August 2014 Issue – Volume 39 • Number 8

Harvey Mason: The Groove Is All Around

Harvey Mason is one of the most recorded musicians in history. His precise, soul-filled drumming has knocked out fans of sophisticated groove playing for more than forty years, on such seminal albums as Herbie Hancock’s Head Hunters, Charles Earland’s Leaving…

Elaine Bradley

The plan was clear for Neon Trees’ new album: big sounds, big ideas, and big performances. Neon Trees’ Pop Psychology is what happens when a successful pop-rock band pursues a hip-hop recording approach using Peter Gabriel’s So and Kanye West’s…

Lee Goodness

Photo by Nicole Goodness   Curtis Mayfield was unlike any other soul artist, and the job of servicing his timeless grooves was a unique challenge, especially during the dawn of electronic drums. The journeyman player who helped bring Mayfield’s message…

Upbeat Triplets Breaking Free From the Downbeat

This month we’re going to look at quarter- and 8th-note-triplet rhythms that are offset to the upbeats. When we talk about upbeats, we’re usually referring to the “&” counts between the quarter notes in a straight 8th or swung context.…

Syncopation Revisited Part 3: 5/4 Applications

We continue this month with more ways to interpret Ted Reed’s classic book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. This time we’ll be converting the written manuscript from its original 4/4 form to 5/4 time. The following applications…

August 2014 Issue – Volume 39 • Number 8