Category: Pop

Drums in the Buff

When recording in the studio, drummers (and especially engineers) have a tendency to muffle and cover the drums with all sorts of things. Gaffer’s tape, towels, wallets, t-shirts. Sometimes this is done to achieve a certain effect (for example, the “Ringo” sound), while other times it’s just an attempt to control the natural overtones of the drums. For a good example of a heavily muffled drum sound, just listen to any album recorded by The Eagles.

220408dheagles gh4 300x237 Drums in the Buff
Don 'The Muffler' Henley

There’s also the opposite approach to recording drums. No muffling. Little or no gating. Just crank up the overhead mics and capture the real sound of the kit. Sometimes it’s refreshing to hear the wide range of frequencies bouncing around drums as you play a groove. It can bring life to a track and provide a certain essence that heavily produced or programmed drums tend to lack.

Loop #60

For today’s loop, my drums are totally naked. No t-shirts or duct tape, however, I was wearing pants. You can even hear the sympathetic resonance coming off of the cymbals and toms. It’s a straight forward, pop/rock feel with another hat tip to Chris Frantz (floor tom on the “&” of four).

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105 BPM

Same as it ever was…

I still remember my first Modern Drummer magazine. It was the August, 1989 issue and Chris Frantz of The Talking Heads graced the cover. I was twelve years old and had finally convinced my parents to buy me a drumset (an old red sparkle, 4 piece “Apollo” kit). While we were at the music store purchasing some cymbals to go with the drums (Zildjian Bronze Scimitars), I grabbed a few pairs of sticks and my first copy of “MD”.

apollo 4 0001 211x300 Same as it ever was...
My first kit

For the next month, when I wasn’t in my bedroom playing along to INXS’ “Kick” album, I was reading my first issue of Modern Drummer. I was mesmerized by everything inside. The product reviews of the new Pearl Exports. The Yamaha Recording Custom ads featuring Dave Weckl and his perfectly coifed mullet. This was drummer-porn to the fullest. I was hooked.

It was my first chance to get inside the minds of the drummers I heard on the radio and watched on MTV. I found the interview with Chris Frantz to be particularly interesting. I learned about the history of The Talking Heads and what it was like to play at CBGB’s in NYC (a club I would end up frequently playing 13 years later). Their art school approach to music making made me think about drumming in a different light. It was the first time I heard someone talk about the importance of “music” over “chops”. It was my first step in the right direction.

frantz crop 221x300 Same as it ever was...
Chris Frantz - The Talking Heads

Loop #58

Today’s loop was inspired by Chris’ drumming with The Talking Heads, particularly their hit “Once in a Lifetime”. Instead of incorporating the tom on the “&” of 4, I play it directly on the 1. This groove is actually an outtake from one of the loop packs I’ll be publishing. More details to come soon…

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110 BPM

The Car Game – Round 2

To be perfectly honest, I had no clue about what I was going to write today so I decided to attempt another death-defying round of the “car game”. For those of you just tuning in, the “car game” is when I get in my car (typically after my wife has driven it), start the engine, and then base my loop on whatever happens to be playing on the radio. Anything goes. Brooks and Dunn. Daughtry. Michael Bolton. You name it… I’ll make a loop that sounds like it.

Fortunately, I was spared once again. With a turn of the key, I heard a very familiar voice, some jangly yet driving guitar and some tasteful drumming. It was a new track from Death Cab for Cutie’s latest album. I’ve been a fan of the band since their early Barsuk years and have enjoyed Jason McGerr’s drumming since he joined in 2003. And coincidentially enough, McGerr is no stranger to the world of drum loops. He recently released a ReFill pack of loops for Propellerhead.

propellerheads jasonmcgerr 300x226 The Car Game Round 2
Jason McGerr

Loop #57

To help set the Death Cab “vibe” for tonight’s loop, I scrolled through the various guitar loops in Logic’s library until I found something that closely fit the bill and tuned the drums for a nice, open sound. I made the loop eight bars long in order to allow the crash cymbal to decay naturally and threw in a little Stewart Copeland hi hat lick to mix things up.

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157 BPM

One for Meg

Yeah, I know I should be hating on Meg White. The sloppy technique. The loose time. The lack of chops. But, in my humble opinion, she’s the perfect drummer for The White Stripes.

She doesn’t use multiple splash cymbals. She doesn’t play anything faster than a 16th note. She plays what she feels is right for the song… and it feels fucking great. Music shouldn’t fit on a grid. It should have a vibe. It should have some soul. Meg’s got plenty of soul. And a sweet set of Ludwigs.

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Meg White

Loop #56

Today’s loop is based off of one of the many floor tom grooves favored by Meg. A strong, “four on the floor” feel, mixed with a bit of filtering. It might be a little “accurate” as far as grids go, but I gotta keep all of you REX-heads happy. Now, go start a band with your wife/sister and write some indie rock classics.

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129 BPM

Phoenix

I first became a fan of Phoenix after hearing their track, “Too Young”, in the 2003 movie, “Lost in Translation”. I was struck by how tastefully this French band combined dance grooves, rock guitars and pop melodies. Typically, this blending of genres is a recipe for disaster (apologies to The Bravery) but Phoenix pulls it all together in a very refreshing and musical manner. Perhaps it’s all of the coq au vin and Bordeaux?

