Keeping it going

Last night I had a good, progressive jam with the band. I decided to take my Roland TD-8 brain and 3 triggers: the snare, Bass and a tom. I managed to stuff the bass trigger and pedal in beside the acoustic hi-hat pedal (to the left) and the two pads on a double tom stand tothe left of the hi-hat cymbals. We had SOME fun with them.
In Hungry Like the Wolf, I set the bass pedal as a tambourine and the two stick pads as the funky electronic tom sounds from the 80's. When I played the 'electro' fill coming out of the chorus our singer laughed his ass off. They sounded perfect and I played that fill perfectly at the perfect time. The tambourine on the left foot allowed me to give the snare ruff a little juice in the opening verse. The T-8 drum set was 'Mexi-Mix'.
The other song that sounded great with a little electronic enhancment was Welcome to the Machine (Pink Floyd). The original track doesn't actually have acoustic percussion, but our version does. When we played it live, I laid down a standard rock beat with my bass drum following the Bass guitar lines. Last night I added a trigger sound from the 'Juck Yard' set on the Roland TD-8. The sound was triggered by the kick pedal to the left of my hi-hat. I played it on the 2's and 4;s, opposite the bass drum and it created the effect of a steam piston. I found it tricky and challenging to keep it going with the bass drum pattern I was playing, but kept it going generally well. A few more practices at that and it will be clean. It sounded great as a concept so I hope I can make it sound as good live.
When I said 'progressive' at the beginning of this post, I meant that I was progressing. I only get to practice solo a few times a month, so when I do I don't always feel that I am improving. Last night - I could really feel more power, more flexibility and more independence. Progressive.

Slow and Steady, Fast and Furious

Wow, its the end of April already. I started writing this over a month ago. April came and went like a hurricane - leaving destruction and rainbows. On the farm, April is the beginning of Lambing, Calving and Kidding. So much of our time is spent around the female livestock during this time, keeping an eye on them in case they need assistance with birthing. This year we have had a set of quadruplets, four sets of triplets and many, many twins.. Several singles of course as well. Seeing all of the babies running around and jumping like they have ants in their pants is the rainbow part. But just to keep life interesting, the inner-tube blew on my tractor - shooting liquid calcium out of the tire with great force in the stream the size of a 7B hickory drumstick. That was the beginning of Hell Week (the destruction part). More on that later.

-- Original Post --
As my only post in March, it may seem that I lost interest in this pursuit. In fact, I have been practising and jamming with the guys quite regularly. My chops and technique are definitely improving and I am feeling much more comfortable on the throne.
I have been focusing on double-stroke rolls and bass drum techniques mostly. I don't play double bass, never have. Playing quick beats with a single foot is more of an accomplishment in my opinion, and it frees up the left foot for other things like foot triggers or fancy hi-hat patterns.
One fancy hi-hat pattern I am working on is a swing beat played with the foot. 'tut-ta-tah'. I use the ball of my foot for the tut-ta and the heel for the splash 'tah'. Thats not especially difficult, but playing with the rest of my body over-top is (for me).

Groove

I am stuck on the word 'groove'. You've probably noticed that I use it when describing a song or a musician. I like songs with groove, I think, but what is groove?
I have my own opinions on the word but I am interested in how others describe it.
On the Wiki site I found this definition (among others):  Peter Forrester and John Bailey argue that the "chances of achieving this higher level of playing" (i.e., attain a "groove") is improved when the musicians are "open to other's musical ideas", "complemen[t] other participant’s [sic] musical ideas", and "taking risks with the music"
This is the one that appeals to me most. I think it takes a lot of experience and milage on the drums to be able to groove. I also think it helps when the musicians you are playing with have as much experience.
'Groove' is going to be the word I use as my mantra  - on the path to being a better overall drummer. I want to be able to groove one day, and I want to have an image that portrays that.
I have been playing with some ideas for a stage name and logo today. I am going to slap those ideas around for a while then post them for comments.

