Arch Enemy Drummer Daniel Erlandsson Still Has Doubts About His Playing Ability
Confidence is tough, especially when you’re in a position to be constantly criticized, which is exactly where Daniel Erlandsson is as the drummer for multinational melodic death metal act Arch Enemy. In a new interview with Drumtalk, the drummer discussed whether he ever questions his own ability as a musician and how he deals with that insecurity if so.
Erlandsson’s advice? Trust the process.
“I think that’s an ongoing thing. That just doesn’t go away. Like, we’re on a tour right now. It’s about 30 shows, and most of those shows have been fine, but every now and then you have a night where you just cannot seem to do anything right. At least that’s the way it feels in your head. But to the audience, they probably don’t even notice that you’re having a rough night. But in your own mind, you’re like already thinking about a different career choice; you get off stage and you just wanna be alone in a corner and forget about it. And then the next night you play a show and then it’s fine again. So it goes up and down. It just moves with the flow. And in the studio is another monster. When you put your drumming under like the microscope, that creates a lot of doubt as well. But at this point, I’ve played on a bunch of albums, played drums for many years, and you just have to realize that if it doesn’t sound like shit, it’s probably good, you know?”
He also acknowledged that, while most nights are good, some can easily go sideways. Erlandsson says when that happens, it’s important to keep your head in the game; you’re no use to anyone if you’re freaking out about the mistakes you just made.
“Those nights when you really get into the flow, when you’re just one with the drumming and one with the song, then your mind can wander and you can start thinking about something completely different. But it’s fine, ’cause you’re in the zone and it’s just flowing out of you. The nights when it’s different and you feel like you’re fucking up or you’re making a lot of mistakes, it’s almost like — I told somebody else about this — like if you’re playing any sport, like for example tennis, if you’re playing a tennis match, which I did when I was a kid, if you start fucking up in the beginning, it’s very important that you get over it. Otherwise, you’re gonna beat yourself up and your game is gonna continuously go [down]. It’s the same with a show. If you don’t get over it, you might just end up in that negative space and keep fucking up. Easier said than done, though.”
See? Musicians are people with feelings too. Thank about that, comments section!
