“Alright we’re at the venue. That drive was fucking brutal. 45 minute wait across the bridge and no one lets you in. we’re gonna park in front of the venue and load off real quick and look for parking because everyone knows you can never find parking in front of any venue you play.
Help the guys unload the guitars, bass guitars, amps, heads, miscellaneous things (like merch chest, beer cooler, etc) and then unload my stuff, the drum stuff. I got the hardware bag, which i’ve codenamed “the body bag”, my snare bag, floor tom, rack toms, cymbal bag, and the goddamn bass drum case which weighs a ton.
Everything is out of the trailer, now all we have to do is get it into the….
Shit, there’s stairs.
That’s fine. My body is so amped that we’re playing a show tonight I’m running on pure adrenaline right now. I haul my drums into the venue and find a corner to tuck them into, we won’t be playing for a while. I sit at the bar and order a beer from the hot bartender who gives me no smile, she’s all business. Oh and another beer for the wife.
The first band is already playing and they’re ok. Couple of people mulling about in front of the stage. Some are bobbing their head to the music, others are just staring, like people at a zoo looking unimpressed at the exotic animals they’ll never see outside of a cage. I notice some people i know and go over to say what’s up. It’s usually a “how you doin?” since i haven’t seen them since the last time i played. Sometimes I’ll have real conversations with someone I haven’t seen in a real long time. But I always manage to find my way back to the bar to get another drink and meditate in deafening silence.
I’m calming myself before the storm. The storm of the set we’re about to unleash. The adrenaline i had coming into the venue has long dissipated and now I’m at a low. I need it. The low recharges me and prepares me for the high I’m about to feel when i get up on stage and perform. But I know that before i do that, i need to set my shit up. That’s the hardest part.
Sometimes my low will include going outside with the wife and catching something to eat. Sometimes I walk around the block once or twice, to stretch out my legs and clear my mind. The low is great for me because it allows me to collect my thoughts and center my perception to the one goal, rocking out.
Couple of bands and beers in, the time is drawing closer. I do some stretching warmups and maybe do some rudiments with my sticks. This is about the time I start to set up my drums.
It starts with the bass drum. Everything in rhythm and music starts with the bass drum so i set that up first. Then i insert the arms for the rack toms. Once that’s done, I’ll set up my snare stand and snare drum. Then comes the most tedious part, the cymbals.
I have a couple of cymbal stands and a couple of cymbals and each time i do it a little differently depending on room on the stage, what i want to use that night, what I’m able to use that night. All my cymbals have a specific place on the stands, however, so its hard for someone to help me with this. That means i usually do it alone. I put the stick depot on the hihat stand and thats the finishing touch. Back to warming up.
The band before us is finishing up their last song and we’re getting ready to attack the stage and setup as quickly as possible. Time is key here because depending on our time, we either get to play our full set, or we may have to cut out a song. It doesn’t really matter in the long run, but that ability to play one more song is actually one of the best feelings in the world. I wish i could live my life playing just one more song.
The band is finally finished and it feels like forever to wait for them to breakdown. Its not proper band etiquette to jump on stage and start setting up while they’re breaking down, mostly because there’s no room for it. Once they’re finally off, we get on stage and setup.
Everyone is handling their own instrument while the singer is lending a hand wherever he can. (hey that rhymed!) That means im on drum duty by myself. The pre show adrenaline is pumping again and thats good because i need all my strength to muscle this combination of bass drum/rack toms onto the stage. I make sure that the bass/toms are in the exact position i need them to be on stage, everything gets built around it and won’t move once everythings done.
Now i get the floor tom and place it on the right side of the bass drum. Snare goes next but first i have to get my throne. Gives me something to sit on while i do this. Cymbals come next. Hihats go next to the snare, crash and china cymbal go above the floor tom, oh but first i have to put the ride cymbal in first. Ride goes over the floor tom, then the crash/china go over that. Other crash and any extra cymbal stands go to the left of the drums, where i have more room.
Everyone else is almost done with their setup and I’m the first one finished. Everything is going smoothly. I sit on my throne, grab my sticks and start to warm….shit. I forgot the fucking pedals. I slide my way around the drums and jump off stage and powerwalk to the corner my drums were in. My pedal case is tucked away and hidden in the shadows. No wonder i didn’t notice it. I take the bungee cord off, the only thing keeping the case together, the clamps had broken off long before. I flip open the case and grab the two pedals, connector bar, and the drumkey.
I hope up back on stage. Everyone is not finished setiing up yet so i still have some more time. I’ve become an expert at putting these pedals together fast. Just adjust the bar to the appropriate length, unscrew the screws, connect the bar between the primary and slave pedals, tighten as much as i can, and there. All finished.
Now i have to snake this thing in front of the snare drum but behind the bass drum and place it in the correct place so my feet are comfortable. Tighten the clasp onto the bass drum and now im ready. About this time, guitars and bass are already making sound and adjusting levels and tuning. I play a couple of beats to make sure everything is comfortably placed. Maybe adjust some of the cymbal stands to be closer or farther. One last run through of the setup and its perfect. Another setup succesful.
The singer announces us to the crowd and the people start to populate the front of the stage again, awaiting the rock thats about to pound them. I get the guitarist and bassist’s attention. Everyone’s ready?
1..2..3..4…
-The Judge
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