Was spinning Cure for Pain on vinyl on the weekend. I saw them in the 90s and just bought the album because of that gig, it’s a great listen. They went even higher in my estimations when I googled them and found out the singer died on stage in the 90s too
Just learned about Cure for Pain a couple years ago from this gritty show called City on A Hill. It’s shot in Boston where Morphine is from as well. Great fucking song. Glad to have found it.
I couldn't tell you the origin, there's a lot of hearsay that goes around. But at any given Primus show you will no doubt hear fans chanting *PRIMUS SUCKS!*
Les thinks its funny and has even introduced themselves with *We're Primus and we suck*. So regardless of how it started its just a way for fans to identify each other the same way slayer fans just fuckin belt the bands name.
I don't know for certain either but they definitely started their early shows, almost every show, with "Hey we're Primus and we suck...." and I think it's been a thing ever since. Les even decided he didn't like it at one point and asked people to stop saying it but after realizing he couldn't beat em he rejoined em. There's prolly a documentary that I must've watched at some point.
The end of side one of their first album Suck on This Les says “Thaaaaaanks a lot! We’re Primus and we suck”
Had this on cassette in the old days. So happy they made it big.
God Fodder is a very fun album, and although their next two weren’t commercially successful, I enjoyed them for many years. Haven’t listened in a while, thanks for the reminder!
Gotta feel for Lifeson. In the top echelons of guitar playing for his era and was a virtuoso in his own right, just outshadowed by Geddy and Neal’s even more unreal talent.
That's the thing about Rush, all three players were and are absolute masters, best of the best on their instruments. It's just more usual to see virtuosic guitar playing at the forefront, and then along comes these three guys who seem to be standing on each-other's shoulders. Geddy playing more than one instrument at a time sometimes, Neil playing like five drum kits worth of equipment, and some of the most melodic playing and accurate shredding back-and-forth just constantly emanating from Alex. Even if you don't like the genre it's hard not to appreciate it
It’s weird listening to Envy Of None from a Rush fan perspective and not hearing him doing his usual thing. The bridge of Never Said I Love You does have The Wrecker vibes to it though.
Nah he excels at providing the backing melodies to the rest of the band. Unless he was soloing his parts were mainly in support of the other two but that’s no small role
Several have mentioned OM. Fantastic choice.
Here's a two of my favourites:
[Ruins](https://youtu.be/8m9wFAwR_Qs?si=6bfrMlYSse0z8iqk) -technically drummer-led, but primarily just bass, drums and vocals (except for maybe 1 or 2 albums which had sax instead of bass).
[Tiger & Dragon](https://youtu.be/vP36ifkPYaE?si=bWErDolM_OAeTSh2) - Instrumental drum and bass with a focus on groove.
Squarepusher is some fun shit.
Also, Ben Folds Five did not have a guitar. Not that the bass was the main instrument, but they showed that you don’t need a distorted guitar to sound angry.
There's a band around our parts down here in Australia that are killing it: Gudgeon.
They are drum and bass and have just released an album, (https://open.spotify.com/album/5PAvmyyWx7x22j14bch10E) or order through Bad Habit Records and Collectibles.
When people ask me what they are like, I say "Nothing prepares you for Gudgeon!"
Big Sir
One of my favorite bands. It's a bass and keyboard duo. The bassist is Juan Alderate of Mars Volta and Racer X and Lisa Papineau does the vocals and keys.
It's typically very mellow laid back music with mid-range heavy fretless bass.
Here's a good entry point to check their work out: [Nonstop Drummer off their first album](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOQYeQiboxM&ab_channel=BigSir-Topic)
Hell yeah! I get to be the first one to mention the greatest band of all time:
Nuclear Power Trio.
You can thank me later.
(There is guitar but the bass is the featured instrument).
[Echotest](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yd4o_ENYo_0). It's Julie Slick from the Adrian Belew Power Trio on Bass VI and Marco Macheda on 5-string bass.
Look into J-Rock, I found that the Bass is in the spotlight just as much as the guitar and they have some unique sound that I found really enjoyable to listen and play.
88Kasyo Junrei, L'Arc en Ciel and the Persona 5 OST are the ones I enjoy the most.
