How Do You Tell A Drummer "You Suck"

  • Thread starter Thread starter Dani Pace
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Dani Pace

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Surely I'm not the only one who has tried to record a drummer who just can't stay on time. This guy is a long time friend so I don't want to hurt his feelings, but I can't stand working with him in the studio. He is a "performance drummer" and does fairly well on stage where slight variations in rythm can be tolerated. He refuses to work with a click track or with any drum loops or even a metronome. I really don't want to loose him as a friend, he is fun to be around and fun to jam with but he really isn't good enough to be a session musician. Anyone got any suggestions for how to let him down easy?
 
Just tell him what the qualifications for the job are, if he doesn't fit them, you need to find someone else. He either needs to step up or step out. You wouldn't ask your friend in a wheel chair to help you move furniture, you shouldn't ask a drummer that can't play to a click to play on your project. It is embarrassing to him.
 
All you need to do is let him hear himself recorded in a mix where he is blatently out of time with other instruments. Then say to him, this took you X number of takes, this is your best one. Do YOU beleive that to be in time? Get ALL your mates round to listen at the same time and ask them one by one infront of him if the drums are out of time or not.
Then let ALL your mates laugh and mock his playing skills, but (important) dont you laugh or mock his playing skills because as you said you still want to be friends with him!! Genius. Works ever time! :D :D
 
ecktronic said:
All you need to do is let him hear himself recorded in a mix where he is blatently out of time with other instruments. Then say to him, this took you X number of takes, this is your best one. Do YOU beleive that to be in time? Get ALL your mates round to listen at the same time and ask them one by one infront of him if the drums are out of time or not.
Then let ALL your mates laugh and mock his playing skills, but (important) dont you laugh or mock his playing skills because as you said you still want to be friends with him!! Genius. Works ever time! :D :D
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Just one problem. If the drums are out of time, the rest of the instrument playing to the drums will be in time with the drums.
 
Dani Pace said:
Surely I'm not the only one who has tried to record a drummer who just can't stay on time. This guy is a long time friend so I don't want to hurt his feelings, but I can't stand working with him in the studio. He is a "performance drummer" and does fairly well on stage where slight variations in rythm can be tolerated. He refuses to work with a click track or with any drum loops or even a metronome. I really don't want to loose him as a friend, he is fun to be around and fun to jam with but he really isn't good enough to be a session musician. Anyone got any suggestions for how to let him down easy?
Click to expand...


Tell him "I know the music and tempo has to breath a little, but your shit has asthma"

tim
 
Tim Walker said:
Tell him "I know the music and tempo has to breath a little, but your shit has asthma"

tim
Click to expand...

LOL :D

it's just a bad position to be in, him being a friend thare's no really good answer.

tell you what, invite me over for a session sometime and I'll tell him he sucks
(i'll be as nice as i can while getting the point across)
that way you don't have to be the asshole. :o
 
If he's a good friend, then your freindship should be able to withstand telling the truth -- just be straight with him....
 
You should just make up some bullshit.

Tell him that you have different tastes in music, or that his particular style doesn't fit what you're doing. Tell him he's too technically advanced for you, and you feel that you're holding him down.

He is your friend, after all. I wouldn't tell my good friend, flat out, that he sucks. I don't care how nicely you put it. :D I just don't think you say that kind of thing to a friend. What you do is avoid the subject and make up a steaming pile of bullshit. That's what real friends do for one another.
 
This is great... it's like agony aunt/uncle time...

Tell him he needs to play to a metronome because it makes the song sound shit... and that if he doesn't want to do it you will need to find someone else who will... don't tell him he's shit... maybe if he tried to play to a metronome he would be in time? and hence wouldn't be shit...

It's your job as engineer to make it clear to him what is needed.
 
Just get some drum loops and tell him you had time constraints to deal with.
 
I'll be in Hendersonville, NC in Sept, if you can hold off that long I'll tell him for you.
 
Get another session drummer and make a tape. Play back the tapes of both drummers for the client and let the client decide. If they like your boy, then there's no problem other than you having to discreetly hold your nose while recording and mixing (which of us has NOT had to do that more than once anyway? ;). If they don't, then just tell your boy that the client had some other drummer they wanted to bring in. No lies, no bullshit, and everybody is happy.:)

G.
 
Don't tell him he sucks, tell him he's great. Keep it positive.

"Man that take was awesome, thats going to sound awesome!! We just got to make sure to keep it tight, there were some spots that timing was slipping. I know you said that you don't want to use a click track, so what do you think could help you out?"
 
I'm just curious on how he replies to you when he 'refuses' to work with a click or metronome...? Is he being as respective of your friendship as you're trying to be?
 
I had a drummer in my band who wasn't that great. But I kept him in because we were really good friends and to me that was more important then having a decent drummer. Eventually I kicked him out and now we aren't the best of friends. Now I have no more band, or friend.

It's up to you man.
 
Just drive him out into the bushes like they did to chief Wiggum and tell him he's 'free now'
 
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