Drummer taking too long to set up

[leschirons]

Last time I drummed, 15 mins but the guitarist cleared empty cases from the stage area for me. I have (had! must get that back) a drum mat which is marked out for exactly where all the stands go and also the spurs and floor tom so no dragging stuff nearer during or in between numbers. If I can get the mat laid down, it all works. Stands had memory locks.

Our drummer in the band has usually set up before the guitarist and vocalist.

[StephenYork]

Drummer is usually there first so he can take up the most space, usually takes about 20mins to set up, hits them for 10mins while messing with the tuning then disappears for the next 45mins on his phone. This is while the rest of the band set up their own instruments and I have to do the PA then set myself up. Usually by this point most of the space is taken and I'm rammed up in the corner or pretty much at the bar with the punters!

Also I don't get why it takes people an hour to set up for practice? Turn up at 7, don't usually get started till 8 because we have to wait for everyone to set up, then I'm the one who gets a talking to for turning up at 7:30 and being set up in 5mins!

[TimR]

The drummer and I usually arrive at the gig an hour before we are due to play. I think he takes his time but less than 30mins.

Out of the six drummers I've played with in the last 2 years, only one has tuned up at the gig. He was also the least proficient player.

The tuning may well be a confidence thing. When I tune my bass, I do it silently and quickly. Several times before we've been due to start the guitarist has been very insistent that I tune up, just because he hasn't seen or heard me do it.

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='coffee_king' timestamp='1403611326' post='2484407']
Hey all

I don't mean to moan at all drummers, but how long does your drummer take to get set up?

Mine takes like 45 mins to an hour and its really doing my head in.

We're only a three piece (He uses kick, snare, 2 toms, hihats, ride and about 4 crashes) but by the time the drummers set up myself and my guitarist can get ALL of our gear set up, and the PA, and all the lighting.

I know drummers have "More gear" to set up than any other member but I really do think 45 mins to 1 hour is excessive.

I'm probably on the wrong type of forum here, but I'd love to know how your drummer sets up and how long it takes them?

I think what also annoys me is the contact banging of the snare. Yes, I realise he needs to get the height and the angle right but surely this doesnt take 3-4 minutes each time he adds a piece of drum equipment.

My guitarist and I dont even make a sound from our amps or the PA until we're ready to sound check.

Again though I realise he has to get it all "Into position"

Maybe I just need to understand drummers more?
[/quote]

I know a few drummers - some were happy enough to sit at a kit - any kit - and play it right away. Some spent an hour setting it up just how they like it. That was with an already assembled kit that they were just changing to suit themselves, and not one that they had to completely assemble themselves. I think an hour is quite reasonable, actually. I know it's easy to get frustrated with them (I was too, at a time), but just roll with it. They won't ever get any faster. That's just how long it takes. If it takes you 20 minutes to set up your stuff, somebody saying "we need you to set up faster" isn't actually going to make a difference, because it takes 20 minutes, and that's just how long it takes.

[MiltyG565]

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1403644258' post='2484952']
The drummer and I usually arrive at the gig an hour before we are due to play. I think he takes his time but less than 30mins.

Out of the six drummers I've played with in the last 2 years, only one has tuned up at the gig. He was also the least proficient player.

The tuning may well be a confidence thing. When I tune my bass, I do it silently and quickly. Several times before we've been due to start the guitarist has been very insistent that I tune up, just because he hasn't seen or heard me do it.
[/quote]

By now, shouldn't he have just learned to take your word for it that you are in tune?

[AntLockyer]

I wonder how long Jack took to set this kit up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yesuSizNW-8

[chris_b]

I have no idea how long any drummer takes to set up.

As long as he hits his deadlines; line check, sound check, leaving the stage prior to start of set and actual start, who's counting.

Drums are affected by room acoustics as much as any other instrument. Tuning drums before a gig is not a bad thing. Every drummer I know will check their sound as soon as they are set up. It seems reasonable for them to check their gear by hitting the drums as loudly as they do when the band is playing.

[Jonnyboy Rotten]

[quote name='skywalker' timestamp='1403637788' post='2484857']
Oh, and he brings it all in a Fiat Punto
[/quote]

I feel his pain.

[cheddatom]

I tune my snare before I play, but I don't hit it hard. That would be annoying while everyone is setting up. Particularly for the sound guy trying to mic the kit.

Have you seen these drummers who twat their kit while the sound guy tries to place mics around them?!? Unbelievable!

