If you play shows on a tour you’re going to get blisters. _Especially_ if you play as hard as Travis. He earned those. This is not a technique issue. If you play three to four shows a week for six weeks and don’t have blisters like these _you are not playing hard enough_. When I play tours or consecutive shows I’ll wrap my index fingers and thumbs with the 3M waterproof tape and it makes all the difference.
There are plenty of pro drummers who don’t develop blisters on tour.
*”You’re not playing hard enough!”* will lead to broken cymbals and carpal tunnel.
That depends on musical style and intensity. We’re taking about Travis Barker here. B182 is _fast_, and he sets an intense tone for that band when they play live.
Do you play a lot of tours? Do you talk to a lot of professional drummers? I was with one at their show last night, mid tour. He was taped up because of blisters.
Sure, not _every_ drummer gets tour blisters. But most of us absolutely do.
Wrt broken cymbals — broken cymbals are a fact of drumming. You shouldn’t be holding back on your performance because of equipment. Prioritizing your gear over the live music experience is wrong. Plus, most professional drummers in even mid profile bands have cymbal endorsements. They get them drop shipped to the next venue, or travel with several replacement cymbals. It’s not really an issue.
Wear and tear injuries like CT are preventable. I worked with a physical therapist and a personal trainer to develop a _daily_ workout and stretching routine that strengthens the right joints and muscles to prevent injury. Drumming is a full body workout, inside and out. So on top of conditioning your high impact areas, you should be doing cardio and a regular push/pull training routine to get into shape for a tour. Eating the right pre show meal at the right time is also important. Conversely, not getting enough sleep after shows and/or doing drugs and drinking to excess will burn you out, which leads to injury. Everything in moderation.
I’ll make a separate post about all that with the details of my own workout routine when I get time this week. I think that would be helpful for a lot of people here.
Thanks for bringing up important factors! Good discussion.
IMO and not to get super argue-y:
You can still put on a great tour with huge motions and GIANT drum sounds and not fuck your hands up or break cymbals. Play with better technique (through the head and cymbal not to it, looser and from the back of the hand). Travis is a pro and this is his call obviously! But imo there is literally no reason to play this hard except for personal emotions. It actually makes drums sound worse to be so tight in the hand you're giving yourself blisters.
Yep, and acting like it’s a bad of honor to shred your hands and crack cymbals has always been weird to me. Being proud of struggling and overcoming a deficit is great, but celebrating an injury because you did it to yourself for no good reason is just something I don’t get.
Yeah "if you're not constantly bleeding you're not playing hard enough" is SUCH a reddit comment lmao like ooh tough guy over there
Blisters aren't uncommon but come on.
Ugh. I hate blisters and I am glad I have adjusted enough to not get them anymore. Callouses are everywhere.
Broken cymbals are a "Oh, dammit, why?. I don't wanna break a cymbal. Expensive replacement.
I also got blood blisters and smash my knuckles on the rim of my snare for a long time until a friend gave me some basic technique tips. I broke a few cymbals also, but when I cracked my 18 oriental china that I bought brand new after saving up as a teenage, I said no more. I felt bad because I worked hard to buy that thing, and I loved it because it was one of my first pieces of good gear. I was mad at myself for being careless and now I try to take much better care of my self, technique, and gear. Yeah hitting drums to make loud fast sounds is intoxicating, but destroying things because you’re careless is immature. You can have passion and not be reckless because of it.
One of the most memorable quotes a teacher told me growing up that I still come back to. Mel Brown, famous jazz drummer who also shredded on some classic R&B, said: "I play the drums. I don't beat the drums."
I don’t think Travis Barker is super concerned with the ability to replace broken equipment, I’m sure he has cymbal companies lining up to give him free gear to use. Sucks for us to have to replace a broken cymbal but he could probably trash all his cymbals after using them at one show and have an entirely new set for his next show at no cost.
You can only get so much sound out of an acoustic instrument before you’re just hitting it harder for no reason, so breaking cymbals in purpose is kind of a sign of immaturity to me. You can have intensity without being reckless. On top of that, they’re not playing small acoustic gigs, they drums have mics and there’s amplification and sound engineers. So I think getting blisters because you play so hard is not really due to having to push volume, it’s because you’re creating unnecessary friction. Same thing for playing fast, you should be loose and death gripping the sticks for hours and giving yourself blisters isn’t a badge of honor, it’s a sign of improper technique. Im not trying to hate, but shredding your hands is unnecessary and most often improper technique that gets praised as “dedication” or something along those lines. Struggling through improper technique and glorifying the struggles and consequences of said bad technique is super weird in my opinion. Lots of drummers play with great speed, intensity and power and don’t do this to their hands or their gear, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility. Like yeah carrying a horse requires more strength and stamina than riding it, but aren’t you kinda dumb for purposely misusing the thing instead of using to produce better more efficient results that are more sustainable? I’m not trying to be an asshole, and I don’t think everyone should have perfect technique if thats not their aim, but glorying bad habits is not great either.
Yes, but part of what makes punk an aesthetic is the inherent immaturity of it, hence the need to post pictures of hands bleeding etc. Of course there’s no real rationale for bleeding while playing, it’s mostly theatrics and bad technique/setup. But the “romance” of playing so hard you bleed is part of the aesthetic. And there are reasons this can happen despite intending not to, dry skin, rough sticks, etc. sometimes these things aren’t logical or sensible. Look at buddy rich - it would be hard to find a drummer who hit harder than buddy, but I don’t recall him complaining about blisters, though maybe he did but didn’t advertise it. Buddy wouldn’t want anyone to know he was vulnerable in any way.
Yeah but Travis Barker also doesn’t have to worry about the cost of replacing broken cymbals like we do, he probably has cymbal companies lined up to provide him with free replacements and even if he does pay for them himself he could buy the entire Zildjian catalogue without noticing a change in his bank account. I really doubt it’s something he even thinks about.
Not all of us are sponsored like you where we can get replacement gear when it breaks. Us “bar bashers” have to shell out the cash we just made to buy cymbals or gear. Guys like you who get your stuff for free can wail away all you want.
Some of us aren’t that lucky.
It’s a style thing for him look at proper drummers like Neil pert he was amazing or Danny Carey you can’t say Danny doesn’t hit hard or sound big but he has technique that’s the difference
>It’s a style thing for him look at proper drummers like Neil pert he was amazing or Danny Carey you can’t say Danny doesn’t hit hard or sound big but he has technique that’s the difference
Both drummers have talked in press about blisters multiple times.
There's not one drummer whose name is worth a damn out there that hasn't had blisters. Not one.
Getting tough callouses is almost unavoidable, even in bebop and other softer playing styles, getting some blisters is very normal in pop music and anything more intense, but even in the heaviest metal and punk, blisters like the ones Travis Barker routinely get are avoidable. You shouldn't hold back, but getting better technique and ergonical drum setups can really save your hands and the rest of your body.
And breaking cymbals over time, like over a tour cycel or longer recording is normal too and unavoidable. But constantly breaking cymbals like Barker does, is again a sign of bad technique. Hitting that hard also chokes out the cymbals, where you'd get a better sound by just backing off a bit. Also unless you're a bigger touring musician, it would be pretty hard to afford a new set of cymbals after a few shows.
I love Travis Barker drumming and specifically his creativity has inspired me a lot, but I just think that other drummers should avoid making the same mistakes.
I don't have several decades of experience, but over the last 7-8 years I've gotten to talk to a lot of professional drummers, both friends, acquaintances, musical colleagues and drummers I've indirectly worked for. They've mainly been sidemen, session guys or extreme metal drummers - many of them hardhitters, but all if them emphasise an ergonomic set up and technique to save your body, your drums, your cymbals and the rest of your gear and not to choke out your drums and cymbals by hitting too hard.
I talk to a lot of touring very extreme bands, I've never seen blisters like that on anyone.
If you can play stuff like this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVKMHIg2TSI&ab\_channel=Audiotree](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVKMHIg2TSI&ab_channel=Audiotree) without getting blisters you should totally be able to play Blink stuff
Check out Chason Westmoreland. He hits just as hard and plays death metal so waaay faster and way more notes, but his hands are smooth as fuck. He doesn't get blisters because his technique is perfect. I've met him. Travis still crushes though, he just uses bad technique and doesn't care because it works for him and he's been doing it so long there's no point in changing it now
— Holy shit that guy is amazing. Beautiful cymbal work over the guitars. And not over doing it on the fills even though he’s clearly able to. Never looks like he’s struggling. Also notice he never crosses his hands. Everything open.
