what to expect from 1st jam

You might wanna check they have a bass drum pedal and snare too.. Normally when you go to a rehearsal studio, it's fairly normal to take: snare, kick pedal, cymbals. I find different places provide different combinations of the 3..

Oh, and take your sticks obviously ;-) They are never provided.
 
I'm having a first jam with a band I've never jammed with before (just the bass player), and the first time getting together on Oct. 1st. And it is a gig at a local church festival. No pressure! Just bring my stuff, no logistics, just a set list.
 
Unless they are completely terrible I wouldn't rent cymbals. Save that money to buy a pre owned acoustic kit to practice on at home. There are some great deals out there used if you take your time and do some research.

If you don't have a cymbal stand at home maybe you could use the "cymbal" holder on your electric kit to mount your purchased cymbals on to at home. At least this way you can try them out for a while before you go Jam. You would be surprised how some old beat up cymbals sometimes have a sweet spot or awesome bell sound or something. Play around with it. Play different areas of each cymbal. play them soft and hard. listen to how they sound when you hit them with the tip of the stick vs the shaft on the edge or the bell. Practice sticking exercises on them to get a feel for how your stick responds. I'm sure you can find some sounds you like.

If they won't fit on the electric kit you can get creative. Use an old lamp with the shade removed. Just put something soft like felt or cloth under the attachment point, put the cymbal on, and screw the little cap back on. Just unplug it first! lol

Best of Luck,
 
Sorry for posting so much here ;-)
One other thing.. even good cymbals can sound a bit.. "meh" in your bedroom, sort of clangy and loud, especially compared to your eq'd processed volume controlled e-kit sounds, but once you play them in context, it starts to make sense.
 
drumming sort of person said:
Wear earplugs.
`
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Agreed. Typically, I use over-ears for rehearsal/jams/etc. Earplugs for stage.

Reasons for over-ears:

1: Lets others know that you can't hear them.
2: Easy on/off so you can communicate. Most ear plugs don't like to be in-out-in-out two dozen times in 2 hours. One out of 5 times, you put it in improperly and it falls out when playing.
3: Clearly signals when it's business time versus bullshit time to the rest of the band.
 
Even if your cymbals are the very worst cymbals in the world, with the band playing they will sound...like cymbals. By all means, upgrade as and when resources allow, if you feel the need, but don't stress about it.

As drummers we spend hours and fortunes chasing down "that sound", and feel delighted. To everybody else, drums go doomp and cymbals go pisht.
 
Hi, so I managed to get an hour on an acoustic kit in a rehearsal room and what a massive difference from an e-kit. Night and day! So many differences, most of you will already know so I won't bore you!

One thing struck me though - my ride cymbal seemed overly loud, i.e. overpowering! Doesn't seem to make sense! Any thoughts on why that might be?

(I mentioned in a previous post these are old Krut cymbals from the 60s)

Because these are now the only actual cymbals I've played I've got no comparison!
 
davor said:
Hi, so I managed to get an hour on an acoustic kit in a rehearsal room and what a massive difference from an e-kit. Night and day! So many differences, most of you will already know so I won't bore you!

One thing struck me though - my ride cymbal seemed overly loud, i.e. overpowering! Doesn't seem to make sense! Any thoughts on why that might be?

(I mentioned in a previous post these are old Krut cymbals from the 60s)

Because these are now the only actual cymbals I've played I've got no comparison!
Click to expand...

Bounce your stick tips on top, and nearer to the bell, rather than bash them against the edge of it would be my suggestion if it's the latter that your are doing.

And, if necessary, strike them a little more softly.

There are many many ways of creating different sounds on ride cymbals. They're complex beasts really.

Cymbals ARE loud if hit hard.
 
davor said:
Hi, so I managed to get an hour on an acoustic kit in a rehearsal room and what a massive difference from an e-kit. Night and day! So many differences, most of you will already know so I won't bore you!

One thing struck me though - my ride cymbal seemed overly loud, i.e. overpowering! Doesn't seem to make sense! Any thoughts on why that might be?

(I mentioned in a previous post these are old Krut cymbals from the 60s)

Because these are now the only actual cymbals I've played I've got no comparison!
Click to expand...

Hard to say as I don't know those cymbals at all.

It might just be that you need to learn to control your dynamics (I always have to re-adjust after playing an e-kit). I'm guessing you mean you're hitting the top of the ride cymbal with the bead of the stick? Not whacking the edge with the shoulder of the stick?

Conversely, if you're only tapping the snare but laying into the ride cymbal you'll get the same problem.. Do you do rim-shots when you hit the snare? I'm not saying you need to to overpower the ride cymbal, I'm just trying to get an idea of how you play.. Maybe you could shoot a short video?

I suspect it's a transitional thing.
 
Ah yes, good points. I only had an hour with the kit, some of that was spent getting set up (which I'd never done before!) and then actually trying to play along to some songs I'm learning. So I didn't really spend much time paying attention to my technique etc - it was all very new!

Kind of like driving a bus after learning in a Mini or something haha!

I think I'll need to let the guys I'm going to be rehearsing know it will take me at least a couple of sessions to get myself adjusted to the differences in playing an acoustic kit
 
Everyone else has covered it all.

I'll just top off the tank a bit:

- If there is any way for you to afford an acoustic kit - used or otherwise - you really want to do that.

- If you haven't had any lessons, take some. You need to be shown proper strokes on acoustic drums and especially on the cymbals - riding v.s. crashing. None of that gets learned on an e-kit.