[BigRedX]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1403614482' post='2484483']

It depends on the gig. For my folk gig there's a lot of talking between songs so I have time to raise my snare a mm or two. For my reggae gig the DJ spends more time switching vinyl records than I do tweaking. For my rock gig, if the songs flow into one another, I wouldn't dream of stopping a transition just to adjust my snare, but as soon as I get the chance I will do. I don't think it looks unprofessional.

I think it could be compared to tuning in between songs. Not something that every bassist does, but you should probably check your tuning (on mute) every few songs or so. Especially the guitarist. Is it unprofessional for a guitarist to tune in between songs? I don't think so, but maybe your set is all worked out to flow seamlessly with no gaps?
[/quote]

Personally I think talking between songs should be kept to a minimum unless the person doing it is both supremely entertaining and eloquent. Most musicians aren't.

In an ideal world guitarists should have their instruments set up so that they go out of tune as little as possible. Failing that they should have a tuned second guitar and roadie to help them switch (and tune the one not being used) as required. IME guitarists are overly paranoid about tuning and tend to do it far more often than is absolutely necessary. I know the skinny strings are less stable (I play them too) but when I take my bass out of it's case unless the machine heads have been knocked it is still almost perfectly in tune. I'll tune up once at the sound check and once again before going on stage but TBH 99% of the time if I didn't bother the bass would still be in tune enough for no-one in the band or audience to hear anything amiss.

[DogHammer]

Just shy of 5 minutes is what it takes me and my drummer to set up his kit. That's if we are in a rush. A full DW Custom with the Large Bass drum. He stands on the stage, I pass each piece of equipment to him in the right order, he sets it up. Sometimes he will have a few adjustments during the sound check. We have it down to a fine art.

If he's on his own, it will be about 15 minutes.

[cheddatom]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1403687072' post='2485201']
Personally I think talking between songs should be kept to a minimum unless the person doing it is both supremely entertaining and eloquent. Most musicians aren't.

In an ideal world guitarists should have their instruments set up so that they go out of tune as little as possible. Failing that they should have a tuned second guitar and roadie to help them switch (and tune the one not being used) as required. IME guitarists are overly paranoid about tuning and tend to do it far more often than is absolutely necessary. I know the skinny strings are less stable (I play them too) but when I take my bass out of it's case unless the machine heads have been knocked it is still almost perfectly in tune. I'll tune up once at the sound check and once again before going on stage but TBH 99% of the time if I didn't bother the bass would still be in tune enough for no-one in the band or audience to hear anything amiss.
[/quote]

It really depends on your band and the kind of performance you're trying to get across, but in general I would say it's acceptable for a drummer to pull some stands closer to him in between some songs. It takes less than a second. I definitely wouldn't call it unprofessional!

Excessive tuning can be very annoying and unprofessional. Especially if they're not on mute!

[discreet]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1403687796' post='2485211']
Excessive tuning can be very annoying and unprofessional. Especially if they're not on mute!
[/quote]

What annoyed me when I was in a covers band: The guitarist quietly (but audibly) reminding himself of the first couple of chords of the following song, thus letting the audience know what was coming next and removing any advantage of surprise and lessening the impact! That's unprofessional, imho.

Edited June 25, 2014 by discreet

[Dave Vader]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1403687072' post='2485201']
Personally I think talking between songs should be kept to a minimum unless the person doing it is both supremely entertaining and eloquent. Most musicians aren't.
[/quote]

Mostly this is true, but in the world of folk music, there is inevitably a story to the song, and given that most of the lyrics will be hey nonny nonny, way fock a roldediddle, it means the floaty middle aged lady singing has to tell you the story before they start singing, otherwise you will have lost the plot somewhere in the 15th verse.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1403687927' post='2485212']
What annoyed me when I was in a covers band: The guitarist quietly (but audibly) reminding himself of the first couple of chords of the following song, thus letting the audience know what was coming next and removing any advantage of surprise and lessening the impact! That's unprofessional, imho.
[/quote]

This does very much suck, i have experienced it myself before (and possibly been guilty of it in my youth, although i think I used to whang through the chords to songs I wanted the band to do, and see if the crowd looked excited at the prospect. Just to goad the bastards.)

[discreet]

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1403688821' post='2485226']
floaty middle aged lady...
[/quote]

I've got one of those!
She says 'yes, dear' a lot and gets up at six in the morning to practise the trombone (not a euphemism, unfortunately).

