Level 42 – ‘The Machine Stops’

This song is from Level 42’s 1983 album Standing in the Light. Driven along by a sixteenth note-based slap groove, it is also notable for Mark King’s use of harmonic chords and neck bending. Although a fan favourite since its release, the song was only performed live for the first time in 2008.

The bassline for this song relies on many elements of intermediate level slap bass technique. These include the use of fretting hand slaps, strummed chords, double stops and machine gun triplets.

A full transcription of this piece can be found in The Level 42 Bass Book – Volume 1. The transcription is not required for the video course.