Inappropriate drumming

Larry

Larry

"Uncle Larry"
So I saw a local band last night, who played hard rock. Naturally I was mainly focused on what the drummer was doing. OMG he was the loudest guy on stage, filling up every microsecond with something. No consideration when the singer was on mic, zero dynamics, played the whole night at one volume, (as did the rest of the band) and although note wise, his fills were correct, they were just regurgitated and not "felt". I was literally plugging my ears with my fingers the entire time they played because I thought they would be damaged by this guys snare hits, and the overall volume of the band.

These guys were in their mid 30's, great singer, and competent musicians, just not seasoned at all. The drummer had good meter, played the right notes, (plus extras) but it just didn't work. His tempo was just plain wrong on some stuff. They played Zeps "Ramble On" at 1.5 times the speed which killed it for me. Plus the parts where there was no drums...he added drums, and not in a good way.
They did Golden Earring's "Radar Love". If you know the song, there are some nice low dymanics in it, but this guy played it all at full volume. What was he thinking?

Drummers can totally hamstring a band, and this guy was a master at it.
No wonder drummers have the most jokes made about them.
We play such a powerful instrument and when that instrument is in the hands of a hack, it totally overpowers any good that is there.
What you don't play is at least as important as what you do play.
I'm sure he thought he was great, but I wanted to ring his neck.
He was a lesson in what not to do.

Sorry for the rant, but guys like this really irritate me.
 
What's sad about the whole thing is that he probably doesn't even know he's doing it. That's why it's so important to record yourself playing. So you can hear what others are hearing. It sounds different in front of the kit than behind it.

Other things to consider: He could have had the Guitar Monitor blaring in his ear. This has happened to me.

When I'm playing out, the only guy I wanna hear clearly is the bass player. The others are window dressing when I'm playing.
 
I'm sure he thought he played superbly.
I've been there too, so I'm not above him or anything, I just hope that he isn't stuck there forever. You're right, recording myself was my ticket out of that headspace.
General rule of drumming: Drums shouldn't be the loudest instrument on stage. The older I get the more I realize that the less drums, the better the song sounds.
Music is like a recipe and drums are like tabasco sauce.
 
larryace said:
I'm sure he thought he played superbly.
I've been there too, so I'm not above him or anything, I just hope that he isn't stuck there forever. You're right, recording myself was my ticket out of that headspace.
General rule of drumming: Drums shouldn't be the loudest instrument on stage. The older I get the more I realize that the less drums, the better the song sounds.
Music is like a recipe and drums are like tabasco sauce.
Click to expand...

I think drums are more than just "Tobasco" in the recipe that's Music. You can still eat a dish that someone forgot to put in Tobasco. I do agree with you that many songs are improved when the drummer uses a little restraint and doesn't overplay.

Recording yourself is really the best way. If someone came up to you and said "Hey you're overplaying!", you might not believe them. When you actually hear yourself doing it, well... I record myself somewhat regularly and it's always interesting to listen to a song that I think the drum part is overly simple, and on hearing it back, it sounds more full than it did while I was playing it.
 
I've actually met a couple of drummers like that and have seen a couple around town that play like that. One volume...loud.

Dynamics is everything, I think. You can have solid time and lots of fancy fills but no dynamics will ruin the feel of the song entirely.

It reminds me of JACOB ZILDGE WHO CAN'T CONTROL THE VOLUME OR PITCH OF HIS VOICE.
 
In a nutshell, he wasn't playing musical at all.

He had good enough meter, adequate technique, OK fills I guess (and loads of em!) but tempos lacked feeling, kinda mechanical, zero dynamics and JUST PLAYED WAY TOO LOUD ALL THE TIME. He wasted his time micing the kit, the soundman hardly had them on as far as I could tell. You'd think he was getting paid by the note.

Guys like these think the drums are the main course and they're not. They serve a function to the greater good.

But the other guys in the band seemed unaffected, so I guess to them he was OK.
Whatever.
 
The hardest thing that I have had to learn in drumming is dynamics, and knowing how to not overplay. The drums are such a powerful instrument! A drummer can get pumped up and easily take over. I frequently have to discipline myself while playing. Along with what fits in with the type of music, I also have to consider the venue that I am at. When I am playing, and I'm Hot, It is hard to be humble. I just want to let it go! Of course, No one wants to hear just drums all night. If I'm having a bad night, It never is a problem! I keep it quiet and simple so I don't make a fool out of myself. I also no longer drink much when I play. Drinking makes me the worst offender as far as overplaying is concerned. I try to only blast out a few quick licks during a song just to have my presence known. I try to keep my fills tasteful and not to numerous. I usually show off at the end of the night when the audience is ready for heavy drums. A time and place for everything!
 
I'm fortunate in that I play in a power metal band where good taste and restraint are not at all necessary.
 
