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TS: bass drum vs. snare drum

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Taking sides:

Poll Results

OptionVotes
bass 14
snare7
4


― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:27 (eighteen years ago)

middle option = invisible tom

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:27 (eighteen years ago)

good vs evil, yin vs yang, etc.

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:27 (eighteen years ago)

snare!!!!!

― deej, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:28 (eighteen years ago)

gotta be bass drum. blue monday generation.

― blueski, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:32 (eighteen years ago)

I'd say snare is the more versatile instrument, so I went with that one.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:34 (eighteen years ago)

theremin

― negotiable, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:34 (eighteen years ago)

TS: The one and three versus the two and four

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:35 (eighteen years ago)

2 and 4, obv

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:36 (eighteen years ago)

BassBassBassBassBassBassBAAAAAAAASSSSSSSS

The space that the snare goes can pretty much be filled by any other rhythmic element if you're creative enough. But nothing else can match a really good, deep bass drum.

Chix dig bass.

― Masonic Boom, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:36 (eighteen years ago)

snare = flashier, pops out to the ear, more tonal variety?

bass = there is no dancing w/out bass drum, no matter how hard snare tries

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:36 (eighteen years ago)

But nothing else can match a really good, deep bass drum.

Well timpani can, and it has the benefit of being pitched.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:39 (eighteen years ago)

Yeah, but you can't dance to a tympani. Trust me, I've tried using them as substitution. I always have to double it with a bass drum.

― Masonic Boom, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:40 (eighteen years ago)

I don't know, I'm more than a little skeptical about this "bass drum is a requirement for dancing" business. Surely you'd have to say that "a loud, percussive low frequency sound is a requirement for one particular type of dancing." All kinds of dancing is done in the absence of bass drums.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 16:51 (eighteen years ago)

the bass drum is 99% of the time the dealbreaker tho i would say, or just the thing that provides the ultimate goal/release in the dancing process - when it is actually applied. the snare can only follow/compliment that, usually.

― blueski, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:10 (eighteen years ago)

Fine, in music that already uses bass and snare drums, taking the kick away affects danceability more than taking the snares out

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:10 (eighteen years ago)

but i suppose you can use a snare drum and bassline to drive a track without a bass drum and have people move to it easily enough, the snare drum acting as the bass drum in that instance (thinking of something like LCD's 'Movement' here tho that's pretty fast).

― blueski, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:11 (eighteen years ago)

Well I think that's a bit tautological, Jordan - for music that is built around the bass drum, removing the bass drum will make the most difference. But I'm saying that music doesn't have to be built around a bass drum in order for people to dance to it.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:21 (eighteen years ago)

You need to have a solid snare, but the bass drum really puts the spin on the ball.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:22 (eighteen years ago)

But I'm saying that music doesn't have to be built around a bass drum in order for people to dance to it.


But that music is wack?

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:27 (eighteen years ago)

Music based around a snare for MARCHIN' not dancin'!

― Masonic Boom, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:29 (eighteen years ago)

BD = essential

Jordan otm. If people are dancing to music that isn't built around a bass drum, it's probably grooveless hippie crap, and hence, dud. The bass drum is everything ILM stands for.



PS: I hope people take this thread really, really seriously.

― DougD, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 17:37 (eighteen years ago)

You step on the 1 and 3, you clap on the 2 and 4.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:29 (eighteen years ago)

My Dad claps on the 1 and 3

― negotiable, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:30 (eighteen years ago)

OTM

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:40 (eighteen years ago)

negotiable, I think I heard your dad and his friends on some live recording once, messing everybody up.

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:44 (eighteen years ago)

the bass drum is bigger

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:46 (eighteen years ago)

the snare is smaller

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:46 (eighteen years ago)

the bass drum has a low frequency

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:46 (eighteen years ago)

the snare drum has jingles on the bottom

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:47 (eighteen years ago)

they're called..."snares"

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:48 (eighteen years ago)

jingles is a generic term - DOES THE SNARE NOT QUALIFY AS JINGLEZ?

