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Drummers SUCK!!

#41
...played everything entirely too complicated, sacrificed the beat for complexity ALL the time, never could keep a steady rhythm.

CANNOT play without double bass, sacrificed rhythm for "awesome" double bass and tom fills


We have one of these drummers in our band. I'm not the most experienced or talented guy (not even close), but I sure know when its getting overdone. I don't think ANY of our songs require double bass, but he sure tries to put it in nearly every song. (we're a cover band that play anything from the Doors to Tom Petty to AC/DC to 3 Doors Down) It seems the more comfortable he gets with the songs the more double bass goes into it. :rollno: Last practice he added ALOT of double bass into Blister in the Sun(Violent Fems). :scowl::rollno::scowl::spit:
 
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#43
Jools4001 said:
If you really know what cymbals should be used at all times in every song perhaps you should be the drummer
Click to expand...


Perhaps...BUT, just one problem. I dont _like_ playing drums. I like hearing a guy that plays drums well. And I understand dynamics, as a drummer should. Most songs you dont start out jamming on the ride for a verse and then lay back on the hi hat for the chorus...Thats simple **** to know. This is classic rock stuff mind you (Aerosmith, Stones) maybe the same dynamics dont work for other types of music, but its probably not much different.
 
#44
i've had 4 semi successful bands, meaning every loved us and went nuts while we played... ALLLLL, subconsiously dismantled by how poopy, dumb, flakey, inconsiderate and overall bitchy the drummers were. culto publico, look em up, matocha, 01010101, and the funky junky munkies, the last one was the easiest cuz we played punk and the key was we were all great musicians and hardly needed practice if there was a sound we wanted. but i swear for each of these bands the drummers changed the beat every time we played and would literally stop in the middle of the show because they dont know where they are or simply forgot. the best drummer i ever played with was from 010101 who was my gf at the time, which was the best and hardest because it was an experimental improv band with 2 guitarrist, a bass player, a percussionist and her on drums and i did saxophone and citar, so we pretty much depended on her everlasting stamina for soft and heavy, and trippy transitions. at the time she left strictly because the other members wanted to try another drummer, she got offended and left, told me to stay, she was lucky enough to witness how poopy and out of place we sounded with the new drummer, who was incidently from my other band matocha, but due to him being a little bitch and suckin on the tit of the lead singer of another alternative band he was in, shagin made us lose interest in both bands. i'm sorry, but theres something in the cosmos that says most drummers are ******** and lack musical aesthetic.
 
#45
So much fun playing with a good drummer. Frustrating playing with one who can't seem to find a groove to save their life, or keep the correct tempo for a whole song. I was jamming with some guys the other day and the drummer shows up. Great guy, but it would take me half of each song trying to get in groove with him and even then it just made everything feel awkward. Bless his heart though, he was trying really hard.
 
#46
Last July I thought I'd found the perfect band. A drummer I'd played with in several bands decided he wanted to try being a frontman but still play drums occasionally. We met a guitarist and singing drummer on Craigslist who were longtime friends and roommates. Drummer 2 kept excellent time and was able to play more complex things than Drummer 1. Drummer 1 played simple songs while Drummer 2 sang, and vice-versa with songs that had more difficult drum parts. All was going well until February when Drummer 1 decided that being a lead singer was more work than he had anticipated, plus he wanted to concentrate on the band he was in with his wife.

The rest of us went on as a three-piece for four months with Drummer 2 and me splitting lead vocal duties. Again, I thought things were fine until June when the drummer sent the guitarist and me a message indicating she was tired of music and planned to sell her drums. The guitarist and I were baffled to say the least, especially since she refused to answer my question about what she intended to do about the 3 shows we had booked for July (she had set up 2 of them).

I later learned from the guitarist that the drummer had numerous personal issues. He said she had worked overtime at making him miserable to the point where he moved out of her house 3 weeks before she quit the band. Not too long after she bailed, she broke up with her girlfriend and pretty much cut herself off from her remaining friends. In the guitarist's opinion, she's heading off into the deep end. After everything he told me, she sounds like a serious flake and it would have only been a matter of time before her drama worked its way into the band. I just think it's a shame because she was quite talented.

The guitarist and I are soldiering on. We played a party as an acoustic duo last month and plan to do that until we find a new drummer and a second guitarist/singer. So it's back to dealing with flakes on Craigslist who send me vague messages like "Text me. I might be interested."
 
#47
If I was going to beyoch about anything it it would be drummers and weirdo guitar players. I was discussing the same thing at a gig with my good friend and guitar player-every song sped up, slow songs fast, fast songs were waaay to fast or drug like crazy, fills in wrong places and dynamics. If they had to sing every they would see the problem, or if they cared they would fix it.
I just don't get it. I also work with a picky band leader at church (my way or the highway dude) who insists his tempo is the best on the planet, but not only fluctuates on time, never plays the same thing twice.
I would be the first to admit I suck on bass, but if this is the new normal, I must be crazy.
 
#50
I retired from my day job almost six years ago, these days music is all I do. I play drums in two bands, and switch between hand percussion and bass in two different acoustic acts. I put a lot of effort into what I do to advance my playing, even after playing paying gigs for forty years.

As someone who plays multiple instruments, I appreciate what other musicians are looking for in a drummer, rock solid time, tasteful fills where appropriate and knowing how to drive the band. Flashy playing doesn't pay the bills.

There are good drummers out there, real drummers can and will take a band to another level.

This was my "office" last night.

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#51
You have to change your attitude when you find yourself playing with a bad drummer. Think of it as an adventure like river rafting. Things will slow down, speed up, you'll hit rapids where you might capsize, and there's no thrill like watching your bandmates' expressions as the whole band starts the long tumble down a waterfall as the drummer tries a bombastic fill that derails any and all chance of recovering the song.
 
#52
The drummer I play with most of the time is really infuriating. He has flashes of brilliance and is a great feel player for rock/blues stuff, but his tempos aren't very consistent and he favors a bit of flash over supporting/driving the song. he also has a tendency to end a song way early.
If he says "you have to tell me where the stops are" one more time I might lose it.
The good thing is that he has been putting some effort into improving lately. we got him a metronome and headphones for his b-day recently and he has been using it and trying to improve his tempos.
When he is firing on all cylinders, it is awesome, but I'd trade a little of that for more consistency.
 
#58
Our first drummer was a loose cannon; dragged tempo, terrible dynamics (too loud, too louder, and holy &%#!), blew simple pickup fills and would hang up and freak out on the weirdest things (we can't start in the middle like that/it's not just like the recording/I can't hear I can't hear I can't hear). He said, "I'm a perfectionist !" (if you were really a perfectionist, you might become a decent drummer). He done got fired.

Our current drummer LISTENS (matches me in building a crescendo and dialing it back), has timing like a Rolex, insists on playing interesting things, and is the first one to get the song perfect. Lots of stuff he learns the first pass through. He has a career, great gear, and is mildly OCD so he IS a bit of a perfectionist. He also has a rehearsal space, and a super-level disposition.

Good drummers are out there. You have to catch them when they're in transition between bands.
 

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