Do drummers lose points for disassembling the moment the show is done?

if another drummer is waiting to set up it is completely disrespectful to go to the bar and walk around shaking hands like you are some rockstar while your gear sits where he needs to be

be a pro and get your gear out of the way.... you don't need to break it down and case it up... but get it out of the way so the next drummer can do what he needs to do

huge pet peeve of mine.

and it is always players with not much gig experience who leave their gear sitting around while they mingle and the next drummer waits pissed off

I have absolutely moved someones gear while they sat at the bar to get my gear in place.... 100%......more than once

I couldn't have said it better. Totally agree...
 
so lets not be corny drifting rockstars and get your gear out of the way before you schmooze at the bar

I stopped reading after this. Most of us tech our own gear, make sure it's not stolen, etc...but this is the biggest component of it all. I would be delusional if I thought that tending to my responsibilities after the set would leave my legions of adoring fans alienated.

And by legions I mean the drunk guy in the smoking area who used to play drums back in the 70s.
 
If we're the last band of the night, I generally won't feel the need to start dismantling right away. However, if there's another band coming up that use their own gear, I get my stuff the hell off the stage as soon as I can.

Yep.

At gigs where's there's another band coming up in 15-20 minutes, after the last song, I will usually stand up for a moment, give it 'a beat' as they say in TV, and then start grabbing stuff. My gear is usually off the stage within 2 minutes, and I certainly appreciate it when the drummer before me does the same.

Sometimes, if I know the drummer before (or after) I will offer to help with their gear, and vice versa. Also, typically as the senior drummer at a gig, the younger guys sometimes offer help on their own. :)

Bermuda
 
I stopped reading after this. Most of us tech our own gear, make sure it's not stolen, etc...but this is the biggest component of it all. I would be delusional if I thought that tending to my responsibilities after the set would leave my legions of adoring fans alienated.

And by legions I mean the drunk guy in the smoking area who used to play drums back in the 70s.

Maybe if you tended to your audience a little more, you might have more fans, just a thought.
 
I start taking my cymbals down before the guitar player turns his amp off. My stuff is packed and in my car ASAP. There is absolutely no reason for me to stay at a venue once I'm done playing. No one cares about the drummer, except other drummers. I pride myself on being the first one gone. EXCEPT, in one of the bands I play in, there's 9 of us, with PA, subs, lights, and mics. Then I stay and wrap cords and move stuff. But we all start breaking down immediately because it takes forever to move so much gear.
 
Yes. It's minus 3 rockstar points. Being respectful to the next band or tired sound guy is not what real rockstars do.
 
The last note of our last tune is still ringing and I'm unscrewing the Hi hats.
 
I too start to break down my gear right away after the last song. Why? I have the most components to break down out of anyone else in the band. It is a common courtesy if a band is following you (or at least it should be), and even if there isn't a band following, the professionalism goes a long way. You need to consider that the club employees don't feel like hanging around any longer than they have to and the longer you take to break down and load out, they longer they have to stay there. Also, in Rhode Island, clubs have until a certain time to be empty - typically 2:00 - 2:15am. If it becomes apparent that the band is going to exceed this time (because the band is still breaking down and getting their stuff out the door), they are required to call the police department to get an extention to that time. The clubs really do not appreciate doing that, and some even keep records of which bands take the longest to load out. It's nice to socialize, but that can be done on your breaks. As a bonus, typically the people are more sober during those breaks!
 
at 1.30am, I dont wanna mingle with anyone. I disassemble promptly and go home.

F
 
The real world, a drummer usually has no choice.

Stage managers want the drums off the stage right away for the next band.

Or even it's the last band, the stage manager wants the drums off the stage right away so they can pack up and go home.

Or if it's a tour, the drummer often has to hurry up so they can start the long drive to the next town.

It's pretty rare that a drummer has the luxury of not tearing down right away.

As Tony said, part of being a professional is getting your gear off the stage quickly.
 
At a bar gig there's not too many people left that want to talk to the band at the end of the night. Most everyone has their beer goggles on and are scoping out the members of the opposite sex. I usually go to the gentlemen's room, get my cases ready, and then get right to packing up my stuff.
 
I concur with what many have stated.

Most-times there is a band on after us, and often using their own kit so I'm on the clock to get broken down and put away as sharply as possible.

Additionally, every crappy little component of my kit has a hefty value on it if lost/stolen. If someone picked my drum stool up for example....kerching that's £100+, a cymbal stand kerching £60+.....kerching kerching....

I'm often bushed as well, and so sweaty that I just want to get OUT of the venue sharpish to cool down a bit.

I pissed my fellow bandmembers off at a gig last year at The Tivoli in North Wales because I made to finish putting my stuff in the car then the next they got was a text from me saying "gone home....". That place was ripe for my gear being nicked from my car. Waste ground behind venue and all that. I had to explain to my pals that "IF my gear was stolen, that's it for me, I'm out of the band. End of that and end of drumming for me" (I just couldn't afford to replace). They got it then !
 
at 1.30am, I dont wanna mingle with anyone. I disassemble promptly and go home.

F

Pretty much the same here most of the time. I'm a friendly dude, but I still have work to do when the last song is over. I pack up immediately and usually leave before anyone else in the band.

