Gigging after a one year break!

**Razzinnator** · 06-22-2012, 01:26 PM

Well I'm in a pretty strange situation right now, and I was hoping I could get some advice from all of you experienced drummers!

First, a little back-story:
I have had these pretty bad drums for about 2 years and a half, and most of the time I have been playing on and off. I find it really hard to focus and keep a hobby, so I never invested a lot of time in drumming.
Buying this set actually came after a joke, when a friend of mine said "Hey, we should start a band!". After a while, we had a decent line-up, and managed to rehearse and cover a few songs quite well. We got on stage a couple of times too, but it was only for small jam sessions so it was nothing big, but we were progressing.
Then, our main vocals guy quit, and we pretty much gave up the whole band idea for quite a lot of time. My friends kept playing their instruments, but I haven't touched my drumset for almost a year.

Now, my current situation: one my friends (a girl with quite a good voice) knows a few people in high places in town, and she set up a small party at a local pub, basically an event based on jazz music. In order to attract more people, she thought she could sing a few songs in order to start up the night and prepare the atmosphere, but she needed a band to back her up. She convinced my guitarist and bassist friends to join, and they needed a drummer. Knowing I hadn't touched my drums for almost a year (yes, I'm ashamed of it!), it took a lot of convincing for me to accept their offer, and since then I've been maniacally trying to catch up and get back in shape.

I've been working these past few days on everything I could: rudiments, playing with a metronome, lots of grooves, some fills, some songs, and I'm slowly getting the hang of it again. Fortunately, we don't have to sing actual jazz songs, so I don't have to learn a lot of jazz drumming.

Unfortunately, we are playing 3 covers of songs that are, at their origins, acoustic, so I have to make up the drum parts for all of them on my own. I managed to get down one song sounding just right, and I'm working on the other ones.

I'd really appreciate if you guys could give me some more pieces of advice, and maybe some words of encouragement on this thing, since I know I have to do my best and not let down anyone. We're playing next Wednesday, so I have a few more days to prepare, but I'm quite stressed.

Thanks in advance!

**late8** · 06-22-2012, 02:52 PM

I think keeping the set list as simple as possible is the key to your success. You've managed to knock out one of the acoustic covers since it orginally was written and recorded without any drums on it. Take the same approach with the other songs. Since this is a 'last minute' event, don't stress out if you're not comfortable with the time you have put into practicing.

There isn't much you can do to 'cram' for this event since there really isn't much time left. To play with a good skill set of dynamic control takes years of practice and you can't beat yourself up for sounding a little 'rusty' after being away for a year.

All I can say is 'have fun' at this event. Look at it like the restart of your drumming adventure and RELAX. If you're uptight about it, it's going to reflect on your playing. Try to smile and look like you're having fun. Good luck.

**jazzkat** · 06-22-2012, 02:53 PM

How are the acoustic songs being performed?
Biggest piece of advise would be, KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid). Serve the music, not your ego, and things should be fine.

**KaptKaos** · 06-22-2012, 03:49 PM

I'm with Jazzkat. Keep it simple. Concentrate on the groove and keep good time. Good Luck and welcome.

**Razzinnator** · 06-23-2012, 12:15 AM

First of all, thanks for the quick positive feedback. I'm going to do my best to take heed of your advice and try to do everything as well as possible!
I guess I AM a bit too uptight right now, so I will try and relax and have fun when practising, since I'm sure it will help me even more.
Also, hopefully I'll be able to keep it simple enough that it still sounds any good, but I'm sure I'll figure out something in the end.

Once again, thanks for the tips! I'll keep this thread updated if anything big happens!