It isn't always possible to record the bass that far along into the recording process. But because the bassist is performing a simultaneously rhythmic and melodic part, it definitely helps to at least have some sort of guide vocal and basic instrumentation in place when recording bass parts. Even if it's a vocal performance you wouldn't think of releasing, the phrasing alone can help the bassist compose a part that won't clash with the singer.

Speaking of which, just as lead vocals are frequently constructed via comping of multiple takes down to a single track, the same technique works great for the bass--and other primarily single note instruments as well.

With synthesized bass recorded as a MIDI track, it's easy to take a riff or passage and alter a note here or there to produce some variation. Obviously, that's much more difficult to do with recorded bass, although it can certainly be done with judicious editing, splicing and using pitch-changing plug-ins like the Antares Auto-Tune. But by having the bassist perform multiple takes of the same part, enough variety should be recorded to build up a world-class bass track.

One way of doing this is for the bassist's first take be played relatively conservatively, so that the melodic and harmonic foundation of the track is taken care of. Then a couple of tracks of improvisation--from slight variations maybe even up to some wild experimental playing if the tune seems to call for it--can be recorded.

Finally, the whole thing can be comped down into one complete killer track.

Soft Synths and Loops

Electric bass ultimately is rooted in relatively simple physics and engineering: one player, one physical instrument, and possibly, one amplifier. But when it comes to synthesized bass, anything goes. A track could be a 15-year-old Peavey DPM-3 or even older Yamaha DX-7 with a bass patch that's been physically played a crack session musician.

Or, it could be a soft synth like Cakewalk's Project5 or Propellerhead's Reason.

Kurt Kurasaki is the author of Power Tools For Reason 2.5. In an interview, he told me that "In some styles of electronic music, the bass riff carries the entire track, and one of the things that you lose when sequencing is performance value. Most times you end up recording eight or sixteen measures of a bass line, then duplicate it for the entire song."

To break up this monotony, Kurasaki recommends adding parameter automation or small modulations to the timbre of the bass. "I personally prefer the automation track where filter and dynamic changes are applied in real time over the duration of the track. The live automation adds life back to sequenced melody and keeps the track interesting."