[Rev2010]

I've been looking for band members and placed all these classifieds online and all. So like 3-4 weeks back I had a response from a drummer. One of the requirements I'm looking for in a drummer has been the willingness to play an electronic kit. Turns out he even has his own! So we set up a meeting and he drives over to my place with his electronic kit (Cheapo Yamaha jammy but who cares). He sets up and starts playing and oh my fucking God this guy is an awesome drummer!! Fucking amazing. Even my girlfriend was like, "Holy shit that guys awesome".

So, in my classifieds it says I'm looking to do Korn type stuff - all original stuff but with that Korn type sound. Korn is one of his favorites as well and he was all like, "Yeah that's cool with me. I just can't wait to get out and start playing again". But before the night is over he was like, "Dude, you GOTTA hear the new Anthrax CD!" and that it's his current favorite CD. So I pop it in and give it a listen...and then I think, "This isn't what I want to play". So anyhow, I told him I was going to pickup an electronic Roland kit for my music room which he was excited about.

After he left I was thinking that maybe he's not what I'm looking for cause of what HE really seems to want to play. On top of that he kept telling me about this guitarist that he's playing with who's amazing but everything I've heard of the guys work is thrash metal which, again, I don't want to play. So I decided to wait and see if he calls ME back rather than me call him. Last night he calls me when I was on the bus home and is like, "Yeah I wanted to see if you wanna get together and jam". So I was like, "Sure!". So I called him back after I got home and ate dinner. It turns out he's no longer with that guitarist guy cause he lent him his 8 track for 6 months and the guy barely came up with any material and what he did write he said sounded like shit and he told the guy this so they decided to part ways musically.

So he's all hyped up and he tells me he started writing some stuff using this keyboard he bought for his GF that she never used. Then he goes on to tell me how much he loves the new NIN album With Teeth and tells me to check out tracks 1 and 6 and that those tracks are exactly like what he wants to write. I gave them a listen and I think they're utter shit and certainly nowhere near what I want to play.

So I have this amazing drummer that seems to not really know exactly what he wants to play (there's a big difference between Korn, Anthrax, and NIN). He's going to send me the stuff he wrote in a few weeks (moving into a new house) so I'm gonna give that a listen but sadly I think it's probably gonna end up not working out. Not unless of course he's still willing to play the style I'm shooting for.

Man, trying to find band members truly sucks monkey nuts.


Rev.

[7slinger]

Originally Posted by Rev2010

Man, trying to find band members truly sucks monkey nuts.


Rev.

you hit the monkey, er, nail on the head...

my band has basically been one 5 year quest to find the
right vocalist, fuck it ANY vocalist that doesn't suck

[Dormant]

I think anyone who has been in a band before appreciates that the music they play isn't always going to be close to the music they are listening to at that precise time.

Every band I have been in, it has been rare that I share the same influences but it makes for a more interesting mix in as much as everything bleeds through into the music. Being in a band involves compromise unless you are paying session musicians to play on your stuff.

If he is decent bloke with passion for playing, is good at what he does, and is available to practice I would perservere. Write some tracks, play them to him, tell him where you want them to go and if he doesn't like it he can walk. Alternatively you might find he likes it but wants it to have some of the things he likes in it and then it is down to you to compromise and try to fit in with what he wants as well. You never know, you may actually like the direction the music goes in.

Being in a band is better than playing on your own.

[noodles]

Give it time and see how it works out. Start throwing out your stuff, and see if he is into it. Maybe you'll find your musical differences is the key to coming up with something really interesting.

Remember, he is a drummer, and those guys only have half a brain...

[Rev2010]

Oh don't get me wrong guys, I'm definitely down for a mix of different styles between the band members. It's what creates a unique sound. Look at The Doors - all the members had quite different musical background training.

It's just that it freaks me out when he says, "Listen to these two tracks. That is exactly what I want to write" and the music is nowhere near the style I'm going for.

But yeah, we all have a large variety of influences. Some of my playing style is quite reminiscent of Tool. So while I'm certainly don't want to pigeon-hole the music style we're going to write I do want to keep it within a certain realm.

And yeah, I'm certainly going to give it time and give him a shot, he's too good to pass up on a fear just yet.


Rev.

[Oogadee Boogadee]

Personally, i'd reserve the 'patience and giving time' solution to somebody who's on your creative page, but may need a little more time for other issues (scheduling, technical ability, etc). You have to want to write together first. Hopefully, you find that you guys actually do dig the same stuff.

With me and Division, it took literally 2.5 years before I learned how to tap into my feet for long double bass parts (literally, my epiphany was last week. I'm a happy camper now!) Talk about patience; these guys put up with me having more bad leg days then good, but for some reason, the suckers saw some potential in me, b/c i think we were all on the same creative page and they saw my desire to keep trying. either that or they kept me around for my Tostito's.

if you can't enjoy being creative together, then you're always going to find yourself keeping track of how many of his parts you guys are using vs how many of your parts, b/c you'll be trying to keep things "fair" when selecting ideas. That's not fun.

[Drew]

Hey, if it doesn't work out, send him up to Boston my way. I'm not into thrash metal and NIN's latest work bores me, but I'm SURE we could find some common musical ground.

Originally Posted by noodles

Maybe you'll find your musical differences is the key to coming up with something really interesting.

+1. A band isn't you, (unless you just need backing musicians for a solo project). a band is you and the sum of all the guys you're working with, and hopefully becomes more than the sum of its component parts.

[Rev2010]

Originally Posted by Oogadee Boogadee

if you can't enjoy being creative together, then you're always going to find yourself keeping track of how many of his parts you guys are using vs how many of your parts, b/c you'll be trying to keep things "fair" when selecting ideas. That's not fun.

Thank you for your excellent post! You make a valuable point.

See, I have been in bands (I'm certainly not new to this) before and in those bands I enjoyed working with the other guys cause we were on the same page. Sure we all had some different musical influences as well. My rythym guitarist for example was also into Queensryche and Van Halen - two bands I didn't like at all. But when we wrote we liked everything each other wrote (it was thrash metal at the time btw). Anyhow, I'll just have to see how much or how little we're on the same page.


Rev.

[zimbloth]

The other guys in my band like totally different stuff than I do. We have completely different influences and tastes. We like some of the same bands of course, but our playing style is nothing alike. I have another guitarist in my band as well. For whatever reason though, its working out so far. The differences really bring something fresh to the table, and it's forced them and myself to try to adapt and form a new style. It's all good.

That being said I'd be wary of guys who say "I want to sound like this". I think you bring your influences with you, but then you write material with an open mind with diverse musicians and see where it leads.

Best of luck to you.

[The Dark Wolf]

Rev, I think PERSONALLY that you may be over-analyzing this too much. I say this respectfully. I think you have to get together and see what creatively you can accomplish. The best things in nature come from the widest variety of sources. The healthiest, most successful animals have the widest, largest gene pool. Nature seems to prefer diversity, instead of in-bred, stagnant homogoneity.You guys could end up pooling these influences and make something terrific. That creative tension between different ideas has made some of the best music in rock history. Think about it... I personally love Korn, too. They are a big influence to me. But there's a band out there who has the Korn sound down. And that band is Korn. I know, I'm sure you have a counter argument to this, but the point is, pooling ideas from a wide variety of sources only makes better music, IF you can make it work. And if the chemistry is there, you probably will!

If you have just ONE way you want something, a band might not be the best idea. Then you're better off as a solo artist I think, or maybe someone who hires musicians.

There's nothing wrong with either approach, but really, you must play together and see what develops.