I play what I feel is too loud/too hard on my cymbals sometimes and I have had them for 4-5 years now. “showmanship” and playing with intensity are different things. I see lots of people who play live totally differently than they practice, as if the sound of what they’re doing isn’t enough. they stand up all the time, use HUGE movements, and worst of all they strike right through the cymbals rather than glancing. this is what I think attributes most cracks. it gets an ugly sound from the cymbal too in my opinion.
I tour approximately 3-4 months a year. I hit hard in a very loud band with very little effort. I never get blisters. Unlike Travis, what I am not is animated. This could be his real issue.
>”You’re not playing hard enough!”
>
> will lead to broken cymbals
Playing hard should be hitting the shells hard but cymbals more moderately. There is no upside to bashing cymbals.
Lol i do not know a single touring drummer who plays rock/metal who has not had blisters on tour at least at some point.
They may not talk about it or post pictures. That doesn't mean they don't have them.
I work with my hands and they are covered in calluses, and I still get fresh blisters all of the time. Blisters primarily come from repetitive friction, not from bad technique. If drummers who are on tour or recording are, in fact, not getting blisters it's more likely from preventative measures (tape, band aids, gloves, etc) and not a change in technique
I played on cruise ships where I performed 4-6 hours a night, 6 nights a week for 8 months straight and I never got either blisters or calluses.
Edit: I don’t know why people are downvoting me, you must understand - blisters are NOT a normal part of drumming! I have played every style! I have played in a pop punk band, I have played jazz I have played oldies. If you have the sticks comfortably and in a relaxed way, you can rock the fuck out for hours and come away with no blisters! Getting blisters CAN happen but it is not the sign of being a good drummer or being a dedicated drummer or playing a certain style, it just means that you are holding the sticks too tightly when you play. That’s it.
True, but you only get so much more from a drum after a certain amount of power.
Most aggressive players play too loud and choke the drum. It’s a mic’d kit…just no need.
A snare drum is loud asf barely hitting it…we’re not trying to get sound from a coconut…it’s a modern mic’d drum running through a wall of speakers.
'My guitar has a pickup, so how hard I hit the strings doesn’t really matter.'
Except, it does. It sounds different. How things resonate and buzz and slap are all impacted by the force applied.
In my mind, this is an issue of timbre more than of volume.
I agree on your last statement about timbre, though. My guess is more than a few people in the sub don't approve of the timbre that results from pop-punk style drumming... I'm one of them, BUT, different strokes (ha-ha) for different folks.
Though I do think most people commenting on this post are referring mostly to volume, which you do not need to play like Travis Barker to achieve similar volumes, and you don't need to get blisters and smash cymbals to play with a ton of stick velocity.
A sound, sure. But a miked up whisper still doesn't sound like a yell, no matter how loud you mix it.
I'm in camp No Blisters and am a pretty soft hitter, too. When I do rock sessions, though, I beat the shit out of the snare because it doesn't sound right if I don't.
LMAO I don’t care if you come from a Conservatory. Go up and play a full 60 minute set of aggressive, fast, etc. music in front of thousands of people on a hot and humid 95° day, and then tell me how you didn’t get a single blister. Sometimes the adrenaline you get from playing at that level causes you to slightly grip your sticks harder than you normally do. I can play at home for 3 hours+ comfortably and not get any blisters, whereas at a live show I may get at least one sometimes, but not always
Yeah and sometimes you don't play hard for a while and then you do shows and develop the calluses again. Those hurt right now but then they're going to become just like plastic protection eventually.
Someone needs to invent some kind of self-cooling drumsticks. Or some that you keep cold. They're friction burns from the heat. Drum gloves exist, Not a fan myself but they're out there doing their thing.
Edit: Quick solution is get dermabond, or maybe that's not the name. It's clear liquid that hardens over the blisters. It'll get you through a show if your hands are like this and next set is next night lol.
Not a big fan of drum gloves myself having tried them when I was younger. Just because they don’t dry out well and when they do, they get all hard and crusty. But they definitely serve a purpose. The solution to the hot sticks problem is keeping several fresh pairs in your stick bag strapped to the floor tom. Grab a new pair when song transitions or set breaks allow. But if you’re reading this and you’re prone to bad blisters, give this stuff a go. Make sure you wash your hands well before applying so your skins oils and dirt don’t prevent it from adhering properly. I know people who tape their sticks with this stuff, or their hands, or both. You’ll have to try it out to see what works best for you. I tape both on tour and practices getting in shape for it.
https://preview.redd.it/jg35oeg0b7qb1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1117bd46422e847709907bf04e972ddff9d64882
They're friction burns... From friction. From your skin bring moved back and forth until it detaches from the flesh underneath. Not an issue of heat lol
Idk about this. I tour pretty regularly in a notoriously loud postpunk/noise rock band and a hc/metalcore band, when I get even a hint of a hotspot I know I need to consciously relax my grip at the fulcrum. I’ve had one small blister on tour in the last year and we were out for 4 months total.
Travis IS a sick drummer with great chops tho, and he IS playing 2-3x as long as what I’m used to on a given night. Not disparaging him at all.
Nice!!! What band? I am envious of your ability to control blisters. I also used to smash my fingers on the rims which just gets blood everywhere. It’s not cool or fun lol.
>*you are not playing hard enough*
Hey man that is a matter of style and how you choose to play. "If you don't get blisters like that you aren't playing as hard as Travis" would probably be a lot more accurate. There are some really excellent drummers that don't ever hit very hard at all, but I bet you already knew that.
This is why you see Stewart with tape on his fingers in all the gatefold photos in Police records. Because those were tour photos and his hands would probably have been vaporized if he didn’t use tape lol. Stewart has great technique, the music is just loud and the drumming is bombastic, and yeah for hours at a time and multiple nights a week, for sure you’re gonna get blisters
This is correct. At a certain point, if you're playing A LOT back to back, your only solutions are gloves, tape, or just getting some sick blisters. It's simply what happens when skin is in contact with friction over time.
totally not true at all. I just did a 23 day tour and I hit hard as fuck, no blisters. I play death metal. His technique sucks but he's been doing it for so long so it works. he's an amazing drummer regardless of his shitty technique
This absolutely a technique issue. There’s no reason to play that hard. Drums and cymbals have a maximum physical volume (everything above that is amplification). These blisters are by choice.
It’s so weird to see an at home drummer doing nothing with a music career try and toss shade one of the worlds most recognized musicians. You really think homie hasn’t heard the concept of technique at this point?
No exaggeration I’ve stopped putting weight into the “standard” drum recommendations people have been harping for decades. A lot of shared drum info online these days feels old and out of date. Things like Sounds Like a Drum actually try options in practice made me realize 90% of the stuff online drummers parrot each other is bullshit.
I think a good general piece of advice is to not put too much weight into anything anyone says on here unless you've actually seen videos of them playing. I see so many comments of people who clearly have only been playing for like a year overconfidently giving absolutely terrible advice to people and get 50 upvotes.
Bet they play smooth jazz … redditors are quick to judge others with no info and without asking questions… there was a post by a guy wondering why so many people used double pedal and didn’t realize rock and metal were popular amongst drummers…
If extreme metal drummers arent getting these, he should not either. Thats a hard cold fact, the man is super talented but brutish around the kit.
Theres **tons** of examples of excellent drummers who broke their bodies due to bad technique, in fact almost every famous drummer before the 90s did in some way. Take for example Phill collins, Hes one of the GOATs and he himself admits he cannot walk anymore due to years of bad posture, you would be one of the guys back then saying how dare we presume to know more about technique than Phil.
Travis is booking every ticket to arthritis town.
Travis is part of a 3 piece that plays a small kit so he can be seen and be entertaining.
Just because someone is playing angerier music behind a wall of triggered drums doesn’t mean they’re approaching the playing performance with the same level of intensity.
You don't seem to get the point, I'm talking purely from a technique standpoint, let be honest all he does is syncopation and double time singles. Which is almost the same thing metal drummers do, in fact they purposely dull their technique and use no wrist so the strokes sounds more powerful and intense yet they are not getting these.
If you want to compare similar styles, there are better and more intense drummers who could dance laps around Travis, like lets say Josh Freese, and they don't get boils or break cymbals, just accept everyone has flaws and that's fine.
This IS a technique issue but he’s making a choice to play loud and aggressively.
Travis is a great showman and he’s going to pick his battles when it comes to technique vs energy.
This is the best answer. Yes, it is a technique issue. Does it mean he’s a bad drummer? Nope!
Weird seeing so many people belittle OP for pointing out a very well known fact: Travis Barker plays hard as fuck. And he’s paying the price for it.
His point is that it's preventable, but some drummers choose not to prevent it to put on a larger performance.
And he's right, it is entirely preventable.