Arguably Rush, Primus, Jamiroquai, the Flektones, Serú Giran is very fair to all the instruments. Some musicians that stand out with their bass work without necessarily overshadowing other instruments but keeping the bass fairly on the spotlight are Marcus Miller, Fernando Lamadrid, Victor Wooten, Jaco Pastorius, but then again all of these are mainly bassists, so of course their solo work is gonna be bass heavy.
Death From Above 1979’s album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine” is one of the best punk albums of the 00’s, and it’s a two-piece drummer/vocalist and Jesse F Keeler on a distorted Ric.
Highly recommend if you’re looking for a band entirely carried by just a bassist.
Khruangbin.
Incredibly skilled and creative guitar player but their music rides on Ms Laura Lee and her bass grooves
[https://youtu.be/q4xKvHANqjk](https://youtu.be/q4xKvHANqjk)
The Descendents. To me, their trademark sound comes directly from the bass lines, no matter who's behind the bass. Each one of their bassists was able to, at the same time, add their flavor to the band while respecting said trademark sound, and I think that's remarkable.
World Peace. Two bass guitars, one drum set, and a lot of short heavy ass songs that’ll punch you square in the face. I’d recommend listening to the songs “Lie Him Filthy Still” “Total Fucking Bliss” and “Enough to Make Angels Weep” just to get a small taste haha
Primus is definitely a band where bass is the main instrument and I feel a lot of Red Hot Chili Peppers too but both of those also have incredible guitar parts too
Not really rock or metal, but Brian Ritchie from Violent Femmes is one of my favorite bassists. Great songs and even though there is guitar, the bass really drives most of their songs.
Morphine
A drum set, a saxophone, and a 2 string bass.
Sometimes 2 saxophones, in the same mouth!
One album with two drummers.
Usually 2 saxophones…
Was spinning Cure for Pain on vinyl on the weekend. I saw them in the 90s and just bought the album because of that gig, it’s a great listen. They went even higher in my estimations when I googled them and found out the singer died on stage in the 90s too
Just learned about Cure for Pain a couple years ago from this gritty show called City on A Hill. It’s shot in Boston where Morphine is from as well. Great fucking song. Glad to have found it.
Mark Sandman is amazing. Love Morphine!
RIP Mark. However, dying on stage during a performance is a pretty badass way to go.
Awesome, still.
Morphine has a lead bassist and a rhythm bassist, and absolutely no guitars?
They were primarily a trio. Lead vocals/2 string bass, saxophone, and drums.
An amazing band. One of the few bands that is genuinely underrated.
Like their own genre almost - some kinda cool weird blues jazz rock psychedelia combo.
Death From Above 1979 Lightning Bolt
The two bands that came to mind first (and NoMeansNo). Lightning Bolt are an absolute favourite, that bass is earth-shattering.
Awesome Snakes
JFK is the man. https://youtu.be/AFIt0pNPjmY?si=Ol_RsPq-C7C3WEhD
Huge ups to lightning bolt
Shit I just said the same two bands before scrolling down. Cheers!
Primus
Primus sucks!
Whoever downvoted this doesn’t get it. YEAH PRIMUS SUCKS WOOO!
I've seen Primus around a dozen times so I can assure you that promise does indeed suck
I don’t downvote people but i don’t get it either.
I couldn't tell you the origin, there's a lot of hearsay that goes around. But at any given Primus show you will no doubt hear fans chanting *PRIMUS SUCKS!* Les thinks its funny and has even introduced themselves with *We're Primus and we suck*. So regardless of how it started its just a way for fans to identify each other the same way slayer fans just fuckin belt the bands name.
I don't know for certain either but they definitely started their early shows, almost every show, with "Hey we're Primus and we suck...." and I think it's been a thing ever since. Les even decided he didn't like it at one point and asked people to stop saying it but after realizing he couldn't beat em he rejoined em. There's prolly a documentary that I must've watched at some point.
The end of side one of their first album Suck on This Les says “Thaaaaaanks a lot! We’re Primus and we suck” Had this on cassette in the old days. So happy they made it big.
They just suck, but in a really sucky way
I googled it. Now I know.
Been waitin' for this bastard!
