Need ride cymbal alternitive, how do you play?

[brianthedrummer]

I play with a rock band. No double bass, few quarter notes with lead hand. But the lead singer hates the sound of the ride cymbal and I hate following the cliche of playing it during the chorus.

What else can I ride besides the HH that drives the song? I am looking for ideas for my right hand, on the right side of the kit.

[fourstringdrums]

Does he hate the sound of ride cymbals in general or just YOUR ride cymbal? If he hates all ride cymbals and it fits the song, he needs to get over it. Riding the edge of your crash cymbal is always popular in rock music, but just like when it's appropriate to use the ride, it's not always appropriate to ride the crash.

I actually used to know a drummer in a metal band who didn't own a ride. All he used with a double bass kit with 12/13/16 toms, 13" hi-hats and 15" & 18" crashes believe it or not. He would use the open hi-hat for some variation as well as riding the edge of the crash. It worked really well for him.

[Colonel Bat Guano]

Our guitarist/singer/bandleader is kind of cymbalphobic too, with a touch of tinnitis that makes it his own personal hell, I suppose. I made an effort to meet him halfway by generally playing with a (much needed) lighter touch on the cymbals and then by eventually switching to creamier, washier and less pingy rides and thinner crashes. Those cymbals (Paiste Giant Beats) ended up being more appropriate for our style of rock anyway, so it was a good thing. He ended up getting a pair of custom fitted earplugs from an audiologist for loud rehearsals and shows. Now everyone's happy.

But even with a great ride cymbal, I get tired of the ride on chorus cliche, too. Although not appropriate for every song, I do a fair amount of "riding" on the floor tom. I know you mentioned right side of the kit only, but don't be afraid to get all manner of different sounds from loosely closed and half open hi-hats, too.

...

[aydee]

1) Factory metal cymbals

2) double racked cymbals ( you could try different combinations to get a unique sound)

3) There are some pretty outrageous rides out there, which don't sound like a traditional ride

4) an 8" remote hi-hat

5) wood blocks/ some percussion gizmos........

[harryconway]

I used to run an Aux. hi-hat on the right. To mix it up. Left hat for verse, right hat for chorus, ride cymbal for guitar solo drive. Get a really irritating China cymbal and your singer will get over his "ride-phobia" real quick.

[Ozzy Biz]

I used to run an Aux. hi-hat on the right. To mix it up. Left hat for verse, right hat for chorus, ride cymbal for guitar solo drive. Get a really irritating China cymbal and your singer will get over his "ride-phobia" real quick.

Haha, something like one of those 27"Wuhans or the biggest zbt/b-8 china will make him appreciate a ride cymbal pretty quickly.

[zambizzi]

You could try getting a really dry ride...maybe even a dark, dry. I had a K Custom Dark Dry and that thing was barely noticeable...I actually sold it because it was *too* dry.

I'm playing a Paiste Dark Energy Mark 2 and it's perfect....dry, dark...but the ping plays through the music and it isn't offensive to my bandmates...it blends very well.

You could just trade your ride up for a cowbell and wail on that w/ straight 8's through every song. He'll be begging you to put the ride back in no time.

[danander11]

I play with a rock band. No double bass, few quarter notes with lead hand. But the lead singer hates the sound of the ride cymbal and I hate following the cliche of playing it during the chorus.

What else can I ride besides the HH that drives the song? I am looking for ideas for my right hand, on the right side of the kit.

This is where it can get real fun, or real ugly for drummers... Be creative in how you approach something like this.. Instead of continuous 8th notes (let's say), try throwing in mixed 16th's, or use a rudiment or three between the HH and ride with alternating hand sticking...

Using a lighter ride, using a small chain on the ride, using the bell/bow of the ride in varying combinations...

Lots of things to try....

[cnw60]

maybe try playing the ride cymbal softer...???

awhile ago, somebody said in a thread here, that one of the keys to Bonham's sound was hitting the drums hard, but playing the cymbals soft. I don't know if that's true, but that technique definitely has a place. I also think it depends a lot on the characteristics of your cymbals.

or when all else fails - more cowbell!!!!

[Joe P]

You could try a tambourine.

[Big_Philly]

A tambourine might be nice indeed, but what you could do is play quarter notes on the bell of your ride (that would still be using your ride but in a completely different fashion). Playing the bell of your ride powerfully on the downbeat can give some really cool results, especially when you syncopate some of the bassdrum-snaredrum interaction in your grooves.

[d-roc]

I play what I feel is necessary for the song. Serve the song first, your singer last. A rule of thumb for me is to change voices during different parts of the song. So if I use my ride somewhere, I may add something to the pattern or play the hats to build. I also like my music to have dynamics, so I do different things to make it interesting. Percussion, splashes, chinas, toms, the possiblities are endless. Maybe you need more cowbell.

[SLEEPY BRiGHT EYEZ]

You could play the rhythms on the toms instead. Then explode with the cymbals later on.

My band mate and I began writing a new song recently where I used the closed hat (and a little cow bell) for the verse, and then there was this slow snare roll (Blues Explosion style), but when you think it's going to explode into a big chorus, it instead goes to an even more controlled rhythm where I'm mainly keeping time on the floor tom with accents on the rack. The explosion will probably come later. We haven't finished that one. In fact, my grooves for that whole song is pretty inspired by Blues Explosion so check them out for great ideas on how not to be cliche.

I've been listening to music lately that has drum fills where you wouldn't typically expect them... like as the main groove. I really like that.

Adjusting your ride pattern is a great idea. Something I need to work on more.

I think the main thing is to try to do different things on different songs. Like d-roc said, serve the song. If you feel the need to do the same stuff for each song, maybe the songs themselves need to be looked at from a different approach. Obviously there are going to be similarities, but you don't have to make it formulatic.

[DrumsAreMyLife]

You can always just take out the hi-hat, or change it up another way. You don't always necessarily need to change from the hi-hats to the ride...You can maybe just keep the hi-hat going, or move to the low tom.

Another solution is to add some auxillary percussion such as wood blocks or tambourines.