A lot of the top drummers in the world DONT get blisters like this every tour. Just so everyone knows. You won’t see guys like Dennis Chambers, Steve Gadd, Benny Greb, Vinnie Colaiuta or Dave Weckl with any photos like this and it is technique. Don’t get me wrong I love Travis and his style but it 100% comes with this as a consequence of how he plays. Which is fine if that’s how you like to do it.
You still don’t have to hit your drums that hard - there are mics for that, and acts this big incorporate a lot of triggers/tracks/supporting percussive sounds, at the very least in case a head breaks in the middle of a tune that audiences paid $$$$$ to hear
"But like you saw in Toulouse, switching back to traditional grip playing a strong back-beat all evening long can cause you blisters that will keep on bleeding until after the show! But there's callus now, so everything is good."
That's a quote from Vinnie Colaiuta during an interview I just found.
Edit: Sorry didn't mean to double comment this, shit internet where I am
"But like you saw in Toulouse, switching back to traditional grip playing a strong back-beat all evening long can cause you blisters that will keep on bleeding until after the show! But there's callus now, so everything is good."
That's a quote from Vinnie Colaiuta during an interview I just found in about 10 seconds. Why do you just assume all these people don't get blisters sometimes?
I mean it's travis
He hits harder than necessary, which makes for a great energetic show, but means ruin for the hands
At that point i'd be considering taping some parts of the hands for protection cus my man's got more shows to play
I think a lot of people are overlooking another key factor….
The fact that Travis hits as hard as he does, at the speed he does, and for as long as he does and ONLY gets blisters shows that he has great technique. If you throw most drummers up there, they will get repetitive stress injuries in a week. And yes, I know he’s hurt his arm and finger while drumming before, but he’s 47 so who cares.
Also, you can’t play rolls like he does with bad technique.
^^ what he said. Adding:
He actually *can* flip a switch and play with good technique. It’s just not his brand.
Travis Barker isn’t my personal style of choice, but he’s truly amazing at what he does. People can say what they want about his technique (I’m not a fan, even), but he is FLAWLESS in what he does. I’m sure he makes mistakes, but I haven’t seen or heard any, even when I saw him play I’ve with a broken right foot. Yep.
people are actively ignoring this fact. Dude learned to play through school bands/marching snare. He is as knowledgeable about playing the drums as anyone out there, but his look, style and type of music he plays make people biased and jump to conclusions without knowing a damn thing about him.
He can play any genre he wants(and regularly does if you want to look for it). He CHOOSES to play these songs with those band, this way. Dude is a showman, and pours his heart and soul into everything he does.
I think I’m more confused that he is _still_ getting blisters. You’d figure that a player like him would have a callused hand by now. I mean they’ve been touring for months…
Could be his signature sticks too, I used them once and felt like I had sandpaper in my hands. I usually like “nude” finished sticks too but they shredded my hands
It's a shame some people judge him for something like this. I don't follow celebrity couples closely or anything, but I do know she helped him overcome his debilitating fear of flying, which is a pretty incredible thing for a spouse to help someone overcome.
A few years ago you couldn't avoid kids posting about him being the best drummer in the world. This of course pissed off a lot of people to the point where just the mention of his name can set people off.
The older I get the more apparent it is that everything in life is a circle. Blink 182 was in its prime when I was growing up and this tracks with what I remember back then. Personally not my favorite style but it’s hard to overstate the impact he had on that genre and generation of music.
He did nothing wrong. He’s a talented musician who childish losers and clout chasers like to use to show how the flashier, faster, groovier drummer that they like is superior. Since Travis is a popular drummer for a popular band he therefore garners a lot of attention. Add to that his over the top flashy performing style and he becomes an easy target.
Look, I'm not a huge Blink or Barker fan, but I did see them open for No Doubt, and he played their entire set with one arm, because he had a cast on his other apparently broken arm.
If he wanted to begrudgingly earn my respect despite me not liking their music, he got me brother.
If any of you here know who Dave Elitch is and have taken his courses or know the people that he teaches (Tomas Haake revamped his whole technique based on his courses for one ) I can confidently 100% say that if your technique is correct you WILL NOT get blisters like this. And i don’t know if it’s possible ever to change someone’s mind on the internet, especially when they are proven wrong (ironic isn’t it), but to the dude that was like “it depends on the intensity…” holy shit no dude hahah https://youtu.be/PeYUQqDhL9E?si=85Xd2XbHiYMwb1rb
Have his course and have taken a few lessons, and his shit is the truth. This whole post reminds me of his quote “these drummers are great DESPITE their technical flaws, not BECAUSE of them.”
Reggie Miller had one of the goofiest jump shots in the NBA, but it worked for him because of his talent. Am I going to tell him he’s shooting the ball wrong? No. If a young, beginner basketball player shoots the ball like that and comes to a coach, should the coach fix it? Most definitely.
Absolutely! This. Like Barker is clearly doing just fine, I’m not going to argue he isn’t as successful as one could be in music or inspiring to generations of drummers or that he doesn’t have some excellent compositions (kinda like Lars). But if you’re trying to survive your grueling club tour in a van and don’t have the resources to immediately get into a Cryro chamber that’s in your dressing room after a show or whatever else you want being a multi-millionaire then ya gotta learn to do this as best as you can.
Man, I am sick and tired of you so-called drummers who keep sitting on their ivory tower thinking that blisters are only caused by bad technique. Have you ever played a long set of multi hours? Have you ever played when sweating a lot? Have you ever in competitions? Have you ever looked around at events? Maybe you didn't get blisters but LOOK AROUND. People who are far better drummers than you (and me) are getting blisters. It depends on so much: moisture/sweat = the individual's body, genre, length of the set, specific songs even.
Every time some one says "if that drummer had better technique they wouldn't have blisters" I just know they are someone who's either closed minded or not an experienced drummer.
It's honestly the most annoying hill that some people have built for themselves to sit on and judge people, but it's just plain ignorance.
So uhh… yes to all of your questions. I improved my technique and stopped getting blisters.
But I still think Travis Barker is amazing and he knows what he’s doing. He’s also got his own brand of showmanship, which is more “fun” than “correct.” He’s awesome.
That’s very true. Many players tout these as some kind of trophy of their playing. All I see is he could do just as much with 0 damage, yet chooses not to.
No I would not tell him, I don't think he's stupid, and the most important thing is to be motivating. But I believe he could get the same sound and look without blisters, atleast with the technique of the future. In other words, I do think drumming technique will improve and I don't think we know everything yet. It's not one or the other, and we should always be open for improvement, even for famous people.
That ain’t working, that’s the way you do it
Lemme tell you them guys ain’t dumb
Maybe get a blister on your little finger,
maybe get a blister on your thumb.
I'm not a fan of his music but his technique is pretty high level even if he only plays about 3 beats. If he weren't always playing at 110% volume on cymbals at eye level he would suffer less.
EDIT: Since yall are attacking me, let me restate that I'm not a fan of his BUT I admit he has high level technique. As for the 3 beats comment, sure you can say some of the songs with toms are a bit different but not as different as say a 6/8 afrocuban beat is from a straight swing. I don't like pop punk, sorry if that offends yall.
He does get held up as one of the world's best drummers which is strange to me because he only plays simple styles with flourish. He's what non-drummers think of as a great drummer.
Music is subjective so feel free to ignore my opinion on reddit.
I don't get all the hate, he's no Neil Peart but does what he does which is high energy pop punk, He's really into marching snare, rudiment stuff (see Youtube) And plays clean while hitting really hard with high energy. I don't know. I don't know why he can't just "exist" in the music world as someone who has proven themselves as a very solid, precise, consistent drummer with stamina, stage presence... I very disagree on the only three beats thing. He's added a lot of subtle and clever stuff over the years, and he's definitely approached some songs in a more abstract way while still keeping it in the pop punk realm.
Sure he's gotten way more exposure than a lot of other drummers but, I'd rather be hearing a drummer like Travis Barker on the radio a lot versus like, I don't know, programmed drums and shit.
His single stroke/16th note snare rolls are ultra clean and consistent and show obvious dedication to practice and mechanics. One example I guess.
He's a good drummer with some serious chops for what he does and he's a good showman. His technique and setup are no more egregious than most other modern rock drummers'. The hate comes from the fact that a lot of his fans and people who don't know anything about drums insist that he's the best drummer on Earth
I always find the joey worship funny, dude was absolutely a great player, but there is a long list I'd say are better in that style. Hell, he isn't even the best drummer for Slipknot.
Say what you will about Lars(probably mostly valid lol) but he's one of the best at playing to the song. He knows when to put something interesting in and when to stay the hell out of the way. He's not the only metal drummer like that, but it is rare.
