Adam and his closeness

[Rob33]

ok we will occasionally see Adam take a walk around but why is always so close to Larry? To hear the drums more clearly for his bass? thats what i've always thought but really wasn't ever sure...just curious though, thanks

 

[bonocomet]

A thread title like that in Pleba is going to get a lot of curiosity

Sorry I don't know your answer, it's probably a better question for another area like "Even Better Than The Real Thing ??"

Good luck.

 

[Gluey]

I always assumed it was to do with timing......

 

[FitzChivalry]

Probably to do with keeping on track with the rhythm; the whole song would just fall apart (and sometimes does ) if Larry and Adam get off beat.

Especially to start off songs or to go into middle-eights or whatever they're called. Those seem to be really important song-grounding moments.

I think it's easier for Edge and Bono to wander off in their own directions if they're confident that the song is firmly grounded.

 

[zuropa_fit]

Definetly NOT what I thought this was going to be about!!

 

[Rob33]

^ hahahahaha....yes, perfect title

ok so thats pretty much what i was thinking, thanks

 

[Caroni]

 

[u2trinity]

Rob , pleabns have slashy minds ...

 

[DreamOutLoud13]

I had to get halfway through reading the post before I realized he meant on stage. But uh... yeah, I'd say it has to do with timing, and sticking close to Larry so he can hear the bass drum. I don't think it's any coincidence that on the Vertigo tour - the first tour where he began wearing in-ear monitors - Adam became more mobile.

 

[Cin]

maybe he just likes looking at Larry

 

[Rini]

ok we will occasionally see Adam take a walk around but why is always so close to Larry?

a) he's afraid of Bono

b) Larry never kisses him

c) Larry has him in a trance

d) sometimes Larry throws candy and Adam didn't get any last time. He'll never be caught like that again!

e) Adam's sippy bottle is on the drum stand

 

[GracelandHarley]

maybe he just likes looking at Larry

I know I do.

 

[thrillme]

It's a rhythm section thing. The bassist and the drummer should be locked in with each other. I think that because of the nature of their roles in the band, having to work closely with each other, they're also very close friends as well. During the heated Achtung Baby times, it was Bono and Edge sorta arguing with Adam and Larry.

Some excerpts from Bass Player magazine...2005.

Bass Player: With all the time-sync’d delay and echo effects Edge uses, do you need to have a lot of him in your mix?

Adam Clayton: Larry is always locked with Edge, and sometimes it’s better for me not to hear exactly what Edge was doing, because it would put me in a different rhythmic space. I lock with Larry, and whatever Edge does fits over the top. Now that I can hear much more of Edge, I have to be careful, because I need to stick with what I am doing.

BP: Onstage, are your ears drawn to the drums first?
AC:Yes. The drums tell me everything. Everything else registers a millisecond later.

BP: What are you listening for in the drums?
AC: I can’t say. Miles Davis once said that he likes driving his yellow Ferrari when he gets it up over 70 mph and it starts to hum. It’s something like that. There’s a point—and we’ve only gotten to it from playing a lot—where the forces of Larry hitting the kit and me hitting the bass mesh, and the electronics of both signals blend. Over time we’ve learned how to reach that threshold.

I’ve never really worked with other drummers. But I have done the odd recording session with other players, and none of them seems to have the right foot Larry has. There’s something about where he places the kick drum. There’s an authority to his kick; everything else sits around it. With other drummers, the rhythmic emphasis changes depending on the balance of the kick against the rest of the kit.

 

[schnumi]

I had to get halfway through reading the post before I realized he meant on stage. But uh... yeah, I'd say it has to do with timing, and sticking close to Larry so he can hear the bass drum. I don't think it's any coincidence that on the Vertigo tour - the first tour where he began wearing in-ear monitors - Adam became more mobile.

So that's why. It really surprised me to see Adam walking along etc and doing his stuff compared to other tours where he just mainly stands there and doesnt move at all.

 

[Alisaura]

I had to get halfway through reading the post before I realized he meant on stage. But uh... yeah, I'd say it has to do with timing, and sticking close to Larry so he can hear the bass drum. I don't think it's any coincidence that on the Vertigo tour - the first tour where he began wearing in-ear monitors - Adam became more mobile.

I didn't realise he'd never worn in-ear monitors before the Vertigo tour... Yay for mobile Adam!
And I never would have imagined it would be hard to hear the bass drum...

Thanks for posting those excerpts, thrillme!

 

[Hinder]

Heh. All those amps? I'm surprised they aren't all completely deaf by now.

Yeah, it's hard - very, very hard. You'd think it'd be the loudest drum, but it isn't, for some reason. Just has the deepest voice. It's really hard to hear bass singers, for instance, in a chorus, because their voices are so low in key.

 

[thrillme]

Bit of a long read but it has more explanation between the workings of the bass and drums.

http://www.globalbass.com/archives/oct2001/backline.htm