Tag: drums

A drummer’s perspective

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Trent Davis2 Comments

 Over the weekend I auditioned for a band.  It was a situation where I was brought in to replace an existing drummer so the songs were already structured and written out.

 I knew pretty quickly into the audition that it wasn’t going to work out.  Stylistically, I wasn’t a good fit.  But there was something else that I think was a bigger issue.

 Call me naive, but I assume that if someone wants me to join their musical project, they don’t just want someone to hold onto the sticks so they don’t fall to the ground.  They want to see what I personally bring to the table.  If you are asking me to audition you are in fact asking ME to audition.  You heard some samples of my work and liked what you heard.  You like the sensibilities and unique voicing I bring to my instrument.

 I was led to believe that the audition I went to was going to be like this.  I thought that it would be, in fact, like the majority of the auditions that I have participated in.  This was not to be the case.

 I’m going to make this easier for those of you that are auditioning someone to play in your musical project.  Here are some things to keep in mind.

  1. Everyone comes from a distinct and personal background.  What we’ve played and experienced in the past influences what we play in the future.  
  2. Our gear is as much a part of our voice as anything else.
  3. A player’s experience and tools combine to create the unique voice; THIS is what you are auditioning.

 The audition I went to was not ideal.  I met with the main songwriter and played on his kit.  Now, I’m a big cymbal player.  Not only do I love my cymbals but most of them I’ve modified myself to give me my own personal sound.  The kit I was playing on had some pretty bad sounding budget cymbals.  I’m talking Agazarian and some brass deal (I can’t remember if it was a Paiste or a Pearl).  The cymbals were an offense to the ears, which the guy I was auditioning for was quick to point out.  I had the foresight to bring some of my smaller cymbals with me which I was able to easily attach to his cymbal stands.  One of the first things he said was that he “knows what sounds good, and that my cymbals don’t sound good”.  Strike 1.

 We struggled with the first song.  He started by telling me where the fill in should go and exactly how it should sound.  Note-for-note.  A guitarist telling a drummer EXACTLY how to play each fill.  Strike 2.

 We started the second song.  It sounded nearly identical to the first.  Strike 3.

 I guess I’m just airing my frustration.  I assume that if you have heard samples of my work and want me to come in for an audition, you are interested in what I will bring to the music.

 In the end, I told him it wasn’t working and that I am not the drummer for him.  In an effort to make things easier for him to find a permanent drummer, I explained the problems I was having.  Why hold anything back?  It’s just going to make things more difficult in the end.

 

 What do you think?  Was I wrong?  What are some of your disappointing experiences with auditions?  Please share in the comments section below.

12" Wuhan "Lion" cymbals cut down to 8 1/4" hand cymbals.

Cutting down a pair of Wuhans

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Trent Davis2 Comments

I was asked by a friend of mine to cut down her pair of 12″ Wuhan China (or “Lion” cymbals, as they call them) into a smaller set to use as hand cymbals.

Fig. 1 - One of the unaltered Wuhan "Lion" cymbals.
Fig. 1 – One of the unaltered Wuhan “Lion” cymbals.

 

There was one slight problem.  Years ago when I first got into repairing cymbals I took my own version of the Hippocratic oath where I swore to “do no harm” to a set of undamaged cymbals.  I was a little conflicted but I figured that since these cymbals aren’t for me and that the owner really wanted this to be done, I was okay to do this procedure.  Plus, she had been using these as a set of hand cymbals already and they sounded truly awful.  Therefore, I was only making improvements.  Much like adding rivets to a cymbal.

I started by putting both cymbals on my cutting jig and finding the best diameter to use.  I wanted to retain as much of the cymbal as I could but eliminate the flare.  Once a diameter was decided upon I started cutting.

Fig. 2 - The first cymbal on the cutting jig.
Fig. 2 – The first cymbal on the cutting jig.
Fig. 3 - Getting close to finishing the cut on the first cymbal.
Fig. 3 – Getting close to finishing the cut on the first cymbal.

 

The cutting went pretty smoothly although the imperfect nature of Wuhan cymbals tends to affect how balanced the cut-down cymbal is.  For example, the mounting hole was off-center on each cymbal which really caused a lot of warping and vibration.  You can see this in some of the pictures.

