I am currently drumming my fingers on my desk, one at a time. Thus creating an exciting, yet barely audible sound. It entices me to great lengths, indubidubly so.

For those of you that have caught yourself saying, “I don’t know what to practice”.. HERE IS A LIST:

1. Listening (concentrated “listening” to music, not just “hearing” it)

Sit down with some headphones and listen to some of your favorite songs. Just sit back and do nothing but focus on the music. This will give you more influence and inspire you to learn new things.

2.Drum Rudiments (do you know all 40?)

Google is a powerful tool for any modern day musicians. Look them up and learn them all, practice them until you know them well.

3.Groove playing (and making it feel as good as possible)

Just jam, play something until you feel comfortable with it. If you get some aches while your playing certain parts, then you need to repeate it over and over again until it feels good.

“Being realistic about learning to play any instrument faces you with the fact that you have to spend many pain staking hours practicing.  That’s right! You don’t just pick up the sticks and Walla …you’re a drummer.  Even the most gifted individuals have to put in many hours of playing to become proficient musicians.   Don’t let anyone tell you that because you’re gifted you don’t have to practice.  It has been said that Buddy Rich never practiced and look how great he played.  He did play great!  First of all, I don’t really believe he didn’t ever practice.  But for the sake of this subject … how much better could he have played if he practiced?  We’ll never know!  I don’t mean that as disrespect to Mr. Rich.  I’m just trying to make a point, and that point is, you have to practice to become good.”(Donny Dee, Pro Drummer)

Drumming takes loads of practice no matter who you are so if you are sitting there saying,”but I dont have anything to practice” you are surely kidding yourself. So if thats what you find yourself saying, Here is something to practice.

PARADIDDLE-DIDDLES ..on Drumset

Play the following sticking on the hi-hat: RLRRLL, RLRRLL (This is a paradiddle-diddle)

Put the bass drum on the first note of the first grouping and the snare on the first note of the second grouping (there will not be a HH on that note).

This pattern creates a 16th note triplet groove that sounds great intermittently inserted over a straight eighth feel.

Now if you find yourself wondering “what the heck did he just say?” I’ll break it down for you.

(R) L R R – (L) R L L

R (L) R R – L (R) L L

R L (R) R – L R (L) L

R L R (R) – L R L (L)

(R) or (L) notes a loud

Dear me, was last night really my first drum set gig since surgery?

Wow; it was.

No wonder I feel ~so~ out of drumming shape. I’ve been practicing and jamming again for a few months, but last night was the first time I laid it on the line since January. I’ll tell you this: it felt really good. Performing music in front of people is one of the most incredible highs I’ve ever experienced, and as much as playing djembe in church each week is fun and spiritually fulfilling, nothing compares to playing drum set. And beyond that, it’s always super-awesome when it’s with the guitarist whose been an absolute joy to work with for over twenty years.

Last night was amazing. I played with Hypaspace, which is something I thought may never happen again. We played for two hours, and by the end I was wiped out. I hope I’m gradually getting back in shape.

The Darling Boyfriend came to see my play, and that was just neat. I got to introduce him to a whole other circle of my friends, which was mad cool. He really liked the show, and said that he thought the band was great. It was awesome.

I saw an old friend from High School too, he came to see us play. I should mention that my High School was an all-boys Catholic High School. Seriously. It was great to see him, and just goes to show that I can be me and the world can deal with it, even people from my way past. How cool is that?

I’m feeling at quite a loss for words lately. Even with my usual hyperbole, I’m just sort of having a difficult time putting the wondrous experiences of my life into words. So much lately I’ve been falling back on stuff like “it was amazing,” because there are no words that do the magical experiences of my life justice.

Anyway, it was great playing with Hypaspace last night, and seeing tons of people that I hadn’t seen in quite a while.

