When choosing a new instrument to understand and master as a femme-presenting individual, many suggest learning how to play the bass guitar over an acoustic or an electric guitar. But why is that the case?
Bass guitars have been viewed as simpler and thus, inferior to the other popularized instruments in rock. However, it is important to note that the bass guitar wasn't always a stigmatized instrument. Notably being known as a soulful, sophisticated, and powerful instrument, it has been the backbone of rock music ever since the counterculture's early days. While being a little bit less complex compared to its electric guitar counterpart, having 4 thicker strings instead of 6 strings varying in width, it was still a respected instrument. Was.
The narrative shifted when the once "aggressive" and "angry" nature of rock had a minority within the community wanting to be acknowledged, respected, and treated the same as the majority cis-male rockers; women. Circa 1970s, women were seen slowly entering the rock scene, taking the role as instrumentalists compared to the popular role of being a vocalists. While the women were trying to find their place to build their platform within the community, male instrumentalists started viewing the bass guitar as unattractive and too "easily accessible". Due to a newly-sprouted sense of self-righteousness within bands that were just emerging in a newly-marketable scene, "simple" or "understandable" was not the stick-out determiner among bands. The more complex, intricate, and difficult a guitar riff was, the more notoriety the song and band received. This in turn would place said band higher on the newly developed rock hierarchy. What was once an essential instrument was seen as filler; a disguise of a "peace offering" or "passing the mantel" was thrusted onto the women who had to fight for their rightful place in rock music.
While the entrance of femme-individuals in the rock community did greatly disrupt the flow of the masa-dominated identity of protest music as a whole, there was hope in reviving the true roots of rock and a now infantilized instrument. Why not disrupt the flow even more?
Forced to accommodate to the newly-stigmatized role of bassists, women adapted, persevered, and were determined to thrive and redefine what it meant to rock. A great example of how the female spirit is one to be reckoned with lies in an interview with Detroit-based vocalist/bassist, Suzi Quatro. Being gifted a difficult bass guitar to play (a 1957 Fender Precision) at the age of 14 by her father, Quatro had to overcome and adapt to the instrument, determined to master it. This task ended up paying off for her as in 1973, after signing a solo deal and traveling to London, she released her self-titled debut album. Since then, she has established her career as a well respected artist in the rock community, releasing 15 more studio albums, and selling over 50 million records worldwide.
Quattro's example is just one of many. In a scholarly article, bassist of the alt-rock band Pixies, Kim Deal, talks about how bands later on in the 90s weren't even acknowledged unless there was a prominent female bass player. The scene was still dominated in male-majority groups, but diversity in non-traditional roles, no matter how slight the diversity was, made bands "cool". While it could be debated that it was only because there was a surplus of female bassists at the time and that was the "trend" in the rock community, the unbridled and unshakeable nature of female rockers remained true.
The disruption that is female entry in rock music not only redefined protest countercultures like the rock scene, it also allowed women to express themselves through mediums that are not traditionally feminine and regain respect and appreciation for a once stigmatized instrument.
How 'bout that?
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