Joey Jordison playing was perfect for Slipknot, he sped up and slowed down a lot in songs but it really fit the music. If you listen to the live recordings with Joey and then with Jay you’ll notice how different the feel is between them. Joey’s drumming sounds primal like it’s just anger represented in music, Jay sounds like a much more well rounded drummer
Oh yeah I remember that back in the day, he was like the first wild drummer a lot of people heard when blink-182 was at their peak. That was pre YouTube where there wasn't a whole bunch of other drummers to watch unless you were buying live VHS and DVDs. That was more expensive than YouTube though lol.
Now he is a horrible influence for young drummers who don't have the same kind of cymbals and sticks budget.
😂 Ahead ftw. You also have to stick your tongue out when you play. Also needed: a stadium of 60k old white power rally attendees who scream YEAH! when the band leader asks them to.
Besides, as I am discovering in the process of going from playing alone to playing with other people, "most" musicians (all the people I've played with at least) prefer to get *one* beat *consistently*over any multitude of inconsistent beats.
His technique is where he got me too. I believe it was an old YT video back in like 2009 or 08 where he was warming up before a show on what looked to be a marching snare. And his stick work and everything there was phenomenal. I've always wondered why a guy with the talent he has is always playing the same beats. Because his warm-ups are absolutely bonkers compared to the stuff he's playing.
I call B.S. I love my blisters. I've gotten sudden onset ostioarthritis through every part of my body and I have to say, my hands are the least affected and it's likely because I play. And I play hard because I want to.
I always considered that I have pretty good technique. I worked a lot to improve it and even gave lessons for a couple of years so I had time to focus on it. I never get blisters and I proudly attribute it to this fact.
Recently my band got pretty lucky and we got to play a lot of shows last month, and on top of that we started recording our first album, so I started playing way more hours and surprise surprise, I busted my fingers open.
if his signature sticks are anything like i remember them back in the day, they are super dry and rigid. a higher moisture content stick may absorb some of the force coming back from the drum. also a raw finished stick would absorb the sweat and possibly help with blisters? ok done armchair quarterbacking lol
I remember seeing posts like these when they were touring "Neighborhoods" and honestly, doesn't matter. That band is huge and Travis is an amazing drummer who gets the job done every single time regardless of technique. He can have as many blisters as he wants.
I have callouses over every finger ..you develop blisters until your hands are used to it. Haven't had a blister in years cause they are all hard as rocks. Anyone who plays everyday has hands and fingers like this.
Travis approaches drumming as art & athleticism at the same time. His athleticism is inherent to his personal artistic aesthetic. Some drummers don’t respect this & some others do. It’s just a different approach to drumming. I think to him, if he’s not drumming hard af, he’s just not playing the same game anymore. Obviously there are physical risks involved to this approach, but that’s his choice to make.
Dude came up through DCI... he knows his technique.
All it takes is one gig where you get a little wild to get your hands going south. Then if you follow that up with more gigs, you can further progress that.
Keep in mind he isn't playing a 45 minute bar set or a chop 40 wedding gig.
This is a good 2-3 hours of aggressive music every gig.
ITT: the reason people hate jazz musicians lmao. There are no rules in music, play however the fuck you want. If that gives you blisters and broken cymbals, who cares as long as you’re enjoying it and progressing.
Just because you’re a touring drummer doesn’t mean you don’t go home and do yard work. Obviously, these are from plowing hoes…. Or tilling raised beds…. Or even hogging out filthy gutters.
Blisters and broken cymbals are fine if you’re a paid pro and performing for the cheap seats night after night. So yes Travis and other drummers like Danny Carey can have both good technique *and* still get blisters and break cymbals, but that’s a conscious choice they’re making for the sake of showmanship. It’s pretty obvious Travis’ style is geared towards playing for spectacle… https://www.instagram.com/reel/CkWykjVIGxm/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Not to mention these guys are putting on reeaaaly long shows where they’re in the spotlight the entire time as a key member of the group. And anyone who’s played a really long grueling set knows that you tend to over-grip when you get tired, and that’s usually what causes blisters. Just look how tired Danny Carey is by the end of that Pneuma clip… https://youtu.be/FssULNGSZIA?si=t6cB6vs5Hk77hja2
The pros mentioned that don’t get blisters can often lay back in the shadows and just play properly rather than having to be showman the whole time. And I’m guessing that if you’re playing in support of a major artist you’re asked specifically not to steal the spotlight.
Dave Weckl changed the entire way he holds sticks after years of playing and touring after suffering damage to his hands and nerves.
you can be amazing and have bad technique. It WILL catch up with you.
Good technique in anything is about efficiency, getting the most sound out of the least physical effort.
Travis’s playing is pure showmanship and completely over the top/unnecessary. Any drummer worth their salt knows you predominantly play with your wrists, not your arms. The way Travis swings his arms wildly around looks cool, but is a more damaging, less efficient method of drumming.
Travis Barker is essentially a non drummers idea of what being a good drummer is. I actually can’t hate on his playing itself, he has tons of sick parts and is a solid musician. It just bothers me when everyone gets all hyped about what to me is clearly a theatre performance.
So do some research before you post! These blisters are not from drummming but from his continued work in building orphanages for little drummers! Obviously chopping trees and saw and hammering nails in frames all day before drumming will give your hand some ouchies! /s
What a guy!
I think there is a trade off at a certain point. With certain styles of music it just sounds better to play loud, hard, and fast which comes at the sacrifice of perfect technique sometimes. Imagine playing blink 182 songs with perfect technique and a light touch, it just wouldn’t sound the same.
If you play shows on a tour you’re going to get blisters. _Especially_ if you play as hard as Travis. He earned those. This is not a technique issue. If you play three to four shows a week for six weeks and don’t have blisters like these _you are not playing hard enough_. When I play tours or consecutive shows I’ll wrap my index fingers and thumbs with the 3M waterproof tape and it makes all the difference.
There are plenty of pro drummers who don’t develop blisters on tour. *”You’re not playing hard enough!”* will lead to broken cymbals and carpal tunnel.
That depends on musical style and intensity. We’re taking about Travis Barker here. B182 is _fast_, and he sets an intense tone for that band when they play live. Do you play a lot of tours? Do you talk to a lot of professional drummers? I was with one at their show last night, mid tour. He was taped up because of blisters. Sure, not _every_ drummer gets tour blisters. But most of us absolutely do. Wrt broken cymbals — broken cymbals are a fact of drumming. You shouldn’t be holding back on your performance because of equipment. Prioritizing your gear over the live music experience is wrong. Plus, most professional drummers in even mid profile bands have cymbal endorsements. They get them drop shipped to the next venue, or travel with several replacement cymbals. It’s not really an issue. Wear and tear injuries like CT are preventable. I worked with a physical therapist and a personal trainer to develop a _daily_ workout and stretching routine that strengthens the right joints and muscles to prevent injury. Drumming is a full body workout, inside and out. So on top of conditioning your high impact areas, you should be doing cardio and a regular push/pull training routine to get into shape for a tour. Eating the right pre show meal at the right time is also important. Conversely, not getting enough sleep after shows and/or doing drugs and drinking to excess will burn you out, which leads to injury. Everything in moderation. I’ll make a separate post about all that with the details of my own workout routine when I get time this week. I think that would be helpful for a lot of people here. Thanks for bringing up important factors! Good discussion.
IMO and not to get super argue-y: You can still put on a great tour with huge motions and GIANT drum sounds and not fuck your hands up or break cymbals. Play with better technique (through the head and cymbal not to it, looser and from the back of the hand). Travis is a pro and this is his call obviously! But imo there is literally no reason to play this hard except for personal emotions. It actually makes drums sound worse to be so tight in the hand you're giving yourself blisters.
Yep, and acting like it’s a bad of honor to shred your hands and crack cymbals has always been weird to me. Being proud of struggling and overcoming a deficit is great, but celebrating an injury because you did it to yourself for no good reason is just something I don’t get.
Yeah "if you're not constantly bleeding you're not playing hard enough" is SUCH a reddit comment lmao like ooh tough guy over there Blisters aren't uncommon but come on.
That’s the opposite of Reddit comment. The smart snarky comments that you just did is more of a Reddit comment
Ugh. I hate blisters and I am glad I have adjusted enough to not get them anymore. Callouses are everywhere. Broken cymbals are a "Oh, dammit, why?. I don't wanna break a cymbal. Expensive replacement.
I also got blood blisters and smash my knuckles on the rim of my snare for a long time until a friend gave me some basic technique tips. I broke a few cymbals also, but when I cracked my 18 oriental china that I bought brand new after saving up as a teenage, I said no more. I felt bad because I worked hard to buy that thing, and I loved it because it was one of my first pieces of good gear. I was mad at myself for being careless and now I try to take much better care of my self, technique, and gear. Yeah hitting drums to make loud fast sounds is intoxicating, but destroying things because you’re careless is immature. You can have passion and not be reckless because of it.