Edited June 25, 2014 by discreet

[Kevin Dean]

In my band the Drummer is the lead singer he also has a Roland TD kit , It's the keyboard player that drives me nuts , he always turns up late , makes no eye contact in between songs to let you know he's ready & quite often starts a song with out setting his pitch shift , he has his own mixer but his levels are all over the place & he blames me as I run the PA , but apart from that he's brilliant .

[cheddatom]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1403687927' post='2485212']
What annoyed me when I was in a covers band: The guitarist quietly (but audibly) reminding himself of the first couple of chords of the following song, thus letting the audience know what was coming next and removing any advantage of surprise and lessening the impact! That's unprofessional, imho.
[/quote]

Yes I hate this. Not just covers but any band doing this. It really sucks, especially at the start of a set

[discreet]

[quote name='Kevin Dean' timestamp='1403689255' post='2485232']
In my band the Drummer is the lead singer he also has a Roland TD kit , It's the keyboard player that drives me nuts , he always turns up late , makes no eye contact in between songs to let you know he's ready & quite often starts a song with out setting his pitch shift , he has his own mixer but his levels are all over the place & he blames me as I run the PA , but apart from that he's brilliant .
[/quote]

I tell you, I don't like perpetuating stereotypes (much...) but over many years I've found keys players to be nothing but a huge bloody pain in the arse. There's definitely something wrong with 'em. Always late, aloof, over-developed sense of worth and entitlement, encroach on my frequency space with their pointlessly noodling left hands... mentally ill... I could go on.

Apologies to all the lovely keys players reading this who are musically adept, perfectly sane, humble, modest and punctual!

[skej21]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1403689672' post='2485241']
Apologies to all the lovely keys players reading this who are musically adept, perfectly sane, humble, modest and punctual!
[/quote]

I'm pretty sure the one keyboard player that fits that description won't be reading this as he'll be booked up solid until 2028!

[discreet]

[quote name='skej21' timestamp='1403690097' post='2485249']
I'm pretty sure the one keyboard player that fits that description won't be reading this as he'll be booked up solid until 2028!
[/quote]

[size=4] [/size]

[BigRedX]

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1403688821' post='2485226']
Mostly this is true, but in the world of folk music, there is inevitably a story to the song, and given that most of the lyrics will be hey nonny nonny, way fock a roldediddle, it means the floaty middle aged lady singing has to tell you the story before they start singing, otherwise you will have lost the plot somewhere in the 15th verse.
[/quote]

TBH the only remotely "folky" gig I've ever been to was Fleet Foxes. Even there the amount of talking between songs was excessive, especially since it was mostly mumbled and punctuated with "ums" and "errs". I just wanted them to get on and play the songs. Totally killed the gig for me. If explaining what the song is about is an essential for the audience's enjoyment of it (although IMO if you can't get it from the words then it's a fail) then deliver it clearly, succinctly and without hesitation. After all if you played the song in the way most people introduce them, the band would get booed off the stage for being totally incompetent musicians.

[discreet]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1403690354' post='2485257']
If explaining what the song is about is an essential for the audience's enjoyment of it... then deliver it clearly, succinctly and without hesitation.
[/quote]

I don't like any persiflage between songs, really. If it's necessary to explain the song at all then it's a fail for me. Bit like having to explain a joke. [size=4]Surely the message should be in the song and the music - that's the expression you've taken the the time and trouble to go and hear.[/size]

Edited June 25, 2014 by discreet

[Happy Jack]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1403690354' post='2485257']
If explaining what the song is about is an essential for the audience's enjoyment of it (although IMO if you can't get it from the words then it's a fail) then deliver it clearly, succinctly and without hesitation.
[/quote]

Here's a song about walking down Baker Street. It's called "[i][b]Baker Street[/b][/i]".

This song is about a woman I knew called Maggie May. It's called "[i][b]Maggie May[/b][/i]".

The next song is about what happens when a lakeside hotel catches fire. It's called "[i][b]Alright Now[/b][/i]". No, wait a minute ...

[Jonnyboy Rotten]

When I go to see small acoustic originals groups/bands, although I don't want the full story of a particular track, I sometimes like to hear what inspired them to write it.

But it does tend to get on my wick when the front man/woman says at the end of a song introduction:

"..and it goes something like this."

or worse:

"....it goes a-little something like this."

[discreet]

[quote name='Jonnyboy Rotten' timestamp='1403692143' post='2485279']
"...it goes a-little something like this."
[/quote]

Excruciating. It's when they start thanking God for the gift of music that I keep very calm and move slowly towards the door.