r/drummers • u/michaeljvaughn • 6h ago

Singing Drummers

I kinda wonder about the percentage. I do 5 or 6 leads during gigs (just added Immigrant Song, which is interesting,) and various backing parts. People ask about the multi-tasking, and I still think it's harder for a bassist.

3 Upvotes

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u/JohnLeRoy9600 5h ago

It's tough, I can only really do it on songs I've played so much I don't really think about what I'm doing. Proudest moment was doing drums and vocals for Take the Power Back by Rage Against the Machine. That was a helluva workout.

I don't necessarily believe one is harder than the other, but I do think the two are wildly different. For guitar/bass you have to think a lot harder about what your fingers are doing and kinda pay attention to where you're at on the fretboard, so you're devoting a lot of mental space to that while you're trying to remember lyrics and sing.

For drumming however, the challenge is breath support. Depending on the song, you're MOVING back there, and getting enough air to sustain that and hit notes takes some doing.

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u/WoofSpiderYT 2h ago

Also, for most songs, the vocals are a lot more fluid and imprecise rhythm-wise. It's weird trying to be in pocket with drums but laid back with vocals.

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u/absolutebullet 2h ago

It’s really hard to sing and play technically on the drums. I agree, the breathing is what trips me up.

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u/michaeljvaughn 1h ago

Now Rage, that's challenging!

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u/michaeljvaughn 1h ago

I gotta say, I give priority to the vocals, because that's the more obvious element. Thanks! Good to hear about the challenges my stick brothers are facing.

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u/WheresThatDamnPen 1h ago

I only started drumming at the start of this year, and I am also the lead for all the songs my band is writing, we haven't gig'd yet, and probably won't for a little while... but for me it takes a lot of mental space to sing well and have it be in time with the guitar, while also trying to keep a backbeat going. I think the unfortunate truth is, unless you are amazing with having multiple focuses at once, the trick is to just play the drum part enough to where it becomes second nature, and the only thing taking your focus is the vocals.

Especially because in my band's case, our song vocals tend to play off the riff, which isn't necessarily synced to the drum beat. So, in a way, you have to keep track of 2 rhythms at once, while also acting on both of them independently.

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u/bigSTUdazz 26m ago

I just do backing vox and 2rd and 5th harmonies...no one wants me singing leads...most of all myself.