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:49 (eighteen years ago)

I know this isn't serious, but it reminds me of an interesting interview with Matthew Herbert in the current issue of TapeOp magazine. He talks about the fact that you can make a sound by hitting almost anything, and so it's kind of silly that almost everyone makes recordings of hitting the same things (i.e. drum kits). He said something about putting a microphone inside a box of cornflakes and using that instead of a kick drum and how it sounded really big and a lot cooler. I don't think the interview is online, unfortunately.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:51 (eighteen years ago)

the trap drum kit is a cool instrument though. when we saw lightning bolt a couple of weeks ago, i was thinking, "this guy has appreciation for the trap drum kit as an instrument." i actually don't feel that way about drummers very much.

― Tim Ellison, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:53 (eighteen years ago)

Well I think that's a bit tautological, Jordan - for music that is built around the bass drum, removing the bass drum will make the most difference. But I'm saying that music doesn't have to be built around a bass drum in order for people to dance to it.

-- St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, May 2, 2007 1:21 PM (1 hour ago)]

Main Entry: tau·tol·o·gy
Pronunciation: to-'tä-l&-jE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -gies
Etymology: Late Latin tautologia, from Greek, from tautologos
1 a : needless repetition of an idea, statement, or word b : an instance of tautology
2 : a tautologous statement

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:53 (eighteen years ago)

Sometimes after playing percussion or brass band gigs for a few months and then coming back to the drumset, it feels like the freakish conglomeration of stuff that it must have originally appeared as.

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:55 (eighteen years ago)

People who require MUSIC to dance = sheep.

― Myonga Vön Bontee, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:56 (eighteen years ago)

People who require sheep to dance=FREAKS

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:57 (eighteen years ago)

Bass Drum no doubt. It's life itself.

― MRZBW, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:57 (eighteen years ago)

People who do not require dance to music = GEIR

― blueski, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 18:58 (eighteen years ago)

Haha the 808 nixes the entire argument going on upthread, via having massively danceable kicks that are basically a bass sine note with a little click at the start -- your old-fashioned "instrument" distinctions are dead, people!

Also note reggaeton (v. danceable) often uses a tom as the dominant sound in the "kick" position, though I'd imagine most people are reinforcing that tom with an actual kick to fill in some low end.

― nabisco, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:02 (eighteen years ago)

Also Brazil = plenty of ways to dance without the bass drum in, or without the bass drum being the dance-rhythm focal point,

― nabisco, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:03 (eighteen years ago)

Moreover, a snare drum is of no use to the deaf, whereas even those without hearing can feel bass.

― Myonga Vön Bontee, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:03 (eighteen years ago)

The deaf can feel snares and a variety of frequencies beyond sub-bass, provided they're loud enough -- hence the deaf rock band Beethoven's Nightmare competing with the Who for loudest-ever status.

― nabisco, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:06 (eighteen years ago)

http://images.43things.com/entry/127180pw150.jpg

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:13 (eighteen years ago)

Brazil is all about the bass drum!

(surdos count as bass drums)

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 19:18 (eighteen years ago)

Haha it's just occurred to me that there's another way to blow up the binary of this poll -- has anyone ever made a bass/kick drum with snare wires on the back side?

There are plenty of samba lines that are light on the bass, though, aren't there? Certainly recording-wise there are plenty where the bass presence is mostly missing, and it doesn't really affect danceability -- though I suppose it might if you were playing it loud on a big system and wanted the right frequency spread.

― nabisco, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:07 (eighteen years ago)

Haha it's just occurred to me that there's another way to blow up the binary of this poll -- has anyone ever made a bass/kick drum with snare wires on the back side?

I think those are called cocktail drums? Or a cocktail drum is sort of like this, it's around 20 inches long and you hit the bottom head with a pedal and then you hit the top head with a stick, the top head has snares right underneath?

