The Hard Quartet bass guitar player Stephen Malkmus has raised eyebrows by using a bass string as a guitar strap onstage with his new supergroup, with his band calling the move “a first in the history of electric bass guitar”.
A video of Malkmus utilizing the string in such an unusual way on his fairly time-worn SG bass surfaced on social media over the weekend – and it’s left a series of questions begging to be asked.
First off, Guitar World notices that his bass is missing its third string. So, has Malkmus done what many see as an impossible task and somehow snapped a bass string, only to then use it as a strap instead?
Other burning questions include: surely it can’t be comfortable, is it really the first instance of this in history, and, perhaps most importantly of all... why?!
Whatever the case, we don’t recommend trying this one at home, unless, of course, you have shoulders of steel. After all, we can’t imagine bearing the full weight of a bass guitar using nothing but a sole bass string can be good for your back – especially if you’re planning on playing live like Malkmus.
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Malkmus has previously played in American indie icons Pavement and Seattle country rock outfit Straw Dogs. The Hard Quartet is his latest project, uniting him with guitarist/vocalist Emmett Kelly (The Cairo Gang, Ty Segall), and Matt Sweeney (Chazez, Johnny Cash, Adele).
Speaking to Guitar World about the band’s songwriting process, and in particular their pepperings of “psychedelic ramblings” and little absurdities, Malkmus says, “You tap into the weirdness and when everybody is playing good, and a certain kind of song can lead you to those kind of reveries. It’s bizarre. You’re making the architecture of the house with no plan.”
The band have also lifted the lid on the gear used on the album, with plenty of vintage picks involved. There was no mention of a guitar string bass strap, however, so perhaps that’s a more recent innovation. We’re not sure it will catch on, though.
For other more conventional strap innovations, see D'Addario’s twist-free design made in collaboration with Joe Satriani, and a strap that lets players spin their guitar 360 degrees while simultaneously eliminating back pain. Or how about a guitar strap with a built-in bottle opener?
