Bassists vs drummers on online forums

[JimmyM]

Joined a handful of drum forums, and I've noticed a few different things:

---Participation isn't nearly as strong with drummers as bassists. Drummers do some psycho-analyzing of everything they do, but not to the extent of bassists by and large. But whereas you never run out of new topics on here, you can get through most drum forums in 5-10 minutes a day.

---They actually like bass players and don't make up stupid names like "dummer" for us, though of course you get an occasional fish joke.

---It's really weird to think percussively again instead of chordal. Sometimes I'll bring up a part of a song and a melody or chord change, and a lot of people don't have the faintest idea of what I'm talking about, so I have to find other ways of explaining it. On the other hand, up until 3 days ago, I had no idea what blast beats were, and there's a ton of other important terms bass players don't know as well, so don't get any superiority complexes over it

---There are quite a few folks on here who are on drum forums, and there are quite a few folks on drum forums who double on chordal and wind instruments. Still, there are a lot of them who have zero interest in anything else but drums.

---Drum shredders (I call them "stunt drummers" but apparently they think it's a slur and not a compliment) have all the best techniques for people my age to remain as pain-free as possible while still playing as good as we used to. I'm not quite back up to where I used to be, but I'm a whole lot farther along than I would have been without studying what they do to minimize trauma and maximize everything else.

---Ringo, Tony Williams, and Buddy Rich are by far the most talked about drummers on these forums. One well-known drummer in LA just did an exhaustive search on every single cymbal Ringo was ever seen playing in The Beatles. I now know more about Ringo's cymbals than he does.

---Drummer GAS is worse than I ever imagined, especially when it comes to snare drums and cymbals. When I get ready to upgrade these CB700 shells, I'm going for the first decent brand name 3 or 4 drum shell pack I see for $200-300 used and stopping. Except for the cowbell. And I might want to change out my ride and hi hats eventually. And get some Rototoms. And a custom built Yamaha Recording Custom set. And some congas and timbales. Maybe a rack of percussion. And some Vistalites with lights inside.

But that's it.

 

[Ostie]

Do drummers say “fire the bass player”?

 

[Space Pickle]

no, they fire themselves

 

[WillyW]

so.... what kind of sticks do you use?

 

[Texaspandj]

My only question on Drummers forum is Have all drummers had to eat glue in elementary school?


Reality check, good drummers are born drummers.

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

Joined a handful of drum forums, and I've noticed a few different things:

---...But whereas you never run out of new topics on here, you can get through most drum forums in 5-10 minutes a day.

I think that this is because there are no Tort drum shells.

---Drummer GAS is worse than I ever imagined, especially when it comes to snare drums and cymbals. When I get ready to upgrade these CB700 shells, I'm going for the first decent brand name 3 or 4 drum shell pack I see for $200-300 used and stopping. Except for the cowbell. And I might want to change out my ride and hi hats eventually. And get some Rototoms. And a custom built Yamaha Recording Custom set. And some congas and timbales. Maybe a rack of percussion. And some Vistalites with lights inside.

But that's it.

What no 360° rotating drum kit platform?

 

[Tanner5382]

Drummers are often the coolest dudes in the band. I enjoy reading drum forums from time to time.

Drummer GAS is very understandable! Drum kits are a beautiful thing.

 

[WillyW]

My only question on Drummers forum is Have all drummers had to eat glue in elementary school?


Reality check, good drummers are born drummers.

How ya gonna know unless you try it?

 

[75Ric]

---It's really weird to think percussively again instead of chordal. Sometimes I'll bring up a part of a song and a melody or chord change, and a lot of people don't have the faintest idea of what I'm talking about, so I have to find other ways of explaining it. On the other hand, up until 3 days ago, I had no idea what blast beats were, and there's a ton of other important terms bass players don't know as well, so don't get any superiority complexes over it

The person I take lessons from has had me practice the rhythm studies out of the Belson book for drummers. No harmony or even note changes, just rhythm, but virtually every permutation imaginable. I found it incredibly valuable.

 

[Liam Wald]

I currently work with two bands. In both, the drummers are very good musicians, have solid meter, read music, sing and know harmony. There are few things I find more enjoyable than playing with really good drummers.

 

[bassbrad]

Some of my favorite people are drummers.... and then.

