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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Surf Musician »

Permalink Surf drumming - my subjective thoughts

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Klas

krupanut
The Tami shows Unbelievable! Have you seen the whole uncut show?
The Barbarians are awesome!

Yeah! Some time ago I showed the Barbarians performance for a friend. He refused to believe it was shot in 1964 after seeing the wild long-haired close-ups of Moulty pounding the drums! The whole show is totally great including the awesome J & D opening credits!

You have impeccable taste Klas!

Moulty is a trip!
That dude was way ahead of his time.

It's really interesting to see the Tami show and the transitions taking place,
musically and stylistically at the time.

I even dig Lesley Gores set, Surprised
she sings her butt off.

The Thunderchiefs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq5piiRPohM

I always liked this part of the show. I believe that's Thumbs Carlise back there with the Telecaster on his lap. I had mentioned him when Jake said he had trouble holding his guitar awhile back

"as he stepped into the stealthy night air... little did he know the fire escape was not there"

https://www.facebook.com/reluctantaquanauts/
https://www.facebook.com/TheDragstripVipers/

That was a differnt concert from a couple years later but yeah man lots of killer stuff in that one!
Ike and Tinna rip on that show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeVFEaDIAlM

The Thunderchiefs

MOULTY!

http://www.satanspilgrims.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553
https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/
http://www.surfyindustries.com

Just looking for some advice...

I'm looking to find a ride cymbal that can second as a crash. Los Straitjackets new drummer uses only one cymbal live and I love the sound of it. Right now I'm playing a crappy CRAPPY ZBT 20 inch ride. I've been playing this thing for the past 5 years. It sounds fine, I mean I just play around with it to make it sound how I like. But I'd love to find a great washy ride for surf.

Science friction burns my fingers.

tonybologna
Just looking for some advice...

I'm looking to find a ride cymbal that can second as a crash. Los Straitjackets new drummer uses only one cymbal live and I love the sound of it. Right now I'm playing a crappy CRAPPY ZBT 20 inch ride. I've been playing this thing for the past 5 years. It sounds fine, I mean I just play around with it to make it sound how I like. But I'd love to find a great washy ride for surf.

Thin vintage Zildjian rides sound the best, look for one labled as a "medium crash" cymbal.

If your crusing E-bay look for Krut ride cymbals (turk backwards, cheapo cymbals made in england in the 50s-60s) I've had a couple of 20 in rides that sounded great.

Other than that touch is the whole key and the main reason Jason sounds so good on one cymbal with the Straightjackets. Wink

The Thunderchiefs

I'm bumping this old thread for a hardcore blast from the past.

I've just been paying more particular attention to surf drumming lately, and being completely uneducated in drumming styles, I was only able to notice and articulate to myself that surf drumming seems quite tom-heavy, which I like. Cool
I really don't have much more to add than that personally. I just figured it would be worth bringing this thread back to the surface considering how much quality, valuable information it has, and maybe to jumpstart some more discussion from those who know what they're talking about. Laughing

wooza
I'm bumping this old thread for a hardcore blast from the past.

You could say that again! Laughing My posts in this thread were pre-playing-in-any-surf-bands.
As for toms: Depending on the drummer, toms are used quite frequently. I enjoy hitting them numerous times throughout the set.

Science friction burns my fingers.

Tony, I'm glad you found a surf band or three to play with! Rock

Good bump, wooza, this is a great thread. Hopefully the discussion will continue...

Don

It depends. In my mind's ear I remember Jim Gallagher of the Astronauts not playing the toms much-lots of snare fills. Same with on the Surfites' Big Pounder cd. Toms are used more as an embellishment (even overdubbed to sound like tympani), but as far the playing of the kit, it's a whole lot of snare.
btw, where the hell is the originator of this thread, kick the reverb?
Ran? You out there?

http://www.satanspilgrims.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553
https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/
http://www.surfyindustries.com

Yeah, I miss Ran. Hope he's okay??

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
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"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

Ran is fine, I talk to him about once a week.

Hes really busy with the baby, and is also in deep in his old Dodge van restoration, he doesn't go on tiki central at all anymore either.

Hes on some muscle Car forums mostly.

if something here is real important I fwd him the link.

I'll tell him you guys said hi.
I'll see him tomorrow at a car show in Burbank.

