Ever wish you could record a kick drum track as hard hitting as Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean? Your dream is about to come true. ASC and Bruce Swedien have joined forces to recreate the original kick drum cover used for Billie Jean.
ASC and Bruce Swedien have joined forces to recreate the original kick drum cover used for Billie Jean. Recorded in 1982, Billie Jean is considered to be one of the most revolutionary songs in history. And now, decades later, the secret was finally revealed.
#18 out of the 20 best drum sounds of all time
Because of what Bruce came up with, the sound that was created was recently voted #18 out of the 20 best drum sounds of all time! Here is an excerpt:
#18. Billie Jean: Michael Jackson (1983) from the album “Thriller”
Whilst other artists in the early 80s seemed to be going bigger, flashier, more processed and more extravagant with their drum sound, for an artist to release something so natural and minimal was a real gamble. Producer Quincy Jones wanted to cut the 29-second introduction (which was the longest one ever created at the time) and yet it is undoubtedly the drum sound that has since gone on to define the record, and all within the first few beats. Jones had earlier instructed engineer Bruce Swedien to create a drum sound no one had heard before. Read full article here
The Billie Jean Kick Drum cover provides engineer with kick drum isolation for their drum tracks. Use of this product will give you a tighter snappier kick drum sound by reducing the amount of bleed from the rest of the kit and the ambience of the room from getting into the mic. Example of this song can be heard on Michael Jackson’s 1982 hit Billie Jean. The operation is fairly straight forward. Remove the front head of the kick drum and put the Kick Drum Cover in it’s place. Pull the drawstring tight to secure the cover. Unzip the front cover and put the microphone inside the kick drum three to five inches from the beater. Zip the cover back up to give the mic sound isolation. And hit record!
“The bottom line is that there aren’t many pieces of music where you can hear the first three or four notes of the drums, and immediately tell what the piece of music is.”
