The Song Fight Bulletin Board

I've seen people create a kick drum sound by stomping their foot, either on a mic, or a device like a Porchboard:

https://www.facebook.com/porchboard

I was thinking of trying to assemble something for this purpose. I was going to first just try wrapping a towel around a mic and tapping that.

Anybody tried anything like this? Got any ideas, suggestions, etc.?

If you are just recording it on a track you can simply tap a dynamic ball top type mic with a foam cover on the palm of your hand. If you need hands free, I think the towel trick sounds like a solid plan.

Or maybe putting the mic in something like a hard type briefcase.

So what's up, you going to jump on the Mumford & Sons bandwagon like everyone else? *coughturnersunioncough*

Ha. I'm just planning for Nur Ein. Erin and I don't have much spare time for music these days. I'll probably wind up having to record everything at home, vs. at the BSS practice space, where there's a real drum kit. I'm thinking about everything I can throw together for us to have at the ready. We have a snare drum, but no kick, so, that seemed like something worth figuring out, rhythm/percussion wise. I've seen people be surprisingly effective with just the foot stomp, so that and a kick type sound plus all the hand percussion stuff we have should do the trick.

Don't know if this helps, but way back in the dark ages of 4-tracking (about 1990) I used two real drums as a whole kit. I'd record a small floor tom at a high tape speed and slow it down as bass drum: Boom...boom boom...etc. I had a hi-hat bottom cymbal and a cracked cymbal of some sort that I put together in the form of a hi-hat, on the floor and knelt on. Lifting my knee made it simulate the opening of the hat. I recorded this with a small tom with bits of tin foil scattered on it to simulate snares, over the 'bass drum': chh chh DAT chh chh DAT etc. I eventually had access to a real snare, played on the floor with the hat. Then I recorded the two toms and cracked cymbal at regular speed for fills. This would all be bounced to one track as a kit. I got good at leaving spaces for fills and was able to accent hits on songs if there was a dummy track to play to first. That track would be taped over when the 'kit' was bounced.

ANYWAY, you can make a lot with a little, as you most undoubtedly know, and have people marvel at your drumming skills. I've thought of piecing together a beat with my real kit, doing beats I wouldn't be able to do, but have to try. Hmm. Maybe for the EIN as well...

Good luck, and I anticipate hearing what you come up with.

Paco Del Stinko wrote:I had a hi-hat bottom cymbal and a cracked cymbal of some sort that I put together in the form of a hi-hat, on the floor and knelt on. Lifting my knee made it simulate the opening of the hat. I recorded this with a small tom with bits of tin foil scattered on it to simulate snares

Wait, were you one of the kids on Fat Albert?

A few of my entries back in the early post-Narbotic days (specifically Fool In The Middle and Sunny Again) used found parts as a drum kit. For FitM I just had cardboard boxes of different sizes. For Sunny Again I also added a wire file hanger rack and a pizza baking sheet (there were also other drum loops on that track so don't think those sounded anything like actual drums).

Anyway, if you just want the kick drum sound, try putting a towel on a hard surface and hitting the mic against the towel. Don't do this to a mic you care about, of course, and better use a dynamic rather than a condenser.

Oh, and if you aren't averse to just using sampled drums, there are some pretty good electric kits that don't take a lot of space now. I assembled a frankenkit from a bunch of different parts (and use it to trigger the venerable Natural Sound kit) that takes up hardly any space at all and sounds pretty good (it ended up costing the same as a Roland V-Drums kit in the end, but IMO it's more versatile and includes the cost of much better drum samples than Roland uses).

Although this kit might have been an even better choice, in the end.

BLT wrote: Wait, were you one of the kids on Fat Albert?

Hey, hey, hey!

Lunkhead wrote: We have a snare drum, but no kick, so, that seemed like something worth figuring out,

Do you want to borrow one?

Thanks all for the comments. I'm thinking along two lines: 1) using "real" sounds (not samples, MIDI, etc.) where possible, and 2) using simple and ready-at-hand tools which I can setup and record at home very quickly. I want to have a palette of instrument/percussion options ready to go, to keep in mind when writing the songs, so that we spend less time talking about instruments we'd like to use that either we don't have or that aren't practical for me to record and mix in time. I think those things will help make it more feasible for us to get songs done. Last year for the first time we had to drop out of Nur Ein because we couldn't get a song in on time. This year our schedules are potentially even a little busier than they were last year, so, I'm trying to plan ahead for dealing with major time crunches.

Ken, thanks for the offer, but I think a real kick might be too much of a nuisance to our downstairs neighbors.

Lunkhead wrote:Ken, thanks for the offer, but I think a real kick might be too much of a nuisance to our downstairs neighbors.

What about a floor tom that you could use in place of it?

That could maybe work. Would I want to use a mallet stick to try to get more of a kick drum sound or something?

How about getting a kick beater and hitting a cardboard box with a microphone inside?

Lunkhead wrote:That could maybe work. Would I want to use a mallet stick to try to get more of a kick drum sound or something?

Yeah, that would probably be a good thing to do. Also, tuning it low.

I used a cardboard box... specifically a top flap that could move, for a kick drum on DBTI "Cut It Out". A lot of the other drums were various tappings on the desk and such.
-bill