Studio Drumming Basics

Jeremy during the first Masceo Recording.

I just finished a recording session with a great friend and bass player at his amazing Pro Tools based home studio.  Now it has been a while since I was “under the mic”, but within minutes and a test playback I was reminded of a few fundamentals of studio drumming. 

Studio drumming isn’t like live drumming.  You aren’t there to show off to a crowd and you don’t have that crowd to feed off of for energy.  In the live situation you can make a tiny mistake and move on, in the studio all your neurons need to be firing, any small mistake can turn into a big mistake later.  In the studio you have the click, the pressures of time, but most importantly you have to think about how the end result will sound.

Have you ever recorded yourself playing, especially with a live band, and listened back to the tapes?  I bet you were surprised the first time you did.  I know when I first put my work on tape I wasn’t happy with the end result.  I quickly noticed that my overplaying made the song sound cluttered and messy. 

Now back to my recent studio session. 

We recorded me playing for a bit while we got drum sounds so I jammed away playing a lot of grace notes on the snare and silly fills around the kit.  On the playback I was reminded how these constant grace notes and complex fills could “stop-up the drain” and clog the song.  So when the red light hit I made the conscious effort to stick to solid snare hits and the occasional grace note to “spice” the track.  The playback sounded better and the engineer had room to add more of his own garnishing to the song.  

When it came to fills I was reminded how important tuned toms can be.  Fills on a recording need to blend with the rest of the groups "band hits", you can't be hitting an 8" tom when the band is playing a real low note. You have to move with those notes and articulate your hits with confidence and precision.  It is not about standing out, but rather properly accenting the song.  Josh Freese is a master at this. Check out his playing through his website at http://www.joshfreese.com.

If you ever want to hear how important recording your playing can be listen to any Steve Gadd recording, live or studio based.  Check out his website at http://www.drstevegadd.com/ to learn more if you don't already know the name. Gadd is considered the master of the groove and perfect timing.  He has basically lived his entire career in the studio and in those experiences he has definitely heard his playing under the unrelenting ears of the microphone.  In the end he has developed a way to make the song happen while getting out of the way so the collaboration of the group could create some of the world’s greatest hits.  “Fifty ways to leave your lover” anyone?

Sometimes it’s hard to keep it simple. Trust me I know.  Creating space while you are playing separates the pros from the amateurs.  Beethoven once said: “It isn’t the notes I play that make me great, but rather the spaces in between.”  On the other end of the spectrum take modern country music.  Engineers, artists and producers in Nashville create amazing recordings because they create spaces that are filled in by other elements, much like a perfect moving gear…just enough guitar, just enough steel, and underneath just enough drums and bass to build upon.  As a drummer in the studio you must create a solid feel and open up that space so others in the recording can fit in.  It is all about unity and harmony if you want a top-notch recording. 

On the day of the recording do everything you can to stay relaxed.  Studio drumming is all about staying in the pocket and being glued to the click. You will need to be relaxed and focused to achieve that goal. Try to get a good nights sleep the evening before, get up a bit early, eat a good breakfast and warm up those hands before you hit the studio.  Get to the recording session early so you can properly set-up and tune your drums.  I like to show up before the rest of the band so I have time to myself to focus on getting my kit perfectly positioned and properly tuned. 

When it comes to gear I always bring my kit even if the studio supplies one because you never know what you may or may not need.  I always bring a selection of snares and cymbals too.  It is amazing how different your cymbals and especially your snare sounds under the microphone.  Bring extra new heads just in case and duct tape or Moon Gel to get rid of unwanted ring.  You will need it in the studio as an engineer can always add resonance to your drums, but taking it away is a real bitch.

Well there you go a quick heads-up on studio drumming.  I am sure I will write about this again so stay tuned and keep on drumming!

Give em' Some Space!

I just got off of a five and a half month cruise contract playing jazz with a wonderful quartet.  It was a great time, but it feels even better to avoid shaving and donning three-piece suits for a while.  In my time home I have visited many open mic jam sessions, and in doing so I have come to realize that sometimes we all make music much more complicated than it needs to be.  So this week I want to touch on how we can be better on-the-spot players.

The first thing we all need to realize is that popular music is relatively simple.  Record companies and producers make it that way because the average listener responds better to structured music.  Now I know there is a lot of great complicated music out there by artists such as Yes, Rush, and Herbie Hancock.  But today let us focus on popular music, be it country, blues, rock and roll, or even jazz.

Songs Sections:

If you ever learned to read music you will quickly find out that most songs are broken down into sections that can be subdivided by four.  Your verse may be eight your chorus eight or sixteen, and the bridge will usually be a combination of the two. Understanding this simple math will make you a much better on-the-spot player right out of the gate.  You will be able to anticipate what will happen next in the song and able to change your feel at that right moment when the songs shifts from verse to chorus to bridge etc.

The bridge: 

This is probably the most elusive section for “green” musicians.  We all know that someone is soloing, but we often do not know where to go while they are playing away.  One of my teachers explained it best.  “As rhythm players you provide a couch for the soloist to sit on.”  What that means is that we must continue through the form while they solo.  This is best heard in jazz recordings where the rhythm section simply plays the changes of the verse and chorus section, they call it the A&B sections, underneath the solo.  This allows the listener to hear the original tune with the soloing melody on top.

Communicate:

Dave Matthews Band is known for being great communicators on the stage.  They aren’t afraid to make eye contact as they jam away.  The same should be true in your pick-up situations.  You’d be surprised at how tight a song can be if you are looking at each other or at the very least make visual cues for breaks and endings.

Know the Tunes:

The great bassist Ron Carter once held a clinic for a roomful of eager bassists and other musicians waiting to be passed down his secrets to success.  He got up on stage and pointed to an audience member and asked them to name a tune.  He then played the tune on the spot.  He repeated this process for close to an hour stood up and stated his parting words. “If you want to work that is what you need to do.”  Know the songs in your genre, and if you want to play for a living at least learn the most popular ones in each genre.  You’d be amazed at how much work you get and hold with such studies.

Well that is all for today.  I am off to my practice pad and Pj’s as I await my next cruise ship departure.  Talk to you soon!