To get a better idea of what I’m talking about, check out this clip of their recent appearance on Saturday Night Live.

phoenix 300x300 Phoenix

Loop #54

Today’s loop is heavily inspired by Phoenix and their approach to combining a pulsing, dance beat along with the grittiness of a rock groove. To achieve this sound, I used a lot of gating on the individual tracks, some sub bass on the kick, and an amp simulator on the overheads.

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121 BPM

The Money Beat

So, you want to be a big rockstar and make some money? You want to ride around in limousines with hot tubs in the back and eat caviar for breakfast? Well my friend, it sounds like you need the Money Beat.

get money 300x213 The Money Beat
Maybe you'll be this lucky someday.

Loop #53

This loop is nothing but pure money making magic. 1 and 3 on the kick. 2 and 4 on the snare. No fancy shit. Just a solid back beat and a hint of reverb. Top 40 Gold.

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80 BPM

Old is the new New

There’s recently been a resurgence of the classic “Motown Sound” in modern music. Artist like Jamie Lidell, Amy Whinehouse and one of my favorites, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings have been infusing their twenty-first century tracks with both the production and feel that came roaring out of Detroit in the early 1960s.

sharon jones and the dap kings 100 days 100 nights b 300x300 Old is the new New

Loop #41

This loop is dedicated to the legendary Uriel Jones who sadly passed away last week. If you want to learn more about Uriel (and the history of the greatest rhythm section ever), then I highly recommend watching the documentary, “Standing in the Shadows of Motown”.

james jamerson6 300x239 Old is the new New
Uriel Jones and James Jamerson

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130 BPM

Dirty Laundry.

I’ll find any excuse to put off doing laundry. It’s one of those mundane chores of life that I could really do without… but then again, I don’t want to smell like a bum.

Earlier today, as I was reluctantly carrying my basket of laundry downstairs, I passed my studio in the hallway and could hear my drums calling out to me:

Hey asshole. Put that basket down. Come in here. Laundry can wait. You’re two days behind on loops!”

Fine, fine. Twist my arm.

I sat down and thought about what I was going to record. I’ve been on another Beatles kick the past few days (The White Album on heavy iPod rotation) and decided I’d go for a Ringo type vibe. To get the flat “towel sound”, I reached for three t-shirts that were on top of the pile of laundry and placed them on my toms and snare. Why mess up some perfectly clean towels?

photo2 300x225 Dirty Laundry.
The sound is in the smell.

Loop #40

Three dirty t-shirts, a bit of compression and a lot of procrastination.

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70 BPM

Slaughtering Stevie.

Every 2.3 seconds, somewhere in the world, a song by Stevie Wonder is slaughtered. From the bar band in Akron, Ohio to the wedding band in Pasadena, California, classic songs such as “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “I Wish” are being taking out back, waterboarded and then hacked to pieces in such a horrific manner, even Jeffrey Dahmer would wince.

stevie wonder 13 300x203 Slaughtering Stevie.
Stop the madness.

I’ll admit, I’ve taken part in such crimes. I was young and needed the money. At the time, my only options were to wear a tuxedo and murder timeless songs or get a job at Guitar Center. It was an easy choice, but one that still haunts me to this day. I often wake up in the middle of the night screaming, then roaming the bedroom, looking for extra scraps from the catering table.

shine formal smaller 297x300 Slaughtering Stevie.
Cold-blooded killers.

Loop #39
Today’s loop is a Stevie-esque groove. My hope is that you take this beat and slaughter your own version of Stevie Wonder tunes in the private confines of your own home. If I can prevent just one person from performing a bad cover of “Superstition” in public, I might start sleeping peacefully again.

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87 BPM

How to make it appear BIGGER.

I prefer recording my drums in small to medium sized rooms. There’s something about the attack and tightness you get when you’re not bouncing the sound off of 30′ ceilings. I’ve been fortunate enough to have had the chance to record in the “big” rooms at The Hit Factory (RIP) and Avatar in NYC and while the drums sounded HUGE and bigger than life, it was almost too much. If you’re tracking drums for Whitesnake, this might be the sound you’re looking for… but often it can be hard to reign it in and fit in a mix.

2006 08 arts hitfact 300x228 How to make it appear BIGGER.
The Hit Factory - Studio A

On the flip side, when you record in a smaller room, sometimes you need to make things sound bigger than the natural acoustics can provide. One trick to making this happen (without reaching for the dreaded reverb insert) is to place a microphone in the hallway outside of the drum room. This is a technique I stole from one of my favorite producers and engineers, Tchad Blake. This mic placement often gives you something that’s a few notches beyond your typical room mic, and can sound great both on it’s own and mixed in with the full drum track.

photo1 225x300 How to make it appear BIGGER.
The Hit Basement - Studio G.

Loop #37

Today’s loop is based on the “hallway mic’ing” technique. The first 8 bars is just the single mic (SM57) placed outside of the drum room about 10″ and positioned in the “sweet spot” (the second step). The next 8 bar phrase is the full drum mix along with the hallway mic. I attribute the fine-tuned ambient characteristics to the acoustically treated carpet that lines the basement of my house. The combination of ground in cat hair and Dorito crumbs seems to cancel out all unwanted bass frequencies.

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181 BPM