Ska Progress

It's been a crazy few weeks and so I'd gotten away from practicing bass. I put my nose to the grindstone this weekend though. I discovered two things much to my dismay:

1. 195 bpm is really, really fast for playing moving 8th notes, or even moving quarter notes
2. My carpel tunnel is back and really bad.

I think that either playing hand drums or moving lots of shit aggravated my carpal tunnel...and the fast basslines really are a strain. I'm stretching my pinky alot and also probably holding on with a death grip sometimes inadvertantly. I'm trying sitting down (no strap pressure on shoulder), icing, ibuprofen, and massive doses of B-complex. And also playing less than I'd like.

I can play one of the three songs for next Monday at full speed. The other two are closer to 90%...or even 85%. There's just no getting around that they are fast and there are shifts. I finally understand why you would want a 5 string bass...no shifting down to catch the G and F#. Brilliant. Of course, a 5 string bass has a thicker neck too...which probably slows you down.

I think part of what is messing me up and slowing me down is that the parts for these three songs are REALLY similiar. Same notes played in different orders. So I think the muscle memory is getting confused about which song I'm playing. I get way better after playing a tune a couple of times.

I've been starting slow playing with the recordings...like 60%...and trying to work up to 90-100%. Also using the metronome to work short sections. It's weird that I've never really used a metronome before.

Anyway, it is getting better and I'm sure that I'm getting better...but it is hard work. And every single song is gonna be hard work.

This whole thing reminds me a bunch of learning the harder Blondie songs. Including the whole, "my body failing me" thing. Not just failing to play the part right, but literally going numb. In the end, with Blondie, I had to accept that there were some things that I just could not force my body to learn in the amount of time available. I had to do some cheats. Otherwise I was just going to permanently hurt myself. And maybe it'll come to that now. It is good to have been here before at least and to know that I have options when push comes to shove.