Audition Stories

drumholmes

drumholmes

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Some articles have recently been written about the audition process Eloy Casagrande went through to get the gig with Slipknot. And I know many of us feel they should have been auditioning for him!

Apparently, it involved sending remote recordings and videos of him playing in Brazil. Three songs, then three more songs, then five days of rehearsal with the band in person in the U.S., followed by five more days of recording new songs with unwritten drum parts. Pretty thorough!

It got me curious about unique audition experiences. Funny, weird, awkward, intense, or even pleasant. Any good audition stories out there?
 
Mine was a doozy, or at least the commute was!

It was my first proper audition for a touring band and I had to drive into New York City from western Massachusetts. It was not a crazy commute, but it can be nerve-racking when considering traffic possibilities, so I left with an extra 3 hours to spare just in case. And wouldn't you know it, I chose route 15 on a day that they were mowing the grass on the side of the highway, bringing it from 2 lanes to one lane. This was before I had GPS, and I was such a newbie and had no idea how to get there if I strayed from my written directions. I ended up making it to the address with only 5 minutes to spare, but then I had to find parking in the heart of Manhattano_O(n) I RAN up the stairs to meet the band for the first time, completely out of breath.

I don't even remember how the audition really went, but they told me I was in their top 2 before deciding to go with the guy who already lived in NYC. In hindsight, that decision makes a lot of sense! Needless to say, I've been awkwardly early to every audition ever since.
 
When I auditioned for an Allman Brothers tribute band, the process started in December 2022. I drove up to Newburgh, NY and played with the band, but first, I had to send them video of me playing along to "Whipping Post," which I did. They liked it, so I auditioned with the band, as the only drummer. Then, they had me come back again alone, and again, with the drummer they chose to be Jaimoe. The plan was, I'd be playing the Butch Trucks parts, which was fine with me. December stretched into January, then February. The keys player finally called and told me they liked my playing, but they'd chosen another guy, but they'd keep my number as a possible sub. I said, fine thanks. In March, they called me again and said, their "Jaimoe" quit in a huff, because he didn't get along with the other drummer. I was told that their "Butch" was overbearing, pushy, a bit of a bully, but "a nice guy." Really? Doesn't sound too nice to me, but whatever. They asked me to join the band. Fine, I'm in. Then, they said, don't let him intimidate you, just come and do what you do, and don't worry about "Butch," the other drummer. OK, fine. I had been warned.

I called "Butch"** to introduce myself and have a friendly chat. He seemed uncomfortable. At the first full rehearsal, "Butch" was determined to establish his dominance at all costs. There was no sense of cooperation, just intimidation. He seemingly wasn't listening to what I was playing at all. The second rehearsal was worse. I woke up three days later, called the singer and quit. I said, "You've lost two drummers now because of this guy. Doesn't that tell you something?" I guess it didn't, because "Butch" is still in the band. I have no regrets. It was an impossible situation, and at this point in my career, who needs this sh**?

The keyboard player, now a FB friend, had a birthday the other day. I wished him a happy birthday, and told him, don't hesitate to call me if things change, to which he replied positively. This band has been together for about 15-16 years, with many personnel changes, so who knows what might happen?
 
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I was told early on to take any audition I could get, so I ended up doing many that I was nowhere near qualified to be doing. I humiliated myself and wasted their time, but I learned to be better prepared, I learned how to get strung along until they find someone better or more fitting. I learned rejection, and the point was to get rejected allot, so each time I do an audition I will learn from it. Once you get used to rejection you learn to take it better and learn from it.
 
BobC said:
When I auditioned for that Allman Brothers tribute band, the process started in December 2022. I drove up to Newburgh, NY and played with the band, but first, I had to send them video of me playing along to "Whipping Post," which I did. They liked it, so I auditioned with the band, as the only drummer. Then, they had me come back again alone, and again, with the drummer they chose to be Jaimoe. The plan was, I'd be playing the Butch Trucks parts, which was fine with me. December stretched into January, then February. The keys player called and told me they liked my playing, but they chose another guy, but they'd keep my number as a possible sub. I said, fine thanks. In March, they called me again and said, their "Jaimoe" guy quit in a huff, because he didn't get along with the other drummer. I was told that their "Butch" was overbearing, pushy, a bit of a bully, but "a nice guy." Really? Doesn't sound too nice to me, but whatever. They asked me to join the band. Fine, I'm in. Then, they said, don't let him intimidate you, just come and do what you do, and don't worry about "Butch," the other drummer. OK, fine. I had been warned.

I called "Butch"** to introduce myself and have a friendly chat. He seemed uncomfortable. At the first full rehearsal, "Butch" was determined to establish his dominance at all costs. There was no sense of cooperation, just intimidation. He seemingly wasn't listening to what I was playing at all. The second rehearsal was worse. I woke up three days later, called the singer and quit. I said, "You've lost two drummers now because of this guy. Doesn't that tell you something?" I guess it didn't, because "Butch" is still in the band. I have no regrets. It was an impossible situation, and at this point in my career, who needs this sh**?

