two basses?
 

did i miss something? that has to be humiliating for kim...

actually i'd beg to differ...
i'd possibly look at it the other way, for it to be more humiliating for Mark Ibold. when i see some of these recent pics of them playing i can't help but notice that its looks apparently obvious that Kim is showing Mark the bass parts, and this is in a live setting... but who cares if it sounds good, besides he's only been in tour with them for a very short period of time.

Kinda interesting to me to have two basses, a change for SY to have alot of low end existing where as at times in the past they have seemed to struggle soundwise in that department (when Kim played primarily guitar during the Washing Machine and ATL years).

Kim doesn't seem very interested in playing alot of bass, that has been the case for over 10 years now.

Would I be wrong to say that Kim's bass playing isn't all that interesting at all. I mean compared to the guitar part, its too dry and uninventive : how many times have I heard her play two notes in a song or rehash the same rythmic pattern and... that's it ? I mean listen to O'Rourke and her, the difference in style is unbelievable.

yeah, Jim O'Rourke's bass playing seemed much more rhythmic. I mean listen to 'Patter Recognition' and other songs he's played bass on. He's seriously a brilliant musician.

After seeing them live with 2 basses I thought it sounded excellent...you figure that Kim could have played guitar on alot of those songs if she really wanted to and let Mark handle all the low end.

this might be the only thing i'm not getting of the current line up.

Mark Ibold is a god among men. I mean, listen to "Half a Canyon" by Pavement with that triumphent half fuzzy bass driving the song. I hope at this point of the tour hes just learning the songs because 2 bass's = useless.

I think she has some interesting bass lines. The bass in songs like I Love Here All the Time just keep the song going, and the bassline in Im Insane is just downright groovy. She eventually did settle for following the guitar however in the 90's...

She's not super technical, but I feel she has her own distinct style, one crafted in a very DIY punk rock kind of way. Early to Mid Sonic Youth would sound like mush w/out her, and I think if anyone else had been playing at that time Sonic Youth's sound wouldn't have been as distinct. She always kept things grounded in a good thumping way, and her bass playing was as easily recognizable as Thurston and Lee's guitar, and as pivotal to the overall sound.

Plus, Mike Watt gives her props, so I aint about to argue with that man.

I completely agree. Kim's not much of a musician. She adds a lot to the group, but mostly through lyrical content. She can't play that well. But then again, her role isn't supposed to be focused on as a musician so much as a fromidable lyricist.

I think Jim O'Rourke is a much more talented musician than Kim. It dissapointed me to hear that he left the band. I thought he really revitalized Sonic Youth and lead them into a very interesting new direction. Without him in the group, SY has kinda slipped. You can really hear the difference between Murray Street/Sonic Nurse and Rather Ripped. The fromer have stronger musical structures whereas Rather Ripped sounds a little underdeveloped and weak.

given

Another retarted thread brought to you by (can't be arsed to even spell your yousername).

- maybe mark ibold didn't had the time to practice the basslines...
- maybe the reason threre's 2 bass players is that he's learning his stuff
for later shows...

- anyway, he's a very good bass player and i like to think that kim and him
will remember how good was freekitten...

the bass line for helen lundberg is rather sexy...
and wtf is this about jim being more talented than kim? technically, eddie van halen is a more talented guitarist than thurston... lets draft him in next!

In a interview posted in this forum, when asked why she plays bass less and less live, kim answered honestly, kudos for that, that singing and playing bass is difficult and limitative
plus after 25 yrs rocking the bass with picks, she got a chronic arthritis, and that's painful.
before reading that, I thought the heritage of kim's bass to someone else was something like a kim's caprice to let her dance more. Now, you can see it's different.
I guess for mark ibold is a """""""teenage wish come true""""""", I saw some CBGB's and he was having a lot of fun!

I think some of you are right - Mark's learning the bass lines. I found this Flickr set from the CBGB gig:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/5873485...7594165358936/

thanks
he still has this nice grin on this face...

wow, two basses is quite a departure for the youth...what song is it on?

as for kim's bass playing- if anyone has any doubts as to the quality of her basswork then just listen to the bassline in theresa's sound world. its fucking immense. her bass parts tie the entire sound of the band together.

I've always wondered what it would be like if instead of a band having 2 guitars and a bass, they had 2 basses and the guitar was for rythm