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Jeroen Paul Thesseling (Obscura/Ex-Pestilence) - Bass Players In Death Metal Should Be More Audible In The Mix


Dutch bass player Jeroen Paul Thesseling ( Obscura/Ex- Pestilence) says most bassists should be more audible in death metal recordings. "In many of the death metal productions the bass guitar is simply absent or inaudible in the mix, which is a shame. Perhaps this is one of those aspects that will change as the genre evolves. We are lucky to have bassists like Steve DiGiorgio and Alex Webster, both of whom have contributed greatly to the death metal style of bass playing."

Further information can be found at www.jeroenthesseling.com and www.warwick.de

Thesseling joined the German progressive death metal band Obscura in 2007. He toured North America and recorded their second full-length album Cosmogenesis, released via Relapse Records in February 2009. This August, Obscura will embark on a European tour alongside ATHEIST. With PESTILENCE, Jeroen played on their fourth album, "Spheres" (1993).

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Photo Jeroen Paul Thesseling


Source: jeroenthesseling.com
Band profile: Obscura
Posted: 22.07.2009 by BitterCOld


Comments

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Comments: 26   [ 1 ignored ]   Visited by: 184 users
22.07.2009 - 20:42
Derelict Earth

Can't agree more with him !
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22.07.2009 - 20:48
Derwood

Especially when they possess the raw talent of Mr. Thesseling.

Mind you, bassists in pretty much every genre have had this complaint for a very long time.
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You can't fight evil with a macaroni duck!
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22.07.2009 - 21:06
Dexter_prog

I think the lack of bass presence in most mixes is because most bass players in death metal just follow the riffs of the guitars. It's probably their fault and not the mixer's nor the band's fault
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22.07.2009 - 21:21
Valentin B
Iconoclast
Death metal bands have bass players?
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22.07.2009 - 21:49
Paradox0
Unasuming Madnes
Also couldnt agree more. I love it when the bass has equal volume to the guitars and drums. Its just adds another level of brutality for me.
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22.07.2009 - 23:00
astrozombie

Im a bass player in a death metal band and we just released our ep and i can also hear in some of the parts where my parts are inaudible. haha so its funny i read that first part becuz i can completly agree with it its also funny becuz i wrote a large amont of the gutiar riffs in our music as well so its annoying but i also hope that with time the genre will allow bass to be a more present instrument in music in general.
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22.07.2009 - 23:09
Fat & Sassy!

Written by Dexter_prog on 22.07.2009 at 21:06

I think the lack of bass presence in most mixes is because most bass players in death metal just follow the riffs of the guitars. It's probably their fault and not the mixer's nor the band's fault


Yeah.

I mean, it's all relative to what kind of music you're making. Sure, a mixer can fuck up and under mix bass, but you could say that about anything.
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22.07.2009 - 23:55
Black_Handed
A village idiot
Just look at ppl jeroen mentions or some others like mike flores from origin (that guy is a maniac). sometimes, if kick drums arent to loud and have more treble themselves (click, click, click ), you can turn up bass manually to get it to stand out a bit, but most of the time you just have to live without it. just look at this . im sorry, but i have just listened to origins album so forgive me for picking out only that one so pls forgive me for being so one sided .
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Cryptic Bleak Smurf of Ur
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23.07.2009 - 00:19
YoreLore

How is this news?
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"I'm rising in power through murdering rain
Stronger than Faith allows
Braver than heroes vows
...My head is bloody
but I am unbowed
I am power..."
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23.07.2009 - 00:48
Galar
Wicked Mung
I completly agree, and he is one of the best bassists around.
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YOUR ARGUMENT IS INVALID, SUCK A DICK
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23.07.2009 - 00:53
Marcus
Doit Like Bernie
It just seems pretty common in every genre of metal and most types of music in general. I've always considered bass to be pretty irrelevant in metal because its always so often inaudible or doesn't add anything new to the songs.
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23.07.2009 - 01:03
Stalker
Lone wanderer
That is because 90% bassists are not really talented, they just follow the guitar and main rhythm, no solos or anything interesting to hear. But I totally agree, this is no news, I said this 100 times myself, if the bassist is good and bass-lines original, it should be clearly heard, like Control Denied did it.
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23.07.2009 - 02:08
LeChron James
Helvetesfossen
There are plenty of death metal bands that use bass in a more prominent way than other bands. i think the bass should be heard more in flower metal bans than in the death metal area of things.
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Kick Ass, Die Young

Less is More
Stay Pure
Stay Poor

Music was my life, music brought me to life and music is how I will be remembered long after I leave this life. When I die there will be a final waltz in my head that only I can hear.
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23.07.2009 - 02:15
Rupert

Written by Valentin B on 22.07.2009 at 21:21

Death metal bands have bass players?

