lysis--
first of all, congrats! i think everyone should learn how to keep at least a basic beat on drums--it helps them understand what it is that drummers do and it helps them convey ideas and better communicate with the drummer.
which heads? first of all, what kind of drums are they? some drums are better suited for certain heads. it's analagous to how some guitars like certain core/composition strings better than others. i've got a set of ludwigs from the 60s that i wouldn't dare dream of putting remo pinstripes or other "hydraulic" style heads on. rather, coated ambassadors sound great on it. nor would i dream of putting those coated heads on my pearl kit--it works best with evans g2's. so figure out the kind (or style) of drums you've got and get heads that would be best suited to those drums. let us know what you got and maybe we can suggest 8 different staring places.
now, that said, you usually can't go wrong with evans hydraulics, remo pinstripes, or some other 2-ply (oil in the middle) head. they usually produce deeper, punchier, deader sounds than coated or single-ply clear heads. again, they might not be the "right" ones for your drums. you might have drums that want to sing with clear single ply heads. i dunno.
second of all (well, really, first of all!), learn how to properly tune the drums. you wouldn't try to play a guitar without it being in tune, would you? let alone without having a clue where to start on how to tune it?
well, start here: <
http://www.drumweb.com/profsound.shtml >
if you start with properly tuned drums, it makes everything else (namely recording them) infintely easier. it's sad, but most drummers don't know how to properly tune their own instrument.
should you lose that bottom head? some drums were specifically meant (or designed) for that application. check out don henley's kit in the "mtv" video for hotel california. most drums, however, were meant (designed) to be double-headed. i've found that keeping the kit as a single-headed kit was usually a compensation for something--most notably worn-out heads or not knowing how to tune. sometimes both.
try it with new heads on both--the investment in new bottom heads will last you several times as long as the investment on top heads--it's good bang for the buck. i need to follow my own advice.
i feel the same way about moon gel and that sort of stuff. it's a great "lifesaver" when you need something like that--dampen that one ringy frequency that you can't tune out of the snare, etc. but i've often found people over-use it to compensate. it's kinda like throwing money at the problem instead of fixing it. i would worry a lot more about learning how to tune the drums than i would about things to deaden overtones. just learn to not have those overtones in there in the first place--it's not real hard.
and i'm sorry about the length of this, but you asked some questions and i wanted to give you some thorough (my wife would say "rambling") answers.
seriously, even on the shittiest of the shittiest drumsets, don't underestimate the investment of a new set of properly tuned heads will do for the kit. night and day.
cheers (and congrats!),
wade
