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Slap Bass Made Easy
by Chris Matheos

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On August the 8th,, 2007 at the Atlanta Bass Gallery(ABG), Adam Nitti gave a wonderful clinic. Due to my affiliation with the ABG and my friendship with Adam, I was fortunate enough to be able to interview him after the clinic. I was two questions into the interview when Atlanta bassist, Steve Mayes interrupted us. Somehow, the digital recorder I was using to conduct the interview lost that bit of 411. All I know, from my notes, is that the questions were pertaining to gear and effects. I don't know the answers. I'm blaming Steve. Somehow, he magically deleted that bit-o-nfo without my knowing it. Luckily for us, the interview continued thusly:

Before we were so rudely interrupted by Atlanta bassist, Steve Mays (all laugh, Steve, you owe me some gigs now) I was about to ask Adam...

k-dub: What methods do you employ while creating compositions? Melody first, rhythms?

nitti: Honestly, every song has had a different evolution. You could probably narrow my composition approach down into three main methods. One would be creating harmony on the keyboard---writing the framework of the tune on the keys---the harmonic framework---and adding the melody later and evolving the tune that way. Another way is usually melody lead. I may hear a melody and add the harmony later and build the song that way. Then, the third way is a song might begin centered around a bass line that I wrote or a drum groove that I was hearing in my head. Actually, there really is a fourth way too and that is sometimes I hear everything together all at once.

k-dub: The amazing times.

nitti: Yeah, yeah. That doesn't always happen but that's happened before. One of those four methods, at any given time, will reign supreme if I'm trying to write but I don't have any set method.

k-dub: When it happens, one way or the other, which one have you found to be the most difficult...to finish a tune.

nitti: The most, well, I'm not going to say most difficult but it seems like the ones that sort of linger longer before completion are the ones where the melody becomes an afterthought. To me, melody is everything. It's so important that I try to write tunes in a way where there's almost a pop formula to them. Like there's, if you listen to a lot of my songs, they, a lot of them, will follow that sort of like, verse, verse, chorus, verse, chorus bridge type framework. That's almost always led by a melody...by a melodic concept and where that melody is taking the song. Even if the song doesn't begin with the melody, if it lingers and is added to it later, I always give primary attention to the melody because that is the most sing-able part of the tune. That's what's going to be memorable for people.

k-dub: Cool! OK, let's see..... with whom are you touring?

nitti: Most recently, I've been doing dates with David Phelps and then Mark Shultz but I go back out with Stephen Curtis Chapman the very beginning of September.

k-dub: I don't know either of those two guys you mentioned before Stephen.

nitti: Yeah, David and Art are both CCM, contemporary Christian rock guys but Stephen is overwhelmingly the one I've done the most work with.

k-dub: How's life...um..the move to Nashville. How's that been?

nitti: So far so good. I've been really busy since I got there. There's been, usually, with Nashville, for me, the pattern has been, the very beginning of the year it's slow. Then, things start to roll, you know, March, April. Things start to pick up and then it gets real, real heavy until the holidays. This last year was no exception. So, right now I'm in some of the busiest time I've ever been in. I've been offered multiple tours in the fall and I was lucky that I was, sort of, able to take my pick. But, things kind of shut down after the holidays up there and, as you know, it's a massive music industry town and there's just not much that happens at that time. So, as a side man or a studio guy, which, you know, I'm trying to sustain both of those things, you have to be really wise about taking your income lumps and making or allowing them to stretch through the dry times. You learn that pretty quickly.

k-dub: The way Jimmy Haslip explained it to me was, "You just gotta tell everybody that sometimes things are in balance and sometimes they're not. (laughter)

nitti: I agree. 100%

k-dub: Are you working on any new techniques that you haven't unleashed on the world?

nitti: I'm not working on any new techniques per se but I am trying to expand on the sweep stuff and the flamenco hybrid stuff, right now. I'm trying to add more things to those basic techniques to make them more usable in more musical situations.

k-dub: You know, I didn't even know that you did that..

nitti: Oh, wow...

k-dub: ...and I've been working on that sweep thing myself...

nitti: Oh, cool….

k-dub: ...and I saw you do it and I went daaaaamn….

nitti: …Oh, that's cool…..

k-dub: ...but, I'm using it differently, a completely different way. I'm using the augmented scale…

nitti: …Yeah….

k-dub: …I'm using it to play the stacked thirds….

nitti: …yeah….

k-dub: ...and, I'm moving it up a major third, then down a half step….

nitti: Yeah!

k-dub: …using my right hand to sweep up and down alternatively, like (k-dub mouths the augmented boodala didlelada augmented sweep plucking sound)…

nitti: Yeah! yeah! that's awesome.

k-dub: It's hard to do especially on fretless. My right hand is what is driving me crazy right now.

nitti: Cool man. (ed note: Adam was my personal cheerleader there for a minute. I dug it!)

k-dub: Hmmm....let's see (k-dub reads his notes) how's the session work going in Nashville?

nitti: It's up and down. The truth is, when you spend a lot of time on the road, it's hard to build your home based career. Now, I've been lucky because from the road stuff that I've done, I've gotten a lot of referral for studio stuff in town. So, I am getting sessions...it's the type of thing where, like I talked about in my clinic, it's diversifying, I've gotten each segment of type of work that I'm doing. They all, sort of, come together to make the big picture. The majority of my income has been generated through touring since I moved to Nashville but that's now changing. That's moving to where, you know, more studio work, more home based stuff and now that I'm also producing independent artists, that's opened up a whole other, sort of, home based segment of my career.

k-dub: Right. What a great segway to my next question. Who are you producing?