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23.07.2009 - 04:06
Symmachus

This is something I very much agree with. Bass guitar, and the people who play bass guitar, are oftentimes underrecognized.
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23.07.2009 - 04:38
Insineratehymn
Account deleted
At certain times, my ears hear certain instruments more prominently than others. When it comes to death metal, I mainly recognize the bass as a low and ominous rumbling in the background. With black metal, you'd be lucky to hear the bass at all. However, at certain times when listening to "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas", I hear a faint sound that is indicative of bass strings being plucked, even though Hellhammer said that he removed all of Varg's basslines from the album.
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23.07.2009 - 05:12
ColdasagravE

Definitely! There are a lot of good points made here. Also, Cosmogenesis is a great example of how musically complex Death Metal is and when the bass is fully audible and present, it makes for a killer production. I saw Obscura open up for Cannibal Corpse in early April, and seeing this guy play for the first time was unbelievable! It was a pleasure to see Alex Webster and Jeroen Paul Thesseling in the same night. Horns up!
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23.07.2009 - 06:16
bloodwrage
Pagan Angel
Written by ColdasagravE on 23.07.2009 at 05:12

Definitely! There are a lot of good points made here. Also, Cosmogenesis is a great example of how musically complex Death Metal is and when the bass is fully audible and present, it makes for a killer production. I saw Obscura open up for Cannibal Corpse in early April, and seeing this guy play for the first time was unbelievable! It was a pleasure to see Alex Webster and Jeroen Paul Thesseling in the same night. Horns up!


I totally agree. I just saw Necrophagist a few days ago, and Stephan Fimmers blew me away. Also, you could hear him a lot of the time, which is pretty awesome considering that it was a smaller venue and there was only a handful of speakers.
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23.07.2009 - 07:13
Goat-Christ

Written by Guest on 23.07.2009 at 04:38

At certain times, my ears hear certain instruments more prominently than others. When it comes to death metal, I mainly recognize the bass as a low and ominous rumbling in the background. With black metal, you'd be lucky to hear the bass at all. However, at certain times when listening to "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas", I hear a faint sound that is indicative of bass strings being plucked, even though Hellhammer said that he removed all of Varg's basslines from the album.



On "De Mysteriis" you can definitely hear the bass! That might just be because I have the album on vinyl (where you can hear a broader scope of sound) but I always felt the bass on "DMDS" was actually more prominent than the guitar itself.

Other than that, I agree that bass needs to be upped in the mix of Death Metal recordings. Most of the Death Metal bands these days are utilizing their bass players instead of casting them aside and behind the rest of the band. It's more true to Tech Death than it is to old-school Death Metal though.
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23.07.2009 - 08:59
Daggon
Underpaid M.D.
Well, I like when I can actually hear the bass on the production, feels like chills in the spine hehehe.
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"Les vers savent qu'ils n'ont pas d'ailes, c'est pour cela qu'ils se cachent sous terre"
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23.07.2009 - 11:55
DrunkenFuck
Thrasher!
Written by Valentin B on 22.07.2009 at 21:21

Death metal bands have bass players?

+1
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THRASH!!!
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23.07.2009 - 16:03
Asitis

Written by Valentin B on 22.07.2009 at 21:21

Death metal bands have bass players?

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The silent moment, right before the dusk fades away
I open my eyes, but the darkness stays
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26.07.2009 - 03:04
Hyvaarin

Bass players in death metal should also try to be a bit more creative.
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"Summoned By Words Never Spoken Before..."
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08.08.2009 - 17:45
Deadmeat
Necrobutcher
That's right... bass can make death metal sound even more great if it's used in the correct way...
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Υou've sold your human essence to the cold world of dead and empty things... You're SOLD!
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08.10.2009 - 16:47
Dexter_prog

Written by Fat & Sassy! on 22.07.2009 at 23:09

Written by Dexter_prog on 22.07.2009 at 21:06

I think the lack of bass presence in most mixes is because most bass players in death metal just follow the riffs of the guitars. It's probably their fault and not the mixer's nor the band's fault


Yeah.

I mean, it's all relative to what kind of music you're making. Sure, a mixer can fuck up and under mix bass, but you could say that about anything.

well I don't think a mixer may under mix bass. Actually, what makes a guitar tone in a song thick is the presence of bass. Without bass, guitars will sound thin.
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04.12.2009 - 19:18
The Night Wisher

Well when a local band performed here ..all people where looking to Guitars players and Drummer no one mentioned the bassist , cuz when you see solos and riffs and stuff and never hear bass you won't even mention it ...
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