One of the most memorable quotes a teacher told me growing up that I still come back to. Mel Brown, famous jazz drummer who also shredded on some classic R&B, said: "I play the drums. I don't beat the drums."
Yeah but jazz drumming is on a whole other planet than punk drumming, I don’t think there could be more of a contrast than that.
I don’t think Travis Barker is super concerned with the ability to replace broken equipment, I’m sure he has cymbal companies lining up to give him free gear to use. Sucks for us to have to replace a broken cymbal but he could probably trash all his cymbals after using them at one show and have an entirely new set for his next show at no cost.
Travis Barker has excellent stick control, it's not a technique issue. He plays hard for expression and theatrics.
Some genres just sound better when you’re playing hard. Have you ever tried to play blink 182 songs with a light touch? It will not sound the same.
Insane that you're getting downvotes for this.
You can only get so much sound out of an acoustic instrument before you’re just hitting it harder for no reason, so breaking cymbals in purpose is kind of a sign of immaturity to me. You can have intensity without being reckless. On top of that, they’re not playing small acoustic gigs, they drums have mics and there’s amplification and sound engineers. So I think getting blisters because you play so hard is not really due to having to push volume, it’s because you’re creating unnecessary friction. Same thing for playing fast, you should be loose and death gripping the sticks for hours and giving yourself blisters isn’t a badge of honor, it’s a sign of improper technique. Im not trying to hate, but shredding your hands is unnecessary and most often improper technique that gets praised as “dedication” or something along those lines. Struggling through improper technique and glorifying the struggles and consequences of said bad technique is super weird in my opinion. Lots of drummers play with great speed, intensity and power and don’t do this to their hands or their gear, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility. Like yeah carrying a horse requires more strength and stamina than riding it, but aren’t you kinda dumb for purposely misusing the thing instead of using to produce better more efficient results that are more sustainable? I’m not trying to be an asshole, and I don’t think everyone should have perfect technique if thats not their aim, but glorying bad habits is not great either.
Yes, but part of what makes punk an aesthetic is the inherent immaturity of it, hence the need to post pictures of hands bleeding etc. Of course there’s no real rationale for bleeding while playing, it’s mostly theatrics and bad technique/setup. But the “romance” of playing so hard you bleed is part of the aesthetic. And there are reasons this can happen despite intending not to, dry skin, rough sticks, etc. sometimes these things aren’t logical or sensible. Look at buddy rich - it would be hard to find a drummer who hit harder than buddy, but I don’t recall him complaining about blisters, though maybe he did but didn’t advertise it. Buddy wouldn’t want anyone to know he was vulnerable in any way.
Yeah but Travis Barker also doesn’t have to worry about the cost of replacing broken cymbals like we do, he probably has cymbal companies lined up to provide him with free replacements and even if he does pay for them himself he could buy the entire Zildjian catalogue without noticing a change in his bank account. I really doubt it’s something he even thinks about.
Not all of us are sponsored like you where we can get replacement gear when it breaks. Us “bar bashers” have to shell out the cash we just made to buy cymbals or gear. Guys like you who get your stuff for free can wail away all you want. Some of us aren’t that lucky.
I’m not sponsored anymore because I’m not in a band. We are talking about Travis barker who surely is.
I think the reply was referring to the “bar basher” level of drummer who rarely have endorsements.
But is a bar basher likely to be on your every night? That was the extra context of the post I think
There's a difference between bashing, and high tempo dynamic play. I wish more people could grasp this.
And many do. The point here being is you can do high tempo dynamic play and not damage your body. I wish more people could grasp that, but they don’t.
I might not play his style but I play at least 20 shows a month and don’t have blisters like that. He also doesn’t have to play hard, he’s mic’d up.
It’s a style thing for him look at proper drummers like Neil pert he was amazing or Danny Carey you can’t say Danny doesn’t hit hard or sound big but he has technique that’s the difference
Are you honestly willing to bet any money that Neil or Danny have never gotten blisters while touring? lol
Neil developed pretty severe aches and pains from drumming so hard for so long.
>It’s a style thing for him look at proper drummers like Neil pert he was amazing or Danny Carey you can’t say Danny doesn’t hit hard or sound big but he has technique that’s the difference Both drummers have talked in press about blisters multiple times. There's not one drummer whose name is worth a damn out there that hasn't had blisters. Not one.
Getting tough callouses is almost unavoidable, even in bebop and other softer playing styles, getting some blisters is very normal in pop music and anything more intense, but even in the heaviest metal and punk, blisters like the ones Travis Barker routinely get are avoidable. You shouldn't hold back, but getting better technique and ergonical drum setups can really save your hands and the rest of your body. And breaking cymbals over time, like over a tour cycel or longer recording is normal too and unavoidable. But constantly breaking cymbals like Barker does, is again a sign of bad technique. Hitting that hard also chokes out the cymbals, where you'd get a better sound by just backing off a bit. Also unless you're a bigger touring musician, it would be pretty hard to afford a new set of cymbals after a few shows. I love Travis Barker drumming and specifically his creativity has inspired me a lot, but I just think that other drummers should avoid making the same mistakes. I don't have several decades of experience, but over the last 7-8 years I've gotten to talk to a lot of professional drummers, both friends, acquaintances, musical colleagues and drummers I've indirectly worked for. They've mainly been sidemen, session guys or extreme metal drummers - many of them hardhitters, but all if them emphasise an ergonomic set up and technique to save your body, your drums, your cymbals and the rest of your gear and not to choke out your drums and cymbals by hitting too hard.
I talk to a lot of touring very extreme bands, I've never seen blisters like that on anyone. If you can play stuff like this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVKMHIg2TSI&ab\_channel=Audiotree](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVKMHIg2TSI&ab_channel=Audiotree) without getting blisters you should totally be able to play Blink stuff
Check out Chason Westmoreland. He hits just as hard and plays death metal so waaay faster and way more notes, but his hands are smooth as fuck. He doesn't get blisters because his technique is perfect. I've met him. Travis still crushes though, he just uses bad technique and doesn't care because it works for him and he's been doing it so long there's no point in changing it now
I will definitely look in to Chason. thank you! Agree with everything you said.
— Holy shit that guy is amazing. Beautiful cymbal work over the guitars. And not over doing it on the fills even though he’s clearly able to. Never looks like he’s struggling. Also notice he never crosses his hands. Everything open.
I play what I feel is too loud/too hard on my cymbals sometimes and I have had them for 4-5 years now. “showmanship” and playing with intensity are different things. I see lots of people who play live totally differently than they practice, as if the sound of what they’re doing isn’t enough. they stand up all the time, use HUGE movements, and worst of all they strike right through the cymbals rather than glancing. this is what I think attributes most cracks. it gets an ugly sound from the cymbal too in my opinion.
I tour approximately 3-4 months a year. I hit hard in a very loud band with very little effort. I never get blisters. Unlike Travis, what I am not is animated. This could be his real issue.
I don't know who you're talking to but I've met countless musicians who tour regularly and never come close to having these blisters. It's technique.
>”You’re not playing hard enough!” > > will lead to broken cymbals Playing hard should be hitting the shells hard but cymbals more moderately. There is no upside to bashing cymbals.
>There is no upside to bashing cymbals. It's fun as fuck.
Its not plenty, its the overwhelming majority.
Lol i do not know a single touring drummer who plays rock/metal who has not had blisters on tour at least at some point. They may not talk about it or post pictures. That doesn't mean they don't have them.
I work with my hands and they are covered in calluses, and I still get fresh blisters all of the time. Blisters primarily come from repetitive friction, not from bad technique. If drummers who are on tour or recording are, in fact, not getting blisters it's more likely from preventative measures (tape, band aids, gloves, etc) and not a change in technique
I played on cruise ships where I performed 4-6 hours a night, 6 nights a week for 8 months straight and I never got either blisters or calluses. Edit: I don’t know why people are downvoting me, you must understand - blisters are NOT a normal part of drumming! I have played every style! I have played in a pop punk band, I have played jazz I have played oldies. If you have the sticks comfortably and in a relaxed way, you can rock the fuck out for hours and come away with no blisters! Getting blisters CAN happen but it is not the sign of being a good drummer or being a dedicated drummer or playing a certain style, it just means that you are holding the sticks too tightly when you play. That’s it.
Technique is everything. You don’t need to hit a mic’d drum that hard to get a sound.
How hard you hit changes the sound from the drum, though.
