Becoming faster

i've played bass for about a week after playing guitar for about 5-6 years. i was amazed at how much you can apply how much you know from guitar to bass. Anyway i was able to breeze through the lessons but i want to be able to go fast kind of like slayer in raining blood. So what should i practice to build my speed and skill?

There really isnt any shortcuts it is just practice and practice and more practice... especially if you are playing with your fingers. I have been trying to get third finger in but it still really hard to play fast but more i practice more better my playing becomes. Another thing is to get playing more fluid and not so abrupt again practice is only thing that there is.

Same thing goes if you are playing with pick. Practice and practise and more practice.. Start slow and basically just play down, up, down, up, down, up, etc... And basically same thing goes to playing with finger walking. I started learning faster picking with guitar and then it was kinda easy to play bass fast.... with pick that is.


One good song to learn faster picking is Dick Dale's Misirlou on guitar. It goes up and down on guitars e-strings, it is simple but really inst easiest thing to play and it is good to practise stamina. When you get faster on one string try to play same thing on different strings and scales or learn some black metal riffs like mother north or main riff of emperors black wizards. This is basically what i dint before youtube and internets. I bet there is some good videos about this subject on youtube.

And maybe someone else here gold drop idea or two but mainly it just about practicing. Start slow, use metronome and slowly build your speed when you get better.
Do not run before you can walk properly.

I agree with mts, there are no short cuts. Speed comes with time. Your guitar skills will help but the bass is still a different instrument to the guitar as you probably already know and should be treated as such. But if you can play fast on the guitar I'm sure this will translate to the bass in time. But give it time because the shape of the instrument is different to the guitar (obviously) and you will find that you have to stretch your hands differently to reach notes. Take things slow with everything you learn, this helps you perfect your technique which is way way more important than playing fast. Playing fast comes with a perfected technique, if you try play fast too soon your technique will suffer and you will sound sloppy.

My friends above speak with wisdom and knowledge.

I need say no more...