A fair bit different than what i normally post.

Something Old, Something New, Something Odd.

Blar.

I like how you got the snare to sound. It is very snarey, like with the wires and stuff. That is something people tend to appreciate less these days, it seems. The compression on the drums is just fine, too. And there are funky sounds... all in all a good show.

Ah yes. All of the drums are covered in tea towels. Total 70's no-shell-ring-whatsoever dry ass punchydrumstyle. For the snare, it shifts the balance heavily in favor of the snare side.

You just have to play really lightly on the cymbals because the towels cut so much volume out of everything else. BUT. Because everything is so deadened, you can get away with using like 90% of the drumsound as the snare and bass, and then just use all of the other mics as cymbal control.

Definitely fun to play with.

I have also been having fun with automating really fucked up EQ settings, making them turn into other fucked up EQ settings. Too many toys built into these newfangled DAWs.

The last time i did this sort of Copshow musicks, all i had was a tascam tape four track and a keyboard with a really basic general MIDI soundset.

I liked that.

I know this is gonna be a dumbass question, but how does one place the towels to deaden the drums effectively like that without totally fucking the drum sound? They still sound like drums, just, like you said, that totally dry, clipped '70s thing. I've never attempted to get that out of a real kit before, so I'm wondering.

Lots of different ways to go about it, depending on how dead you want it to sound, and how ringy the drums you are starting out with are.

Usually it is like this:

or this:


But for this recording, i went all out and covered the entire heads with towels. I just use clothes pins to tack the towels to the rim, usually about four per drum, placed wherever they won't get in the way of sticks or hands. These fuckers can work well with a lower profile, also:


I usually use three different towels. A pretty normal one for the snare, a thinner one for the high tom, and then for the floor tom, i actually use one layer of an old tee shirt that i cut up. That is just what i settled on. A pretty dead snare, but with slightly more resonance on the toms.

Also, covering the heads completely, like i do, makes playing the drums harder(the stick tip can catch on the towel), and can even introduce some ghost noting, as the towel bounces after the stick leaves. I like it, as it keeps my playing in check and on subject, and some times the snare sound like it has some slapback on it. I am going for a very specific effect though, and attempting to achieve it without actually having to do anything to my drums permanently, no retuning or whatever. I can just pull the towels off, and everything sound like i normally have it.

Most drummers would prefer to use the partial covering version like the photos ^ so that they wouldn't have to change up their playing style as much.

But, the main trick is to experiment, play, and experiment more. It helps if you have a specific idea about exactly what sound you want.

I do enjoy mellowing out with a sheet over my snare. If I put a hankie right over the entire thing it is pretty much the exact snare as In the Court of the Crimson King.

This song should be in a 70s action movie.

That is totally what this stuff is all about.

WAY back, like 1997-ish, when i used to play drums in what was basically a metalcore band, i started a one man band sideproject thing to give myself a total change of pace. I have always loved that swinging 60s/70s detective and spy movie soundtrack sound, so i tried to make stuff in that style, without really being capable of playing it back then.

It was a lot of fun, and having recently come across some of the super-rough ghetto demos i did back then, i have been kicking the idea of doing something similar again, now that i know more what the hell i am doing on the drums, and have access to way better recording options.

Damn that is a really cool effect.

Seriously, it crushed my mind grapes.

Yeah, that started out as me trying to figure out a horn swell part for that. But without any MIDI ability here, i had to try it with guitars. Which didn't work too well.

Obviously one thing led to another, and it became like the psych bikerfuzz version of the Cantina Band.

Fuck you now I can't get that song out of my head.

Do-de-do-de-dodedo dode-do-dodedo-dodedo-de-doooooo ....

Good, that song is fucking badass.

It is very snappy.

That is what I refer to songs as when they make me want to snap my fingers.

Snappy.