Breaking things?

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Just asking?..A local drummer/buddy of mine who is a great player in his band posted on facebook that last night he broke 13 drumsticks and cracked two crash cymbals..and wrecked his snare drum head.I've been playing over 30 yrs ...broken a number of sticks but never cracked crashes or mushed out my snare head in an evening.This lleaves me wondering?...Say Neil Peart?...Dave Weckl?...Steve Gadd?....Steve Smith?....or yourself?...Do these guy's break sticks and cymbals like I describe?...What is "normal"?
Will appreciate comments and input.
Jay D.
 
That would be a stick gone every 2nd song.

Some top drummers I've seen who didn't break a bunch of sticks:

Terry Bozzio
Roger Taylor
Tony Smith
Rob Hirst

I've seen tons of live performances on YouTube where the drummer didn't break sticks.

Your friend sounds like a high maintenance drummer to me.
 
Broken 1 stick in 6 years and nothing else.

Perhaps - he is competing too much on volume and should buy some mikes and a PA.

Davo
 
I broke a snare head last summer. It was the first one that I have broken in 40 years.
The head was new so it probably was a defective head.
It was a single ply head with no power dot. I usually use a reinforced single ply head so who knows what happened.

Sticks, Every now and then a well worn stick breaks. A few a year is all that I break.

I have never broken a cymbal.
 
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Sounds to me like your local drummer/ buddy had nothing else to talk about. It's like high schoolers trying to impress by telling everyone how many beers they drank last night. who cares.
 
He's probably fibbing, like GD said.
I wouldn't be advertising that, but maybe he thinks that people will think it's cool that he is so "wild". He's probably right too, the general public would probably be interested in seeing someone who breaks things. That kinda sums up the state of prioritys in todays music for a good percentage of listeners.
 
Your buddy seems to be more of a basher than a drummer in my opinion. I don't believe I've broken 13 sticks in fifty years. The shoulders of my sticks take a beating because of rim shots, but continuously breaking things is a combination of bad fundamentals and technique with an exaggerated heigth of showmanship.

Dennis
 
How can he afford to keep playing, especially in this day and age? Cymbals (and even sticks) aren't cheap anymore...

It usually takes me between 15 and 20 years to crack a cymbal. Sticks, I break more often (most often on the bell of my ride cymbal). This is why I switched to nylon tip.

Most breakage on that level is caused by not hearing oneself over the guitars/bass/vocals, etc. which is either from not having enough monitor or not being miked. I went from relying on house monitors and mikes to using my own mikes and an in-ear monitor setup. Nowadays, it's rare for me to break a stick at all, because I can hear my levels at all times. The investment in such a system will pay for itself after the first few gigs where he doesn't break a $200 cymbal.
 
Back when I used to want to play like Dave Grohl in Nirvana (As hard hitting as possible.) I could only break about three sticks in a day. Never damaged a cymbal though. I did break a snare head once, but it was the stock head that came with my drum set so no surprises there. That guy is probably either stretching the truth a little or 500 pounds of pure muscle.
 
Another "breaking gear" thread.

I suspect your friend is exaggerating.

However, this topic can't be discussed without some sort of context.

If you play jazz or light rock, or don't gig much, or only ever play short sets, no you may never break a cymbal. If you play hard rock or metal, and/or tour often, or your band is known for 3 hours shows, well, then it might be a different story even with good technique.

Volume of the band, the musical situation, intensity of gig and frequency of playing are all going to be part of the equation.

I've never broken my 16" crash that I've owned for almost 20 years. Why?
Because I rarely actually use my 16" crash. Other cymbals I use more often? Yeah, I've broken several.

Per his last book, Neil Peart breaks many cymbals per tour. Why? He plays a 3 hour super intense show several nights a week in an arena setting. His cymbals are getting much more intense use than the guy who just gigs in a bar on weekends.
 
Don't know what else to add really. 13 sticks seems excessive by any measure. I have broken cymbals, probably 4 or so that I can recall, and I use good technique. But I do play hard many times, because that is what the situation suggests. The truth is, if you hit them hard enough, long enough, they can crack.

I don't consider it a badge of honor, though. To me it's more of an expensive tragedy!
 
I used to pound really hard on the drums and we would practice and play out regularly.
I would probably break a cymbal every three months whether it would be a crash or splash (probably 2 crashes and 3 splashes a year) but I was definately competing for volume and we were playing Metal.
I probably broke 1 stick every third practice but I dont wanna be replacing cymbals too often anymore.
 
Did he post pics on Facebook?
Pics, or it didn't happen!
Here is mine of my snare head. Proof that It happened!
 

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Oooh! Broken gear pics!

I've broken enough sticks to make a log cabin with over the last 20years, and wrecked probably 2 dozen cymbals. Sacrificed in the name of Rock-N-Roll!!!

Here are a few...
 

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Oooh! Broken gear pics!

I've broken enough sticks to make a log cabin with over the last 20years, and wrecked probably 2 dozen cymbals. Sacrificed in the name of Rock-N-Roll!!!

Here are a few...

I'm sure I've commented on your collection before, but it's worth noting again. That Z Custom is impressive......we're you playing with ball point hammers that night? :)

And FWIW, you're still behind the 8 ball. What took you 20 years to accomplish, is but a few nights work for our OP's heavy handed mate.
 
Did he post pics on Facebook?
Pics, or it didn't happen!
Here is mine of my snare head. Proof that It happened!

Hey Bob, I have an Aquarian snare batter and it's a great head - almost bionic! Yet you have a broken new-looking head. I've watched your vids and you don't look like a threat to any drum head.

I'm amazed. I'd never associated Aquarian with CQ issues. Remo, sure, but not Aquarian.
 
Don't know what else to add really. 13 sticks seems excessive by any measure. I have broken cymbals, probably 4 or so that I can recall, and I use good technique. But I do play hard many times, because that is what the situation suggests. The truth is, if you hit them hard enough, long enough, they can crack.

I don't consider it a badge of honor, though. To me it's more of an expensive tragedy!

Exactly what I was thinking. 13 broken sticks in a gig isn't only excessive, it's ridiculous. Why is it a badge of honor to break as much gear as possible? More like a badge of stupidity.

I try to play a couple hours every day and I go through a pair of sticks about every month or so; and I've only ever broken one drumhead which was most likely a defective one. I can't imagine breaking cymbals and heads with any kind of regularity.
 
Hey Bob, I have an Aquarian snare batter and it's a great head - almost bionic! Yet you have a broken new-looking head. I've watched your vids and you don't look like a threat to any drum head.

I'm amazed. I'd never associated Aquarian with CQ issues. Remo, sure, but not Aquarian.
Polly, Murphy's law prevails.
"If It Can Happen, It Will"
 
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