I.Love.Drumming.

w00t!

coming soon so stay tuned

done

It was exactly around this time last year when I became obsessed with Minus the Bear.  I had Menos El Oso in my possession and over Thanksgiving “break” I would discover El Torrente while driving in the rain at night and realize just how awesome MTB is.

The soundtrack to my Winter vacation with Harriet last year was “Thanks for the Killer Game of Crisco Twister.”
The soundtrack to my suburban adventures with TWT was, “Double Vision Quest.”

Erin Tate has truly inspired me more than any other professional drummer to get better and really practice at my drumming skills.

I bought all of MTB’s albums- not a single thing was downloaded or burned from a friend.

Here’s to a year of being into ridiculously awesome indie rock music.

And after yesterday’s video on sound, this one on ‘listening’ shows both some stunning skill and reminds us that we’re probably not even beginners at listening:

http://www.ted.com/talks/evelyn_glennie_shows_how_to_listen.html

(it’s a longer video but worth the time)

(4/7/99, 1 a.m. PST) – After drumming up plenty of publicity with select promotional appearances, this summer Blondie will stage its first U.S. tour in more than 16 years, beginning May 15 in Boston.

The trek is in support of the band’s reunion effort, No Exit, which has been greeted with moderate success in the U.S. The album is No. 75 this week in its fifth week on the Billboard 200.

Tickets for the tour, which will run through June 10, will go on sale on Friday (April 9) through www.mp3vita.net and www.entiregoods.com, as well as local ticket outlets, beginning the weekend of April 10.

Ray Waddell, who covers talent and touring for industry trade publication Amusement Business, expects the tour to do good business. “There’s been a lot of media and a lot of buzz,” he notes.

Here’s the itinerary for Blondie’s No Exit tour:

5/15 – Orpheum, Boston
5/16 – Massey Hall, Toronto
5/18 – Tower Theatre, Philadelphia
5/19 – The Pier, Baltimore
5/23 – Fox Theatre, Detroit
5/25 – Fillmore Auditorium, Denver
5/27 – The Joint, Las Vegas, Nev.
5/28 – Universal Amphitheatre, Los Angeles
5/29 – Open Air Theatre, San Diego
5/30 – Warfield, San Francisco
6/1 – Paramount, Seattle
6/2 – Civic, Portland, Ore.
6/10 – Madison Square Garden Theatre, New York

This is just cool. – A “melodic” drummer. Yea!

Last spring I was about to go on the road and I decided I wanted to put rivets in my favorite cymbals.(a process that involves puncturing the cymbal and inserting little pieces of metal that sizzle).

A friend told me to check out Steve Maxwells drums shop.  I went in and the regular guy who does the work on drums was out, but the guy behind the counter said he could help me out.  He was in the back a long time.  I became concerned.  The drill bit had broke and stuttered across my cymbal.  These things happen (I tell myself),  and yelling solves nothing, so biting my tongue (filled with emotion) I collect my cymbal and I leave.  They offered me compensation but I didn’t see how that would solve anything.  My cymbal had a couple of punctures.  Thats it, it can’t be fixed.

I went home and thought about it and the next day I called the number on the store website and to my surprise, Steve Maxwell himself picked up the phone.  He knew of my situation as was glad that I called because I walked out (intentionally) without leaving my information.  He mentioned compensation and I mentioned that I had acquired the cymbal through an endorsement deal and while I couldn’t in good conscience take compensation for the damaged cymbal, I would be thrilled if he would help out by donating gear to the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls (www.williemaerockcamp.org) – a summer camp that I have been a volunteer teacher at for the last 5 years.  Steve said “Of course!”

I love a win win situation.  I love drums, Williemae rock camp and Steve Maxwells’ Drum Shop.  Now when I look at the dents in my favorite cymbal I can smile about it.

Above I cut some cool images from Steves shop to one of my favorite tunes(Mosaic) from Art Blakey (my favorite drummer) & the Jazz Messengers.

Below is a cool video MTV news did on the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls.

