Where are the drummers?

[SteveXFR]

Maybe it's a particular problem down here in Somerset but drummers are really hard to find, good ones even harder to find and good ones who are reliable and play metal are like unicorn turds.

Fortunately our rhythm guitarist / singer is a pretty handy drummer for recording but unless we buy him one of those old fashioned one man band kits we need an actual drummer for gigs.

Is it always really hard to find them? Is there somewhere online they hang out?

[Old Horse Murphy]

Calling @Jakester

[Nicko]

9 minutes ago, SteveXFR said:

Maybe it's a particular problem down here in Somerset but drummers are really hard to find, good ones even harder to find and good ones who are reliable and play metal are like unicorn turds.

Fortunately our rhythm guitarist / singer is a pretty handy drummer for recording but unless we buy him one of those old fashioned one man band kits we need an actual drummer for gigs.

Is it always really hard to find them? Is there somewhere online they hang out?

Surely there must be a Drumchat internet forum somewhere.  I've not experienced problems with drummers so much as singists but then I'm not in the SW.

[wateroftyne]

They’re so busy gigging* they have no time to chat on the internet.
 

*When it’s not Covid, obv

[Happy Jack]

 

[SteveXFR]

The drum machine suggestion isn't too far off our best current option which is recorded drum tracks played through the PA but it would be better to have a real drummer there playing and making mistakes with the rest of us.

[Waddo Soqable]

Drum machine definitely ( or the recorded drums, but get an old Revox to play em on eh )

Some outfit I was involved in had a drummer that was a proper pain for availability, so my girlfriend of the time suggested, "when old d!ckhead can't turn up, I'll just operate the drum machine"

Worked very well and sent the message that drum bloke wasn't indispensable

Edited August 12, 2021 by Waddo Soqable

[SteveXFR]

How did it go down with audiences not having a live drummer?

[Waddo Soqable]

1 minute ago, SteveXFR said:

How did it go down with audiences not having a live drummer?

Absolutely fine, plus it was a bit of interest having a girl looking cool and operating a bit of eleccy stuff too...

[neepheid]

I've played in four bands (still in two) with the same drummer since 2008.  Find a good 'un, retain at any cost.  You can't have my drummer.  The fact that we're hundreds of miles apart does not make me feel like I don't need to say it

 

[Geek99]

1 hour ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Drum machine definitely ( or the recorded drums, but get an old Revox to play em on eh )

Some outfit I was involved in had a drummer that was a proper pain for availability, so my girlfriend of the time suggested, "when old d!ckhead can't turn up, I'll just operate the drum machine"

Worked very well and sent the message that drum bloke wasn't indispensable

She sounds perfect. Apart from the verbal abuse, but otherwise perfect 

[Jakester]

3 hours ago, Old Horse Murphy said:

Calling @Jakester

You didn’t say it three times backwards whilst looking in a mirror…!

 

I am a drummer in Somerset.  Not very metal though. 
 

The BC equivalent used to be Mikedolbear.com though it seems they shut the forums down. Maybe try their Facebook page? 
 

Otherwise JMB and Gumtree have got me gigs in the past. 

[Jus Lukin]

-

Edited March 15, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Waddo Soqable]

45 minutes ago, Geek99 said:

She sounds perfect. Apart from the verbal abuse, but otherwise perfect 

Her swearing was in fact legendary, it's all her fault I use such bad language to this day...

[Geek99]

2 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Her swearing was in fact legendary, it's all her fault I use such bad language to this day...

Any woman who will step into the breach and save the day, especially one who’ll take on drumming a gig, must be pretty damn good. I’d live with the swearing 

Edited August 12, 2021 by Geek99

[Geek99]

15 minutes ago, Jakester said:

You didn’t say it three times backwards whilst looking in a mirror…!

 

I am a drummer in Somerset.  Not very metal though. 
 

The BC equivalent used to be Mikedolbear.com though it seems they shut the forums down. Maybe try their Facebook page? 
 

Otherwise JMB and Gumtree have got me gigs in the past. 

He’s no good for metal :rolleyes we wait all this time for an answer to The Question and it’s “not very”. How f ucking rock and roll is that?

 

… Answer I suppose is “not very” 😔

Edited August 12, 2021 by Geek99

[Waddo Soqable]

1 minute ago, Geek99 said:

He’s no good for metal :rolleyes

That's the thing about the drum machine, provided you ask it nicely it'll do what it's told ( in theory)

[Geek99]

Just now, Geek99 said:

He’s no good for metal :rolleyes

 

5 minutes ago, Waddo Soqable said:

Her swearing was in fact legendary, it's all her fault I use such bad language to this day...

I haven’t heard you mention guitars even once, so you’re golden 

[Waddo Soqable]

Just now, Geek99 said:

 

I haven’t heard you mention guitars even once, so you’re golden 

Git- what ??   never....

[Geek99]

Well not-said that man 

[SteveXFR]

9 hours ago, Jakester said:

You didn’t say it three times backwards whilst looking in a mirror…!

 

I am a drummer in Somerset.  Not very metal though. 
 

The BC equivalent used to be Mikedolbear.com though it seems they shut the forums down. Maybe try their Facebook page? 
 

Otherwise JMB and Gumtree have got me gigs in the past. 

 

We're not very metal, none of them blast beats, more like Black Sabbath mixed with Soundgarden. 

[JonesTheCat]

Good to hear it's not just us. We've had ads on Gumtree, JMB, various Facebook pages. Had a few (maybe about six or seven) enquiries but they all seem to disappear after a message or two. Admittedly we're in a different part of the country but right by a reasonably large musical hub, guess they're all busy. 

[SteveXFR]

We auditioned a few. Either they could play well enough but wouldn't commit to a fortnightly rehearsal or they would commit but weren't up to the job. The last one said he could commit, could play very well but then when it came to it, he said he couldn't make rehearsal because he was going to spend the day online gaming. 

[neepheid]

1 minute ago, SteveXFR said:

We auditioned a few. Either they could play well enough but wouldn't commit to a fortnightly rehearsal or they would commit but weren't up to the job. The last one said he could commit, could play very well but then when it came to it, he said he couldn't make rehearsal because he was going to spend the day online gaming. 

 

Can't make a /fornightly/ rehearsal?  Next!

[Waddo Soqable]

6 minutes ago, SteveXFR said:

We auditioned a few. Either they could play well enough but wouldn't commit to a fortnightly rehearsal or they would commit but weren't up to the job. The last one said he could commit, could play very well but then when it came to it, he said he couldn't make rehearsal because he was going to spend the day online gaming. 

Seriously? That's got to be the most pathetic thing I've ever heard....