Somewhere between Moreno Valley and Hemet, I came upon an interesting set of thoughts. I was listening to the morning’s tunes that I was about to play, readying myself for the worship experience. The 2nd song of the set was going to be somewhat new for the congregation I was going to serve. And without saying the name of the artist or the tune, I will comment that this song’s drummer played the most unimaginative, boring part I had heard in a long time. It was what the pros call the “Money Beat.” The “Money Beat” is the first beat that every drummer learns, kick on 1 & 3, snare on 2 & 4, 8th notes on the hi-hat. As I was listening, the simplicity just bugged me, as I thought, “Why not just let the machine do the work?” There was no creativity, no passion, just pure time.
Now that being said, who knows why this took place. There may be a perfectly valid reason and we’ll leave it at that. Suffice it to say here, the end result was a drum beat worth forgetting.
Then I came to the very next song. This song was a real groove tune, with an R & B feel to it. Unlike the rock tune that had come before, it was very creative. It began in the first verse with a classic sidestick/hi-hat groove. I enjoyed the song as it went into the chorus with a nice snare transition. Then, it got thoroughly weird. The next verse featured a snare off/tom-tom combination. All of a sudden I was thrown and was listening to the drummer’s creativity. His patterns were very random and it seemed like he was making things up as he went along. Making matters worse, he had a third, completely different interpretation of the 3rd verse which was even more wild and out than the 2nd verse!
Again, let’s assume someone told him to approach each verse differently. At that point, the truly tasteless approach to the song falls on that leader.
Alright, next song. Classic 6/8 ballad. Probably the same drummer and sort of the same problem. Accept this time, the only thing that changes is the bass drum pattern. Every verse and chorus had a different bass drum pattern, while everything stayed the same on top.
Now, before I move on, I realize that I sound like the world’s most harsh critic and in this moment and with these examples, it’s likely that I am! It’s just that these three scenarios represent my three pet peeves. Lack of imagination, lack of stability and lack of cohesion.
First, each drum part that we are creating must be creative. It must reach out from time, or machine like quality to being musical. Otherwise, we are just machines! Let’s say it’s a 4 on the floor pattern. One can still spice it up by working on the hi-hats and adding ghost notes on the snare drum. There are a million, creative ways to approach even the most elemental patterns.
Second, when creating a part, that part should be the part for each of the verses, each of the choruses and every instrumental break in between. This is not just good drumming. It’s a service to the people you are playing with, and a service to the congregation you are playing in front of. Stability of playing helps the musicians create their parts and helps the audience “settle in” for the given song.
Finally, cohesive bass drum work is key to settling into the groove. Find a pattern that works and stick to it. Marry it! Your bass player will thank you and rhythm partners, like the rhythm guitarist and pianist, will be able to do their work of filling around the empty spaces that your pattern on the kick creates. All of a sudden, the kick just becomes one of the rhythmic threads which make up the dominant pulse of the tune.
Hope this helps.
Blessings,
Frank
Now that being said, who knows why this took place. There may be a perfectly valid reason and we’ll leave it at that. Suffice it to say here, the end result was a drum beat worth forgetting.
Then I came to the very next song. This song was a real groove tune, with an R & B feel to it. Unlike the rock tune that had come before, it was very creative. It began in the first verse with a classic sidestick/hi-hat groove. I enjoyed the song as it went into the chorus with a nice snare transition. Then, it got thoroughly weird. The next verse featured a snare off/tom-tom combination. All of a sudden I was thrown and was listening to the drummer’s creativity. His patterns were very random and it seemed like he was making things up as he went along. Making matters worse, he had a third, completely different interpretation of the 3rd verse which was even more wild and out than the 2nd verse!
Again, let’s assume someone told him to approach each verse differently. At that point, the truly tasteless approach to the song falls on that leader.
Alright, next song. Classic 6/8 ballad. Probably the same drummer and sort of the same problem. Accept this time, the only thing that changes is the bass drum pattern. Every verse and chorus had a different bass drum pattern, while everything stayed the same on top.
Now, before I move on, I realize that I sound like the world’s most harsh critic and in this moment and with these examples, it’s likely that I am! It’s just that these three scenarios represent my three pet peeves. Lack of imagination, lack of stability and lack of cohesion.
First, each drum part that we are creating must be creative. It must reach out from time, or machine like quality to being musical. Otherwise, we are just machines! Let’s say it’s a 4 on the floor pattern. One can still spice it up by working on the hi-hats and adding ghost notes on the snare drum. There are a million, creative ways to approach even the most elemental patterns.
Second, when creating a part, that part should be the part for each of the verses, each of the choruses and every instrumental break in between. This is not just good drumming. It’s a service to the people you are playing with, and a service to the congregation you are playing in front of. Stability of playing helps the musicians create their parts and helps the audience “settle in” for the given song.
Finally, cohesive bass drum work is key to settling into the groove. Find a pattern that works and stick to it. Marry it! Your bass player will thank you and rhythm partners, like the rhythm guitarist and pianist, will be able to do their work of filling around the empty spaces that your pattern on the kick creates. All of a sudden, the kick just becomes one of the rhythmic threads which make up the dominant pulse of the tune.
Hope this helps.
Blessings,
Frank