An Image

Part of my quest this year is to improve my playing, but another part is to improve my image as a drummer, or more appropriately, create one. I need a good stage presence, which should include what I wear, how the drumkit looks and how I look when I am playing.
I took a shopping trip to Guess clothing store looking for something to wear on stage. I found a couple of shirts that might be OK. I'll post pics and hopefully get some opinions. My wife thinks they make me look like a cowboy from the movie Brokeback Mountain. That's not what I am going for though, so... more work to do.
Another trip to Yorkdale didn't get me any further. While I am contemplating this, I think of Rush and all of the stage wear and 'looks' they went through in the early years. Geddy Lee said that in those days he wish he could just wear jeans and a t-shirt (taken from Beyond the Lighted Stage documentary). The members of Rush are now doing just that, wearing T-shirts and jeans, not a costume. For me, I'd like to build an image that makes me recognizable when I am playing, but I don't want to have to wear the same shirt everytime. Its gotta to be more than that. My playing style and my kit will need to be my brand but I still need to wear something a little unique. Maybe I should get some fake glasses. A hat can be something I can turn into a symbol of my brand. I just can't find one I like.

I think the most important aspect of my image is the quality of my drumming.  A fancy drumkit and hat is definitely not enough. I have some experience and a solid foundation, but I need to enhance and expand my playing. I also think that as I create an image, I need it to reflect my playing style.
I am stuck on the word 'groove'. You've probably noticed that I use it when describing a song or a musician. I like songs with groove, I think, but what is groove?
I have my own opinions on the word but I am interested in how others describe it.
On the Wiki site I found this definition (among others):  Peter Forrester and John Bailey argue that the "chances of achieving this higher level of playing" (i.e., attain a "groove") is improved when the musicians are "open to other's musical ideas", "complemen[t] other participant’s [sic] musical ideas", and "taking risks with the music"
This is the one that appeals to me most. I think it takes a lot of experience and mileage on the drums to be able to groove. I also think it helps when the musicians you are playing with have as much experience.
'Groove' is going to be the word I use as my mantra  - on the path to being a better overall drummer. I want to be able to groove one day, and I want to have an image that portrays that.
I have been playing with some ideas for a stage name and logo today. I am going to slap those ideas around for a while then post them for comments

So You Think You Can Drum!

Last evening was the first annual drum contest in Washago. Drummers competed at the Lion's Hall for modest prizes. The turn out was better than I expected and the talent was insipiring. I simply went to observe and support the cause. My primary goal was to see what the crowd liked in a drummer. The non-drummers in the crowd are watching more than listening and its those people that a drummer needs to entertain.
Seven guys entered the challenge, no girls unfortunately. There were two judges - I was surprised to see that Rob Frost Murphy was one of them. It was good to see him again, it had been a few years so we a quick chat to catch up.
At 6PM the fun started, first up was Wayne Hill. He listed his favourite band as Tower of Power. He played a lot of double rolls with accents and rim-shots. His chops were mature and well conditioned, his bass foot was quick and consistent as he worked his way through the solo. It was a very clean and precise performance, but did not display much flash or change up the rhythm at all.
The third performer was Aaron (hope I spelled it correctly). He said his favourite drummers were Neil Peart and John Bonham (interesting eh?). He added an open snare drum to the stage kit and started playing steady quick notes on it while adding flavour with his other appendages. I could hear a definite Bonham influence in the solo. He built up the piece nicely with lots of single and double rolls around the kit and decent bass drum technique. His solo hit a crescendo near the end followed by a denouement - where he went back to the opening open snare pattern but much softer. Very nicely done.  This ended up as the winning performance - which I could not disagree with.
Second last on the stage was a young fellow named Nate. He did not list Neil Peart as his favourite drummer, but mentioned a couple of older folkish rock bands (for the life of me I can't remember). He started his solo with brushes, playing a nice swing while tapping his hi-hat foot on the off beats. That's a classic pattern that requires some practice. I looked away for a second for some reason, but when I looked back up, he was playing sticks. I didn't hear or see the transition. He kept up the swing on the hat and ride and embellished nicely against the rhythm while keeping that hat tapping on the off beat. His time-keeping was very good and I enjoyed the fact that he used a style unlike others in the competition. His chops needed some polishing, but that comes with mileage. He is obviously off to a good start in his percussive journey.  Nate did not place but I felt he was top three. I actually named his my winner for the 'Audience voting'.

