Wedding Gig Update

OK, it's been a while, so I thought I would bring an update. I went to the Faroe Islands and played at the wedding as planned. Having done a lot of general drum practice on my digital kit, I felt very confident at the kit. Although I was back behind the acoustic kit for the first time in over 12 months, I found it a lot easier to play than the digital kit. Acoustic and digital drums are somewhat similar but at the same time, there is a world of difference.

What I love about the acoustic kit is the hihat and the cymbals. They are so sensitive and sound so much better than their digital counterparts. The drums themselves can be a little harder to play on the acoustic kit because they do not provide you with much rebound at all. I tend to tune my toms quite low (coming from a 70s rock background). I like lots of toms tuned low :-)

Anyway, we took 2 hours or so at the rehearsal room and ran over a few things such as beginnings, breaks, and ends of various potential problem tracks. It turned out that I was very confident with all the songs so when the drummer is solid, the rest of the band is solid. At least in our band, everything goes wrong if I am not confident. Sometimes, I will be confident and someone else may feel inadequately prepared. That can sometimes mess up things as well, but the boys were all very confident although we have not seen each other for a year.

We went on stage and played our first song, which starts with a guitar and vocals. After a few bars, the drums make a fill and then the bass and basic drum groove kick in. When I heard the bass come in and felt the vibes through the floor, I immediately thought what a great sound! I instinctively checked on the other guys and they all looked happy. I then checked the drum volume compared to the rest of the instruments and it seemed just right. Finally, I checked the tempo to make sure we were in the pocket, and that too was just right. Remember that all this happens within a 10-second time span or so.

I thought to myself let things be exactly the way they are and try to slowly build up the songs and especially the boys. The band was great and I had no difficulties with making the drums fit in so I concluded that everything was OK and I stopped thinking for the next 4 hours.

We got a lot of compliments from the audience, which was a mixture of old, middle, and young people. Some were seasoned musicians, some amateurs, and some did not play an instrument at all. With such a mixture of people seeming happy and dancing and things, I think our gig worked out perfectly. I had expected the job to be a lot harder than it actually was.

Everything just came together, and although I was well prepared, played my best, and the crowd was good, I couldn't have done it without the boys and their excellent play and attitude. For the first time, I truly realize how eminent they are.