Does your band play with a click track? (Also known as click, guide, metronome, the channel everyone turns off in their Aviom) I’m willing to guess that many of you are, but I’m also willing to guess that many of you are not.
If you’re not, I want to convince you today why you should… or at least why you should consider it. Let’s jump in with my 4 biggest reasons why:
1. Play Tighter Together
Yes, your drummer may have great timing, but how is everyone else in the band’s timing? Despite popular belief, it is everyone in the band’s job to keep time. And the better everyone keeps time together, the tighter your band is going to sound.
A click track is going to keep everyone on the same timing. It’s natural for musicians to want to speed up or slow down. When a musician or singer drags, you’re dragging the drummer along with you.
I’ve seen drummers have to completely take singers or musicians out of their monitors because that person’s timing was throwing them off.
Also, a click track will make your breaks and hits tighter. This will make your band sound like they actually know what they’re doing.
2. Play At The Exact Correct Tempo
Just as the carpenter uses a level, or the baker uses a measuring cup, we as a band should be using a metronome to keep our timing accurate.
The carpenter could “eye-ball” his measurements, but as he begins to add more pieces and eventually finishes the house, that thing is going to be jacked up. When we start adding more and more musicians and complex parts, we could “eye-ball” it without a click track, but the final product is going to very sloppy.
I can’t tell you how many times we’ve started a song a little too fast, or a little too slow, because we weren’t using a click track. And trust me, when you start ‘Break Every Chain’ too slow, the song drags out FOREVER!
Furthermore, it is very difficult to immediately transition from one song at a certain tempo into another, with a completely different tempo, and be exactly correct. That’s a lot of unnecessary pressure to put on a drummer. Use a click track. It’s your safety blanket.
3. Build Your Internal Clock
In music, timing is everything. The more you play with a click, the better your internal clock becomes, and the less you actually need it. You will become a more solid and well rounded musician.
4. Implement Tracks
If you’ve ever wanted to implement tracks (strings, synths, percussion) into your band, (And you should, especially if you’re trying to play some Y&F songs) you have to learn to play with a click. The click track keeps your band in time with the musical tracks.
If nothing can convince you that you should use a click track, consider this; every well known worship band that we love is using one. And if there’s one thing I know, it’s that success leaves clues. It’s no secret that something as simple as a click track can take your band to the next level.
We may think we already have great timing, but many of us don’t realize how poor our timing really is until we play with a click track. The click track places a very unforgiving magnifying glass on our timing issues. This is the only way to get better.
I encourage everyone to start practicing with a click track, then start using it in rehearsals. After you practice with it long enough, you will start to not even notice it’s there.
I want to know below in the comments, does you band use a click track? Why or why not?
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You may also be interested in these posts as well:
- 5 Steps To Get More Musicians and Vocalists On Your Team
- Why Bands Like Hillsong and Bethel Use the Number System, And Why You Should Too
- 4 Tips For Leading Volunteers That Actually Stick Around
- 9 Worship Band Leading Mistakes: Which Ones Are You Making?
- 4 Reasons Why Your Band Should Stop Practicing and Start Rehearsing