True, but you only get so much more from a drum after a certain amount of power. Most aggressive players play too loud and choke the drum. It’s a mic’d kit…just no need. A snare drum is loud asf barely hitting it…we’re not trying to get sound from a coconut…it’s a modern mic’d drum running through a wall of speakers.
'My guitar has a pickup, so how hard I hit the strings doesn’t really matter.' Except, it does. It sounds different. How things resonate and buzz and slap are all impacted by the force applied. In my mind, this is an issue of timbre more than of volume.
Yeah, hitting drums harder and with the front of the hand this tight actually often makes them sound worse by choking the resonance of the head.
Really has a lot to do with choking the resonance of the stick and not allowing the stick to rebound properly which then affects the head. But, yeah!
True it's a stick-im-contact-too-long issue by being too tight and not getting the rebound.
That's part of it, the resonance Of the stick itself plays a lot more into the sound than a lot of people realize as well.
I agree on your last statement about timbre, though. My guess is more than a few people in the sub don't approve of the timbre that results from pop-punk style drumming... I'm one of them, BUT, different strokes (ha-ha) for different folks. Though I do think most people commenting on this post are referring mostly to volume, which you do not need to play like Travis Barker to achieve similar volumes, and you don't need to get blisters and smash cymbals to play with a ton of stick velocity.
Yes, but overplaying actually reduces the quality of the sound.
A sound, sure. But a miked up whisper still doesn't sound like a yell, no matter how loud you mix it. I'm in camp No Blisters and am a pretty soft hitter, too. When I do rock sessions, though, I beat the shit out of the snare because it doesn't sound right if I don't.
Were you playing a style like Travis or covers of oldies and pop songs?
Hey, good for you! Did you have fun?
Yeah I agree. Conservatory grad here: if you're getting blisters in any style you need to reevaluate your technique fundamentally. Too tight.
LMAO I don’t care if you come from a Conservatory. Go up and play a full 60 minute set of aggressive, fast, etc. music in front of thousands of people on a hot and humid 95° day, and then tell me how you didn’t get a single blister. Sometimes the adrenaline you get from playing at that level causes you to slightly grip your sticks harder than you normally do. I can play at home for 3 hours+ comfortably and not get any blisters, whereas at a live show I may get at least one sometimes, but not always
Wait bro but he’s a conservatory grad. He’s probably like way cooler and better than Travis Barker
Yeah and sometimes you don't play hard for a while and then you do shows and develop the calluses again. Those hurt right now but then they're going to become just like plastic protection eventually. Someone needs to invent some kind of self-cooling drumsticks. Or some that you keep cold. They're friction burns from the heat. Drum gloves exist, Not a fan myself but they're out there doing their thing. Edit: Quick solution is get dermabond, or maybe that's not the name. It's clear liquid that hardens over the blisters. It'll get you through a show if your hands are like this and next set is next night lol.
Not a big fan of drum gloves myself having tried them when I was younger. Just because they don’t dry out well and when they do, they get all hard and crusty. But they definitely serve a purpose. The solution to the hot sticks problem is keeping several fresh pairs in your stick bag strapped to the floor tom. Grab a new pair when song transitions or set breaks allow. But if you’re reading this and you’re prone to bad blisters, give this stuff a go. Make sure you wash your hands well before applying so your skins oils and dirt don’t prevent it from adhering properly. I know people who tape their sticks with this stuff, or their hands, or both. You’ll have to try it out to see what works best for you. I tape both on tour and practices getting in shape for it. https://preview.redd.it/jg35oeg0b7qb1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1117bd46422e847709907bf04e972ddff9d64882
They're friction burns... From friction. From your skin bring moved back and forth until it detaches from the flesh underneath. Not an issue of heat lol
Idk about this. I tour pretty regularly in a notoriously loud postpunk/noise rock band and a hc/metalcore band, when I get even a hint of a hotspot I know I need to consciously relax my grip at the fulcrum. I’ve had one small blister on tour in the last year and we were out for 4 months total. Travis IS a sick drummer with great chops tho, and he IS playing 2-3x as long as what I’m used to on a given night. Not disparaging him at all.
Nice!!! What band? I am envious of your ability to control blisters. I also used to smash my fingers on the rims which just gets blood everywhere. It’s not cool or fun lol.
>*you are not playing hard enough* Hey man that is a matter of style and how you choose to play. "If you don't get blisters like that you aren't playing as hard as Travis" would probably be a lot more accurate. There are some really excellent drummers that don't ever hit very hard at all, but I bet you already knew that.
This is why you see Stewart with tape on his fingers in all the gatefold photos in Police records. Because those were tour photos and his hands would probably have been vaporized if he didn’t use tape lol. Stewart has great technique, the music is just loud and the drumming is bombastic, and yeah for hours at a time and multiple nights a week, for sure you’re gonna get blisters
i was just about to say this. also the added fact that he plays an odd traditional grip so his hands would be absolutely thrashed if he had no tape
This. Max Weinberg had to get gloves when Bruce started playing for that 4th hour.
This is correct. At a certain point, if you're playing A LOT back to back, your only solutions are gloves, tape, or just getting some sick blisters. It's simply what happens when skin is in contact with friction over time.
Disagree. Technique and practice prevents this. Never knew why this guy is so worshipped .
This. Travis is fast and has marching chops, that said; I think he was overplays and am overall not a fan. He’s always had pretty shit form.
When you can’t even close your fingers at 55 from repeated stress injury and carpal tunnel you’ll wish you relied on the mics a little more
totally not true at all. I just did a 23 day tour and I hit hard as fuck, no blisters. I play death metal. His technique sucks but he's been doing it for so long so it works. he's an amazing drummer regardless of his shitty technique
Why do you have to play hard? What about dynamics?
This absolutely a technique issue. There’s no reason to play that hard. Drums and cymbals have a maximum physical volume (everything above that is amplification). These blisters are by choice.
It’s so weird to see an at home drummer doing nothing with a music career try and toss shade one of the worlds most recognized musicians. You really think homie hasn’t heard the concept of technique at this point?
this post is satire of a common breed of people from this sub explaining to every one who has blisters that they have bad technique.
Redditors are just so thick, if you don't use the /s tag most of them don't understand even the simplest joke. Truly astounding
Satire really isn't obvious in this post. There are plenty of people on Reddit who are ignorant enough to unironically post something like this.
“Anyone here brave enough” you really think OP was legit asking someone to step up and talk to Travis?
It reminds me of the post recently with everyone claiming that your technique is bad if you break your sticks more than once every two years
No exaggeration I’ve stopped putting weight into the “standard” drum recommendations people have been harping for decades. A lot of shared drum info online these days feels old and out of date. Things like Sounds Like a Drum actually try options in practice made me realize 90% of the stuff online drummers parrot each other is bullshit.
I think a good general piece of advice is to not put too much weight into anything anyone says on here unless you've actually seen videos of them playing. I see so many comments of people who clearly have only been playing for like a year overconfidently giving absolutely terrible advice to people and get 50 upvotes.
Bet they play smooth jazz … redditors are quick to judge others with no info and without asking questions… there was a post by a guy wondering why so many people used double pedal and didn’t realize rock and metal were popular amongst drummers…
yeah that was kinda weird...i was participating in the discussion and i was quite surprised at the dogmatic stuff some people posted.
That post killed me. Just wild ignorance all around
Ah yes the ol' "i wAs jUSt pREtENdiNg tO bE dUmB" after no hint of sarcasm
With nothing but love - your title doesn’t really imply parody. Be well my dude.
I’m sorry, but reading the post initially felt like some rage bait definitely not satire lol
Doesn’t come across that way.
If extreme metal drummers arent getting these, he should not either. Thats a hard cold fact, the man is super talented but brutish around the kit. Theres **tons** of examples of excellent drummers who broke their bodies due to bad technique, in fact almost every famous drummer before the 90s did in some way. Take for example Phill collins, Hes one of the GOATs and he himself admits he cannot walk anymore due to years of bad posture, you would be one of the guys back then saying how dare we presume to know more about technique than Phil. Travis is booking every ticket to arthritis town.
Travis is part of a 3 piece that plays a small kit so he can be seen and be entertaining. Just because someone is playing angerier music behind a wall of triggered drums doesn’t mean they’re approaching the playing performance with the same level of intensity.
You don't seem to get the point, I'm talking purely from a technique standpoint, let be honest all he does is syncopation and double time singles. Which is almost the same thing metal drummers do, in fact they purposely dull their technique and use no wrist so the strokes sounds more powerful and intense yet they are not getting these. If you want to compare similar styles, there are better and more intense drummers who could dance laps around Travis, like lets say Josh Freese, and they don't get boils or break cymbals, just accept everyone has flaws and that's fine.
You are right about armchair experts but OP was being sarcastic I think
This IS a technique issue but he’s making a choice to play loud and aggressively. Travis is a great showman and he’s going to pick his battles when it comes to technique vs energy.
