DO ANY OF YOU GRUNT WHEN YOU PLAY?

[Michael M.]

I don't grunt although I occasionally forget to breath momentarily which is disconcerting and causes me to gasp - which is audible to me only .....

Sometimes I forget to breath.

I don't grunt although I occasionally forget to breath momentarily which is disconcerting and causes me to gasp - which is audible to me only .....

I forget to breath too. It's actually quite dangerous for me , because I have COPD and Asthma. It doesn't take much breath holding to get serious. I've have even passed out and knocked some of my set over. That will REALLY screw things up!

 

[Michael M.]

I don’t make noise but I move my mouth in a really weird way and make constipated faces. I can’t stop it even when I try to and looking back at video makes me cringe. I’ve come to terms with it though. I’m just goofy as hell lol

I think goofy is a prerequisite to being a drummer.

 

[Mark Thies]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

Yes, I’m guilty as charged, more so at faster tempos. Gets recorded through the overhead mics and so it’s not really an issue as the o-hds aren’t isolated.

 

[funkypoodle]

Mingus is another one who made a lot of vocal noise when playing. Sometimes intentional, sometimes not, I'd guess.

I immediately thought of Mingus when I saw this topic.

 

[Donkey Hottie]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

Yeah, it's fairly frustrating for me - not the sounds but the fact that I tend to, for god knows what reason, keep my lungs full-ish and sort of hold my breath there when I'm playing.
I figured this out because sometimes i would hear myself squeaking, like someone's letting a little air out of a full balloon, and I'm like 'wtf am I doing that for??' and that's when I realized I'm holding in a deep-ish breath.
What sucks is I'll force myself to breath and then I'm not as rhythmically steady, so it seems like I've got to back up a bit and retrain myself and figure out why/where this habit came from so I can stop acting like I'm swimming underwater when I'm playing drums. Lol.

 

[Jay_M]

Not normally but I recently discovered I do it during rests in a groove. I guess it's the internal clock suddenly becoming audible. Ex. playing the "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover" groove, the 'and' of the 3rd measure before the roll I grunt every time. Never realized I did it till it was filmed.

 

[Monday317]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

I only grunt in the bathroom. Once you hit 60, it’s all over...

 

[FlowTom]

This is why I loved Tony Allen. He was the imperious Sphinx. Said nothing, facially expressed very little, hardly moved when he played.

Some people love Keith Jarrett's vocalizations. They have always annoyed me. And he doesn't do them when he plays classical or fully composed music.

The thing that REALLY bothers me about Jarrett's noisemaking: if you look at photos of him early in his career, they just miked the piano. But later, they added a mike near the shelf pointed toward him to more closely capture his vocal sounds. On purpose. That is not a good thing. It wasn't the sound engineer or stage manager's idea. It must have been done at the request of Jarrett, who otherwise had impeccable sonic and musical instincts.

 

[michaelocalypse]

I do it in general, so probably.
It's mostly like unconscious "I really don't want to be doing this boring, menial task right now and it physically pains me" and my last band was a Top 40 cover band, so I probably did it a lot then.

 

[Tom Holder]

I only grunt when I pick up my trap case. Apparently I make funny faces, though. I go into a trance sometimes and stare into space. One time many years ago, a guy hopped up on the stage while we were packing up. He was smiling as he approached me and I thought he was going to say something complimentary. He grinned at me and said "Hey, y'know I don't appreciate you looking at my wife like that!" Then he punched me really hard on the side of my head and I went out like a light! When I came-to, the guy was gone and my bandmates were laughing hysterically! Ahhhh... show-biz!

 

[Parcel]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

Er, no.
If u find urself making straining noises, ur obviously using the wrong technique.
I've been playing for 55 yrs.I don't push myself beyond my own limits.I have done session work, touring, depping.
Played a vast variety of styles, inc Punk, Funk an Heavy Metal......

 

[hawker]

This is why I loved Tony Allen. He was the imperious Sphinx. Said nothing, facially expressed very little, hardly moved when he played.

Some people love Keith Jarrett's vocalizations. They have always annoyed me. And he doesn't do them when he plays classical or fully composed music.

The thing that REALLY bothers me about Jarrett's noisemaking: if you look at photos of him early in his career, they just miked the piano. But later, they added a mike near the shelf pointed toward him to more closely capture his vocal sounds. On purpose. That is not a good thing. It wasn't the sound engineer or stage manager's idea. It must have been done at the request of Jarrett, who otherwise had impeccable sonic and musical instincts.

Hmm, that makes sense. I'm a Jarrett fan but it can really get out of control at times and in my opinion, does ruin the music and the experience. I grunt when I play but if I had recieved all the complaints that Keith has, I would take it to heart. In Keith's case, it seemed to get worse with age and I think it was some sort of passive-aggressive thing.

 

[ConvertedLudwigPlayer]

I don't grunt. But, my playing has caused many people to groan uncontrollably.

 

[IVER]

I play a lot of jazz, and don't like to see combos reading everything on stage, so I got in the habit of humming the changes so I know where we are, particularly for harmonically complex tunes. It's never very loud, and never noticeable in the studio, but bandmates standing next to me at rehearsals (remember those?) have heard it.

 

[cruddola]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

Occasionally, when I busted one out me arse!

 

[moondrum]

Just wondering if any of you make guttural noises when you play as I apparently do.

A few years back a bandmate started recording rehearsals. One day he hands me some headphones: “You might want to listen to your background vocals on this track.” I’m grunting and moaning as I play a particularly brisk part. Bonhamish moans.

The last time I was in a studio with a different band, the engineer was sliding bars and at one point isolated me. I winced expecting to hear grunts, but there were none. Perhaps with the position of the mics it wasn’t as detectable, or maybe since the tune was more laid back I just wasn’t grunting. I’m pretty sure I do it when the BPMs are over 110.

I’ve never had anyone notice it in person when I’m playing/rehearsing, and I’ve had bandmates stand very close to me on stages, but then again it’s pretty loud in the engine room.

Anybody make sounds?

Elvin Jones would make grunts when he played,I use to sit next to his hi hat when he played the Village Vanguard and he was grunting most of the time. The jazz pianist Keith Jarrett makes moans when he plays.
I think the only time I grunt is at the end of the night helping put the equipment back in the truck of my car!

 

[CC Cirillo]

Er, no.
If u find urself making straining noises, ur obviously using the wrong technique.
I've been playing for 55 yrs.I don't push myself beyond my own limits.I have done session work, touring, depping.
Played a vast variety of styles, inc Punk, Funk an Heavy Metal......

You are most certainly correct. I’ve been looking into breathing and posture also.

On the other hand, it’s reported here that a number of exalted drummers grunted as well, and some of those guys arguably had fairly good technique.

I can say that I push myself beyond my ability…as in every time I sit down to play. On certain tunes it’s downright visceral; on others I’m more controlled and cool and probably don’t grunt.
The song seems to dictate.

In general, though, it’s a wonder I don’t fall off the chair.

 

[A.TomicMorganic]

When I studied with the Oscar Peterson trio they encouraged humming and grunting. Said it helped keep you in the music. I have been chastised by sound engineers occasionally when recording.

 

[Gregdc]

I grunt and hum like crazy. I've had engineers pick up on it on sessions when listening to the overhead mics. I've never been able to stop it.

 

[cobaltspike]

I don't even make weird faces hahaha. I did have a guy that was a really good drummer come to my house and buy a cymbal, he wanted to play my drums and told me that my drums were very well tuned and while he played he made noises but also played the left pedal and hi hat pedal and the same time but independently. I was extremely impressed.