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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Surf Musician »

Permalink Help. we're too loud.

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My band is kind of stalled out, largely due to volume. So we're kind of loud. No where near as loud as it gets, frankly, probably kind of soft compared to some bands, but our drummer likes to hit things, and...you know.

BUT it's limiting the gigs we can do. We don't have enough of (any) following to play weekend nights at rock clubs, and no one wants to play Tuesday at 11:30 for 2 people at an empty rock club. There are loads of smaller bars around, which would be a good option, but we tend to be too loud for the room.

I HATE turning around and saying "um, can you keep it down" to the drummer, who sounds great, just loud. Anyone else run into this? I don't know whether to try and make him use brushes (he's not a fan of brushes for surf) or what. I've brought it up before, but nothing really changes. Anyone want to play marriage counselor? (the bass player, bless his heart, usually plays too soft and I end up turning up his amp!)

Matt Heaton & the Electric Heaters
"Dick Dale meets Dennis Lehane"
http://www.heatonsurf.com

You can muffle the drums to some extent, but usually the tone quality suffers. There are plexiglass drum isolation shields, I've seen clubs that use them because of noise constraints. There are also good quality small drums out there that take up very little room, sound good and are not as loud. Or there's the electronic route, their way better than they were. Ultimately the easy way is for the drummer not to play so hard, I realize that's not as easy as it sounds.

Kind of a pain for gigs but I put this up for our practice room and it has been fantastic for taming drums. Pretty easy to set up and take down.
image

The Kahuna Kings

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Kahuna-Kings/459752090818447

https://thekahunakings.bandcamp.com/releases

If we have a quieter gig, our drummer will use bamboo drumsticks. The guitarists and bass player will also bring lower wattage amps and smaller cabinets.

Paul

We play a wide variety of venues, from big clubs to cafes and restaurants, and have no issues with adjusting our individual volumes. You could talk to your drummer to see if he is interested in playing more gigs, and ask him nicely to adjust his volume accordingly so that you can get more gigs. Start rehearsing at the softer volume that you would need to play at (if you have rehearsals). That way everyone will get more comfortable playing at that volume. Your explanation of your situation sums it up really well, and I suspect that if your drummer wants to gig more he will adjust.
Our drummer is fine with using sticks at our lower volume gigs, but sometimes will use the bundled sticks, or brushes. Just be open and honest with your band members, it has kept us together for 23 years. Best of luck.

Rev

Canadian Surf

http://www.urbansurfkings.com/

I occasionally jam with friends in a small soundproofed barn in the drummers back garden. When we first started he had a really loud and brash Yamaha kit which was almost unbearable in such a small space. When he later found himself a 1960s Slingerland kit the sound was so much less offensive and nicer tone too.

revoke--true enough. this might all point to an underlying issue of I'm not sure how into it he is these days. also: what is this "rehearse" of which you speak? Confused

Matt Heaton & the Electric Heaters
"Dick Dale meets Dennis Lehane"
http://www.heatonsurf.com

Rehearse is something we did for many years, a long time ago, when we were young. Now it is just a hazy memory of a long lost time. It still occurs, rarely, when we have a recording project to do. Big Grin

Rev

Canadian Surf

http://www.urbansurfkings.com/

what a beautiful dream...(cue harp glass)

Matt Heaton & the Electric Heaters
"Dick Dale meets Dennis Lehane"
http://www.heatonsurf.com

Talk to him about it. If he doesn't want to play in a way that allows you to play the gigs you want to play, he isn't a good fit. That is better for both of you.

Play those Tuesday shows. You need to play those shows to get the Friday/Saturday gigs. We played weekdays in the first several years of the band, now we'll never need to play another weekday. You earn it.

Bars where there you can be too loud, are they really music bars? Or just a bar that thinks they have live music? These aren't any better than the Tuesday gigs.

Practice like you play. Don't let the drummer be louder than you in practice or it will be that way at the gig. Talking about volume and where everybody sits is a very important part of being a band.

We have a very loud drummer. He wanted his son to learn drums and bought him a small Gretsch kit. The gigs we do generally don't need him to play quietly, but if he does, he commandeers his son's kit, which is considerably quieter. Quieter cymbals are also handy.

