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JohnD
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« on: July 20, 2004, 10:55 PM » |
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do you feel you are better after a few drinks? Personally, I only play with a completely clear head, but what works for you?
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Chris Whitten
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« Reply #1 on: July 21, 2004, 12:43 AM » |
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I don't need to have any 'thoughts' in a way. I think you're only fooling yourself if you think substances improve your playing.
I don't do drugs.
I'm not anti the odd beer during a gig (like 2 or 3), but it's not a tool of performance, just a social thing.
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Floyd42
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« Reply #2 on: July 21, 2004, 01:07 AM » |
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I usually don't do drugs before playing. I tried smoking before playing, and it throws off my timing. I tried to play drunk, and It was so crappy that I quickly leave my kit. But, a beer or two to stay hydrated  is a good thing IMHO...  |
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incdrummer
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« Reply #3 on: July 21, 2004, 03:24 AM » |
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A beer before the gig to relax you and one or two after to congratulate yourself on a job well done is no bad thing.
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srodgers
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« Reply #4 on: July 21, 2004, 03:49 AM » |
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A beer before the gig to relax you and one or two after to congratulate yourself on a job well done is no bad thing.
Yeah, mylimit is one beer before mainly because I play to a click live so I need to be on my game and my tempo pretty solidly. Afterwards, I might have a beverage or two but that is about it. I always drive to gigs so no DUI for me. Stan... |
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felix
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Y no keno!
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« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2004, 05:01 AM » |
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I usually prefer a redbull/vodka- I've been travelling further to gigs this year(usually around 3 hours) so I have to keep the caffeine levels up there. I don't like to drink more than a beer or two tops... I really hate having to pee in the middle of a set.
I don't smoke pot and if I did, it wouldn't be on a gig. No big deal either way. I'm not going to say I'll never do drugs on a job again, but I was never really into that stuff- it makes you do things you regret in the morning. I got a business, wife and mortgage- I have to keep my head together. Plus you can't play drums in jail- so that is that.
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Yaay!
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dogxray
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« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2004, 07:30 AM » |
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If your serious about your craft then booze and drugs should not be part of your evening or life style. One drink, okay maybe. Any more than that, pot included I would say no. If you do, I hope your the guy before or after me in the audition line.
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Tony
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Art is the expression of the self.
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« Reply #7 on: July 21, 2004, 07:49 AM » |
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Warning guys.....In Minnesota I got a DUI on only 2 mixed drinks. Do your drinks early, the towns are making huge money up here. It's big business and really sucks in jail. Those were the most expensive drinks I ever had. By the time I'm done playing their game and increased insurance rates I could have paid for any drum set made. Now in Bloomington they just passed a no smoking law. That will influence bar attendance even more. More laws mean more income for the community legal system.  I sure am glad I've lived through the "good old days". So I no longer drink at all unless it's a private gig and I'm staying the night. Besides that, when I drink beer I start dropping sticks. When I drink tequila I do a mean samba....  Yes, DUI laws exisit to make money and make life miserable for people like you. Nevermind the fact that your thought process, motor skills and comprehension ability (all of which are essential in drumming as well) are wrecked. Next time you're sitting in jail for a DUI, be thankful it's only overnight and not 3 years in prison for vehicular homicide. I drink, so I'm not preaching. But to think that alcohol or drugs don't affect your ability to do anything, especially something as coordinated as drumming, is just down right foolish. |
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The techniques, though they play an important role in the early stage, should not be too restrictive, complex or mechanical. If we cling to them, we will become bound by their limitation. Any technique, however worthy and desirable, becomes a disease when the mind is obsessed with it.
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Guy's Big Butt
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« Reply #8 on: July 21, 2004, 08:58 AM » |
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I will have 1 beer at the most before/during a gig, but I have to admit that sometimes afterward (when all my gear is loaded of course), I like to have a few- It's just a way for me to unwind from all the adrenaline rush and to kind of celebrate- so I usually have the wife drive home...I don't play out that often so it's no big deal.
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BVSCfanatic
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« Reply #9 on: July 21, 2004, 10:02 PM » |
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I have practiced with guys who can drink a couple of beers over the course of a few hours and perform well. But it's not for me.
