Originally posted by TheDirt
Assuming the song doesn't change tempos (it can change style, from slow to fast without changing BPM)

Well, the song doesn't change tempo, but the musicians do.

It might be best to keep a simple, easy beat on the drums when recording them at first and then once all the other tracks have been laid down, the drummer can come back and play something more complicated over the whole thing, recording on a seperate track. This allows for him to take some chances and do some fills in relation to what the guitar and bass are playing without worrying about screwing up the song. If he messes up he can start over, no problem. Once you get the final product of the drums, you can delete the original, simple drum part.

The problem with this with our band is that our drummer probably wouldn't be able to play the exact same beat twice. We've tried recording drums after recording a bass track (timed to a metronome) and the drums sounded way off in some places. How do you guys redo your drum parts and not have it off in places?

How much can a part be off tempo and not be noticed? I've never really noticed off-tempo sections in any commercially made music I've heard.

Thanks for all your advice, guys!