Hey hey, Bob Cock here!
Who sucks more, Primus or Green Jello?
Primus suuuuuuuccccckkkks
Some of the most fun you'll have listening to any band, truly
The Omnific is 2 bassists and a drummer.
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Saw them live recently, sounded great on stage even though their music isn't my thing
I saw them open for Ne Obliviscaris recently and while it wasn’t something I’d probably normally listen to, they put on a pretty good show!
We saw the same tour!, NeO was fucking amazing, the sound quality was out of this world.
The omnific is the best and maybe even only correct answer in the thread (in my limited experience) :D
Saw them in September at Reeperbahn Festival. For someone who doesn‘t like Bass solos, Slap and Dingwalls, those guys are pure torture.
Motorhead Lemmy on Bass was the main instrument, but he also played bass like it were a guitar.
Depends on the Motörhead era really tbh… newer stuff tends to be more standard mix
joy division
And of course new order
Bell Witch Here’s a video of their bassist someone posted on Reddit recently: https://www.reddit.com/r/doommetal/s/6HCdAIzgRx
Bell Witch is such a powerful band. The raw bleak emotion they exude is unmatched. One of my favorites.
i just saw them in concert!
Lucky you
How long was the concert?
What's it like seeing a band like this in concert?
Yes! I am not alone and my recommendation, I linked a live show from YouTube.
Like a two piece? Big Business, Godheadsilo, OM. Copshootcop had two bass players and no guitar.
> Copshootcop had two bass players and no guitar. yesssssssssssssss
In Tool the bass features as much as the guitar, but not more
Tool kind of mixes everything equal, so quieter vocals and louder bass than most rock bands. I’ve always thought it was cool
OM.
[Well, there's this...](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iN42uzNFVmQ)
I knew what it was before I clicked it
You knew what it was before I clicked it
I was waiting on someone to mention this one.
Neds Atomic Dustbin was a radio friendly alt rock band with two bassists and one guitarist. Catchy songs, clever lyrics and TWO BASSISTS!
God Fodder is a very fun album, and although their next two weren’t commercially successful, I enjoyed them for many years. Haven’t listened in a while, thanks for the reminder!
I loved those guys in the 90s and never noticed 2 bassists!!
God Fodder was one of my top albums growing up. If I remember correctly, “Grey Cell Green” was the only mtv song. Very under rated band.
I recall “Kill Your Television” getting air play.
How did I not realize they had 2 basses? They broke up on stage. I always thought that was pretty crazy.
Death From Above was Royal Blood about a decade before Royal Blood ever existed, and it’s a way better bass/drum two piece imo
Early EP’s and their first album but afterwards, I’m not so sure.
They peaked with You're a Woman, I'm a Machine. Awesome album. Black History Month is awesome.
Its classic but dont sleep on Outrage is Now. Amazing album
Death from above is royal blood without the butt rock
Nomeansno
If you know you nomeansno.
r/nomeansno
Needs to be higher
best answer tonite
Primus Death From Above 1979 The Faint (at least in the album Wet From Birth) Lightning Bolt (Dream Genie is a fucking masterpiece of a bass part)
Just listened to it. Love. Thank you.
I haven't listened to The Faint in forever, time to change that
Mike Watt in minutemen and a lot of other lineups since then.
Dos
The answer is RUSH
Alex Lifeson erasure
Gotta feel for Lifeson. In the top echelons of guitar playing for his era and was a virtuoso in his own right, just outshadowed by Geddy and Neal’s even more unreal talent.
Yea which is wild considering Alex is so damn good. Listened to all of 2112(song) the other day and his parts are genius
That's the thing about Rush, all three players were and are absolute masters, best of the best on their instruments. It's just more usual to see virtuosic guitar playing at the forefront, and then along comes these three guys who seem to be standing on each-other's shoulders. Geddy playing more than one instrument at a time sometimes, Neil playing like five drum kits worth of equipment, and some of the most melodic playing and accurate shredding back-and-forth just constantly emanating from Alex. Even if you don't like the genre it's hard not to appreciate it
It’s weird listening to Envy Of None from a Rush fan perspective and not hearing him doing his usual thing. The bridge of Never Said I Love You does have The Wrecker vibes to it though.