 

[Mechanical]

I think you presented a rudimentary overview of drum forums.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Joined a handful of drum forums, and I've noticed a few different things:

---Participation isn't nearly as strong with drummers as bassists. Drummers do some psycho-analyzing of everything they do, but not to the extent of bassists by and large. But whereas you never run out of new topics on here, you can get through most drum forums in 5-10 minutes a day.

---They actually like bass players and don't make up stupid names like "dummer" for us, though of course you get an occasional fish joke.

---It's really weird to think percussively again instead of chordal. Sometimes I'll bring up a part of a song and a melody or chord change, and a lot of people don't have the faintest idea of what I'm talking about, so I have to find other ways of explaining it. On the other hand, up until 3 days ago, I had no idea what blast beats were, and there's a ton of other important terms bass players don't know as well, so don't get any superiority complexes over it

---There are quite a few folks on here who are on drum forums, and there are quite a few folks on drum forums who double on chordal and wind instruments. Still, there are a lot of them who have zero interest in anything else but drums.

---Drum shredders (I call them "stunt drummers" but apparently they think it's a slur and not a compliment) have all the best techniques for people my age to remain as pain-free as possible while still playing as good as we used to. I'm not quite back up to where I used to be, but I'm a whole lot farther along than I would have been without studying what they do to minimize trauma and maximize everything else.

---Ringo, Tony Williams, and Buddy Rich are by far the most talked about drummers on these forums. One well-known drummer in LA just did an exhaustive search on every single cymbal Ringo was ever seen playing in The Beatles. I now know more about Ringo's cymbals than he does.

---Drummer GAS is worse than I ever imagined, especially when it comes to snare drums and cymbals. When I get ready to upgrade these CB700 shells, I'm going for the first decent brand name 3 or 4 drum shell pack I see for $200-300 used and stopping. Except for the cowbell. And I might want to change out my ride and hi hats eventually. And get some Rototoms. And a custom built Yamaha Recording Custom set. And some congas and timbales. Maybe a rack of percussion. And some Vistalites with lights inside.

But that's it.

Sure… that’s it…. The mark gas is upon you!! Interesting post, and glad you are doing well in your nee pursuit.

 

[Killing Floor]

I don't play drums because I am an oaf. I have attempted. I am in complete envy of really good drummers.

That said, I need to keep my Bass card so Fire the Drummer.

And I totally get that drummers would have GAS. Cymbal choices are endless, snare choices are endless. And shells can be every bit as beautiful as any guitar.

 

[mb94952]

I currently work with two bands. In both, the drummers are very good musicians, have solid meter, read music, sing and know harmony. There are few things I find more enjoyable than playing with really good drummers.

My BIGGEST pet peeve are 90% of drummers who look at the guitar player for how the song goes instead of working with the bass player. I would almost go as far as saying the drummer is subservient to the bass player. Playing with a drummer who actually works with the bass player like Neil and Geddy do IS a treat and I've only played with three drummers that actually wanted just a bass and drums band practice. Guess what ? Those were all the best three drummers I've played with.

 

[juggahnaught]

---Participation isn't nearly as strong with drummers as bassists. Drummers do some psycho-analyzing of everything they do, but not to the extent of bassists by and large. But whereas you never run out of new topics on here, you can get through most drum forums in 5-10 minutes a day.

That's probably because they're busy practicing (which is what we should be doing) - or playing. I think that this is because it take a lot more to be a good drummer than to be a good bassist - timing, body coordination, and conditioning are key to playing drums. Not that we don't have to practice, but I feel like drummers can't get away with the stuff that we can.

---They actually like bass players and don't make up stupid names like "dummer" for us, though of course you get an occasional fish joke.

I've been partial to "basshole", myself.

---It's really weird to think percussively again instead of chordal. Sometimes I'll bring up a part of a song and a melody or chord change, and a lot of people don't have the faintest idea of what I'm talking about, so I have to find other ways of explaining it. On the other hand, up until 3 days ago, I had no idea what blast beats were, and there's a ton of other important terms bass players don't know as well, so don't get any superiority complexes over it

This is an interesting one, because I've found that a lot of instrumentalists (not just drummers) also have this issue. They can tell you what they play in a song, but they can't always tell you what the full song transition or structure is. (The exception to this might be piano players.) But it's true that drummers do seem to be a special case for this - you've either got to explain things in rhythmic terms or use lyrics as a reference point (if available). That said, I do find that talking to drummers in person can be easier, since you can just say something like "the part that goes "BAP badaDAbada BAP" and they'll get that instantly. I do in general love drummers.

