Drum Talk....

[snipelfritz]

Sooooooo...since I picked up drums again this summer and have been playing in a two-piece (potentially a three-piece soon), guitar has kind of fallen by the wayside for a while (I don't have anywhere to crank my amp anyway ).

I'm wondering if there are any good resources people have about playing drums? Maybe some basics, but nothing tooooo super technical (I'm not very disciplined :x ). I'm a decent player even though I don't have any real training and just sort of taught myself.

Maybe some interesting articles about style and approach? I like don't really play fills at all (and kind of don't want to) or would rather keep a more straightforward style with dynamic changes between song sections.

I'd say some of my bigger influences are Bonham, Sebastien Grainger (Death From Above), Steven Morris (Joy Division), Gregg Errico (Sly and the Family Stone), so I like driving, syncopated stuff and don't mind playing kinda loud.

Sooooo...there have to be some people who play drums (I think Lucas did IIRC)? Let's talk about it.

EDIT: oh, and the last thing I need is to know more about gear that will make me want to spend the money I don't have.

[D.o.S.]

Go to the Doom Room -- there's a drum thread in there.

[goroth]

Check out this series of lessons with Morgan Ågren.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQM9xA28hXw[/youtube]

Why?
He's awesome
He's played with Zappa.
You get to see some freaky jams
He shows most things really slowly then insanely fast.
Most of his stuff is about patterns and revolving patterns around the kit. Even though it ends up syncopated as shit he doesn't explain stuff in terms of theory, just stuff you can work out visually, or physically.
He mostly mumbles about "this is really easy but it looks hard. You just move your hands and feet like this". The interviewer tries to get more technical stuff out of him but he doesn't want a bar of it. If however there is something in particular you want to understand just ask and I'll translate it for you.

[darthbatman]

Just play along with all your fav songs and albums and you'll be awesome

[snipelfritz]

Just play along with all your fav songs and albums and you'll be awesome

This is more or less how I originally learned. Doolittle by the pixies and Plastic Beach are the two I really remember playing to a lot more or less all the way through with varying degrees of trying to mimic things exactly or just sort of playing over things.

I'll look more into those vids and the doomy thread.

Buuuut if anyone still wants to add...

[trace]

For me drums are the least GAS-inspiring instrument, which is a good thing. I'm pretty much happy with the setup I've had for years, except for maybe a better crash. Oh and an acrylic set would be sweet... Or a big ass vintage bass drum...

I don't really have much advice as far as technique as i'm 95% self taught and pretty sloppy. I play open handed (I don't cross my arms when playing the snare and hihats) which I find a lot easier and more sensible but if you've already been playing regular for a while you may not care for it.

Oh and play around with the way your kit is set up, sometimes little changes can make big differences in your playing. Like throne height, tom height/angle etc.

I've made a bit of room in the tiny spare bedroom of my house and should be able to set my kit up for like the first time in a year so I'm glad to see this thread pop up.

[Decibill]

Drums are my first instrument. Guitar second. I'm self taught, but in but in the case of both instruments I had a friend who showed me some simple basics that helped get me started. This was pre You Tube. I think that if you watch a few basic vid's to get you started and then play along to music that you like, you will be well on your way. Don't under estimate the value of knowing some basics like proper set up in order to avoid straining muscles and causing preemptive fatigue. Another thing I would suggest is try to find time to have a few marathon practice sessions--at least 1-2 hours of continuous playing. Even if you just play along to the same album over and over. This will help with your stamina and also to help strengthen muscles.

[snipelfritz]

^I've definitely gotten much better at relaxing my muscles while I play. We do a simple punk-style cover of I Saw Her Standing There and when I was first relearning drums, I'd be wiped out and cramping up a minute and a half into the song. Someone told me to relax more and "play with my hands" (or something like that) and I definitely started noticing improvements.

The kit I use is just a bass drum, snare, hi-hats, floor tom, and ride (actually just a larger crash). Occasionally, I'll play tambourine or shaker for parts of songs. Having more than one crash or toms that I'm not using the same as a hi-hat or ride, is just more than I have any desire to mess with at this point.

I play open handed (I don't cross my arms when playing the snare and hihats) which I find a lot easier and more sensible but if you've already been playing regular for a while you may not care for it.

This might be fun just to work on better hand independence.

I feel like so much of my playing comes from my feet while my hands are just there holding down the basic beat.

[voerking]

...an acrylic set would be sweet... .

my drummers new (to him, they're from the '70s) set of FIBES:


related to the 'relax' thing - i'd suggest finding some videos of proper hand & foot technique (or maybe even a local teacher for a lesson or two). you can really mess up your wrists, etc, by doing it wrong - it also will make things a lot easier once you get used to it.