Anyone got Tips for Placing kick notes next to..

[-Loco-]

guitar.

I write quite alot of riffs but i never seem to get anywhere with them because I cant write a drum track where the kicks coincide with certain parts of the guitar. Atm i'm just using guitarpro to write some basic stuff. My bassist does it really well but i don't know how. I want to figure out how to do it on guitarpro before using the piano roll in cubase, plus my cubase rig is at my house so i don't have access to it atm.

Anyone got tips on how they go about translating a drum track for their guitar part?

 

[Damian B]

It sounds like you need to work on the basics of counting and rhythms. I would recommend getting a beginners music theory book (or a percussion/drum book) and read up. Also, track the guitars to a click, and that will help you determine how to count out a rhythm.

 

[Brandon E.]

Umm, learning what note values are? I'm sortve confused by the question

 

[-Loco-]

no i know about quarter notes,sixteenths etc etc it's if im playing something thats slightly more complicated and techy i find it really difficult. Do you break your part into sections and do it? do your kicks just follow the guitar pattern exactly etc

 

[Damian B]

Work on counting guitar rhythms out loud. This is generally much harder for guitar players than drummers obviously (I'm a drummer). For example:

"1 e and a, 2 e and a, 3 e and a, 4 e and a" would count out 16th notes

"1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and" would count out 8th notes

"1, 2, 3 e and, 4" would count out a triplet on beat 3

etc..

Try to count the guitar parts out loud as you play them. Also, just sitting down and programming the kick until you get it right will help you get a feel for things.

 

[Damian B]

"1 and a, 2 and a, 3 and a, 4 and a" is another common rhythm.

 

[abt]

Start by taping your foot. This will give you the beat. Put a snare on every beat then double that for the kick and you've got a simple blast beat. Use this as the foundation then start playing with accents, fills etc. This way what ever happens it is in relation to the beat not necessarily the guitars.

You need to switch your think around, the guitars should follow the drums not the other way around. The drums are there to keep the beat. The kicks can't always follow the guitars, their job is to hold the beat together.

 

[Nuno Filipe]

Mess with the Time signature. Try a 3/4 and stuff like that.

 

[Trevoire520]

I would start with figuring out if you want your snare to be on quarters/eights etc, as this will really determine the pace and feel of the song. Work out where you want your hats to go (same as the snare, or maybe twice as often e.g. 1/4 snare and 1/8 hats) then try some different kick patterns to see how they effect the feel. Often in metal the kick goes along with the low chugs on the guitar.

Have a listen to your favourite songs and listen to how the guitars and drums interact.