INSTAGRAM / YOUTUBE DRUMMING CULTURE: LOVE IT? HATE IT? WHY?

It borders on too much information, as well as being an echo chamber of licks. Which for me means sticking with known players and not bothering to scroll.

I still think the democratization of any information is a terrible idea from stem to stern. Anyone can be a town crier and then scads of people decide to also become town criers by parroting the other town criers and then consumers of the criers pick which criers they like best and the criers stretch and weave their crier-ing to gather more eyes and ears. Whew .. major digression there!
Methinks thou wast frightened by a town crier whilst but a babe in times of yore. Verily?
 
Seems like everything can have a bad aspect-no need to throw the baby away with the bath water. Everyone once in awhile I need a hammer, YT has saved me several grand in home repairs and what not. Social media has a bad aspect because it's humans socializing. What do you expect from a bunch of heathen animals that like to act like we are humane, civil and can coexist without intervention. We have our Hammer here too-when it's needed every once in awhile. Socialize here, FB, YT it's all about the same except some differences in rules. It would be nice if humanity could evolve beyond the need of governments, police, military, and what not-but that idealist bull crap gets you nowhere.
 
It would be nice if humanity could evolve beyond the need of governments, police, military, and what not-but that idealist bull crap gets you nowhere.
Worked well back in the cave man days. Governments, police, military, and genderless potato heads ARE our evolution. Good job humans!
 
Potatoes are tubers-they don't have a gender. The plant does produce flowers with both Stamens and Pistols-unlike cannabis that has male and female plants. Oh no we have to ban pot-it's not gender neutral. Odd the female flower is called a "Bud" that sure "sounds" male. Hey Bud-what the heck you talking about. ROFL. I get that a lot.
 
Like many of the others, I do like YT for the instructional/lesson videos and also wish they had been around when I was younger. I don't have a lot of time for the "look at me" and "CHOPS" videos that are out there because it's all just a plea for attention and contains very little substance.
Can't speak on instawhatever as I believe Facebook to be evil and the enemy of quality discourse and Democracy.
 
Great point about chemistry and being able to play with other musicians and not just along to a track.
There was one youtube drummer with some of those play along “covers” that I watched. I saw someone comment that this person is a nightmare in real life. Out of curiosity I googled them and came across some interesting things on Reddit. Take that stuff w a grain of salt, but the unanimous consensus was that other musicians tried to form bands with this drummer and they were indeed a nightmare. Apparently that drummer could/would only play cover songs along with the musicians IF they played along to the track itself. And said drummer melted down when pushed to actually drive the band.

Driving a band’s rhythm section is very different from playing along to tracks.
It is very different indeed, I personally find it harder to play along a track even tracks that I know very well than to play with a band, when playing with a band I have the freedom to not have to hit every single fill exactly like a recording, I can (and usually do) add better fills (that still serve the song). Of course when a specific fill is a classic (Rush's Tom Sawyer fill) I don't alter it, that is sacrilege, is not because I care about Neil Peart.. I find him highly overrated, but it's because I know that the audience is expecting that fill and not my interpretation of it. When playing along with a track, I have to be able to copy note for note what the drummer did, and a lot of times, that drummer might have made a mistake that got corrected post, but you can tell because it throws you off when you play it.. (Any Metallica song comes to mind) but yet you still have to stay true to that recording, definitely harder to do than just playing with a band.. Now I agree that you can have the best chops in a Youtube video ( I can play that track in 15 second increments and basically play a perfect take on ANY song) (but can I play that entire track in a single take? Probably not so when I see those guys with :
1 No drum mics on an acoustic kit (that somehow sounds better than even the original artist recording)
2 Constant camera shifts (that is how they edit out the mistakes)...
3 Playing so perfect that every single ghost note, every splash cymbal every minute detail is not missed...
That is when I lose confidence in those drummer's ability. I would have to see a single camera one take before considering auditioning any of them.
And yes personality matters a lot.. work ethic matters as well. I have been in many bands where the rest of the band mates dreaded practice and basically only wanted the rewards without the work. Needless to say, the band is only as good as their weakest player and people tend to follow mob mentality. (if two of the band members don't show good work ethic, it wouldn't take long for a third to follow suit ...easier than actually doing the right thing). The band as a whole would suffer and eventually break up. I am not extremely demanding but I at least expect people to know the music to an 80% we can get the remaining 20% with practice and then move on, I also don't like to practice the same thing over and over, maybe do a run of the set and perhaps a couple of times on harder parts but not beat on the dead horse by going over and over and over the same part, (that is why I expect everyone to pretty much be there on their own and just getting used to how it sounds with the band and not playing along a record). Now of course when writing original material, the process is longer and there are going to be disagreements (and no you can't see how a person is going to be in real life through a YouTube performance..
 