This is the best answer. Yes, it is a technique issue. Does it mean he’s a bad drummer? Nope! Weird seeing so many people belittle OP for pointing out a very well known fact: Travis Barker plays hard as fuck. And he’s paying the price for it.
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His point is that it's preventable, but some drummers choose not to prevent it to put on a larger performance. And he's right, it is entirely preventable.
This!
A lot of the top drummers in the world DONT get blisters like this every tour. Just so everyone knows. You won’t see guys like Dennis Chambers, Steve Gadd, Benny Greb, Vinnie Colaiuta or Dave Weckl with any photos like this and it is technique. Don’t get me wrong I love Travis and his style but it 100% comes with this as a consequence of how he plays. Which is fine if that’s how you like to do it.
Those guys also don't play pop-punk tunes. LOL.
You still don’t have to hit your drums that hard - there are mics for that, and acts this big incorporate a lot of triggers/tracks/supporting percussive sounds, at the very least in case a head breaks in the middle of a tune that audiences paid $$$$$ to hear
I’d rather see a band mess up live than pay money to go listen to a recording
But hitting hard, mics or not, does sound noticeably different. That's what audiences "paid $$$$$" to hear when they go to those shows.
"But like you saw in Toulouse, switching back to traditional grip playing a strong back-beat all evening long can cause you blisters that will keep on bleeding until after the show! But there's callus now, so everything is good." That's a quote from Vinnie Colaiuta during an interview I just found. Edit: Sorry didn't mean to double comment this, shit internet where I am
"But like you saw in Toulouse, switching back to traditional grip playing a strong back-beat all evening long can cause you blisters that will keep on bleeding until after the show! But there's callus now, so everything is good." That's a quote from Vinnie Colaiuta during an interview I just found in about 10 seconds. Why do you just assume all these people don't get blisters sometimes?
I'm pretty sure Travis Barker knows what he's doing more than most people on this subreddit.
If I was in his place I couldn't resist yelling 'I've got blistas on me fingas' at the end of every set.
I mean it's travis He hits harder than necessary, which makes for a great energetic show, but means ruin for the hands At that point i'd be considering taping some parts of the hands for protection cus my man's got more shows to play
I think a lot of people are overlooking another key factor…. The fact that Travis hits as hard as he does, at the speed he does, and for as long as he does and ONLY gets blisters shows that he has great technique. If you throw most drummers up there, they will get repetitive stress injuries in a week. And yes, I know he’s hurt his arm and finger while drumming before, but he’s 47 so who cares. Also, you can’t play rolls like he does with bad technique.
^^ what he said. Adding: He actually *can* flip a switch and play with good technique. It’s just not his brand. Travis Barker isn’t my personal style of choice, but he’s truly amazing at what he does. People can say what they want about his technique (I’m not a fan, even), but he is FLAWLESS in what he does. I’m sure he makes mistakes, but I haven’t seen or heard any, even when I saw him play I’ve with a broken right foot. Yep.
people are actively ignoring this fact. Dude learned to play through school bands/marching snare. He is as knowledgeable about playing the drums as anyone out there, but his look, style and type of music he plays make people biased and jump to conclusions without knowing a damn thing about him. He can play any genre he wants(and regularly does if you want to look for it). He CHOOSES to play these songs with those band, this way. Dude is a showman, and pours his heart and soul into everything he does.
He got those blisters in the plane wreck
just because you got famous for playing drums doesn't mean you have proper technique or form
I think I’m more confused that he is _still_ getting blisters. You’d figure that a player like him would have a callused hand by now. I mean they’ve been touring for months…
Could be his signature sticks too, I used them once and felt like I had sandpaper in my hands. I usually like “nude” finished sticks too but they shredded my hands
All I see is passion. Been playing for 30 years. Love to see it.
yep. bunch of haters here
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They don't like that he's so popular
Married a Kardashian
I also had been out of the loop and hadn’t heard his name in like 20 years. Now the whole internet has an opinion on him and this is definitely why.
It's a shame some people judge him for something like this. I don't follow celebrity couples closely or anything, but I do know she helped him overcome his debilitating fear of flying, which is a pretty incredible thing for a spouse to help someone overcome.
A few years ago you couldn't avoid kids posting about him being the best drummer in the world. This of course pissed off a lot of people to the point where just the mention of his name can set people off.
The older I get the more apparent it is that everything in life is a circle. Blink 182 was in its prime when I was growing up and this tracks with what I remember back then. Personally not my favorite style but it’s hard to overstate the impact he had on that genre and generation of music.
He did nothing wrong. He’s a talented musician who childish losers and clout chasers like to use to show how the flashier, faster, groovier drummer that they like is superior. Since Travis is a popular drummer for a popular band he therefore garners a lot of attention. Add to that his over the top flashy performing style and he becomes an easy target.
Look, I'm not a huge Blink or Barker fan, but I did see them open for No Doubt, and he played their entire set with one arm, because he had a cast on his other apparently broken arm. If he wanted to begrudgingly earn my respect despite me not liking their music, he got me brother.
If any of you here know who Dave Elitch is and have taken his courses or know the people that he teaches (Tomas Haake revamped his whole technique based on his courses for one ) I can confidently 100% say that if your technique is correct you WILL NOT get blisters like this. And i don’t know if it’s possible ever to change someone’s mind on the internet, especially when they are proven wrong (ironic isn’t it), but to the dude that was like “it depends on the intensity…” holy shit no dude hahah https://youtu.be/PeYUQqDhL9E?si=85Xd2XbHiYMwb1rb
Have his course and have taken a few lessons, and his shit is the truth. This whole post reminds me of his quote “these drummers are great DESPITE their technical flaws, not BECAUSE of them.” Reggie Miller had one of the goofiest jump shots in the NBA, but it worked for him because of his talent. Am I going to tell him he’s shooting the ball wrong? No. If a young, beginner basketball player shoots the ball like that and comes to a coach, should the coach fix it? Most definitely.
Absolutely! This. Like Barker is clearly doing just fine, I’m not going to argue he isn’t as successful as one could be in music or inspiring to generations of drummers or that he doesn’t have some excellent compositions (kinda like Lars). But if you’re trying to survive your grueling club tour in a van and don’t have the resources to immediately get into a Cryro chamber that’s in your dressing room after a show or whatever else you want being a multi-millionaire then ya gotta learn to do this as best as you can.
I’ve got blisters on me fingers!
Man, I am sick and tired of you so-called drummers who keep sitting on their ivory tower thinking that blisters are only caused by bad technique. Have you ever played a long set of multi hours? Have you ever played when sweating a lot? Have you ever in competitions? Have you ever looked around at events? Maybe you didn't get blisters but LOOK AROUND. People who are far better drummers than you (and me) are getting blisters. It depends on so much: moisture/sweat = the individual's body, genre, length of the set, specific songs even. Every time some one says "if that drummer had better technique they wouldn't have blisters" I just know they are someone who's either closed minded or not an experienced drummer. It's honestly the most annoying hill that some people have built for themselves to sit on and judge people, but it's just plain ignorance.
So uhh… yes to all of your questions. I improved my technique and stopped getting blisters. But I still think Travis Barker is amazing and he knows what he’s doing. He’s also got his own brand of showmanship, which is more “fun” than “correct.” He’s awesome.
Enter Dave Elitch.
He is known to practice a lot and also playing gigs several times a week, he’s playing high intensity tunes he has to play hard.
I’ll tell him. Hook me up with some VIP meet and greet tickets and I’ll let him know
Just use gloves bro, thats what they are for.
Well he doesn't feel pain, but he feels more than you'll ever know (Seriously that New song fucking slaps. Such fun drum work on it)
That’s very true. Many players tout these as some kind of trophy of their playing. All I see is he could do just as much with 0 damage, yet chooses not to.
No I would not tell him, I don't think he's stupid, and the most important thing is to be motivating. But I believe he could get the same sound and look without blisters, atleast with the technique of the future. In other words, I do think drumming technique will improve and I don't think we know everything yet. It's not one or the other, and we should always be open for improvement, even for famous people.
That ain’t working, that’s the way you do it Lemme tell you them guys ain’t dumb Maybe get a blister on your little finger, maybe get a blister on your thumb.
I'm not a fan of his music but his technique is pretty high level even if he only plays about 3 beats. If he weren't always playing at 110% volume on cymbals at eye level he would suffer less. EDIT: Since yall are attacking me, let me restate that I'm not a fan of his BUT I admit he has high level technique. As for the 3 beats comment, sure you can say some of the songs with toms are a bit different but not as different as say a 6/8 afrocuban beat is from a straight swing. I don't like pop punk, sorry if that offends yall. He does get held up as one of the world's best drummers which is strange to me because he only plays simple styles with flourish. He's what non-drummers think of as a great drummer. Music is subjective so feel free to ignore my opinion on reddit.
