Playing without a drummer

[slobake]

Been playing together in our small church with our current line-up for about 10 months. I am at the point where I am locked in with our drummer. Now he is gone for a month. Do I change the way I play bass to try and carry more of the rhythm? We play a lot of Jesus culture, Misty Edwards, Hillsong etc. We have two singers one plays acoustic guitar, an electric guitarist and occasional keyboardist. The rest of the band wants to play without a drummer for the next month. Anyone ever been in this situation?

 

[sikamikanico]

Yes, you will probably have to compensate... I didn't play that kind of music, but we once had to play a few songs without the drummer and it sounded bad (I wasn't ready for that)...

It wouldn't hurt to have a metronome in your ear, but that depends on your ability to play in time...

 

[billgwx]

Have been in that situation too. Some songs you may be able to play as usual, others you may have to carry more of the rhythm, all the while maintaining good interplay with vocalists and instrumentalists. Ideally you'll be able to work this out in advance, but you may still have to adjust on the fly anyway. I find I have to fight the temptation to fill all the space left by the absence of the drummer--that can quickly lead to overplaying and stepping on toes if I'm not careful. Hope that helps!

 

[BogeyBass]

Does this not fall along the lines of where the slap technique came from?

I wanna say it was a player for a church band and they lost the drummer. So to compensate for no drums. He played the beat with the bass using his thumb for the kick. and a snap for the snare?

something like that.....

 

[slobake]

Thanks for the comments, I love the feedback I get here on TB. I can't imagine how many years of experience is represented here. Yes, one of the things I have been concerned about is overplaying by trying to fill in the space. I like the metronome idea, need to work out the logistics of how I can make that happen.

 

[dougjwray]

(This is obvious, but...)
I think the key thing to remember is that YOU will now be the one who the other musicians will listen to, for the pulse. This means listening hard and coming to the rescue with clear, simple musical "anchors" when it sounds like things are faltering. Also, if everyone has been used to getting signals from the drummer (like a fill announcing the arrival of the chorus), you might need to do that, too.
These things come first, before any stylistic modifications, IMO. Filling space is much less important that holding things together and being intelligible to the other musicians.
Good luck-- it's actually a great learning experience and will really help you as a player.

 

[slobake]

Thanks Doug, good advice. I am little scared but at the same time looking forward to it. Like you said it will grow me as a bass player.

 

[jumbodbassman]

do it.. good practice to see if you can stay in time.... and be more rhytmic in your approach. I do a few no drum gigs a year and usually enjoy them a lot.

 

[slobake]

That is one big slot machine, I hope it paid out one big pile of cash.

 

[stingray2112]

I'm sure you will do fine. Just approach this as a learning expirience and try to focus more on the rythym of the song than the melody.

 

[slobake]

Yes, you will probably have to compensate... I didn't play that kind of music, but we once had to play a few songs without the drummer and it sounded bad (I wasn't ready for that)...

It wouldn't hurt to have a metronome in your ear, but that depends on your ability to play in time...

Headed out tonight to pick up a Boss DB 30, looks good online, I'll have to check it out in the store.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

Sorry but I find it very funny how once you remove a drummer the bass player doesn't know what to do.

It is your chance to be very solid and explore outside of the "lock with the drummer" mentality.

 

[lucas vigor]

I do the opposite. My main gig is part of a drummerless trio. Keep in mind, I always play upright...but there have been a few times when I had to use the electric for logistical purposes...anyway, my approach is that of a drummer, specifically, I make my bass notes take the place of the bass drum. Bass drum and a little snare. It's certainly not appropriate for all types of music, but I have found I can even do it just when jamming rock. I will usually play way more percussively then normal, and EQ a lot of bass and sparse on the mids.....the higher notes, I choke 'em with a short decay, to mimic a snare. Keep in mind I don't try and play slap style on the electric in the traditional sense, but the feel is similar.

 

[rp747]

I didn't have a drummer for years and when I compare that with playing with a drummer, it's definitely a bit more challenging to play solo. Billgwx is totally right. I love locking in with the other instruments available, especially if it's a different feel than what I'm used to. Challenges are the spice of life.

 

[groooooove]

all musicians need to learn to keep their own time.

i recall hearing ray brown say, drummers have their own problems, the last thing they need is you hanging onto them to keep time.

its one of the biggest issues i see in non-professional yet still quite good musicians- they're sense of time can always be better. hell, a lot of professionals too.

change nothing. play in time always. everyone your playing with needs to learn to do the same.

 

[Russell L]

all musicians need to learn to keep their own time.

i recall hearing ray brown say, drummers have their own problems, the last thing they need is you hanging onto them to keep time.

its one of the biggest issues i see in non-professional yet still quite good musicians- they're sense of time can always be better. hell, a lot of professionals too.

change nothing. play in time always. everyone your playing with needs to learn to do the same.

+1. You must now listen carefully, too, in case someone isn't on time like they ought to be. Don't assume that they will all just listen to you for guidance. (I'd say skip the metronome and just listen). They might, but they might not. I've had it go both ways. Something you can do to help everyone, and yourself, is to pay attention to the length of your notes. For instance, on songs where the snare would've been hitting the off-beat on 2 and 4, cut your notes off precisely on those beats. You can even include a little bit of muted slap right on 2 and 4 to accentuate it, if the song will allow. Even on slow tunes cutting off the note in time will add a feeling of where the beat is. If you do it effectively it will help others to take more notice of what you are doing, and so maybe they will get the hang of listening to you for guidance. Of course, you can always discuss the issue and TELL them to listen to you. Also, listen carefully to the rhythm guitar. If the two of you can get it together, everyone else will follow, most likely.

It ain't hard, have fun, pal.

 

[iovar]

I've been in that situation a couple of times. The result wasn't great, mainly due to the repertoire being too much on the rock side and not having been sufficiently modified to fit the context.

Still it worked well enough to get us some paying gigs.

My advise is:
1) Don't try to overcompensate. No drums on the rhythm section doesn't mean you have to play their part, too. It actually means that you have less freedom to deviate from the main rhythm of the song.
So try to understand what the bare rhythmic foundation of the song is, and stick to that.

2) (almost) No slapping... IMHO, but it doesn't sound that good without drums. And really, we all know the story about how it started, but was it ever really
used that way?
So, avoid slapping unless it's for short embellishments and the like.

3)Double stops. They don't take anything from the rhythm and they can be very useful in providing a fuller sound, as a band.

4) No metronome!!! The little ticker is fine in practice but in a live situation it
will be a disaster. As mentioned already, time is every musicians job.

5) You are not the only one who has to compensate for the lack of a drummer.
Guitarists , too, have to play having in mind that the whole context is much less energetic and that their highly overdriven, tapped solo might not sound great without a driving percussive rhythm backing it.

 

[seanm]

2) (almost) No slapping... IMHO, but it doesn't sound that good without drums. And really, we all know the story about how it started, but was it ever really
used that way?
So, avoid slapping unless it's for short embellishments and the like.

I find this interesting since slapping was originally developed to cover up the absence of drums

 

[slobake]

I find this interesting since slapping was originally developed to cover up the absence of drums

That's funny I always thougt slapping was invented by the Three Stooges.