But - when it's jam time, go for it. You're going to have a great time.
 
This thread is over, so I'm going to borrow it from the necro-files.

I'm playing a 1st gig Sunday with a band I've never jammed with before. This bass player I used to jam with last year called me to play a gig with him and a guitar player I've never met before. The gig is at a small festival at a local church. There's going to be rides and games there, so I'm sure it won't be too small. Now that I think about it, he didn't mention any pay for this gig. He's a doctor, so I'm sure pay isn't a top priority in his mind. Oh well, we'll see. At least I can hopefully get a free lunch out of it, I hope.

So, he sent me a list of 22 songs we'll be playing. I already play a few of the song with my regular band, and the rest I pretty much know by hearing them on the radio and such. But, I've never played 867-5309(Jenny) before or Krytonite or Counting Blue Cars for that matter.

I'm going in blind with no practice, like a true professional. My only real preparation will be listening to the songs on Spotify all week at work, then I will do a good warm-up on the pad the morning of the gig. The beats are manageable, but I have to remember the changes and breaks and a few signature chops. I haven't been this excited about a gig for awhile. It's probably because of the lack of practice. I can fall flat on my face, and that causes me a little nervousness in me. Maybe this is what I need. To challenge myself this way. If there was a Rush song in the songlist, I'd be practicing, but it's mostly songs I know or can fake it on.

Have any of you challenged yourself this way before?
 
You'll be fine, Paul. You know what to do. Besides, most folks don't know the drum parts and even the drummers won't crucify you if you miss a signature part. Keep good time, don't step on solos or vocals and have fun. One thing though - never, EVER, smack a cymbal or drum when it's time for the COWBELL! ;-)

My guitar playing B-i-L, his bass player buddy and I jammed last summer. I was familiar with all the songs that afternoon but had never drummed most. Kept good time, kept volume levels low enough (so mistakes would be less noticeable!) and had fun. You will too. Don't forget the "after action report." (sorry, retired Army!) Good luck!!
 
Midnite Zephyr said:
This thread is over, so I'm going to borrow it from the necro-files.

I'm playing a 1st gig Sunday with a band I've never jammed with before. This bass player I used to jam with last year called me to play a gig with him and a guitar player I've never met before. The gig is at a small festival at a local church. There's going to be rides and games there, so I'm sure it won't be too small. Now that I think about it, he didn't mention any pay for this gig. He's a doctor, so I'm sure pay isn't a top priority in his mind. Oh well, we'll see. At least I can hopefully get a free lunch out of it, I hope.

So, he sent me a list of 22 songs we'll be playing. I already play a few of the song with my regular band, and the rest I pretty much know by hearing them on the radio and such. But, I've never played 867-5309(Jenny) before or Krytonite or Counting Blue Cars for that matter.

I'm going in blind with no practice, like a true professional. My only real preparation will be listening to the songs on Spotify all week at work, then I will do a good warm-up on the pad the morning of the gig. The beats are manageable, but I have to remember the changes and breaks and a few signature chops. I haven't been this excited about a gig for awhile. It's probably because of the lack of practice. I can fall flat on my face, and that causes me a little nervousness in me. Maybe this is what I need. To challenge myself this way. If there was a Rush song in the songlist, I'd be practicing, but it's mostly songs I know or can fake it on.

Have any of you challenged yourself this way before?
Click to expand...

I Love this type of situation. I love playing unrehearsed - when you have a bunch of people that can be trusted to do their homework and show up ready to play. It's exciting, and it's a situation where everyone is usually Listening to each other more.

I have played songs at gigs many times that I was playing for the first time - with all other "practice" being at the steering wheel of my car. :)
 
Smoke said:
You'll be fine, Paul. You know what to do. Besides, most folks don't know the drum parts and even the drummers won't crucify you if you miss a signature part. Keep good time, don't step on solos or vocals and have fun. One thing though - never, EVER, smack a cymbal or drum when it's time for the COWBELL! ;-)

My guitar playing B-i-L, his bass player buddy and I jammed last summer. I was familiar with all the songs that afternoon but had never drummed most. Kept good time, kept volume levels low enough (so mistakes would be less noticeable!) and had fun. You will too. Don't forget the "after action report." (sorry, retired Army!) Good luck!!
Click to expand...

Hey thanks, Smoke. That reminds me to bring a cowbell. i have to play Honky Tonk Woman. I usually have the singer doing the cowbell. Uh-oh! Have to improvise! I could have just used the bell of the El Sonido cymbal, but now that you've mentioned it, I better take your advice.

Frank said:
I Love this type of situation. I love playing unrehearsed - when you have a bunch of people that can be trusted to do their homework and show up ready to play. It's exciting, and it's a situation where everyone is usually Listening to each other more.

I have played songs at gigs many times that I was playing for the first time - with all other "practice" being at the steering wheel of my car. :)
Click to expand...

Yeah, it'll be a fun one. I've never played an unrehearsed gig before, so it's a bit exciting. I've done a lot of jams and improvisation unrehearsed. I used to be in two bands: one I knew exactly what I was going to play or improve upon, and the second band I had no idea what we were going to play ever.
 
The gig went really good. Nice big stage. Just a couple hiccups and shakey areas on my part. All in all, had a load of fun and I made $25 bucks.
 

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Loads of fun + $25 = good memories. Glad it worked out, but couldn't imagine another outcome.
 
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