Willie Mae Rock Camp Video:

Turn your jeans into a drum kit…..this blog tells you how: http://mtifall09.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/ubiquitous-drums/

…and here’s the video:

Yeah, so everytime I see this video, i want to hang my own self by the balls, bury my turntables, and becoming a McDonalds franchisee. In no particular order. I just want others to feel the same way that I do in their own right.

Netik’s drums are to die for. (almost)

Afterwards I would probably steal his hands and pawn it off to the anunnaki

Cool, due to work stuff, can’t be there to look at and possibly play a kit that the sound of which has been in my ears for years.

I like the way drums look, Neil seems to have also had a taste for the aesthetic of the drumset, shapes, sizes and contrasts.

http://andrewolson.com/Neil_Peart/drums/pasic2009/pasic2009.htm

My obsession with Travis Barker is no secret. I’ve always admired him as a human being and especially as a drummer.  98% of the time I almost get in accidents in the car is because I’m air-drumming along to Blink-182 or one of his phenomenal remixes.

There’s also this thing in my life where I do what I want. That was my attitude behind my septum piercing, applying for my Master’s degree in England, and even deciding to come home.  It’s not a reckless or careless decision making process — more often than not it’s something I think about doing forever that I finally stop thinking and talking about it and just get it done.  I’m determined to take responsibility for my own happiness, so if there’s something I want or want to do that I know will make me happy, I go for it.

And that’s why I signed up for drum lessons today! I’ve never even sat behind a kit before, but I’m stick of talking about how bad I want to learn to drum — it’s finally time to DO IT.

My lessons start Monday. I’m probably, what, like, two months from this? –

Watch out, Travis, here I come!

Want to learn how to be a circus performer? Ever dreamed of being a drummer? Do you have the theatre bug? Anyone for Star Trek? Drawing? How about a little crafting? Do you like to dance? We’ve got all this and more during Teens @ the Library Week! November 21-18 is all about YOU , so stop in and see why this ain’t your granny’s library.

For more details, click here.

Since I made my picks for the top-five competition band pipe-majors of all time, it’s only fair that I try the same for the lead-drummers. Both of these lists are prompted by recent pipes|drums polls, which proved popular and effective conversation-starters.

Granted, I know the ins-and-outs of piping more than I do drumming. The criteria for those listed on the drummers’ poll was less defined than the pipe-majors’. The drummers listed by and large were those who had some combination of World Drum Corps, World Solos or teaching achievement.

Before I give you my list, I have to remark on something else. Each poll entry could submit five choices. That means that, if a drummer were named on every submission, he would get 20 per cent of the overall vote. I may have relatively limited knowledge of snare drumming, but I do know this: Alex Duthart and Jim Kilpatrick should have been named on every submission. Since each received a less-than-20-per-cent share, that means that they both were left off of quite a few entries.

Maybe these submissions were from infants sneaking on to their parents’ computer. Perhaps they were mentally challenged. Or maybe they were from folks who are so vindictive and twisted that they would take leave of their senses. But not selecting Duthart or Kilpatrick makes my mind boggle.

Anyway, based on my admittedly limited knowledge, using competition success and teaching impact as criteria, here are my choices for the top-five pipe band drummers of all time.

1. Alex Duthart. No one has had a bigger impact on pipe band drumming as the elder Duthart. He essentially invented modern music for the pipe band snare, adapting concepts from Swiss-style drumming, and composing some of the most musical scores ever. He is to drumming what GS, Willie Ross, Angus MacKay and Donald MacLeod were to piping.

2. Jim Kilpatrick. While he is by a wide margin the most successful competitor in pipe band drumming history, with solo and band records that may never be topped, Kilpatrick would probably be the first to admit that he trails the legend that is Alex Duthart. But it can be argued that KP has made a bigger impact on the development of the snare drum itself than anyone, and his tireless teaching around the world certainly rivals, if not bests, that of Duthart. History may well eventually decide that Kilpatrick deserves the number-one spot.

