a long list of these. As a bass player, I am always checking out bass players, and as someone who is all for women expressing themselves in whatever way they see fit, I love seeing women play bass (and drums).
So let's start with the obvious ones: the women bass players leading their own bands:
- Meshell N'degeOcello - Funk/soul goddess
- Kinga Glyk - Polish funkster. She also just jams in her bedroom and invites people to create tunes with her free-form jams.
- Til Tuesday - 80's pop sensation, Aimee Mann played bass and sung. She's also had a long solo career, and even appeared on the TV show "Portlandia" in a darkly funny bit about being a cleaning lady.
- Kate Davis is an upright bass player and songwriter, who did a gorgeous version of Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass" with Postmodern Jukebox.
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"Girl Bands":
- The Regrettes are just wonderful group of young ladies who are having fun, but do a stonkin' version of "Fox On The Run" for the AV Club.
- The Surfragettes take a kitschy 60's surf vibe, and have fun with it. Like doing Britney Spears' "Toxic" in their living room
- 4 Non Blondes, of course, are known for "What's Up", with Christa Hillhouse on bass. But she was also a member of Lesbian Snake Charmers before, which was led by my friend (and later on, a band mate of mine) Jai Jai Noire.
- The Runaways are the definitive punk rock "girl band" ever, and with Jackie Foxx on bass, their hit Cherry Bomb is a kinda wild look into the early women-in-rock story.
- Fanny was a rock band in the 1970's that should have been huge, but ... shit happened. This video of their song "Ain't That Peculiar" has resurfaced recently, and inspired a documentary about the band. The singer's sister, Jean Millington is on bass, and Philippine-born.
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Female bass players in other bands:
- Smashing Pumpkins (who I despise) started off with D'arcy Wretzky, and later had Melissa Auf der Maur, who was previously the bass player for Courtney Love's eponymous band Hole.
- KB has already pointed out Sean Yseult of White Zombie.
- Tal Wilkenfeld is only 23, and a MONSTER bass player, who has played on tour with Jeff Beck, and others like Prince, and Eric Clapton.
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That barely scratches the surface, but is a kinda broad selection to get started with. It doesn't even touch Tina Weymouth, Kim Gordon, Carol Kaye (arguably the most recorded bass player EVER), Suzi Quatro, Kim Deal, Kira Roesseler (BLACK FLAG!), Johnette Napolitano, Haim, or Maya Ford from The Donnas... etc, etc, etc....
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Finally, I have to tell EVERYONE to watch Julia Plays Groove on YouTube. Five years. Has never said a word. Just lays it down. Her take on Jamiroquai's "Stillness in Time" is a good example of her delicacy, agility, pocket, and groove. This is her FIRST YEAR of YouTube. She's 19. She just gets better.
Ha Ha, you definitely win this thread, by volume and for that upright bass! In particular, thanks for the Kinga Glyk recommendation.
That's a foot stomper that takes over your whole body.
The end of Above Control felt like it was going to break out into a post rock anthem.
Learning bass has been delighting. Currently have skin hanging off fingertips.
Here's Bad Snacks:
Timestamp'd to the part where she lays down a bassline, but if you're watching the Hubski embed, start at 24:00. The entire video is a very good glimpse into what is currently a large portion of my life.
I didn't, it's like the opposite. I got to a level of self-defined "suitable" proficiency on the keyboard, drums, and (most debatably) guitar, before I was like "OK, bass time".
Were those decisions influenced by the fact that most people cannot easily distinguish the bassist's contribution to the overall mix? Yep. Used to think I wanted to be in the limelight, which is pretty stupid, considering how I just about wet my pants every piano recital, growing up. Turns out that bass guitar (or other string bass) is a sort of invisible glue holding things together, and it's a crucial overlap of rhythm, melody, and chord progression(s).
Wish I woulda "chose" it sooner.
Added bonus is that on stage you really can't hear any of the other people playing, so it's just you and the drummer locking it down and grooving it out...
I've had drummers in my life where we would just lock ourselves into the rehearsal studio and jam together for hours on end. They make up a beat... I make up a bass line to go with the beat, and we just play and play and play, riffing off each other...
sigh
Gonna name my new band Life Before COVID I think...
I cannot wait to jam with my bandmates. We formed a trio, a few months ago, riiiiight before this all hit, as I was setting up a music studio in the house I just bought. The three of us were three of the top four drumline drummers in high school, so I think we're gonna be pretty tight.
But for now, it's Zoom sessions in which we flesh out lyrics and I demo the software and some simple stuff I've composed, we talk gear, live performance logistics, etc., we're still very much able to work towards an album and set list. I'm really trying to make this a next-gen band. Can't wait for this shitty plague to fuck off.
I feel the same about rhythm guitar. The league of anonymous session musicians that play with so many bands and singers in the studio or on stage - out of the limelight but like the bed of a truck transporting everything, making sure it's all solid and supported along the journey.