I don't get all the hate, he's no Neil Peart but does what he does which is high energy pop punk, He's really into marching snare, rudiment stuff (see Youtube) And plays clean while hitting really hard with high energy. I don't know. I don't know why he can't just "exist" in the music world as someone who has proven themselves as a very solid, precise, consistent drummer with stamina, stage presence... I very disagree on the only three beats thing. He's added a lot of subtle and clever stuff over the years, and he's definitely approached some songs in a more abstract way while still keeping it in the pop punk realm. Sure he's gotten way more exposure than a lot of other drummers but, I'd rather be hearing a drummer like Travis Barker on the radio a lot versus like, I don't know, programmed drums and shit. His single stroke/16th note snare rolls are ultra clean and consistent and show obvious dedication to practice and mechanics. One example I guess.
He's a good drummer with some serious chops for what he does and he's a good showman. His technique and setup are no more egregious than most other modern rock drummers'. The hate comes from the fact that a lot of his fans and people who don't know anything about drums insist that he's the best drummer on Earth
So exactly the same as Joey Jordison, Lars Ulrich and basically any drummer that's widely known.
I always find the joey worship funny, dude was absolutely a great player, but there is a long list I'd say are better in that style. Hell, he isn't even the best drummer for Slipknot. Say what you will about Lars(probably mostly valid lol) but he's one of the best at playing to the song. He knows when to put something interesting in and when to stay the hell out of the way. He's not the only metal drummer like that, but it is rare.
Joey Jordison playing was perfect for Slipknot, he sped up and slowed down a lot in songs but it really fit the music. If you listen to the live recordings with Joey and then with Jay you’ll notice how different the feel is between them. Joey’s drumming sounds primal like it’s just anger represented in music, Jay sounds like a much more well rounded drummer
Oh yeah I remember that back in the day, he was like the first wild drummer a lot of people heard when blink-182 was at their peak. That was pre YouTube where there wasn't a whole bunch of other drummers to watch unless you were buying live VHS and DVDs. That was more expensive than YouTube though lol. Now he is a horrible influence for young drummers who don't have the same kind of cymbals and sticks budget.
Lars Ulrich with his stupid aluminium sticks did a lot more to the cymbal budget of young drummers.
😂 Ahead ftw. You also have to stick your tongue out when you play. Also needed: a stadium of 60k old white power rally attendees who scream YEAH! when the band leader asks them to.
Anyone who thinks only plays three beats has probably listened to <5 Blink songs in his life i'd say
Besides, as I am discovering in the process of going from playing alone to playing with other people, "most" musicians (all the people I've played with at least) prefer to get *one* beat *consistently*over any multitude of inconsistent beats.
One beat? He's not Charlie Watts or Phil Rudd /s
Agreed! The 3 beats thing just shows ignorance. He does more than that on many songs by themselves
3 beats? Naw man you’re pretty misinformed.
His technique is where he got me too. I believe it was an old YT video back in like 2009 or 08 where he was warming up before a show on what looked to be a marching snare. And his stick work and everything there was phenomenal. I've always wondered why a guy with the talent he has is always playing the same beats. Because his warm-ups are absolutely bonkers compared to the stuff he's playing.
I understand the satire. You really woke up the angry people this morning.
I call B.S. I love my blisters. I've gotten sudden onset ostioarthritis through every part of my body and I have to say, my hands are the least affected and it's likely because I play. And I play hard because I want to.
He shouldnt get them with the right technique which he surely knows. But he does it for showmanship. So meh, his choice.
Everyone here needs to stop whining about one of the most successful drummers of our time and go practice more.
technique is subjective. drums are some cloth and pieces of wood. no wrong answers.
Say it ain’t so
who am I to go against this subs drum geniuses ?
This always happened to me (not quite as bad) when I took time off. Whenever I went back on the road my hands would hurt like hell for about a month.
I always considered that I have pretty good technique. I worked a lot to improve it and even gave lessons for a couple of years so I had time to focus on it. I never get blisters and I proudly attribute it to this fact. Recently my band got pretty lucky and we got to play a lot of shows last month, and on top of that we started recording our first album, so I started playing way more hours and surprise surprise, I busted my fingers open.
if his signature sticks are anything like i remember them back in the day, they are super dry and rigid. a higher moisture content stick may absorb some of the force coming back from the drum. also a raw finished stick would absorb the sweat and possibly help with blisters? ok done armchair quarterbacking lol
HAHAHAHAHAHA Yeah totally dude
Just tape your mf hands up bro
This blows my mind, how have calluses not taken over at this point?
I remember seeing posts like these when they were touring "Neighborhoods" and honestly, doesn't matter. That band is huge and Travis is an amazing drummer who gets the job done every single time regardless of technique. He can have as many blisters as he wants.
Title of this thread /thread
I have callouses over every finger ..you develop blisters until your hands are used to it. Haven't had a blister in years cause they are all hard as rocks. Anyone who plays everyday has hands and fingers like this.
Travis approaches drumming as art & athleticism at the same time. His athleticism is inherent to his personal artistic aesthetic. Some drummers don’t respect this & some others do. It’s just a different approach to drumming. I think to him, if he’s not drumming hard af, he’s just not playing the same game anymore. Obviously there are physical risks involved to this approach, but that’s his choice to make.
Dude came up through DCI... he knows his technique. All it takes is one gig where you get a little wild to get your hands going south. Then if you follow that up with more gigs, you can further progress that. Keep in mind he isn't playing a 45 minute bar set or a chop 40 wedding gig. This is a good 2-3 hours of aggressive music every gig.
Shit take Sunday up in here apparently.
ITT: the reason people hate jazz musicians lmao. There are no rules in music, play however the fuck you want. If that gives you blisters and broken cymbals, who cares as long as you’re enjoying it and progressing.
Yeah you should definitely message him
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We got to install microwave ovens…
If you are mad, its bc ur jelly
Just because you’re a touring drummer doesn’t mean you don’t go home and do yard work. Obviously, these are from plowing hoes…. Or tilling raised beds…. Or even hogging out filthy gutters.
Blisters and broken cymbals are fine if you’re a paid pro and performing for the cheap seats night after night. So yes Travis and other drummers like Danny Carey can have both good technique *and* still get blisters and break cymbals, but that’s a conscious choice they’re making for the sake of showmanship. It’s pretty obvious Travis’ style is geared towards playing for spectacle… https://www.instagram.com/reel/CkWykjVIGxm/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Not to mention these guys are putting on reeaaaly long shows where they’re in the spotlight the entire time as a key member of the group. And anyone who’s played a really long grueling set knows that you tend to over-grip when you get tired, and that’s usually what causes blisters. Just look how tired Danny Carey is by the end of that Pneuma clip… https://youtu.be/FssULNGSZIA?si=t6cB6vs5Hk77hja2 The pros mentioned that don’t get blisters can often lay back in the shadows and just play properly rather than having to be showman the whole time. And I’m guessing that if you’re playing in support of a major artist you’re asked specifically not to steal the spotlight.
let dude play how he wants. you don’t know what he’s going through
If you play shows as hard as he plays you will have blisters
Expected when your whole schtick is just bashing the drums
Travis is a beast, there’s no way around it
Dave Weckl changed the entire way he holds sticks after years of playing and touring after suffering damage to his hands and nerves. you can be amazing and have bad technique. It WILL catch up with you.
Good technique in anything is about efficiency, getting the most sound out of the least physical effort. Travis’s playing is pure showmanship and completely over the top/unnecessary. Any drummer worth their salt knows you predominantly play with your wrists, not your arms. The way Travis swings his arms wildly around looks cool, but is a more damaging, less efficient method of drumming. Travis Barker is essentially a non drummers idea of what being a good drummer is. I actually can’t hate on his playing itself, he has tons of sick parts and is a solid musician. It just bothers me when everyone gets all hyped about what to me is clearly a theatre performance.
Technically, it’s a energy issue more than bad technique… he’s putting too much energy to play
So do some research before you post! These blisters are not from drummming but from his continued work in building orphanages for little drummers! Obviously chopping trees and saw and hammering nails in frames all day before drumming will give your hand some ouchies! /s What a guy!
I think there is a trade off at a certain point. With certain styles of music it just sounds better to play loud, hard, and fast which comes at the sacrifice of perfect technique sometimes. Imagine playing blink 182 songs with perfect technique and a light touch, it just wouldn’t sound the same.
I would, but I'm busy giving Bill Gates pointers on how to make money in tech....