The keyboard player, now a FB friend, had a birthday the other day. I wished him a happy birthday, and told him, don't hesitate to call me if things change, to which he replied positively. This band has been together for about 15-16 years, with many personnel changes, so who knows what might happen?
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Auditioning for a band with double drum sets is a whole different ballgame! Too bad about Butch.

I've had the most success in double drumming with my friends who I went to college with. But I've also had a great experience with someone I had just met and we went on to be good friends after that. It's quite the way to get to know someone!
 
Two drummers can work together just fine if there's cooperation and a desire to work together as a team. In my case, that didn't happen. "Butch" was/is a very hard hitter who would have been better suited playing AC/DC or Zeppelin by himself. He wasn't a team player at all.
 
BobC said:
Two drummers can work together just fine if there's cooperation and a desire to work together as a team. In my case, that didn't happen. "Butch" was/is a very hard hitter who would have been better suited playing AC/DC or Zeppelin by himself. He wasn't a team player at all.
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Yep. You can have all the playing skill in the world, but if your personality sucks, no one is going to want to work with you.
 
Didn't get the drum chair, but came away with something MUCH better. About a decade ago I auditioned for a band I thought I really wanted. I didn't get the drum job. A friend suggested asking why just because it might be useful info. Difficult to do but I bucked-up and bravely asked if they could provide me any feedback that might be helpful. They did and said they thought my tempo varied a bit more than they wanted. I thanked them and started a long-term focus on tempo and my playing as it relates to tempo: more metronome work, Live BPM, etc. - all the time. This grew into easily being able to use & play to click and backing tracks whenever needed (or not). I'm a MUCH better drummer now because of that one simple exchange of honest info.

Funny thing, I really wanted that band because they played out consistently at some venues I wanted to. But, they've since languished and been very on/off. I've gone on to playing in significantly better bands & venues than they ever were or did. Things tend to work out.
 
I really hate auditions, and try to avoid them. The band or artists already knows what they want, it's just a matter of "do you fit the mold?"
So there's a strong possibility that even though you might play great, you're still not gonna get that gig. I've also found that if someone just hires me without an audition I perform much better because the anxiety and edge is taken off.

That doesn't mean I haven't done my fair share of auditioning. The last two I can think of were both for larger internationally touring artists. They both asked for videos of me playing 3 of their songs first. After I got the green light that my videos were acceptable, I was invited to audition in person with the band. I didn't get either of these gigs, however I've stayed in good with the artists, and anytime we cross paths in person we always hang out and are friendly with one another. I've also found that this can go a long way, just because you didn't get the gig the first time doesn't mean they won't call you back sometime later if they find themselves in need again.

In fact, one of the current artists I tour with is exactly that. I auditioned for his band 23 years ago! Didn't get the gig (I was 18 and had no touring experience yet) but we stayed in touch all these years and now I'm his drummer.
 
Not drummer related, but we recently gave a lead guitar player 6 songs to learn for the audition. Asked him he sang lead on any of the 6, he said 4 of them he sings. Shows up for the audition, knew 2 of the 6, and refused to sing any of them. Frustrated I said, "you said you sing 4 of these songs, did you think we weren't going to ask you to sing?".
 
badjujumatt said:
Not drummer related, but we recently gave a lead guitar player 6 songs to learn for the audition. Asked him he sang lead on any of the 6, he said 4 of them he sings. Shows up for the audition, knew 2 of the 6, and refused to sing any of them. Frustrated I said, "you said you sing 4 of these songs, did you think we weren't going to ask you to sing?".
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When I had my own band, we auditioned guys like this who showed up completely unprepared. It got so frustrating, I told one of them to pack up and leave in no uncertain terms.
 
When I studied with Troy Luccketta, in the sf/oak bay area, he flew to Indianna to audition for a well know artist there named John... I aske him how that went, and he said he played fine but didn't get the gig. It was about location. John wanted more close to being more of a local drummer. I THINK Kenny Aronoff was the drummer being replaced.
 
After four years (during high school) of being in a successful (i.e., well-paying) band, I went to college and declared a major in Percussion Performance. This was during the prehistoric era of personal computers, so the college catalog book was all I had to go by, and it looked like a good fit for me. I showed up at the audition with my trusty drumsticks to find three professors and a piano in the room. I asked, "Where's the kit?" and one of the profs said, "The piano is a percussion instrument, and all percussion auditions are performed on the piano."

This wasn't the first time these profs had encountered an enthusiastic 18-year old trap-set drummer. They were kind and gentle. "Learn to play the piano and come back in two or three years." I have vivid memories of exiting that room, opening the catalog book and looking for a new "career path" (In a matter of minutes chose mechanical engineering 'cuz I had high math SAT scores).

