Does anyone play the drums.

[Guest oZZma]

14 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

I presume that this is meant to be 'vacation' (holidays...)..? 

Yep, sorry, this is not my mother language! 

[Dad3353]

No worries; just trying to help.

[Barking Spiders]

I play drums, various stick & hand percussion, bass and guitar to a similar standard. Whether that's low or high-ish is in the ear of the beholder. I inadvertantly use a percussive approach to a lot of bass playing as my drummer influences are mainly funkateers like Zigaboo Modeliste, Bernard Purdie and Tony Allen.

[thepurpleblob]

Used to... well, I used to be a percussionist in orchestras, theatre bands, brass bands and so on. I was never a very convincing kit drummer. 

I think it was a really good grounding for playing the bass. For one thing I can read music and for another I seem to have a very good sense of timing. 

Unlearning having to read everything from music and learning to play by ear was a nightmare though. 

[MoonBassAlpha]

I have owned a kit for years and just lately been trying to play a bit more. My friend has asked me to play on some of his tunes so it is forcing me to use some discipline  (and a click! ). Over the holidays I've seen a noticeable improvement in my takes . During this process, it has become obvious that I can hear myself anticipating upcoming fills and listening to the click, which ruins the timing and feel. The  more  comfortable i get with the tempo and patterns,  the less I think about what I'm doing,  the better it flows. 

So,  practice works! Who knew!

To answer the o.p.'s question, it isn't making me a better bassist, but the understanding of how the two work together can only be a good thing.

Edited December 31, 2018 by MoonBassAlpha
Answering the question!