This guy wins. He obviously understands how to mix drums and social media. This kind stuff I'll happily watch.

I'm not sure if I can link a TikTok video so here goes nothin'.

Holy shite! The TT site kept advancing nonstop to the next queued video! I just lost some brain cells. I felt them shrivel! ?
 
Holy shite! The TT site kept advancing nonstop to the next queued video! I just lost some brain cells. I felt them shrivel! ?
I like TT much better than YouTube, unless I need detailed instructions or an explanation. There is a ton of stuff to filter through however, no continuity. It can go drummer/talking dog/dancing girl/construction video before you know it. I watch it like tv.
 
Neil Peart.. I find him highly overrated
I agree with this statement but also recognize that them's fightin' words 'round this here forum.
 
I agree with this statement but also recognize that them's fightin' words 'round this here forum.
I agree with those being fightin' words to most, but me, I don't find him or any other progressive drummer's style hard to play, if anything you just have to memorize a lot of different parts (and that would be the difficult part not the playing but the memorization) but I find that style boring... Rush or any progressive bands are to me more about showing chops than actually having a good groove. I do like some songs from them but I would not buy an album or go to a concert (and now that he is dead you can't anyway). I feel the same about Dream Theater, Tool... Highly overrated drummers not particularly hard to play but just a bunch of memorization. Now I also find all those new drummers Sanri Yamaguchi and the likes (to be all about chops and not groove) I can play like that but that to me is just noise. or what's his name from the 60's (finished the gig while having a heart attack...) well I find him also highly overrated. I guess what I consider a good drummer is very different from what most people consider a good drummer, it's ok, I have been the odd man out more than not, but I also have been the one right when everyone else was wrong more times than not.
 
I watch drum related content on youtube....mostly interviews and podcasts and such...occasionally some educational stuff (there are some really good channels out there btw), but to go and watch some guy or girl play some cover with 15 different camera angles to cover up their flubs...no thank you. It's like they made playing drums into some kind of top sport competition...who's fastest, who's flashiest, who can divide septuplets into groups of five or who can wear the shortest skirt while still claiming it's about music.....again, no thank you
 
I'm curious, who do you consider a good drummer?....................other than yourself, obviously.
I don't consider myself a good drummer, I can play ok and nobody that has hear me play has said that it was bad. I don't idolize people I just think that a good drummer is one that doesn't over play and makes the music better with accents when needed. Also someone who uses chops when needed and not just to be flashy. I guess some people can't handle when others don't idolize the people they idolize. I have met most of my favorite drummers (which again I don't idolize) drumming is not like say.. basketball, where (in basketball I know I am a good player but I know for a fact I will never be as good as say Michael Jordan, no drumming can be learned and you can reach the level of anybody so I go by the theory of if he/she can do it so can I. It has worked for me for most things in life so far. People that think that they will never be as good as x or y drummer are limiting themselves already. Said drummer didn't start that good either he/she sucked at some point and practiced and got better... we all can do that practice.
 
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I have been the odd man out more than not, but I also have been the one right when everyone else was wrong more times than not.
You discovered some hidden truths 99% of the world hasn't? Start your own religion, buddy, you're guaranteed success with that attitude
 
I never understood the whole "drumming has to fit the music" thing that people often say when justifying simple drumming.

My question to that is "Isn't drumming the music in of itself?" Why do drummers oftentimes talk about drums as being separate, or even "underneath", the rest of the music?
 
I never understood the whole "drumming has to fit the music" thing that people often say when justifying simple drumming.
When I hear that I bring up Come Together and ask how it should’ve been done.
 
I agree with those being fightin' words to most, but me, I don't find him or any other progressive drummer's style hard to play, if anything you just have to memorize a lot of different parts (and that would be the difficult part not the playing but the memorization) but I find that style boring... Rush or any progressive bands are to me more about showing chops than actually having a good groove. I do like some songs from them but I would not buy an album or go to a concert (and now that he is dead you can't anyway). I feel the same about Dream Theater, Tool... Highly overrated drummers not particularly hard to play but just a bunch of memorization.
I'm not offended in the slightest that you don't idolise Peart, Portnoy, etc. They're not your taste and that's totally fine.

I also totally understand (even agree with to a point) that their playing style can be too flashy and not groove like other players, but to call their skillset "just a bunch of memorisation" (as if memorisation and execution are the same thing) is reductive to say the least.
 
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