How do you learn to 'Groove' without a drummer ??

[magnusdeus123]

I live in that part of the world where forget bass , it's difficult to find 'decent' (forget good) guitarists and drummers around . I just wanna know if there are ways to practice your basslines and groove improvising skills without the presence of a drummer , preferably at home , alone ?? Coz I wanna get started on a band aspect , but right now it's immpossible to find people who I can form a band with , so I'm thinking if I could hone up my skills and join one of the existing bands as a replacement bassist till I can form my own . It seems like a solid idea to me , considering the situation . Any suggestions ??

[Jeff Moote]

Metronome.

[fearceol]

Play along to your favourite cd's. Listen closely to how the bass drives the music. This also helps to develop your ear.

[Deacon_Blues]

Metronome and/or drum machine. It's harder to groove to a metronome's click, but when you learn it you should be able to groove also without one or without drums. Grooving to a drum machine is perhaps more fun, but it doesn't improve your inner sense of timing as well as a metronome click does.

[coolrunner989]

I play all the time without a drummer (sadly )
When I feel like groovin by myself I sit down and just start pumpin my foot to the beat I hear in my head, pick a key to play in or a starting note to go around and go, usually playing quaternotes in time with my foot at first, then getting into sycopated riffs and hammer-ons and such.

Not the most relieable way in terms of tempo, but its simple and easy

and its exactly like if you had a drummer (they arent perfectly on time either)

[ibnzneksrul]

Originally Posted by fearceol

Play along to your favourite cd's. Listen closely to how the bass drives the music. This also helps to develop your ear.

+1, and listen to what the drums are doing, notice the interplay between bass and drums.

[louieeadg]

Originally Posted by ibnzneksrul

+1, and listen to what the drums are doing, notice the interplay between bass and drums.

+1 to the records/cd's and really listening to the drums. I found that reggae and even hip hop cd's are really easy to get a good feel and easy groove to. That's what I did for a while until I found out one of my friends played drums...weird.

Oh, another thing I did a bit...If you can do this-play the cd with headphones on and the bass through your amp eq'd like you would a live setting and play along to the cd's. I could really feel the groove and where I should/could play mo better...

Or you could go to Guitar Center and be the freaky guy that's there all day, everyday, and just wait for someone to play the drums and crank that $2000 rig as loud as it goes!!

That's only of course...IF you want to go that route...I never have...well, only once but...the guy was playing a sick beat and I had a great idea in my head. We played for a few minutes until a clerk said we were too loud......They never tell stupid guitars wankers they're too loud. Stupid wanna be emo bumbs...

[kevinmoore73]

I practice with the drum (and metronome) rhythms in my Korg Pandora PX4D.

[peterpalmieri]

Originally Posted by Jeff Moote

Metronome.

A Big +1

You can start with quarter notes, but what will really make you shine is when you can groove to whole notes at a medium tempo and always nail that down beat.

It may take some work but you want that pulse to become internal...

[Muckaluck]

Hey, check out this link: http://www.blobprod.com/mixers/beatbox/beatboxmain.htm and click 'mix online now'. It will bring you to a beatbox dj mixer page where you can choose some random song to play with. I make sure to set all the levels to 0 except the drums and you can play for hours with a beat.
This has helped me improve my chops for when I play with a live drummer

[MagicMedicine]

Not all people have the resourses or money for this one..

But my recomendation is that, if you have the time, the space, and the money... then learn to play the drums.

Becuase that I used to be a drummer, and still play my drums, whenever I play a bassline I'm playing it to a groovy drum beat that my mind will produce for me

I dont sit and write it in my head, theres just a new one every time I want there to be. and I play my bass to fit with it.

If you dont have the option of learning drums, then you need to study as many musical groups as possible. Go to the library and take home a bunch of albums you have never heard before. Throw on some headphones and pay close attention to the drums and bass, and you need to get inside the drummers head just as much as you need to get inside the bassists head.

After studying so many groups your mind puts things together and you develope the same technique where your mind will just create a groovy beat for you to play to.

This opens up so many creative possibilites. It allows the bass player and the drummer to each devlope their own song ideas instead of having one band member always playing along to anothers idea.

Also if you listen to several albums from the same group, listen from oldest to newest.. and you can often hear how each musician has evolved or improved their playing over the years, just like you will notice in your own playing later on.

[magnusdeus123]

Thanks for the suggestions guys . The stuff I've noticed which seems to be most important is practicing with a metronome . I actually can maintain a pretty good rhythm , what I'm talking about is move improv. rather than timing . But I'll be doing that as soon as the bass hit's my hands . Luckily my tuner has an inbuilt Met .