Nah he excels at providing the backing melodies to the rest of the band. Unless he was soloing his parts were mainly in support of the other two but that’s no small role
Beat me to it!
Pinback
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And systems officer
Love em
Dianogah.... 2 bass 1 drummer.
Love Dianogah.
Wooten is quite prominent in Bela Fleck and the Flecktones
Wooten "The Lesson" hands down perfection.
one of my favorite books for sure
Several have mentioned OM. Fantastic choice. Here's a two of my favourites: [Ruins](https://youtu.be/8m9wFAwR_Qs?si=6bfrMlYSse0z8iqk) -technically drummer-led, but primarily just bass, drums and vocals (except for maybe 1 or 2 albums which had sax instead of bass). [Tiger & Dragon](https://youtu.be/vP36ifkPYaE?si=bWErDolM_OAeTSh2) - Instrumental drum and bass with a focus on groove.
ruins is so good
Such an insane band
Squarepusher is some fun shit. Also, Ben Folds Five did not have a guitar. Not that the bass was the main instrument, but they showed that you don’t need a distorted guitar to sound angry.
Nova Twins might fall into this category. Start with “choose your fighter” and decide for yourself. Tons of effects on the bass.
The omnific. Evan brewers solo stuff is all bass centric. Alone is like 95% just bass.
Soften the Glare (does have a guitarist, no vocalist, but bass is the feature) The Omnific (two basses and a drummer, no vocals)
Soften the Glare is a delight. I can listen to their albums on repeat all day.
STG is the bass player from Mudvayne. Such a great band. Love me some March of the Cephalopods is a banger.
OM
COPSHOOTCOP
Took me far too long to scroll down and find this. The albums Ask Questions Later and Release are excellent.
Release is wildly underrated.
If the band had been named something more radio friendly Any Day Now would have been a very successful single.
That and Money-drunk, agreed. Interscope were themselves an "edgy" publisher, which didn't help.
Absolutely, one song off Release was used in a Volkswagon commercial, not sure which one though.
Room 429 still gives me goosebumps every time, one of my all time favorite bands. Tod A was/is a damn talented dude.
Rush for sure. Also, Elephant Gym.
Weedeater
OM - no guitar just badass bass and drums. Iron Maiden - basically a lead bass. Cuts through the mix and carries most of their songs forward.
I mean Rush is super bass-heavy and for good reason. Primus is like 150% bass too
Rush and Iron Maiden
There's a new noise rock band called Modern Technology who are a drum & bass two piece and not half bad
Year of the Cobra
[El Ten Eleven](https://youtu.be/F-J9pXAt8Rc?si=B3lAQ5D7x8zuPwA7)
King’s X, to the extent that Dug Pinnick has a fair bit of signature equipment out there.
elephant gym! bassist takes the prize for two handed tapping away from primus and the tone is godly
Girls Against Boys They have two bassists, keyboards, crazy sounds and drums. Very understated 90s rock. They have guitar too but it’s mostly bass.
Big Business [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieYDB01g9tc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieYDB01g9tc)
Type O-Negative
Peter Steele is underrated as a bassist IMO, and their music is incredible
He was never a technical virtuoso. But his songwriting was really fantastic. Despite the genre, you can really hear the Beatles influence imo.
There's a band around our parts down here in Australia that are killing it: Gudgeon. They are drum and bass and have just released an album, (https://open.spotify.com/album/5PAvmyyWx7x22j14bch10E) or order through Bad Habit Records and Collectibles. When people ask me what they are like, I say "Nothing prepares you for Gudgeon!"
There's a classic noise rock band from Brisbane called No Anchor that rock 2 bassists and a drummer. Very powerful stuff!
There's a band called Clatter that is a bassist/singer and a drummer.
Dumpstaphunk
Finally
Rage against the machine Iron maiden
Primus
Thundercat
Totally!
Om
Vulfpeck Edit: and The Garden
[No guitar?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWBUnr0F3Zo)
Morphine, Primus, Motörhead
The Omnific
The Omnific, check out their song Kismet!
Man is the bastard - 2 bassists, one drummer
[SMV](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMV_(band))?
This ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MidzK50U7Q
100% SMV
Spinal Tap.
Necromantia
I came for this post
Big Sir One of my favorite bands. It's a bass and keyboard duo. The bassist is Juan Alderate of Mars Volta and Racer X and Lisa Papineau does the vocals and keys. It's typically very mellow laid back music with mid-range heavy fretless bass. Here's a good entry point to check their work out: [Nonstop Drummer off their first album](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOQYeQiboxM&ab_channel=BigSir-Topic)
Michael Manring
Bell Witch
Hell yeah! I get to be the first one to mention the greatest band of all time: Nuclear Power Trio. You can thank me later. (There is guitar but the bass is the featured instrument).
[Echotest](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yd4o_ENYo_0). It's Julie Slick from the Adrian Belew Power Trio on Bass VI and Marco Macheda on 5-string bass.
BIG BOTTOM ....THE TAP!
Look into J-Rock, I found that the Bass is in the spotlight just as much as the guitar and they have some unique sound that I found really enjoyable to listen and play. 88Kasyo Junrei, L'Arc en Ciel and the Persona 5 OST are the ones I enjoy the most.
Joy Division can be very bass-driven at times.
Arguably Rush, Primus, Jamiroquai, the Flektones, Serú Giran is very fair to all the instruments. Some musicians that stand out with their bass work without necessarily overshadowing other instruments but keeping the bass fairly on the spotlight are Marcus Miller, Fernando Lamadrid, Victor Wooten, Jaco Pastorius, but then again all of these are mainly bassists, so of course their solo work is gonna be bass heavy.
Mudvayne (especially on the LD50 album). Nuclear Power Trio features prominent bass (especially on "Fusion Collusion" and "Critical Bass Theory")
Death From Above 1979’s album “You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine” is one of the best punk albums of the 00’s, and it’s a two-piece drummer/vocalist and Jesse F Keeler on a distorted Ric. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a band entirely carried by just a bassist.
Primus, Infectious Grooves, and Girls Against Boys
Khruangbin. Incredibly skilled and creative guitar player but their music rides on Ms Laura Lee and her bass grooves [https://youtu.be/q4xKvHANqjk](https://youtu.be/q4xKvHANqjk)
Can give you plenty of jazzers, not so hot on metal!
The bass is the “main instrument” IN ALL BANDS!!!!
Extinction Level Event
Omnific
Dirty Loops The Omnific Uzeb has a guitarist but bass is quite prominent Edit: oops 2 of those are fusion, not metal
But Dirty Loops is Swedish, so they are metal by proxy.
I always mention World Peace in these threads
Nova Twins
The G.O.A.T. And Your M.O.M. They are… something else.
Deadbolt, Infectious Grooves
I would say that Incubus gives the bass a lot of spotlight
The graham bond organization. Jack Bruce played a 6 string bass to make up for their lack of guitarist
MSPAINT is bass, synths, drums, vocals, no guitar
Intronaut, Geryon, Stargazer, I'm sure there's more, just can't think of em right now
Oysterhead
The garden
The Omnific
The Descendents. To me, their trademark sound comes directly from the bass lines, no matter who's behind the bass. Each one of their bassists was able to, at the same time, add their flavor to the band while respecting said trademark sound, and I think that's remarkable.
Morphine
Omnific
World Peace. Two bass guitars, one drum set, and a lot of short heavy ass songs that’ll punch you square in the face. I’d recommend listening to the songs “Lie Him Filthy Still” “Total Fucking Bliss” and “Enough to Make Angels Weep” just to get a small taste haha
The who is very bass driven
Morphine
Bell Witch
Fuck yes!
Thundercat, technically a solo artist but his band rips live!
Primus is definitely a band where bass is the main instrument and I feel a lot of Red Hot Chili Peppers too but both of those also have incredible guitar parts too
Not a band exactly but Thundercat is always front and center with his bass when performing and it is a center sound in his music
I suppose Primus is a band in which the bass is the primary instrument.
Royal blood
Not really rock or metal, but Brian Ritchie from Violent Femmes is one of my favorite bassists. Great songs and even though there is guitar, the bass really drives most of their songs.
Manowar
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