Jeff(bigtikidude)

Jeff(bigtikidude)

Hey guys,
Thanks for the interest in my well being, pretty much what Jeff said, I kinda fell behind on reading, and don't have a lot of extra time to catch up..so I limit myself to the most pressing not toddler related problems (vehicles right now).
To go back to the original subject:
My bands progress on our recording is stuck due to me wanting to apply some "studio magic" (cut & paste) to some ride parts that are not consistent enough to my taste.
Meanning, if you have a fast part, the ride does 8th, but the drummer emphasizes 1 or 2 out of the 8, then all of a sudden the listener ear picks up only the louder 1 or 2 and it gives the part a completely different, much slower feel.
In my case, I need to fix that before continuing, and since I really have to be not watching a toddler at the same time, I really can't get into the mind set to do that.
Toms - I love toms, but I'm perfectly fine with snare heavy fills, they work great. One tom that I can not give up is the floor tom, which is useful for replacing the ride in some cases, let's say the "chrous" part of Downshiftin' in Around the World with Satan's Pilgrims.

Anyway enough Blah Blah
Ran

The Scimitars

Assuming you have a standard-sized kit, all elements have their part, however the snare and ride cymbal are critical & probably the most frequently used. For myself, I prefer a versatile ride cymbal with some degree of wash (not too much) that can also be used as a crash. The snare drum is the foundation of this music - remember people actually used to dance to it - so proper backbeat is essential. It is probably the most-heard part of the kit when taken in context with everyone else playing, so one should be completely comfortable with the sound and playability.

Toms are great too, add a nice element of change, whether to anticipate, punctuate or emphasize a change in the song, or just for a variety.

Above all, the most important part of the drums is the way they sound to the audience - either live or recorded. While much of this has to do with the engineer (especially on record), the elements of the kit should be properly mixed with themselves and also blend well with the other instruments in the band. As a whole, youl wouldn't want the rhythm guitar drowning out the lead guitar and the floor tom overpowering the snare drum, both of which burying the rhythm guitar which, as previously mentioned, was louder than the lead guitar..or something like that.

tfj

I agree with Jim, and want to add that the mix between the elements of the drum kit starts, of course, before the engineer - first the drum kit itself, and second with the drumming style. It takes a good drummer to know how to play fast yet still not bash everything hard enough to upset the balance. And yes, it's importnat how the whole band sounds together, because if you just listen to the drums themselves, everything could sound peachy, yet add all the other instruments, and suddenly small inconsistancies become big ones.

The Scimitars

all of that should go without saying, however, if you're sitting behind the kit, the sound can be - and often is - different than what the audience winds up hearing. Unless you're set up Los Straitjackets style with the drums in front, the kit is usually even with, or just slightly in front of or behind the cabinets, so it is difficult to judge. Then of course, there's the sound engineer (that's probably a different thread), but I've experienced situations where the drums are run though the PA, but the guy turns down the amps through the PA because they're loud enough on their own, or, if not miked, the drums can get buried underneath a wall of Showmans - with only the cymbals crashes an occasional rimshot getting through.

In the studio, you really are at the mercy of the engineer. If you have adequate isolation - if you even want it - the engineer can manipulate each track.

As an aside, I absolutely love the sound of the Thunderchiefs' "Dig" album- acccording to the liner notes, they recorded it in some guy's bedroom, so obviously there was an ambient vibe. That is achieving optimal sound balance at the performance level. What a great sound!

tfj

this whole drumming thing is just too friggin' complicated. Im more of a "push button - get banana" kinda guy, that's why I play guitar. respect to all the drummers out there! Worship Monkey

btw, I love a "dancing ride" with a lot of dynamic, but Ran is right, it can throw a song upside down.

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"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."

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IvanP
Wannes, if you listen to the Surfaris recordings, the drums were WAY up in the mix!

I'm not positive it's surf, but what about the Rumblers?

I posted this question here, because I thought this was an excellent thread. And it is drum related. I'm wondering what type of bass drum pedal is recommended for surf. I am in the market for one at the moment. Ill probably end up buying another DW5000, the one I have is broken, I really loved it, but I am biased to the DW, as I have really never tried any others out. Money is not an issue, I am just looking for the best pedal I can buy. Any sugestions would be appreciated.

Jonathan from the Deadbeats uses a vintage Iron Cobra. He frequently throws in Pantera style bass hits.
All kidding aside, they are really nice pedals.

I use a Pearl pedal, that works just fine. I don't think bass drum pedals are all that important. Maybe just the beater you are using.

HAHA "what's the best bass drum pedal for surf?"

Science friction burns my fingers.

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