Fig. 4 - Just finished cutting down the second cymbal.
Fig. 4 – Just finished cutting down the second cymbal.

 

After they were cut down I mounted them on my buffing wheel and de-burred the edges.  My friend also wanted me to polish them and remove the logos.  This was more trouble than it usually is since these cymbals are so out of balance.  I used both a coarse and fine grained sanding sponge then finished up with 0000 steel wool.  I finished that up with a thin coat of polyurethane to protect them and they are ready to go.

Fig. 5 - Taking the coarse sanding block to the underside of the first cymbal.
Fig. 5 – Taking the coarse sanding block to the underside of the first cymbal.
Fig. 6 - Finishing up the underside of the first cymbal with some 0000 steel wool.
Fig. 6 – Finishing up the underside of the first cymbal with some 0000 steel wool.
Fig. 7 - The top of the first cymbal ready to be polished.
Fig. 7 – The top of the first cymbal ready to be polished.
Fig. 8 - Taking a coarse sanding block to the top of the first cymbal.
Fig. 8 – Taking a coarse sanding block to the top of the first cymbal.
Fig. 9 - Following up with a fine-grit sanding sponge.
Fig. 9 – Following up with a fine-grit sanding sponge.
Fig. 10 - All done after finishing up with some 0000 steel wool.
Fig. 10 – All done after finishing up with some 0000 steel wool.
Fig. 11 - Time to start cleaning up the second cymbal.
Fig. 11 – Time to start cleaning up the second cymbal.
Fig. 12 - Cleaning up the top of the second cymbal with a coarse-grit sanding sponge.
Fig. 12 – Cleaning up the top of the second cymbal with a coarse-grit sanding sponge.
Fig. 13 - the underside of the second cymbal. Before...
Fig. 13 – the underside of the second cymbal. Before…
Fig. 14 - ... and after.
Fig. 14 – … and after.
Fig. 15 - This is a shot of both cymbals. The one on the left is halfway through cleaning up the top. This was problematic due to the imbalance in that cymbal which is caused by the mounting hole being so far off-center.
Fig. 15 – This is a shot of both cymbals. The one on the left is halfway through cleaning up the top. This was problematic due to the imbalance in that cymbal which is caused by the mounting hole being so far off-center.
Fig. 16 - A close-up of the two cymbals. The one on the left has been polished up a bit. The one on the right only has the edge de-burred which actually polishes up the area around the edge a bit.
Fig. 16 – A close-up of the two cymbals. The one on the left has been polished up a bit. The one on the right only has the edge de-burred which actually polishes up the area around the edge a bit.

 

The finished product ended up being 8 1/4″ in diameter.  They look cool and they sound a lot better.

Fig. 17 - Top-down view of the finished product.
Fig. 17 – Top-down view of the finished product.
Fig. 18 - The finished product.
Fig. 18 – The finished product.

 

Let me know in the comment section below if this was helpful and if you have any questions.  Also, if you cut down your own cymbals, feel free to share your techniques.

 

 

What I learned from Terry Bozzio

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Trent Davis

Last night I attended a concert by Terry Bozzio, the former drummer for Frank Zappa. It would normally take a lot for me to go to a 2-hour concert featuring only a drummer, but Terry is different.  His tunes are creative and detailed and he has excellent showmanship.  I really admire his playing but the main reason I went was because I have a passion for percussion gear so I couldn’t pass this up.

The show wasn’t a disappointment at all.  That’s not what I want to discuss, though…

img_8368The audience was mostly made up of drummers.  I know this not because they were advertising the fact but rather because of how they responded during the show.  I looked around and I saw people not just enjoying the show but being sucked into it.  They weren’t just tapping their feet; they were emulating the difficult polyrhythms that we were hearing.  When Terry would cycle between his multitude of pedals, I would see necks craning in an attempt to see what he switched to.

 

At one point during the show, Terry dropped a stick.  We heard a muttered “bastard!” as he quickly grabbed another stick and kept on playing.  The audience’s response was to applaud, as if to say “Good save, sir”.  He made a mistake and he recovered nicely.  As a drummer friend of mine commented, “He’s human, after all”.

We were there to admire a respected drummer’s technique, his showmanship, and his gear.  We were there to learn.  To be inspired.  And we were.