Just played a show this weekend where I HAD to play loud. I'd played there before and the previous sound guy had mic'ed the kick and snare. This time, not. The room was full and noisy and the bandmates (guitar, bass, frontman) were mixed pretty damn loud. They were pretty amped up emotionally as well. I could tell there wasn't going to be alot of restraint going on. Normally, I bash only where the songs call for it, and try, otherwise, to support and propel, using dynamics to build and release tension. This was sink or swim. If I was even gonna be heard at all, by either the band or the audience, I was gonna have to crush. Which I did. And it was good. I MADE the band listen for me, and as a result, we had probably the best, highest-energy show we'd played to date. A curious side effect was that my already simplistic drumming got pared down even further. And it was good. It may have even made me groove harder, having to "feel" for the kick hits under all that noise. Stripped down can be good. I learned much. Nice to find out i had another gear.
So, Larry, I feel ya. Too much is too much. ESPECIALLY in tunes that we all know and love. And, as another poster commented, there IS a time and a place for everything. Good thread!
 
As an aside, I've never been to a gig where micing the kick drum wasn't a good idea. It's not about volume so much as making sure you're getting those low frequencies out into the audience, as they don't carry all that far. This is probably not true at all for jazz or acoustic music, of course, but for a rock gig it's all but essential.
 
Yesterday I played live with The String Band on the radio station WPKN in Bridgeport Ct. We were set up in a collage classroom with a small live audience. We had two vocal monitors and just our instrument amps. They used only ambient mics to put us on the air. We had to play at low volume. I simplified my drumming significantly! I know from experience that overplaying at an event like this will only cause musical confusion. The drums will dominate the other instruments and the vocalist. I stayed in the pocket with a light touch on the cymbals and snare for the entire hour. I only added light simple fills. I just tapped my bass. I accented just a bit at strategic moments in the songs. My band mates gave me compliments afterwards. It was a true exercise in self control! I felt like I was driving through a school zone with a cop behind me! I will post the link when we put it up.
 
So this band sounded the way "today's cd's" sound.. All volume.. no breathing room. I know some people who know nothing about playing an instrument that think this type of playing is cool. WOW!! that guy is loud!! How cool! Anyone can be loud but not everyone can play. That seems to be an issue these days with a lot of bar bands.
 
Seems pretty rude to plug your ears in front of the guy. Have some class and understand not all amateur drummers are to your liking and may even be far from your ideal standard. There are people out there that play for fun.
Post a video of yourself and let us critique it.
 
Zumba_Zumba said:
Seems pretty rude to plug your ears in front of the guy.
Click to expand...

Oh I don't agree with that at all. If it's too loud it hurts and can damage your hearing. It's a natural reflex to plug your ears when something is so loud it's painful. Nothing rude about it, although if it had been me I would have split, like I would if a guy was using a jack-hammer in the street. What are you going to do, hang around and listen to that?
 
Did you try to approach to the drummer? to give him feedback regarding his performance.
 
Zumba_Zumba said:
Seems pretty rude to plug your ears in front of the guy. Have some class and understand not all amateur drummers are to your liking and may even be far from your ideal standard. There are people out there that play for fun.
Post a video of yourself and let us critique it.
Click to expand...

Sorry but my ears take precedence. I had to stay, it was my GF's birthday. It's not like I was making a big thing out of it, I was just sitting at a table about 20' from the stage. I don't usually go and see bar bands, next time I'll take ear plugs.
If you want to critique my playing, no video but there's some songs in this thread:
http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47924
 
Ian Williams said:
Did you try to approach to the drummer? to give him feedback regarding his performance.
Click to expand...

You know Ian, I thought about it, but I didn't know him at all and I thought that it would be rude of me. I'm sure there are people there who thought he was fine, and yes I have my opinions, but who am I to tell him what he should or shouldn't do? It's his gig and he can play it how he see's fit. It wouldn't have made a difference anyway, the rest of the band was twice as loud as they needed to be as well.
 
larryace said:
Drummers can totally hamstring a band, and this guy was a master at it.
No wonder drummers have the most jokes made about them.
We play such a powerful instrument and when that instrument is in the hands of a hack, it totally overpowers any good that is there.
What you don't play is at least as important as what you do play.
I'm sure he thought he was great, but I wanted to ring his neck.
He was a lesson in what not to do.
Click to expand...

......As indeed can any member of the band.

I dont buy the theory that its just the drummers.. Singers that go off key, Guitar players who play bum notes, bass players that are out of sync are equally hard to take.

The drums to some extent are the glue that binds it all together so yes it might be a tad more noticeable, but all the other cast of characters can ruin it equally for me.

A bad musician is a bad musician, period. You can have bad musicians with good technique & bad ones with bad technique.

I can think of many bands ( and I sure as heck 'aint gonna name them ) with hokey/hacky drummers that made fabulous music too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top