Custom Drum Tracks: Make the Right Choice
Custom Drum Tracks: Make the Right Choice online, you need to choose the most suitable drummer for your music.
When going for custom drum tracks
We will begin by discussing qualities you should look for in your session drummer.
A technical skill that most recording situations require in a studio drummer is the ability to play with a click track.
When a drum performance is nailed to the click, it makes editing much easier.
For example, if you have three takes of a song (all nailed to the click), you combine sections however you wish. You might want to use part of the first take, most of the second, and just the end of the third.
But the editing together of different takes to make the perfect custom drum track is mostly impossible if every take is not married to the click.
So for most situations the ability to play to a click is a necessary starting point, but much more is required. Some online session drummers may play accurately to a click, yet lack groove, feel, energy, and dynamics.
Avoid the multitudes of online session drummers are able to play accurately with the click, but sound utterly robotic while doing so. You do not want your custom drum tracks to be lacking musically, even if they are done technically well. Even worse is the phenomenon of drummers “chasing” the click, or constantly adjusting to stay with it rather that locking with it groovingly.
Now that we have covered the technical prerequisite of being able to nail a click track, I can talk about more musical concerns.
Musicality is what makes custom drum tracks great. What exactly constitutes musicality? This varies between songs and, of course, styles of music.
It is essential that your online session drummer plays with the proper “touch” for your music. For example, if your song is in the style of Antonio Carlos Jobim, merely playing a bossa nova pattern is not enough. The session drummer would need to have a “lightness” to his approach, similar to the way a Brazillian drumset player would play. By the same token, if your song is in the style of Nirvana then the drummer must be able to bash those drums Grohl style.
Energy is also very important. Some custom drum tracks sound like the session drummer is just “phoning it in”, or “going through the motions”. The right energy and the proper vibe has to be conveyed from the start of the drum track and must build as the song progresses, moving naturally in the direction of the music.
The online studio drummer you choose needs to lead the dynamics, energy, and vibe throughout the song.
Another important musical factor is that the session drummer must come up with parts that makes sense in relation to what the other instruments and vocals are doing. While drum part doesn’t necessarily need to “mimic” the bass part, it certainly must be in the flow, and not going against the grain.
The drums must never step on the vocals.
Musical session drummers know when to give vocals space. Likewise, they know when to reinforce certain vocal rhythms. Of course, if busy and technical playing is musically appropriate, then you need a session drummer that can bring those fireworks.
The bottom line is that a session drummer must serve the music.
Lastly, when you get custom drum tracks online you want to make sure to hire a drummer who is totally open to instruction, yet able to come up with ideas. You may not always have a specific part in mind, so you want be able to trust the session drummer to come up a good part on his own. If you do have a very specific part in mind, the session drummer must be able to give you exactly that part for your custom drum tracks.
In this situation you may want to send the online session drummer a chart. If you have charts make sure you hire a drummer who reads! Many do not, even those who play well.
This article should help you choose an online session drummer who will provide you with custom drum tracks that are grooving, dynamic, and energetic.
Best wishes for you and your music!
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