Comments on: On Editing Drum Flams

By: matt g

matt g — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:24:37 +0000

Doc J, I think anyone who is attempting to edit drums this closely to a grid needs to be assumed to be OC from the start… haha.
Just to clarify, I don’t always edit drums this crazily, and I might even throw out all the work on this song if i listen back in a week and like the original better. I’m currently taking a bit o’ flak on the tapeop forum where i posted this for that… But I just did it as a thought experiment, to question “the almighty grid” and how that compares to human rhythm and feel. Most human drummers don’t sit down and think, “okay for this song, i’ll flam a little before the beat, that will sound good.” Maybe the really really good ones do. More likely than that I think they just “know” where to put it so that the feel of the track is where they want it. Since a lot of the time there is *some* drum editing going on in the first place, it’s good to know if there are ways to make it sound more natural.

By: Chase

Chase — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:27:02 +0000

I think it’s most definitely more dependent on the feel of the song than it is on the style of the drummer. Regardless of how the drummer plays, it’s more about the desired groove. Throwing certain beats here and there change the groove (which could be represented by a certain style of playing also. Bossa Nova is a style AND a certain feel/groove.)
In light of that, I like the take you like the most as well. Having the 2nd flam on the snare on the beat does sound early to my ears too

By: michael Johnson

michael Johnson — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:36:36 +0000

Even though the second hit is louder, I think I like the “1st hit on beat” the best. I tend to get a bit OC about time issues, though, and I’m not sure the average listener even notices the difference!

By: JARinteractive

JARinteractive — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 05:30:39 +0000

The drum machine in Reason places the first hit on the beat when you add flam, BUT the first hit is louder in that case. I think the right way is dependent on the music. If you lower the level of the first snare hit it might seem more like a pickup.