Another favorite from the old site. New readers enjoy, regular readers can re-listen to the awesome snare drum sounds!
It’s always about the snare drum sound.
Some engineers might argue that the snare sound is just as important as the vocal sound or the even the melody! It drives the mix and keeps the beat going. I love the sound of a good snare, and I spend an unhealthy amount of time finding new ways to make a snare sound unique.
Many engineers through history have created some pretty cool snare drum sounds. Whether they’re quirky and weird or dated from the eighties, I’ve compiled a few of my favorite snare drum sounds below.
Crash Test Dummies – God Shuffled his Feet
Make fun of me. I don’t care. I am in love with this album, and I think it is one of the best sounding albums of all time. The snare sound of the opening track plays two distinct parts in the mix.
Just like a regular snare it supplies the steady backbeat of the song but listen more closely. The automated reverb that occasionally crashes through the mix is such a special factor when listening to the song.
It gives the drum beat a whole different dimension and is something that I really enjoy mixing wise.
Fine Young Cannibals – She Drives Me Crazy
This song has a really weird snare sound that perfectly fits the rest of the overall weird production of the song. David Z, the engineer who doctored up the unique drum sound on the track sums it all up in an article you can find at Mix Online.
Deftones – Digital Bath
Ah, the time I was a teenager and discovered White Pony, one of modern rock’s greatest albums. The ambience of the snare drum on this track, the punch combined with the reverb is what makes this snare drum work so well.
It fits perfectly with the ambience of the song, and plays a lead role without getting in the way of the other elements.
Phil Collins – Against All
Odds
There should be no snare drum article written without mentioning Phil Collins and his gated reverb snare drum sound.
His drum sound is synonymous with the gated reverb snare and no song showcases this more perfectly than Against All Odds. Wait until 1:33 for the cracking gated snare!
One Republic – All the Right Moves
This is a fairly new song, and even though the more hard-core rockers in the group may frown upon One Republic, nobody can take away their great sense of production when it comes to music.
I really enjoy this song. The snare drum – and the drum beat in general – is a great indicator of a group that really thinks about the sonic presentation of their songs.
Prince – Purple Rain
There is something inherently soulful about 80′s snare drum sounds and Purple Rain has it down pat. I cannot listen to this song without air-drumming. It’s as simple as that.
What about you?
What snare drum sounds from famous songs do you like the sound of? Chime in with a comment!
Image by: BigDrumThump.com
12 Comments on "The World’s Most Alternative Snare Drum Sound?"
Have to throw in here with :
Cameo – Word Up
and
Portishead – Numb
Portishead is such a great band. Yeah I’d have to agree with the snare on that one.
Some great snare sounds on Duran Duran’s Wedding Album. Check out the last song on the album:
It’s a long intro, but you can really hear it from 1:40!
Great snare on Too Much Information too:
-Kim.
Heheh, Yeah I’m a huge sucker for 80′s snares!
I remember listening to that Crash Test Dummies song when I was a kid and marveling at the snare sound. It must be one of the Lord-Alge brothers at work, methinks?
Clever you are. I looked it up long ago and it’s mixed by Tom Lord-alge
Wow- I thought I was the only one that thought God Shuffled His Feet is the best sounding album ever. I in fact regularly try and get that sound, but fail miserably. How do you get it? It is the reverb that is particularly important as you point out. I’ve tried just a snappy, compressed snare top with a lexicon hall on it, but I still don’t get that same combination of sizzle and space.
Yeah, it’s such a great sound. I’m not entirely sure how he went about mixing it, but it sometimes seems like it could be gated reverb. And there’s probably plenty of compression since it’s Tom Lord-Alge. But it was also probably a really good recording that was just made even greater by the mixer.
I agree on the recording. The whole album just sounds amazing (and the songs are great which helps). In fact I found your blog from google when searching for tips for a Lord-Alge drum sound :- ) I have just started my latest in a long line of attempts to reverse engineer the production on that album, so I’ll let you know if it goes well. The aoucsitc guitars on Afternoons and Coffeespoons are another highpoint. I’m trying to find similar synth string patches and organ tones at the moment. They used a Kurzweil keyboard I believe and I’ve found a soundfont which gets close, but there is something missing so I’m layering synths.
Faith No More- “Angel Dust” the drums were recorded beautifully and have a unique sound.
I have sampled all snares and kicks off this album and I can use them quite well.
I love that album. Nice pick!
Hi, Would you be so kind and share the technique how you sampled FNM snares? All I have troubles with is separating the drum sound from other instruments
please help me. imace1[@]gmail.com