Los Fantasticos

Good drummers are hard to find, so don't easily dismiss him or draw a line in the sand. Our first drummer with RG was one of the most gifted drummers I've ever heard, but he was just too loud and it did eventually cause problems with promoters/gigs. We actually had a club owner call him out. He couldn't play the same at quieter volume. I have heard drummers that can; could be technique or style (maybe post this "attn: drummers-they may have better insight to a cure than us guitarist).

Talk to drummer first (seriously and not during practice), see if it's a technique thing. Second try smaller kit. If he doesn't have it in him then you'll have to move on. Otherwise the music will suffer and so will everyone's ears. Good luck!

Surfcat

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Surf, the most dangerous of all musical genres...

You know what they say, if it’s too loud...turn it down

The Squares - 1995-2002
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Southern Surf Stomp!

I was considering starting a thread on this topic.
Apparently I have been playing guitar way too loud all my days and practicing recently with a more volume-sensitive player who kept inveighing me to turn down further, I discover that my sense of normal volume is TOO LOUD.
The percussive sound of clean guitar rarely hurts my ears but I do notice tinnitus in quiet places these last few years since I have been practicing loud and clean to improve my surf tones.
I have had hearing tests and done very well especially considering my years, but I take this fellow’s input as a warning to prevent further hearing loss.
Are filter plugs a better solution than those expanding foam things that render my guitar an indistinct plunk? I am told that my Bandmaster is too much amp for garage practice but it’s the best moderately loud amp
I have for surf. Practicing recently I was told to turn down when the volume was parked at “2”.

Squink Out!

Great advice here from Jake and RevMike. I've been hammering the concept of "dynamics" since day one. "quiet intensity". So take Penetration down to as quiet a level as you can, make it fast, and push the rhythm to the front edge of the beat. Now..quieter. Quieter..a whisper (still keeping that intensity and 'push'). I found it a good exercise for getting the band to play with their ears.

https://www.facebook.com/gnarlymen/

https://gnarlymen.bandcamp.com/

JObeast wrote:

Are filter plugs a better solution than those expanding foam things that render my guitar an indistinct plunk?

Yes. Definitely look into musicians' earplugs. There are a lot of great options that lower the volume without muddling the sound.

I use these: https://www.etymotic.com/consumer/hearing-protection/er20.html

But there are tons of similar options, as well as higher-end custom molded ones.

Four String Fender for The Delstroyers & The Woodhavens

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Last edited: Feb 02, 2024 13:02:24

I like this approach. Blasting away is never much fun anyhowin the long run - ears just get 'calloused' anyhow so the loudness becomes normal. I always hated loud rock clubs and felt the punishing levels disturbing, toxic.
Surf doesn't come from rock; rock evolved away from it. SO there is no inherent ultraloudness in surf, unless you are talking about Dick Dale and his impact.

_TJYarbro wrote:

Great advice here from Jake and RevMike. I've been hammering the concept of "dynamics" since day one. "quiet intensity". So take Penetration down to as quiet a level as you can, make it fast, and push the rhythm to the front edge of the beat. Now..quieter. Quieter..a whisper (still keeping that intensity and 'push'). I found it a good exercise for getting the band to play with their ears.

Squink Out!

Been down this road before. You'll definitely get more gigs and return engagements if you learn to manage your volume. Good players can do this and your overall sound will improve with a managed volume. I would definitely recommend working with your drummer before dismissing him as they are hard to find. Perhaps a non-practice band meeting to discuss the issue. Come to the table with solutions not just the problem.

  • Smaller kit. This can make a huge difference.
  • Drum pads.
  • Smaller sticks.
  • And of course the guitar players need to think about smaller lower powered rigs.

Sometimes it's hard to convey to musicians how loud volumes can offend the audience, but it is a real issue and some folks just won't hang out for painful volumes. We as musicians are generally accustomed to louder than normal volumes but your average patron, not so much.

FYI: I developed some serious hearing damage from all my years of gigging (and other stuff), and now have constant tinnitus. As much as I love good live music when the volume reaches a certain level I now have to move away from the stage or in some instances outside.

METEOR IV on reverbnation

Last edited: Mar 21, 2018 18:59:06

Lot's of great advice. I have had the same problem with our drummer, he has started using special (nylon, bamboo?) sticks when low volume is needed and it helps a lot. He also purchased a set of congas and bongos and uses these on certain indoor jobs where moderate volume is needed. These work OK, different sound than a full drum set but let us play in venues where we couldn't otherwise. And smaller (Princeton Reverb or similar) sized amps keep everything in balance.

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