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:10 (eighteen years ago)

What is a Cocktail Drum?
A cocktail drum typically looks like a tall floor tom 14" to 16" diameter by 16" to 25" height on shell mounted legs. There are usually snares mounted underneath the top head for a "snare sound" and a modified pedal to strike the bottom head for a "bass drum sound". They often have a shell mounted cymbal arm and occasionally a side mounted tom-tom or set of bongos for a very compact set up. There are also several variations which include single headed drums with or without snares, snare drums mounted directly attop a regular, small bass drum, a snare drum mounted to a floor-tom with the underneath bass drum beater, etc.

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:11 (eighteen years ago)

That's the missing middle choice! Right, I'd always seem people playing these mini sets, but never really noticed the kick and snare were bundled into the one piece:

http://www.yamaha-europe.com/picture_archiv/products/10_Musical_instruments/drums/drum_sets/drumsets/club_jordan_medium_jpg.jpg

― nabisco, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:13 (eighteen years ago)

Cocktail Drummers of History, I'm Sorry That I Know This Department:

*the dude from Morphine
*the dude from Jellyfish

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:15 (eighteen years ago)

I kind of want that

x-post

― Curt1s Stephens, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:17 (eighteen years ago)

I know this isn't serious, but it reminds me of an interesting interview with Matthew Herbert in the current issue of TapeOp magazine. He talks about the fact that you can make a sound by hitting almost anything, and so it's kind of silly that almost everyone makes recordings of hitting the same things (i.e. drum kits). He said something about putting a microphone inside a box of cornflakes and using that instead of a kick drum and how it sounded really big and a lot cooler. I don't think the interview is online, unfortunately.

-- St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, May 2, 2007 2:51 PM (1 hour ago)

omg that is so cool

― lfam, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:20 (eighteen years ago)

Herbert's found drum sounds start to sound the same after awhile, they can be on the dry and knock-y side. Close mic'ing a desk or a stapler just isn't the same as something with a resonating chamber.

― Jordan, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:23 (eighteen years ago)

jk

― lfam, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:28 (eighteen years ago)

I know what tautology means, Mr. K.

Close mic'ing a desk or a stapler just isn't the same as something with a resonating chamber

But a cornflakes chamber is a whole different animal! Ok, I've never actually listened to the guy. But his philosophy was interesting anyway.

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:37 (eighteen years ago)

WHO IS THIS HERBERT OF WHICH YOU SPEAK. THIS BRAND NEW IDEA HE IS PROPOSING IS MOST INTRIGUING.

― strongohulkington, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:42 (eighteen years ago)

SURELY HE HAS NOT BEEN PIMPING THIS PHILOSOPHY FOR ALMOST A DECADE NOW.

― strongohulkington, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:42 (eighteen years ago)

But a cornflakes chamber is a whole different animal!


you are right steve, i confess: a cornflakes chamber is a whole different animal.

― Mr. Que, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:43 (eighteen years ago)

I'm skewered by your sarcasm, strongo. Has everyone read his whole composition manifesto? I hadn't before the interview, anyway. Sorry for ruining your day with such old news!

― St3ve Go1db3rg, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 20:45 (eighteen years ago)

i haven't readit but i once soiled my ears with its fruit

― lfam, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 21:25 (eighteen years ago)

six years pass...

My Dad claps on the 1 and 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yD3iaURppQw

― The O RLY of Everything (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 31 August 2013 14:11 (eleven years ago)

jesus that drives me crazy

― crüt, Saturday, 31 August 2013 16:12 (eleven years ago)

Did you hang on for the surprise at around 0:40-0:43?

― The O RLY of Everything (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 31 August 2013 16:34 (eleven years ago)

yes, it was a relief

― crüt, Saturday, 31 August 2013 16:34 (eleven years ago)

To both you and the cheering drummer.

― The O RLY of Everything (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 31 August 2013 16:38 (eleven years ago)

a snare drum is of no use to the deaf

dope

― sleepingbag, Saturday, 31 August 2013 16:40 (eleven years ago)

A well produced snare is one of the best sounds ever.

― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Saturday, 31 August 2013 18:17 (eleven years ago)

the snare in the last verse of the shangri-las' "the train from kansas city" is better than all other instruments ever played by anybody.

― fact checking cuz, Saturday, 31 August 2013 18:50 (eleven years ago)


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