3. Reid Maxwell. He’s won the World Pipe Band Championship Sash numerous times, and with two different bands. As a member of Dysart & Dundonald in the 1970s, the 78th Fraser Highlanders in the 1980s and Simon Fraser University in the 1990s and 2000s, Maxwell has won World Drum Corps championships in four decades. For my money, Maxwell is most responsible for SFU’s always terrific ensemble production. He’s taught dozens of top-flight drummers, many from scratch, and he still seems to have many playing years ahead of him.

4. Tom Brown. “Tam Broon” has played such a major role in the development of drummers in the West Lothian corridor over almost forty years with the Boghall & Bathgate organization that he has to be in my top-five. In the 1980s he made great use of the bass-section, experimenting with differently pitched tenors and a rhythmical bass that, along with a technically brilliant snare line, would lift Boghall further up prize-lists at majors.

5. Wilson Young. It may sound trivial, but Young was the first drummer to actually incorporate other percussion instruments into the pipe band. As Lead-Drummer of Red Hackle – a band that narrowly missed winning the World’s several times – Young partnered with Pipe-Major John Weatherston on several albums to raise the musical complexity of the modern pipe band. Wilson Young is an unsung pioneer of pipe band drumming.

History will determine whose names will live on, and who knows who the next Alex Duthart or Jim Kilpatrick will be? I’d love to hear your choices for the top-five pipe band snare drummers of all time and why.

Or rather a very awesome sale transaction between myself and Rowan. Yesterday as I was attending my first public shamanic ritual, I neglected to bring along Hooves, my round skin drum. I purchased him earlier this year from Cedar Mountain Drums in Portland (plug, plug) and I’m still developing a relationship with him. As I was still mentally loopy from the previous night’s NaNoWriMo write in, I completely spaced on having Hooves tag along.

Fortunately, Rowan, who lived nearby Lupa, went and fetched her spare drum so that I could participate in Lupa’s journeying. Rowan brought back a metal doumbek, a bit tarnished for wear, yet lovely just the same. I gently rubbed the natural skin (not sure what kind, could be goat) to warm it up and in the process I asked the drum if I may borrow it for the ceremony.

It was very courteous and wanted eagerly to be of assistance. Very cool.

With Hooves, I have a soft leather beater I use with it. It’s tone is high, but I rarely use my hands to thump out the rhythm because it simply does not work as well. Yet with the doumbek, as I gently rapped with my finger tips, its vibrations were rippling and strong. When Lupa invited Bear and began dancing, my fingertips turned into full on hand contact as I thumped heavy, sure beats. This drum can be gentle and rough.

I had decided right then and there, that when I get the funds, I wanted to buy myself a doumbek. Interestingly, it is called a doumbek because of the two sounds it can make: a DOUM in the center of the drum and the sharp BEK near the rim. Middle Eastern belly dancers and tribal dancers love this drum for that very reason.

I thanked Rowan for allowing me to use her doumbek and it was then she said, “Well, if you are interested in eventually getting one, would you like that one? I haven’t been giving it the attention it deserves for a while now and I’d like to know it’s going to home where it will be cared for.” She offered a reasonable price and I agreed that when I get the funds (I’m still looking for work like about every other person out there), we can seal the deal. Rowan went one step further, “Why don’t you just take it home now and pay me when you can?”

I was beyond words at such a gesture of generosity and trust. I gave her my word she will get paid when I get the money (I have a virtual post-it note on my laptop to remind me) and I thanked her profusely.

So, last night on the New Moon, I polished my new drum.

I am so happy that I got to make the trip to Punta Gorda to see Battle of the Drums. Drummers from Barranco, Seine Bight, Dangriga, Belize City, Livingston and Honduras put on a great show along with their dancers. It would definitely be an added plus to understand the language but the dancers did an awesome job of telling the story with their acting. It was like being at the theater.