nitti: Right now, we're finishing off a project with a guy named Jason Tucker who's a singer-songwriter based out of Nashville. He's got a really unique sounding voice and some really cool sounding pop rock stuff. It's cross-over. Sort of like Christian light, if you will. I'm excited about it because what I've been able to do is, the players that I've worked in the studio with in Nashville that I've cultivated friendships with, I've been able to bring them in on these producing projects and we get these fantastic players working with these artists and I love that part of the creative process. Overseeing how things come together, helping an artist to find themselves and broaden their sound. I love it.

k-dub: Well, that brings up a question I didn't have down. Bass player magazine did an article on how bass players make the best producers.

nitti: Yeah, that's right.

k-dub: How do you feel about that role?

nitti: Man it's, I guess there's something about how our brains work, the fact the we have the discipline to be foundational players but also, we live in a time now where bass is kind of in the forefront more than it's ever been.

k-dub: THANK YOU DISCO!!!!

nitti: Yeah! (laughter) You know, I really think that it does something to qualify us for knowing restraint, the balance of restraint and unbridled creativity. (ed note: that is one of the most brilliant statements I've ever heard!)

k-dub: Um hum.

nitti: You know, knowing how to balance those two things together.

k-dub: Yeah!

nitti: I think bass players are wired for that.

k-dub: I always find myself, when I'm in the studio, you know, I'm still recording that record with Steve, (Steve Freeman, an amazing guitarist. Hear some here: http://www.myspace.com/misterpilsner ) if we ever get it finished. I always find that I'm the guy who's going, "No, no, no! we need to leave this in, drop that out", tap on the window to the recording both with a, "hello, pay attention, red button...." doing all of the traffic cop stuff. It just comes naturally to me. I'm not trying to be a bully or anything it just comes out and everybody goes, "Well, yeah, that'll be OK. That'll work".

nitti: I know, I see that and hear that from folks. I mean, my long term plans, ultimately, I want to get to where producing is the majority of my income and then the artist side of things comes from pure passion for me and nothing else. That's the direction I'm heading.

k-dub: Very cool. Two more questions. How do you like working with in ears, pros and cons and are most of the artist you're working with demanding that you use them or is it an option?

nitti: Well, all of the tours I've done, it seems like the overwhelming majority of these, whatever, signed artist, that whole world where there's a machine behind the artist where they can afford to bring out monitor engineers and front of house engineers and have the personnel to make it work. They're all on in-ears. There are definitely pros can cons. For me, personally, there are definitely more pros than cons. The cons, you do, it does take a little getting used to with regard to the feeling of being isolated from what's going on around you. You can't just have a conversation with somebody without pulling an ear out on stage if you are using any kind of sealed system. There's that and then the other thing is if you are the kind of person who relies on your sonic rig to be your sonic inspiration on stage, of course, you lose that. You lose the direct connection. The pros, for me there's a lot more. One of the pros is you're protecting your hearing. And that is assuming you don't blast your ears to dangerous levels. I don't do that. Some people do. Protect your hearing. Two, you have an isolation situation for your mix which is fantastic because it comes the same every night. You know what to expect every night. Three, another pro, if you are still using a rig on stage, you get the benefit from both DI precise signal in your ears and the vibration coming from your rig. You don't have to worry about competing, volume wise, with the guitar rig. That alone is worth it because most of the guitar players I've played with play really loud.

k-dub: Yeah, they can't do anything unless they have that cranked up tone.

nitti: It becomes that volume battle on stage. My ears can't handle that anymore. So, that, the continuity, you know what to expect and not having to fight with the volumes. I bought my own in-ear system after I started being on it a lot, just for my, when I'm doing even small gigs in clubs, I bring an in-ear system. If they can outfit me in that way with an off-send mix, I do it every time now. I just love it.

k-dub: Well, you did a great clinic man and I'm glad there was a good turn out for you and I'm glad I asked that question about touring. I always like it when I ask a question of the clinician and they get that aaaaaahh look on their face 'cause they haven't thought about that before. (k-dub probably asked one of his favorite questions, "What do you find the hardest or most liked or disliked aspect of touring?" That's probably what I asked. If that is, in fact, what I asked, I don't remember Adam's answer. See, you shoulda been at da clinic!)

nitti: Yeah, me too. I appreciate you man, I appreciate you.

k-dub: Here's the final question that I ask in all my interviews, "What's your favorite food?"

nitti: Oh man, that's a great question. My favorite food, you mean a specific food or like a particular…

k-dub: …No, no, just whatever you like to eat the most.

nitti: Man,..I…Italian food….and Indian food.

k-dub: Really?

nitti: Yeah, they're both on even keel. Absolutely my favorites. My family heritage is Italian so,...

k-dub: Well, you do have one of those vowel ending names...

nitti: (laughs) Yeah, so, I've gotten spoiled being around that for most my life. But yeah man, it was musicians that turned me on to Indian food and there was no turning back. It's like eating a symphony. You know. Because there's all the different flavors and I just love it. Fortunately my wife loves it too so I don't have to eat alone. (ed note: It's always good to mention the pleasure you have dining with your wife. Especially, when you're on the road and she's at home. It makes them feel missed and loved. Good job Adam!!)

k-dub: Well, thanks for the interview.

nitti: Hey man, thanks for asking. I appreciated it.

Fade to black, curtain falls. A low note is heard.

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About the Author:

k-dub, keeper o da funk is a bassist and outside the box thinker residing in the hot 'lanta area. He can be reached for comments, questions, lessons or gigs at k-dub@funknotes.com hear him @ www.myspace.com/keeperodafunk

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