Why does my playing FEEL different during a gig?...

(Future)DWdrummer

Senior Member
So I realized something the other day...

During my bands last gig, I realized that everything about my technique and the way I was playing just felt different compared to when I'm in my practice room...

I don't know how to describe it better than that my feet and hands didn't feel the way they normally do...

Does anyone understand what I'm talking about?... Is this something that happens to everyone?... Is there a way to fix this?

I know what I'm saying sounds vague and maybe a bit confusing so I apologize :( I just don't know how else to put it... Lol

Jacob G.
 
I play totally different at a show than in the practice room. Firstly, I want to put on a bit of a show, and my movements tend to be more exaggerated than when I'm practicing and paying attention to technique, etc. Secondly, it's a show. Different animal. I love to lose myself in the songs and really put my energy into it.
 
My playing, or at least my perception of it, seems to change with the venue.

If the stage sound isn't very good, I try to make playing adjustments to make it sound good but the playing is then altered in some way and the focus isn't where I'd like it.

If the room sounds good, as with our most recent gig where the sound was way better than our practice room, then playing becomes an effortless joy. I got a lot of good feedback that night from other players which tells me that maybe it wasn't just my perception that was different.

I think it's one of those feedback loops where the better things sound, the better things sound. I wish it could be like that all the time. The key is not letting it swing too far the other way when things don't sound so good.
 
I ascribe it to adrenaline and the knowledge that the net is well and truly gone. You can muff it in rehearsals all you like, but when you muff it live, it's a big deal.
 
I ascribe it to adrenaline and the knowledge that the net is well and truly gone. You can muff it in rehearsals all you like, but when you muff it live, it's a big deal.

This /\ If you dont feel different during a gig it would be strange. The adrenaline and the buzz of playing with a band should always pull the best out of you.
 
Adrenaline. It always make you feel different.
 
Endorphins is a hell of a drug.

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Two men help me play 1000 times better. Sam Adams and Bud Weiser. These two make me feel and play like a star! When they are around, I am the best drummer in the world!
 
Nerves and excitement are essentially the same thing just programmed differently by your brain but both provide adrenaline, which effects you in different ways for each.

It's either nerves or adrenaline making your feel way off to how it is normally.

Nothing to worry about.

I've been gigging/recording the past 16years and I feel nervous or excited still to this day and my feel is never as it is at home/rehearsing. I find that I have less bounce, most times probably down to playing harder/louder.

The day it feels as it is at home means I've probably lost the edge somewhat as it means less (if that makes sense)

Funny how the brain works but hope you see it's the same for most people so far into the thread. Really nothing to worry about.
 
i've been gigging for... oh my god. never mind the number, but i still get nervous before gigs. that rush can be addictive. it can also be debilitating. addictive is better. i got to watch buddy rich backstage once, and he was like a caged animal. cigarette in one hand, coffee in the other. pacing. if you gig a lot, it gets much better. gig as much as you can, and realize that most gigs won't amount to a hill of beans, in the long run. play the best you can, though, because you NEVER know who's out there.
 
I'd say it's some adrenaline, but more your approach to the gig. When I did my drum corps and indoor drumline stuff, the thing our instructors would always tell before we took the floor for our performance us is "DON'T CHANGE ANYTHING". We have to approach every gig like it's just another day at the office. Just another rehearsal.

Mike
 
Yeah...

One of the main things that "feels" different during a gig is my kick pedal... Like, during a gig it almost feels like my pedal is lighter in a way and same with my sticks....

I also seem to hold the stick a little tighter because my fulcrum strangely gets tired...
 
I even feel different during sets, depending on whether it is the first set or the last set of the night.
 
I'd say it's some adrenaline, but more your approach to the gig. When I did my drum corps and indoor drumline stuff, the thing our instructors would always tell before we took the floor for our performance us is "DON'T CHANGE ANYTHING". We have to approach every gig like it's just another day at the office. Just another rehearsal.

Mike
i like it the other way around. make the practice feel like a gig. eventually, the two will feel more the same. i've played in bands that had a stage, lights, an audience, and we'd time the show. for practice.
 
gig as much as you can, and realize that most gigs won't amount to a hill of beans, in the long run. play the best you can, though, because you NEVER know who's out there.

I could not help but comment on your post Boltzmann.
It is such a contradiction on how to feel about a gig.
Relax but stress out about who might be in the audience. Ha Ha Ha
But what you said is true !


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