I’ve been involved with different communities, including guitarists, bassists, woodworkers, artists, programmers, and actors.  From my experience, what sets the drumming community apart is the support and the lack of competition.  There will always be exceptions but in general I find that drummers admire each other.  We acknowledge that each drummer is different and skilled in certain areas.  We study their techniques.  A drum set is like a fingerprint; unique to each player.  As such, we’re curious about each others gear and setup.

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Every drummer I meet can do something that I can’t.  Therefore, every drummer is a teacher.  And in turn, every drummer is a student.

 

What do you think?  Feel free to share your comments below.

Every Time I Fall – Performance video

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Trent Davis

I recorded the drum tracks for Every Time I Fall, a song I’m working on with Jongwon Kim.

 

I have a somewhat peculiar way of recording.

I actually record the drum tracks a total of eight times, one after the other without any breaks in between.  Typically, the first two tracks are throw-aways.  I use them as a chance to warm up while also re-familiarizing myself with the structure of the song and the ideas that I wanted to incorporate into it.  The reason I like these takes to be recorded rather than just playing it a few times on my own is because I might spontaneously (or accidentally) play something that is just perfect for the song that I may not remember afterwards so it’s nice to have it documented.

I don’t actually expect to have a “keeper” take until the fifth or sixth time through the song.  Once I get these, I use them as my safety net.  Now I have two more takes where I can get crazy and try things that may not work but would be fun to at least attempt and listen to later.  These two takes are usually filled with screw-ups but every now and then I hear something that I really like and I will actually incorporate it into the song, either with editing or doing a few more takes.

On this particular song, I had gotten a keeper take by the fifth run-through.  The sixth and seventh were nice but didn’t really speak to me.  Then on the eighth take I just didn’t worry about anything and focused on just playing comfortably.  I wasn’t going for flashy.  It was just one of those moments where you realize you know the song well enough to play it without even thinking about it.  Actually, while I was doing this take, I believe I was thinking about a few metalworking projects I have planned.  In my subconscious I was just enjoying the song.  It was like background music that I was controlling.  This ended up being the take that I’m going to use for the final recording.

Anyway, here are a few videos.  I recorded the tracks in Ableton and didn’t do any real mixing or mastering other than the basic levels that I have set up for my drum recording template.  The first version includes the temporary guitar backing tracks.  The second version is only the drums.

 

Every Time I Fall (With backing tracks)

Every Time I Fall (Without backing tracks)

https://youtu.be/XfvmdlpETMM

Video Performance – Test

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Trent Davis

This is just a test of the over-the-head GoPro setup.  The audio was recorded in Ableton and edited into the video.

This was when we were auditioning a new keyboard player so it’s a pretty low-key performance.  I was also just getting over the flu so I didn’t have a lot of energy.  To top it all off, I was also breaking in a new pair of Doc Martens, which I normally really love to wear when I’m playing but which are rather unforgiving when they’re fairly new.

Only The Strong – 2016-10-06

Songwriting – 2016-09-15

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Trent DavisOne Comment

Recorded a few takes last night as we were writing our parts for a few songs.    In this I’m testing out some cymbals that I modified.  They’re cut down Wuhan Lion cymbals, which is Wuhan’s version of the China cymbals we’re more familiar with.  Personally I hate the sound of their Lion cymbals, but once you cut the flange off, they have a pretty nice trashy sound.

Here are some photos of the setup I used during the rehearsal.  The Lions are the weird looking ones.

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Rehearsal – 2016-09-15 – Overhead

 

 

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Rehearsal – 2016-09-15 – Front

 

Warning: it’s rough and my timing sucks because…well…I’m a white guy.

No Name #6 – Rough recording

 

Forgiveness – Rough recording

Tom’s Fury – Album

Trent Davis

I played in a band called Tom’s Fury back in 2004 – 2005 that had a slightly heavy Americana feel to it.  We recorded an album that to this day has yet to be finalized.

 

This is the latest version from 2015.
Bury My Heart – 4:20


By Wire – 2:39


Union Pacific – 6:05


Never Enough – 4:25


Not What You Think – 5:58


Comedown – 5:54


Ghost – 4:40


Lucas Falls – 3:49


Burn – 4:43


Paranoia – 5:25


Last Chance Darling – 4:44


Resolve – 7:19


By Wire (Reprise) – 4:16

 

Here are some photos of my setup while we were recording these tracks.

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