---Drummer GAS is worse than I ever imagined, especially when it comes to snare drums and cymbals. When I get ready to upgrade these CB700 shells, I'm going for the first decent brand name 3 or 4 drum shell pack I see for $200-300 used and stopping. Except for the cowbell. And I might want to change out my ride and hi hats eventually. And get some Rototoms. And a custom built Yamaha Recording Custom set. And some congas and timbales. Maybe a rack of percussion. And some Vistalites with lights inside.

They've definitely got it worse than we do. We might have the heaviest gear (or, at least, historically we did) but they've definitely got the most of it. And with more gear comes more decisions - from hardware, kick pedals, and cymbals to shells, heads, and thrones. Throw in accessories and different kit setups and it gets pretty hairy (and expensive!) pretty fast. The other interesting thing is that they play an acoustic instrument, so quality actually does matter for the materials they buy as every component is responsible for directly producing the sound.

(Incidentally, I once saw Terry Bozzio in concert here in Seattle. It was an amazing show, but his kit - the SS Bozzio - is quite literally the size of a studio apartment in Seattle. I shudder to think about how much that cost and what the setup time is. His drum tech is a beast - if I had his job, I'd be in tears every day.)

I love drummers and when I was younger, I wanted to be one. I still GAS for a kit that I can use in my house - for a while I was considering the Roland VAD503, but I also think about the ATV ad5 kits for home use. One day, I'll get back into it like you have.

 

[NKBassman]

When I get ready to upgrade these CB700 shells, I'm going for the first decent brand name 3 or 4 drum shell pack I see for $200-300 used and stopping. Except for the cowbell. And I might want to change out my ride and hi hats eventually. And get some Rototoms. And a custom built Yamaha Recording Custom set. And some congas and timbales. Maybe a rack of percussion. And some Vistalites with lights inside.

But that's it.

What, no gong?!

 

[Riff Ranger]

Hey, now—some of us know about blast beats



I wanted to play drums at a very early age, but couldn’t get my parents on board (even though we had a garage, and space between us and neighbors). Somehow, bass wasn’t a problem as I approached my teenage years ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Wasnex]

I think you presented a rudimentary overview of drum forums.

 

[mobeme23]

Ironically, for the 35-some-odd years I've played drums, I never thought to join any forums. I just picked up tips and tricks along the way, and mostly from in-person experiences. It wasn't until I picked up the bass and felt the need to play "catch up" that I found any use with forums; this one in particular.

In general, drummers are a weird bunch and there's just not as much sharing of info as i've found among the bass/TB community. I'm not exactly sure why, but I have really appreciated the TB community for providing so much useful information to help me get up to speed quickly.

One big difference I've noticed is that drummers don't have a Fender-type brand or a "P/J is the only way" component to stir up so much healthy(?) debate. Closest brand might be Ludwig I think, but even then there are just so many legacy brads out there to prevent folks from having too many industry standards to discuss.

Drum gear GAS is real man....cymbals for sure, since they span such a wide spectrum of sounds and application. and the good one are not cheap!
The search for the perfect heads, especially for the snare...and the snare drums....all the snare drums...

Right before I jumped on the bass I had satisfied pretty much all my drum GAS....maybe that's what triggered my leap:
Gretsch USA custom kit - nitro black 20x18 kick, 12x8 rack, 14x14 floor, 16x16 floor
Gretsch USA COB hammered snare - 13x6.5
mostly Sabian cymbals, a couple artisan (hihat and crash) and a memphis ride
DW900 kick pedal
still have the CAMCO hardware from my first kit, that stuff will last a couple lifetimes..

This kit covers all my needs from smaller clubs to big stages.
I don't get to play them as much as I'd like, but I'm cool with that because this is my lifer kit and will always be there when i want to pull them out.

one last thing, i think learning the bass has helped my drumming more than anything else i've done in the past 15 years (maybe except for having to learn all of Jaimoe's parts for an ABB cover band i was in)