still can't play - got a specific question

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antichef

antichef

pornk rock
Had the drums for almost a year - still suck. But here's one limitation that I became aware of early on, and haven't noticed any progress on:

I can't play additional kick drum kicks that are not on time with my hi hat hits - for instance, if I play quarter note high hat hits, my kick drum kicks have to be quarter notes, half notes, or whole notes, can't do eighth notes or any other additional kicks in between the quarter note high hat hits. If I try, I fall off the rhythm beam (and it's ever so easy for me to fall off).

Any specific exercises that aren't intuitive that would help? Or should I just run straight at it, so to speak, and keep trying the obvious?
 
try this....switch your hands up. it's not set in stone that you have to play hand over hand (conventional way of playing). try playing the hi-hat with your left hand and hitting the snare with your right. Wait!! you a lefty or a righty? either way....switch it up and see if that is easier for you. on some rhythms, it's more time pleasing for me playing left hand on hi-hat then keeping with traditional hand over hand playing. try hi-hat and bass drum only. see which hand is more independent and in time with the bass drum then try adding the snare. hope this helps. for the bass drum and just the bass drum only. start with quarter notes (4 beats), then move to 8th notes....like so.....1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 1 & 2 & 3 & 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4 and repeat. use a metronome if you have one. try to keep a nice smooth rhythm. this will help develop your foot. you can add 16th notes later into the cycle (quarter notes, 8th notes, 16th notes).
 
Use a metronome, and very slowly build up your coordination. You could even just tap your foot and hand on the floor and your right thigh; you may be sitting at your desk at work, on a bus, whatever. Do '1' and '3' with your right foot and '2' and '4' with your right hand. Eventually do '1' and '3+' with your right foot. Then do '1', '2', '3', '4' on your right hand while doing '1+', the 'and' of three on your right foot. Whatever. You'll get the muscle memory down, and when you step behind a kit, it'll be like riding a bike.
 
Just keep practicing. I remember when I first started playing I was the same way. Then one day it just clicked and I could do all kinds of hand/foot patterns from the same half of my brain. I wish I had an answer for you. One thing I can recommend is to loosen up. I suspect you're pretty tight and robotic as you stress over limb independence in your playing. You can't play well like that. Another thing....those quick kick accents between beats, no matter what pattern, come from your foot working with the rebound of the beater. It's not a whole leg movement. It's a feel thing between foot and pedal. Spring tension on the pedal and foot placement matters with that stuff. The "play on your lap with your hands" recommendation is a good idea. I spent countless hours in high school drumming little patterns on my knees while the teachers rambled on about who knows what. Try this though when you're lap drumming your way through church or a meeting or something: if you play heel-up, tap your heel on the ground for the kick beats instead of your toes. Pivot from the ball of your foot. That motion is more like playing a real kick than lifting your toes.
 
thanks all - I feel better, and I definitely try all that stuff. I remember some things "just clicking" for guitar, but for me it was mostly painfully slow progress (and painfully painful pain) - hopefully things'll be different now - I heard you can learn things easier when you get old and closed-minded.

Can't rep Gerg until I spread some around - jeez, that's been true for over a year it seems like.
 
Seperating what your feet are doing and what your hands are doing is one of the first real challenges when becoming a competant drummer ...... what worked for me was practicing moving my bass drum foot double the time of my hi hat hand which trains you to use your foot on the off beat ......

Cheers
 
Practice miserably slowly. Like 30bpm. Force yourself through some uncomfortable combinations, start simple, snare on 2 and 4, quarters on hat, kick on 1 and 3+. Gradually increase the speed to a musically valid tempo, repeat. Getting an instructor could help a lot.
 
Antichef, stick at it, just keep playing man. One day you will get it down and that will make you feel amazing !

Remember - The drummer ALWAYS gets the girls, this is a law of nature...

What more motivation can a guy need......
 
Greg_L said:
And not only that, the drummer is the only guy in the band that can actually win a bar fight, so you'll have that going for you too.
Click to expand...
plus the drummer is the only guy with gear that'll roll to the car without a dolly.
 
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