Drum pants

January 17, 2014 7:25 AM

The world's 1st wearable and fully customizable on-the-go musical instrument.
posted by josher71 (46 comments total)

I am sure the High School teachers of the world are going to love this.
posted by Flood at 7:30 AM on January 17, 2014 [2 favorites]

Could be useful for the cast of Stomp and the hundreds of drum corps and college and HS marching band percussion sections.
posted by ZeusHumms at 7:37 AM on January 17, 2014

Didn't Laurie Anderson make herself something like this way back in the 80s?
posted by dnash at 7:40 AM on January 17, 2014 [4 favorites]

The jokes...they write themselves.
posted by cjorgensen at 7:43 AM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

Weren't Old Navy hawking playable t-shirts a couple years ago?
posted by Sys Rq at 7:45 AM on January 17, 2014

What about Body Rap?
posted by Dr-Baa at 7:48 AM on January 17, 2014

I think Mick Fleetwood wore a pair of these once when he guested on Wiseguy.
 
posted by Herodios at 7:50 AM on January 17, 2014

These people clearly need to hook up with the Ultimate Drumming Technique guy.
posted by neroli at 7:52 AM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

As a FiDGIT*, I like the idea but personally I (think I) want 10 discrete fingertip sensors that I can bang on any surface, not targetable areas I have to hit with my hands or feet.


*Finger Drumming God In Training
posted by laconic skeuomorph at 7:52 AM on January 17, 2014 [6 favorites]

Their crazy pseudo-parallax website is like talking to that one friend you have who doesn't know when a conversation is over. Every time you think you're done scrolling, it's like "OH OH OH one more thing!"

join the mobile music revolution
posted by 7segment at 7:54 AM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

Or perhaps Rowan Atkinson could revive his Air Drums (youtube) skit and add these pants to it.
posted by ZeusHumms at 7:55 AM on January 17, 2014

Surely not the first?
posted by Runes at 8:01 AM on January 17, 2014

I was right about Laurie Anderson doing it first.
posted by dnash at 8:02 AM on January 17, 2014 [2 favorites]

The jokes...they write themselves.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 8:04 AM on January 17, 2014

Not so fast - I think the Flying Karamazov brothers might have claim to it. This is in a news article from 1987. I recall seeing them in 86 with the suit.
posted by plinth at 8:11 AM on January 17, 2014

Yet another step closer to constantly surrounding myself with a personal customized soundtrack.
posted by davejay at 8:13 AM on January 17, 2014

I hope they do the accordion skirt next.
posted by Kabanos at 8:24 AM on January 17, 2014 [4 favorites]

Fully washable as well, I hope.
posted by malocchio at 8:29 AM on January 17, 2014

That drummer's got schwingg!
posted by sweet mister at 8:31 AM on January 17, 2014

malocchio: “Fully washable as well, I hope.”

It's not actually pants; it's a series of sensors that can attach to the inside of any piece of clothing, as they say in their video, so you theoretically could place them anywhere.

You should contemplate the possibilities of being able to place them anywhere under your clothing for a moment.

I can't really tell if this is brilliantly awesome or ridiculous and dumb. I'm leaning toward awesome, though.
posted by koeselitz at 8:33 AM on January 17, 2014

(I really think they need to spin this off as a tool for burlesque performers. I've already got an entire act sketched out in my head where someone plays my butt like a set of bongos.)
posted by koeselitz at 8:37 AM on January 17, 2014

I just want MPC-style pads on my steering wheel. Is that too much to ask?
posted by Foosnark at 8:51 AM on January 17, 2014

It's not actually pants

Yes, I understood that, thanks. I also understand that I perspire a fair bit when playing most instruments.
posted by malocchio at 9:22 AM on January 17, 2014

For these to be useful they'd have to have good dynamics and be sensitive enough (at least some of the pads, anyway) to allow fingertips to do rolls. Otherwise, this is sort of made for me, arguably.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 9:24 AM on January 17, 2014

"Lei Yu"

**giggle**
posted by humboldt32 at 9:43 AM on January 17, 2014

I came to this thread hoping for drummer jokes.

I'm as disappointed as a kid at Christmas receiving a new pair of drummer pants.
posted by Atom Eyes at 9:49 AM on January 17, 2014 [3 favorites]

DO WANT. Real drummers have a hard enough time lugging their gear everywhere. Pretend drummers would have a blast. Amateur musicians who don't drum but want to add something to a recording would have an easy time with this. I think it's brilliant.

Another take: It's like the exact opposite of guitar hero. Whereas that's a game where you hold a pretend instrument and don't actually produce music, this is taking the fantasy of drumming and turning it into REAL music.

They just need to produce "guitar gloves" that turn air guitar into awesome riffs and we'll be all set.
posted by rouftop at 10:04 AM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

Kids these days! Why, we used to have to make do with just our thighs and the dashboard!
posted by Lutoslawski at 10:14 AM on January 17, 2014

Don't forget the "Ta DA" fanfare sound for your erection.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 10:15 AM on January 17, 2014 [2 favorites]

Really? Nobody is going to mention the obvious fact that his rythmn is off? Okay, I'll go there: The pants drummer is beating off.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 10:16 AM on January 17, 2014 [3 favorites]

I don't want anybody else
When I think about you, I touch myself
posted by Mad_Carew at 10:24 AM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

"Drum pants!" is the new "Jazz hands!"
posted by stevil at 10:29 AM on January 17, 2014

I don't need drums... I am drums.
posted by Barry B. Palindromer at 11:21 AM on January 17, 2014

They should suit up these guys and this guy (wait till about 0:34).
posted by Kabanos at 11:48 AM on January 17, 2014

I honestly got through the entire video feeling certain that this was an elaborate, pitch-perfect satire of startup culture. Now I guess I know why it was so accurate.
posted by invitapriore at 11:51 AM on January 17, 2014 [6 favorites]

...which isn't to say that I don't kind of want this now, but, still.
posted by invitapriore at 11:52 AM on January 17, 2014

"I invented the piano key necktie!"
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 12:01 PM on January 17, 2014 [3 favorites]

"sometimes inspiration strikes in random places"

in your pants
posted by fraula at 12:03 PM on January 17, 2014

I HAVE A DRUM FISH IN MY PANTS!
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:47 PM on January 17, 2014

I had a device when I was in grade school that was alone the same lines. It was worn on the wrist/forearm, and detected movement to trigger a set of varying drum sounds. The intended effect was to be able to literally air drum. But since this was 1991, the tech was not really there yet. With ever smaller and cheaper accelerometers though, I would love to see what could be produced now.
posted by mediocre at 2:25 PM on January 17, 2014

The pants drummer is beating off.

Are you playing pocket pool or practising a paradiddle?
posted by binturong at 7:40 PM on January 17, 2014 [1 favorite]

I honestly got through the entire video feeling certain that this was an elaborate, pitch-perfect satire of startup culture.

I’m still not sure what’s happening.
posted by bongo_x at 10:54 PM on January 17, 2014

So when you fart, it sounds like a drum set falling down the stairs?
posted by The Power Nap at 10:08 AM on January 18, 2014

Drumpants: It's not actually pants.
posted by grog at 11:52 AM on January 18, 2014

The Power Nap: “So when you fart, it sounds like a drum set falling down the stairs?”

Yep.

So you can just imagine what it'd sound like if I were wearing these DrumPants things...
posted by koeselitz at 12:14 AM on January 20, 2014

More to the point, if you fall down the stairs, it sounds like a drum kit falling down the stairs.
posted by sweet mister at 11:52 AM on January 21, 2014 [2 favorites]