count out how the song goes. For instance if the chorus is done 3x then the verse 3x and then the chorus count them out.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
What to do when a band member can't make practice
- Thread starter billiam5billion
- Start date
Grab a metronome, and run it through a PA or something so you can hear it. You should be able to get/become/remain solid on your songs whether there is a drummer or not. I'm not saying drums don't matter, but you should aspire to have, if not have already developed a strong internal clock.
Another option: Invite a djembe player or percussionist over and play some stuff toned-down or acoustic-style. Turn a potential negative into a potential positive.
Spend solid time taking care of and discussing all the administrative and business-oriented aspects of the band that get glossed over a lot of the time when everybody gets together with instrument-in-hand to play. Make a solid plan for the future and set up concrete and achieveable ways to achieve it.
Covers or originals?
Covers: I would screw the rehearsal. The only reason to rehearse in a cover band is to get everybody to jive on the same page and mesh as a group, IMO.
Originals: Write.
Covers: I would screw the rehearsal. The only reason to rehearse in a cover band is to get everybody to jive on the same page and mesh as a group, IMO.
Originals: Write.
Usually most bands I've done would have an easy day and either write or do little impromptu jams to practice out improve and to learn each others' style better.
I would have used this time to work on vocal harmonies... drummers hate waiting around for this.
I totally dig when someone can't show.. it opens up all of the mistakes that get compensated for.
Timmy
I totally dig when someone can't show.. it opens up all of the mistakes that get compensated for.
Timmy
I don't always dig it when someone doesn't show, for any number of reasons. But... ...yes, when someone doesn't show, it does leave less places to hide in the music, and I think that's an important, good thing, that can come out of it. Good call.
Unrepresented
Something Borderline Offensive
This is what we ended up doing on Thursday when we got a post-last-minute cancellation by our drummer. It meant that we got a chance to really spend some time on background vox and harmonies that previously had been ignored. It's out of our comfort zone and needed to be addressed, and it's a lot easier to do when you don't have some monkey in the corner of the room smashing things as hard as he can.
Or you can do what we did last night after our drummer informed us that he couldn't make practice this week: the rest of us got together at our guitarist's place, where his girlfriend cooked us an awesome dinner while we partied and discussed business. We did a little bit of writing and I'm sure the conversation got pretty ridiculous as the night wore on, but it was a great time and it's always a good bonding experience to simply relax and socialize once in a while.
Seriously, though, there's some great advice and suggestions in this thread. I would do all of them, depending on whether you're doing covers or originals. It's rare that someone can't make practice in our band but when it happens, we use that time wisely (last night notwithstanding). We write, we discuss business issues that we don't have time for at full-band practice, and work out whatever problems areas need to be addressed in the material. We always record practices and if need be, we'll use programmed drum tracks. Works for us.
Seriously, though, there's some great advice and suggestions in this thread. I would do all of them, depending on whether you're doing covers or originals. It's rare that someone can't make practice in our band but when it happens, we use that time wisely (last night notwithstanding). We write, we discuss business issues that we don't have time for at full-band practice, and work out whatever problems areas need to be addressed in the material. We always record practices and if need be, we'll use programmed drum tracks. Works for us.
Flight of the Conchords don't play with a drummer when they play live, i'd say you don't need one either 
I'd say its a great time to learn your individual parts and the structure of your songs better. If you can't play the songs without the drum cues yet, you don't know the songs! Sometimes it takes removing a piece of the song to realize how much you rely on it when you're performing, and all the more important for you to learn how to play it without that piece. For example, if you're relying on a vocal cue in a song but during a live performance your stage monitor dies on you then you're left out to dry, but if you memorized the song structure you could just keep on rocking regardless of what equipment does or does not decide to work on performance days. Once you know the music well if the drummer misses practice you can always throw on a metronome. I'm in a 5-piece right now so very often at least one person is missing from practices, but that's taught us all how to play our parts with confidence regardless of what cues we do or don't get.
quite a few rehearsals have been just me and the singer - while not ideal it does make me think about the song structure and what i'm playing.
Our drummer has a job that takes him out of town frequently. At first rehearsing without him was weird, but now when we're learning new songs, we'll purposely get together without him. It's a lot easier to hear what the other players are doing, and for them to hear exactly what I'm doing. I think it makes us better. Or at least it helps learn new songs faster.
