Do you Find it Difficult playing without a drummer?

[m0ranwad]

Tonight is officially my first gig with a cover band. (Bar setting)

Low and behold, the drummer has a stomach bug. We have no fill-in, and we're going to shift to a more mellow set.

I'm not the most experienced Bassist, and so far I've leaned on the drummer a bit for my timing.

Any advice? I've been given an "out of jail free card", if I'd like to bow out gracefully. It's definitely out of my comfort zone, holding down the rhythm alone.

 

[lustersilk]

I've done it many times, both on purpose and in your situation. My advice is to keep your playing simple, keep your eyes on your band mates for changes and stay confident. You can do this!

 

[iovar]

I've played drumerless a few times.
My advice:
Dial in a fatter tone than usual , keep it simple and count at all times.
Patting the strings on upbeats and where a snare would be can help, but don't overdo it.
Don't slap.

 

[Joe Louvar]

I've done it many times, both on purpose and in your situation. My advice is to keep your playing simple, keep your eyes on your band mates for changes and stay confident. You can do this!

+1. You can do it - and it will be a good experience for you.

Tip: "Smile", keep it simple and "have fun".

 

[999Brent]

Best advice I can give is try and hear the drum beat in your head 20-30 seconds before starting each song, this really helps with a good feel if there is no drummer. Normally I would say a shorter time but since this is a first, you really want the beat in your head before you start.
Will mean there are gaps between every song, but it will sound better.
You and your band mates should be able to get the beat together, lots of looking at each other, try and get everyone to feel the beat so it is obvious where it is.

Give it a go!!!
This is a great learning experience, if there are a couple of songs you are really worried about, just leave those, or if things are going well try them later in the night once confidence is up.

If things to not go so great, do not be it off, you will be better for it, and now you know if the drummer cannot make practice, practice as a band anyway...

 

[grinx]

be the timekeeper

i've actually had a number of bands whose drummer was so bad that they had to follow me instead of me following them

you have total creative license. you will be fine. simplify your parts and serve the song

 

[pklima]

Do it. If it's a mellower set with a lot of ballady stuff you can keep it very simple and let the guitars/keys carry a lot of the rhythm on a lot of the songs. At most, just ask them to skip the songs that scare you the most.

 

[m0ranwad]

Appreciate all the advice. I'm going to give it a shot.

Common theme I'm seeing, simplify my parts... is it bad to be busy? I'm not one to sit on a root note, but is it more necessary in a drummerless show?

 

[tbplayer59]

Best advice (and it's been given multiple times) - Keep it simple. Since you don't have the drummer providing a beat, you don't really have license to add too much flair.

 

[lustersilk]

You don't need to sit on the root note, but you do need to provide a structure the others can rely on. One thing I left our of my original response, really listen and watch the singer, that will help with changes a lot.

 

[Michael Henson]

IMO, the point behind "keeping it simple" is to be able to focus more on keeping type and playing rhythmically. When I don't have a drummer I'll dial the busyness back and play a little more "percussively" than normal...Not slapping but putting more focus on the beat and feel than on my melodic prowess.

 

[bluebird28]

Do you have an acoustic stomp box to provide the bass drum beat?

 

[pklima]

There are two reasons to keep it simple. One, it's a good idea to keep it simple when you're not feeling confident. Two, when there's no kick or snare it's a good idea to play big notes, and it's hard to make notes big when you're playing a whole lot of them.

 

[Biggbass]

lots of good advice here. you'll settle in quick.
I play a weekly gig without a drummer and it's a pleasure each time.

 

[halfjackson]

You can this, man. When I play simply in these situations I really try to anchor the beat, and play very deliberately and clearly. I make things as easy as possible for the rest of the band (we bass players do this anyway!). The guitarist might add rhythmic scratches to help out and you can add percussive hits too, but I agree with the above poster; don't over due it.

Just relax, listen, and have fun... You'll be dialed in no time

 

[drummer5359]

It would be physically impossible for me to play without a drummer.

 

[Phalex]

I've been forced to play a set without a drummer a couple of times. Rock tunes done with bass and acoustic guitar are pretty cool IMO.

The best part was when the drummer got there in the middle of a song, sat down, clicked off and we went full on!

He'd kinda push being on time, and if we were downtown parking could take a half hour we didn't have. PITA at the time, but kinda funny in retrospect.

 

[prd004]

Appreciate all the advice. I'm going to give it a shot.

Common theme I'm seeing, simplify my parts... is it bad to be busy? I'm not one to sit on a root note, but is it more necessary in a drummerless show?

I've played many gigs drummer less.
I approach it completely different, I play more freely with more melody, you could say more like a bass "guitar"
It's fun, do the show and have a blast

 

[SemiDriven]

Yep...keep it simple.

What's the worst that could happen?

No matter what...have FUN!

Keep us posted!

 

[chuckNC]

Just saw this thread now, so I assume you're gigging even as I'm typing. I'll guess that your playing got simpler and the guitar player (especially rythym guitar player if you have more than one) had to work harder. And everybody in the band had to pay more attention than usual to staying locked in. I'll also be glad to hear that it was a success.