why do people think drummers are flaky?

lovemysonors

Senior Member
I keep hearing drummer jokes and that drummers come and go and are the biggest flakes of the band.

Can someone explain why drummers get a bad rep? haha
 
The popular conception of the drummer in the public mind is that we are just animals who failed down to the drums because we couldn't wrap our heads around an eleventh chord or whatever.

So, you're already working against THAT when you face this basic reality:

Drummers tend to need a band to do what they do, and the big problem with that is finding the right one. If you are looking to play some really complex, over-the-top stuff (like Zappa), then your present gig with the Motley Crue tribute band isn't going to cut it. You're not going to rearrange the Crue songs into 17/8 and add contrapuntal unisons with the guitar just to satisfy one musical need at the expense of the other. You probably have to go through a band or two before you find something that really works (although that version of "Girls, Girls, Girls" in "sideways 4/4" would be interesting!).

So, that quest to find a situation that works could add to the perception that drummers are flakier than a pie crust and generally fussy.

Of course, acting like an asscheese at band practice isn't doing much for you either.
 
Drummers are almost always aggressive, outgoing and energetic individuals. Add that to the usual ego issues, and I can see why people get that idea.

The best drummers in the world are not boring, meek individuals that lack intelligence.

For me, a better perspective is any give "musician" is a flake. It's a collision of talent and ego that can overwhelm them.

Lead singers can be the flakiest of all.
 
They're JOKES man.....let it go at that. (A Rabbi and a Priest go into a bar......). What do you call a guy from North Dakota with....? Thousands of these jokes, you can change the protagonist and antagonist to "anyone you wanna make fun of ".
 
I guess this begs the question "Are you good enough of a player to be better than the jokes?" Me, I still check to see if the stage is level by seeing if I am drooling out of both corners of my mouth.
 
one problem with us drummers
is that we have about four times the equipment to move
so that adds a bit to our flakiness

but in a band I was in a short while age, our lead guitarist was the most flaky of us all.
we had a gig to prepare for that as two weeks later and he showed up to only one of the six to eight practices that he promised he would make it to.
the band ended soon after for that reason and others.
 
Generally, drummers and bassists stand out of the limelight and stop the guitarists and singers make timing issues. People think that all drummers are good for is keeping time, that's because drummers like Phil Rudd and Charlie Watts don't actually bother to play anything original. I don't know where I'm going with this. Byeeeee :p
 
This is my perspective.

comparing drummers with other musicians is like comparing apples to oranges.
Drummers are basically time keepers unless u r Keith Moon . I love to be a back seat Time keeper which I enjoys a lot. As a drummer I dont like to get the spot light all the time if I ever play public , but just once in a while to let the public know I am the one who keeps time. I dont see drummers as flaky, but an important ingredient in a song.
 
Drummers are always the coolest guys in the band. They always have the best stories, best girls, and drink the most. That's my perception... and I'm sticking to it.
 
I dont know why they think that. It is kind of stupid. the drummers and bassists in my opinion are the most dependable people in the band. Speaking for me and my experiences being in a few bands it was always me who always stayed calm and kept everything calm in the band. Plus as a drummer we have alot of equipment to carry but we just dont stop there. I lug all of my 9 piece kit around preety much by myself, but after i also help with the moving of two huge guitar cabs a bass cab and other equipment. Plus speaking of metal the drummers have alot more to do. In fact in every music the drummer has to concentrate on all 4 limbs and cordinate alot. so in my opinion drummers are not flaky.
 
...from my experience, musicians are like a box of granola, chock full of flakes, fruits, and nuts.

Before I was ever a drummer, I was a hockey goalie, which is the sporting worlds equivalent to a drummer. In my view, both positions compliment each other quite nicely, and as I have posted before on a forum far far away...

As a drummer/goalie, you are the one that has to pack and haul the most gear.

As a drummer/goalie, you always get the least amount of respect, but your presence is the most noticible in its absence.

As a drummer/goalie, if the band/team sucks, you can hold them in.

As a drummer/goalie, if you suck, the band team sucks worse.

As a drummer/goalie, timing, rythm, and reflex are key.

As a drummer/goalie, you spend a lot of time watching the arseholes in front of you.

A puck in the nuts, a beer bottle in the head, drummers/goalies are tough and we can take it.

As far as the jokes go, we can take them, as we are pretty thick skinned. If you tell enough lead singer, keyboard or guitar player jokes, you might find the sensitive, fragile ego, prima donnas curled up in the fetal position sucking their thumbs, and then it's months of therapy before they're any good for anything.(cough) Metalica,(cough).

Barry
 
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Whats the difference between a bull and a big band?

On a bull, the ass is at the back and the horns are at the front.

Sorry, thats an old one.
 
...from my experience, musicians are like a box of granola, chock full of flakes, fruits, and nuts.

Before I was ever a drummer, I was a hockey goalie, which is the sporting worlds equivalent to a drummer. In my view, both positions compliment each other quite nicely, and as I have posted before on a forum far far away...

As a drummer/goalie, you are the one that has to pack and haul the most gear.

As a drummer/goalie, you always get the least amount of respect, but your presence is the most noticible in its absence.

As a drummer/goalie, if the band/team sucks, you can hold them in.

As a drummer/goalie, if you suck, the band team sucks worse.

As a drummer/goalie, timing, rythm, and reflex are key.

As a drummer/goalie, you spend a lot of time watching the arseholes in front of you.

A puck in the nuts, a beer bottle in the head, drummers/goalies are tough and we can take it.

As far as the jokes go, we can take them, as we are pretty thick skinned. If you tell enough lead singer, keyboard or guitar player jokes, you might find the sensitive, fragile ego, prima donnas curled up in the fetal position sucking their thumbs, and then it's months of therapy before they're any good for anything.(cough) Metalica,(cough).

Barry

lol. Best post I've seen in a while. Is it possible the goalie/drummer genes are spliced? Both exhibit a love for lots of gear right? It is totally true, when a goalie doesn't show up to my pickup hockey it just isn't the same. Not sure why I'm not a goalie though.

And mere mortals probably think drummers are flaky because they just can't comprehend our genius.
 
I keep hearing drummer jokes and that drummers come and go and are the biggest flakes of the band.

Can someone explain why drummers get a bad rep? haha
Perhaps because there is something to it. I've had over 150 transactions on ebay, and my worst buying experiences by far have been from drummers. I'm still trying to recover $900 that is owed me by a drummer in New Jersey. Never again will I buy drum gear on ebay.
 
Some people think we need all of that gear to just keep time in a song. We play metronomes worth thousands of dollars.
There's also plenty of people who think that you dance to a melody, rather than a rhythm.

Take a powerful rock or funk song and leave out the drums for once, then they might realize what we're doing. Drums can really be the driving force behind music (not behind all music, obviously).
 
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