Also the solution which has intrigued me the most is Magicmed's of learning the drums . Personally though , the drums dont fascinate me , but I've always twirled the idea around in my head of learnin a percussion instrument , mostly centring around the Bongo or the djembe . Their quite cheap , and less maintanence , and I kinda find their sounds more appealing on a lower scale rather than the drums . Tell me if you guys think it's a good idea to go and get a bongo kit or a djembe or whatever , and whether expanding upon MagicalMed's idea is a decent one or not ?? The only qualms I have with that is that I would have to separately record myself playing the drums first and then bass over that , or the other way around . Either way I'm trying to locate a percussionist for now , if I can find one , then nothing like it .

[Deacon_Blues]

The advice to learn some drums aren't bad. I've learned enough to keep a good beat with good timing and it has certainly helped my overall sense of a groove. But if you're more interested in other percussion then a djembe or one or preferably two congas could be a good alternative. They're however not as easy to play as one might think. It might require a couple of lessons to get started.

[98dvl]

I recommend getting a drum machine...

If you're not into paying a lot for a drum set, and just want to fiddle around with something, they're great. You can play in real time, and have a bunch of different sounds (probably including djimbe and bongos/congos depending on what you pick up) to play with.

You could (theoretically) learn to play drums on a drum machine. Some even have jacks for external pedals so you could connect one and use it as a kick drum trigger.

I have a Zoom RT-223. I can program beats into it, or just play along with the pre-programmed tracks.

Cost me about $100 (used). Programming it is relatively easy, but there is a learning curve involved.

Also, I have a Zoom B2.1u, which has some pre-programmed beats (not as many as the RT-223), but it also doubles as an effects pedal (actually, it's main function!).

Either one makes for a good drummer, and it won't drink all your beer!

[DocBop]

Originally Posted by Jeff Moote

Metronome.

+100

As they say if you can't groove to a metronome how do you expect to groove with band.

[chingas]

Originally Posted by DocBop

+100

As they say if you can groove to a metronome how do you expect to groove with band.

AND RECORD yourself when play and practice. Hearing yourself can help alot.

[MagicMedicine]

Originally Posted by magnusdeus123

Also the solution which has intrigued me the most is Magicmed's of learning the drums . Personally though , the drums dont fascinate me , but I've always twirled the idea around in my head of learnin a percussion instrument , mostly centring around the Bongo or the djembe . Their quite cheap , and less maintanence , and I kinda find their sounds more appealing on a lower scale rather than the drums . Tell me if you guys think it's a good idea to go and get a bongo kit or a djembe or whatever , and whether expanding upon MagicalMed's idea is a decent one or not ??

Actually hand drumming is probably a better idea.

I would definently recommend going out and buying a hand drum or a set of bongos, Bongos are the only kind of hand drums I own so I will recommend them. look for used pair perhaps, spend atleast 60 dollars (if you go lower you may end up with something that is actually intended to be a toy)

I play mind as set of bongos by themselves instead of including them into my drum kit.

The bongos do not require the co-ordination between limbs and can be learned much faster. And the two drums (High and Low) allow you follow the same grooves as any decent drummer as you can get so many different types of sounds from each drum buy hitting them in different ways.

http://www.petelockett.com/pete%20ne...go%20page.html

This is the website I used the day I bought my bongos and I found it very helpfull. Watch some of the videos near the bottom of the page and you may find yourself wanting more.

http://www.petelockett.com/lessons/b...SLAP%203-1.wmv
Heres a good example of what you would never expect the bongos to be cabable of if you have never seen them played by a professional.

Its actually easyer to learn funk and rock grooves on the bongos. For example the style that Chad Smith plays on his drums for the RHCP can be emulated very easily.

The High bongo would represent the Snare drum, the Low bongo would represent his bass drum, and his ghost notes (the light taps on his snare drum that Flea usually follows along with aswell) would be played on the High bongo by tapping it between right and left hands with the tips of your fingers, making sure to tap lighter than the main Snare and Bass hits.

Hope that makes sense.

[owensea777]

+1 on a drum machine.
You could also get an electric drum kit (electronic?). Get some recording gear. Record the foot drums, loop it with proper computer software, record the hand drums over that, and make yourself a drum track.
Then again, you may not be able to. The bongo idea sounds good, as long as you could record it and loop it so that you can play over it with your bass.
Where are you located, if you don't mind me asking?

[magnusdeus123]

The point of not getting a drum kit is that they tend to be very monotnous from what I've usually seen . I wont mind grooving to a met. since it's meant for that purpose , but a drum kit , I dont know , it kinda strike's me as being weird . Plus the recommendation of expanding on electronic pads and all that......hello people......I'm primarily a bassist . If I wanna be able to spend that much on drums or percussion , I'd be in TalkDrums Forums or something .

I thought it is revealed the location , but in any case I'm resident in India .

[MagicMedicine]

The idea of learning drums is not to groove to them, its to expand your mind and subconciously train it so that you are able to groove freely without needing any outside sources such as metronome. or a drum machine.

Any drum beats can be reproduced on a hand drum, and it is definently worth expanding upon if somebody is really interested in bettering themselves as a musician.