A note of interest to me was that at least 4 of the entrants listed Neil Peart as their favourite or one of their favourites.
Overall, I had a great time, met a few new people, won a door prize and came home with a set of drum sticks 'just for showing up'.
Thanks to the Doug (the host), Rob (judge) and Steven Henry for showing up at the end just to play and show off his great head of hair (and smooth grooves).
Looking forward to the Second Annual 'So You Think You Can Drum' next year. I promise to enter.

Bonham

I have always loved 'Fool in the Rain' (Led Zeppelin). Bonham's groove is unbelievably intricate but he makes it sound smooth and groovy. I practised this years ago but never made sound polished. I am going to make it part of my practise repertoire now and see if I can get it sounding solid. I did some research on the pattern, just to make sure I was playing it correctly. I wasn't far off. The actual term for the pattern is 'half-time shuffle', or Purdie Shuffle (from what I read on the Internet anyway). Its a triplet pattern where the shuffle is played on the hi-hat. The triplet is completed by the snare drum playing ghost notes and the back beat.
If that's not tough enough, Bonham opens his hat on the off beats and plays a beautiful bass drum pattern. He changes it up later in the song by playing slower triplets on the ride while maintaining the shuffle with the snare, open hat and bass drum.  That's going to be the challenge for me.
You can hear the half time shuffle used in Rosanna by Toto and All We Are by Kim Mitchell.
While researching this I stumbled across the Bembe (Afro-cuban) style. This is another triplet pattern that takes 12 beats to complete. You can google it and find plenty of info and you-tube videos for reference. The basic pattern is not difficult, when played on its own, but when you add the other instruments it becomes complex.  I would like to incorporate it into a song at some point. I'll first try to use the pattern on the right hand and play a standard beat with the rest of me, then build up the Independence. I am hoping I will find something that sounds good and is difficult to play (for me). 

Looking back and ahead

Today I read Neil Peart's latest 'News'  http://www.neilpeart.net/news/index.html (see January 2012). He writes very well and I thank him for the opportunity to read this post, in particular because he lets us into his past a little more than he has before. I am not generally interested in the personal lives of celebrities (I don't have time to care in most cases), but I have always wanted to know a little more about Neil's leave of absence after the cruel family tragedy he endured.
I don't know how to send my regards to Neil directly, so I'll use this blog as my way of communicating. As usual, Neil's prose gave me some inspiration to keep writing and keep practicing. This evening I sat down behind the kit and set a click track. I dropped it down to about 100bpm and in 4/4.  Something weird came over me and I started playing both hands on the hat, but backwards. On the 1, I played Bass drum (right foot) and left hand. Playing a 'disco' beat on the hat (sixteenth notes), hitting the snare with my left on 2 and keeping my right hand play the 'and' of each eighth note. I kept that up to see how long I could. It felt uncomfortable, but I was enjoying the feeling of Independence. I ran for about 10 bars, then had to regroup.
Then I tried doing the same playing triplets on the hat, so it went beat 1 bass drum and left hand on the hat. In this case, the right hand plays the snare. Still awkward for me but makes me feel good.
After playing that for a bit to get comfortable, I moved my right hand to the ride. Still doing the triplets, my right hand played the ride and the snare while my left kept the beat on the hat. This gives the ride a new feeling because it comes opposite to traditional 'on the beat' hits.
Now I have to work on playing a good bass drum pattern underneath and accenting the ride and hat in different ways.