Later that week, I went to the college's official big band audition. Good music, too, from Stan Getz, Maynard Ferguson, etc. I had my sticks with me, but once I heard the stand-in drummer play I knew it wasn't music I could learn while standing in line and listening. Lotsa stabs and accents with the horn section.

The student in line in front of me was BLIND, and I helped him shuttle along in the line as they went through auditions. When his turn was up, he asked for help getting behind the kit. I helped get him situated and the band leader/conductor asked if this was legit. "Yes sir", said the blind drummer. He then proceeded to slay his parts with perfect timing, great power and no mistakes. After they ran through three or four tunes, the band and band leader was truly impressed. I was out of my depth and slunk back to the dorms and my new career path.
 
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Strangest one I ever went for was some original band that thought they were the next big thing. Not one note was played and I didn't hear any of their music either it was more of an interrogation. It was really about image, I was asked what size clothes I wore. The kicker for me was would I be willing to get a job to support the band?

Glad I never heard from them again!

There was also a Genesis tribute I auditioned for that told me the songs to learn but didn't tell me they were all obscure live arrangements they did from bootleg recordings.

I'm over that audition thing for bands. Best thing to do it get yourself known and word of mouth gets you gigs. If you're reliable and a good hang then you wont need to worry about auditioning, people will contact you.
 
Luv4drums said:
When I studied with Troy Luccketta, in the sf/oak bay area, he flew to Indianna to audition for a well know artist there named John... I aske him how that went, and he said he played fine but didn't get the gig. It was about location. John wanted more close to being more of a local drummer. I THINK Kenny Aronoff was the drummer being replaced.
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It was Mellencamp, of course, an extremely hard guy to work for, according to Kenny Aronoff and others who have been in his band.
 
cbphoto said:
After four years (during high school) of being in a successful (i.e., well-paying) band, I went to college and declared a major in Percussion Performance. This was during the prehistoric era of personal computers, so the college catalog book was all I had to go by, and it looked like a good fit for me. I showed up at the audition with my trusty drumsticks to find three professors and a piano in the room. I asked, "Where's the kit?" and one of the profs said, "The piano is a percussion instrument, and all percussion auditions were performed on the piano."

This wasn't the first time these profs had encountered an enthusiastic 18-year old trap-set drummer. They were kind and gentle. "Learn to play the piano and come back in two or three years." I have vivid memories of exiting that room, opening the catalog book and looking for a new "career path" (In a matter of minutes chose mechanical engineering 'cuz I had high math SAT scores).

Later that week, I went to the college's official big band audition. Good music, too, from Stan Getz, Maynard Ferguson, etc. I had my sticks with me, but once I heard the stand-in drummer play I knew it wasn't music I could learn while standing in line and listening. Lotsa stabs and accents with the horn section.

The student in line in front of me was BLIND, and I helped him shuttle along in the line as they went through auditions. When his turn was up, he asked for help getting behind the kit. I helped get him situated and the band leader/conductor asked if this was legit. "Yes sir", said the blind drummer. He then proceeded to slay his parts with perfect timing, great power and no mistakes. After they ran through three or four tunes, the band and band leader was truly impressed. I was out of my depth and slunk back to the dorms and my new career path.
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I don’t understand why 3 professors tricked you into wasting their time and yours. They sound like a bunch of a-holes
 
Early on in my career, I had several auditions that I didn’t get. The best thing I did was be persistent in finding out the “WHY” I didn’t get chosen.

One time, I was auditioning with a band that sent me a recording, and the drums sounded HUGE on it. So, I decided to go in and play the songs loud for the audition. It turns out they weren’t interested in a loud drummer. No matter how much I told the bandleader that I wasn’t normally a loud player, but just played that role for the audition, because of the recording, I couldn’t convince them to give me a second audition. 🤷‍♂️
 
Some guys had a gig the week of auditions. On the verbally specific given day I waited half a day to see what time to come. No call. Late, I finally call them for a What's up and they say come in an hour. Carry my stuff over and the previous tryout guy is leaving in an elated and ecstatic behavioral manner. He seems really happy, hmmm. He nearly drove into their ditch and jumped out almost dancing to see if he was gonna make it the 10 feet to the road.
We do the tryout and then I later find out they'd already given him the gig and potential spot. They also said I was too light of a player. Was just trying to get their songs down for the gig in a few days.

Another band, I quickly learned their songs and they gave no feedback at tryout or the later 2 rehearsals. Turns out they felt I was too light of a player, like a Jazz guy. Definitely not my style if you hear me.
At all.
I do play in a minimalist manner when I first join, later adding stuff.

Funny thing is I didn't feel this band was good enough for my like, but would go along if they got work since I was available. They actually practiced whitty banter at a specific time in the set. Nice guys. But really nerdy/goofy.

Ask what bands are looking for up front. Power? Low volume? Simplicity? Just a pocket?
 
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