I like a beer now and again, usually at the end of a hectic day. But I won't even PRACTICE HERE AT HOME after drinking. I like to be totally clear whenever I play. Maybe it's because I just don't really feel that I'm good enough to spare any handicap whatsoever that might negatively impact my drumming. And maybe I'd feel differently if I were more confident in the total fluency of my skills. But alcohol is something I can generally take or leave. So, when I'm drumming I leave it.
Besides, when I'm drumming, THAT is the ONLY high I need!!!!!
I guess you could say that drumming IS my drug of choice.
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JohnD
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« Reply #10 on: July 23, 2004, 12:25 AM » |
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This reminds me, anyone remember the "Play It Straight" ads in Modern Drummer about 10 years ago? I wonder if that organization is still around?
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orihood
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« Reply #11 on: July 23, 2004, 12:07 PM » |
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I've seen a few musicians make fools of themselves and their bands while impaired by various means. Its even embarrassing to the audience! Do what you gotta do after the gig!
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BVSCfanatic
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« Reply #12 on: July 23, 2004, 09:48 PM » |
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I've seen a few musicians make fools of themselves and their bands while impaired by various means. Its even embarrassing to the audience! Do what you gotta do after the gig!
I would put it this way: What you do on YOUR time is your own business and nobody else's. Band rehearsal time and gig time are NOT YOUR PERSONAL TIME. They are the band's time. This is time that you have committed to the band. Anybody who cannot respect that committment by coming to it in a clear state of mind probably has no business being in a band. Personally, I'd rather sit home and play with CDs than to be in a band with people who are not dedicated to the band as a unit. |
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Lee
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« Reply #13 on: July 24, 2004, 11:26 AM » |
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Band rehearsal time and gig time are NOT YOUR PERSONAL TIME. They are the band's time.
THANK YOU! What a good way of putting it. I will remember this and be quoting you in the near future. I did try drinking at a gig once. But I didn't really feel like I was THERE. I felt like the time on stage just slipped through my fingers. I didn't feel nervous, but I didn't feel anything. So... now I don't drink at gigs. I'd rather HAVE the experience. Plus, I'm sure I play better. |
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BVSCfanatic
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« Reply #14 on: July 24, 2004, 05:06 PM » |
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I will remember this and be quoting you in the near future.
Thank YOU, Lee. I was feeling pretty down, but that made my day |
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straps
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« Reply #15 on: July 28, 2004, 02:30 PM » |
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My rule is no drinks before first set, only one imbetween. My band usually plays three sets, so I usually only end up having two or three in an evening. I sweat so bad that I rarely feel the alchohol if I have already been playing for a while. But I can feel one beer slowing my hands down if I have one before the show, and that just frustrates me. Do I want to drink or play? Easy, I want to play.
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Take care, be good, and spread some around.
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ARCHxANGEL
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« Reply #16 on: July 29, 2004, 08:33 PM » |
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I can't play with any substance in me.I have come across people who think ( key word THINK ) they play better while drunk or stoned.And I know that they don't play better from just wacthing them.Numbing your sense and trying to play imo is just silly.If your mind ain't right,your body isn't right.
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DrummerALimal
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« Reply #17 on: July 30, 2004, 12:11 AM » |
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Shame that it does't numb your senses though, rather hightening them!
Beer makes you sloppy, smoking makes you listen.
It takes your own ideas about how a certain number should be accompanied, breaks them down and incorporates your other bandmates grooves in your mind.
Helps a lot with tidying up syncopation and funky polyrhythms.
Once you've got them off, you can play straight at your gigs without over-thinking.
If I'm straight-laced then I try to think my sticktips into polyrhythms rather than just playing them.
This inevitably slows your playing if not in tempo, then stylistically.
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Hunyak
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« Reply #18 on: August 07, 2004, 07:47 PM » |
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I've found that @$%# near any activity I do be it sex, music, shooting pool, or driving a car I can do much better sober. I save the beer for afterwards.
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LT500man
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ya gotta "Practice, Practice, Practice."
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« Reply #19 on: August 10, 2004, 01:15 PM » |
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I will have to admit in my younger days I thought I could play better if I was High. Wrong! I havn't had a drink or smoke in fifteen years now and probably never will again. I like getting high on life and knowing what the H*ll I'm doing.
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"Never argue with an idiot, they'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience."
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