drum fills
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Fill Displacements
Drummers often experience periods in which they’re unable to think of new fill ideas. In this lesson we’ll explore what I call the last-to-first method, which enables you to turn any sticking into multiple useful fill applications. TO READ THE…
Dressing Up Your Fills
In this lesson, we’ll embellish some basic fills for song intros in order to create something a bit more interesting. Adding notes before or after the fill, experimenting with orchestration, and using rudiments such as rolls, flams, and ruffs are…
Falling Rocks - A Primer on One of Drumming's Most Powerful Fills
The term “falling rocks” refers to a very powerful fill concept made famous by legendary rockers like Carmine and Vinny Appice, John Bonham, Cozy Powell, and Tommy Aldridge, and it’s often used by contemporary metal, prog, and fusion drummers. TO…
Threes and Fives - Fills With Odd Groupings
I’ve always found it fun and interesting to explore the possibilities available when using common subdivisions such as 8ths, 16ths, or 8th-note triplets. For example, we can play a double-stroke roll or paradiddle sticking within 8th-note triplets to create a…
Papa Jo Jones Drum Fill - Incorporating a Classic Jazz Lick
In this lesson we’ll explore a versatile and great-sounding fill from jazz legend Papa Jo Jones. The basic pattern is notated in Exercise 1. Pay close attention to the sticking—it’s essential to start and end the fill with your lead…