I would never consider myself rude and I apologize if that offends anyone, but I have things to do. LOL
 
Looks like me and the original poster are in the minority here.

I think that taking apart your drum kit immediately after the last note of the last song is not good. Although it kind of depends on the venue. At a venue where you can mingle with the audience you need to do that.

Imagine how it would look if the guitarist unplugged his guitar and put it in the case and ran off the stage while the last note was still ringing. I understand if another band is coming on you need to start packing up right away.

However walking out in front of your drums and mingling for a couple of minutes sends a clear signal that you care about the audience. Remember I said a “couple of minutes” as in one or two minutes. If someone wants to chat with you, walk him back to your drums and talk to him while you take your drums apart. Your next gig is in your audience.

Go ahead stand up right now in front of your computer keyboard for one minute. One minute is a long time when you are standing there doing nothing. One minute of standing there to make sure your audience is satisfied won't hurt anything.



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All of the shows I'm playing these days, everyone brings their own gear, and there are usually four to six (too many) bands on the bill that night. If everyone spent five minutes talking to people, that's a guaranteed extra half hour before we can all go home. Drummers lose more points in my book if they don't start moving their stuff as soon as they're done and thank the crowd. And by that, I mean it literally - say thank you and get off the stage so we can keep the show running smoothly. A lot of the bands around here take far too long to change over and I think that's infinitely worse than not talking to people - you can always give me a hand moving my stuff; we can talk during that time!
 
For me it's 100% about whether another band is following us. If so, I pack up immediately. Family, friends, fans... they all have to wait. That's just professionalism 101.

Now, if there's no band following us and it's casual where nobody minds if we take our time, venue management included, then I'll mingle.
 
Gig is over, time to go home. I personally am not 20 years old any more, i want to get my old man butt home and in bed ;-)
 
Like others have expressed, when we are playing between bands I move everything off the stage in minutes as to help out the next drummer, and what saves me time is having strong stands that hold several things - i.e. my main yamaha double tom stand also holds two cymbal stands, one with a stack, and the cymbal stand I use for a china also holds an X-Hat (heavy clip-on stand) and another cymbal stand and crash. In fact the only 'solo' stands I have are the ride and hihat.

What bugs me is other drummers who also play in between bands who start unpacking their stuff ON the stage (i.e. taking cymbals off one by one and packing them in their cymbal bag and etc.). I just watch in disbelief when that happens - inconsiderate...

Not enough drummers do this. ie have as much as they can already set up off stage.

Yes; let the singer tear down your kit.

GJS

I actually once taught my bandmates how to tear down my kit. I'm pretty picky when it comes to how things are put away, but once they got it we could get off stages and everything into the van alarmingly quickly!

Looks like me and the original poster are in the minority here.

I think that taking apart your drum kit immediately after the last note of the last song in not good. Although it kind of depends on the venue. At a venue where you can mingle with the audience you need to do that.

Imagine how it would look if the guitarist unplugged his guitar and put it in the case and ran off the stage while the last note was still ringing. I understand if another band is coming on you need to start packing up right away.

However walking out in front of your drums and mingling for a couple of minutes sends a clear signal that you care about the audience. Remember I said a “couple of minutes” as in one or two minutes. If someone wants to chat with you, walk him back to your drums and talk to him while you take your drums apart. Your next gig is in your audience.

Go ahead stand up right now in front of your computer keyboard for one minute. One minute is a long time when you are standing there doing nothing. One minute of standing there to make sure your audience is satisfied won't hurt anything.



.

Can you give me a job? I just got a warning at work for standing staring into space at my desk! ;)
 
All of the shows I'm playing these days, everyone brings their own gear, and there are usually four to six (too many) bands on the bill that night. If everyone spent five minutes talking to people, that's a guaranteed extra half hour before we can all go home. Drummers lose more points in my book if they don't start moving their stuff as soon as they're done and thank the crowd. And by that, I mean it literally - say thank you and get off the stage so we can keep the show running smoothly. A lot of the bands around here take far too long to change over and I think that's infinitely worse than not talking to people - you can always give me a hand moving my stuff; we can talk during that time!

I'm in the same boat. Most shows around here are at least 4 bands (thank goodness we've got a three band show next weekend). And drummers are always the worst about packing up. If there's another band coming after you, it's your job to get off stage as quickly as possible. Those who are good at it just carry everything off of the stage and then pack it up while the next band is setting up (who, if they're good at it, already have everything set up and are just moving it onto the stage). Those who have been playing in our music scene for a while are great about it, while the newcomers usually haven't figured it out yet. When we have a show running smoothly, sometimes there's as little as a five minute turn around.

Recently, I've invested in cymbal mates and a quick release clutch for all of my cymbals, because at some venues, there isn't floor space to pack your things up and it has to stay on the stage until you load it back up into your vehicle. I can have all of my cymbals packed up in about a minute, and then the rest goes pretty quick.

Some venues, however, if my band is the last act, I'll have a drink and talk for a bit before I pack up if I know the place still isn't closing for a while. I'm always within close proximity to my equipment, so I can trust that it will be safe in the meantime
 
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