Setting Tempos

[40Hz]

Don't know if this is a factor... but if there are timing issues it is probably worth banning drinks and tokes before and during rehersals. After the rehearsal is done the lamp is lit for fun time.

The only drummer I ever had the misfortune of dealing (very briefly) with who was having serious timing issues liked his little pleasures. But he wasn't handling them anywhere near as well as he was telling himself he was. When the band finally decided that all rehearsal and performance time was to be booze and substance free going forward he went totally ballistic.

He went on to say our band was the most important thing in his life. But nobody budged about "no boozing - no toking" for anybody during rehersals or gigs. So he then threatened to quit, until he realized nobody was going to try to stop him.

Things improved rapidly after that right up until the night he showed up for a gig (totally stoned off his ass) without any of his cymbals...or a hi-hat.

His replacement was a human atomic clock that made all of us sound two times better than we ever did before. And our increased bookings showed it wasn't just us thst thought so.

There's a lesson in there someplace I think.

 

[Milo Spleen]

I have a problem when I am singing and trying to play straight 8's. The 8's don't allow for a syncopated vocal line and I get off easily. It is hard to say I need more practice after 40 years, but obviously that would fix it.

 

[bherman]

In my last band we used Set List Maker (cheap iPhone/iPad app) to store all of our tunes and organize set lists. It allowed us to store tempos and use them during sets (visual or tone). When we learned a new tune, the drummer would use a metronome to determine the right tempo and store it with the song. Takes some commitment to set it all up but worked really well. We'd have key, tempo, vocal "cheat sheet" for the singer, and simple chord chart. Kept everyone on the same page.

 

[LowNloud1]

I am thinking I am going to have to set the tunes up on the tempo machine. It sits on the floor, unused, next to the drummer. I think someone suggested it earlier. We played one song at 140 bpms. The original is at 120. We ended 20 seconds before the original (2:19 vs 2:39), playing it identically. Totally lost the groove of the song. Count off 20 seconds .....