January 2021 – Volume 45 • Number
Exercises for Better Alignment
In this lesson we’ll explore exercises that can be utilized to strengthen the alignment of your limbs. Although these ideas are designed to help alignment between the hands and feet, they also challenge subdivision accuracy, consistency of pulse, and coordination.
Alignment of the limbs is an essential component of having a consistent, precise, and clean sound on the instrument. These exercises were born out of a deficiency in my own playing. I noticed that whenever my limbs were meant to align in a place that was not the downbeat, my consistency and time suffered. I was uncomfortable coordinating my body in less common places, especially when playing more complex subdivisions.
Articles in January 2021
Stan Lynch
It’s been thirty years since he recorded with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. But for many drummers, his playing defines the late rocker’s greatest work. Now all those fans have got good reason to celebrate. If you’re having difficulty remembering…
Get on the Good Foot!
Part 3: Hi-Hat Comping in 5/4 Welcome to the third and final part of our lesson on hi-hat comping. This article explores hi-hat rhythm variations in 5/4. The phrases included are intended to help develop dynamic balance between your hi-hat…
Liberty DeVitto’s Life, Billy and the Pursuit of Happiness
When conversations turn to great drummers of the classic-rock era, Liberty DeVitto’s name is invariably near the top of the list. After appearing on the scene in the mid-’70s, the New York native began a thirty-year stint with pop icon…
Max Roach on Promotion of Dummers
When drummers are playing, horn players should color the way we color behind them. To me, it’s a matter of imagination, and it also has something to do with humility. Drummers have a great deal of humility in order to…
Attack Drumheads - The Baron Red-Dot Batter
A durable, easy-to-tune option with just the right amount of built-in dampening. Attack Drumheads has been around since the ’80s, under different ownership. In October 2018, the brand was acquired by Cardinal Percussion of Youngstown, Ohio. This was my first…
Steve Jordan
Photo by Antoine Sanfuentes He’s brought a timeless elegance to some of the heaviest recordings of the past five decades. Now, in a setting featuring just one other musical compadre, he’s handed us a near-perfect sampler of his many drumming…
Doc Sweeney - Pure Series Snare Drums
Three solid-shell snares designed to let the timber speak for itself. The last time we checked in with Rancho Santa Fe, California–based boutique brand Doc Sweeney was in the May 2020 issue, when we reviewed the gorgeous 1920s-inspired Classic series…
Be a Dreamer, and Don’t Stop Believing
I hope all is as well as can be for you in these still uncertain times. Since my last editorial, the world has gone a bit nutty, and we’ve all been going through some changes, frustrations, and fears. We all…
Terry Bozzio Interviews Nick Mason of Pink Floyd
“Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun” This month we have an excerpt of a special interview between legendary progressive drummer and composer Terry Bozzio and rock icon Nick Mason of Pink Floyd. The questions came in from…
Individuality
Part 1: Where Did It Go? Individuality is defined as the unique characteristics and traits that make someone or something one of a kind. I thought a discussion about being yourself was important to bring up, and I will be…
“Color Toys”
This month’s KOTM is one of a number of different setups Brooklyn drummer Joshua Berrios likes to break out, depending on the gig. Joshua Berrios enjoys experimenting with drum setups, and from the photos he sent us, he has a…
The Killers’ Ronnie Vannucci Jr.
His secret to drumming greatness: passion plus musicality.As a pair of new albums demonstrate, it’s a recipe that never fails him. Somewhere around the midpoint of “My Own Soul’s Warning,” the lead-off track on the Killers’ new album, Imploding the…
Roland V-Drums Acoustic Design VAD506 Kit
The ultimate immersive e-drums experience. Can you believe it’s taken forty-plus years for an electronic drumset to emerge that looks and feels nearly identical to an acoustic kit? Well, the time has come, folks. Roland’s new Acoustic Design series of…
CRITIQUE
RECORDINGS Archie Shepp, Raw Poetic, and Damu the Fudgemunk Ocean Bridges A delightfully swinging hip-hop-meets-jazz excursion that sounds composed yet is completely improvised. Ocean Bridges features tenor great Archie Shepp; his nephew, rapper Raw Poetic; and Earl “Damu the Fudgemunk”…
Bill Bruford
Part 2: The Go Between While some of his peers from the ’70s were content to rest on their laurels, our man never settled for settling down. Moreover, not only did his appetite for new sensations push his drumming into…
DW, DrēmTrigger, Gibraltar, RTOM and more
DW Design Series Additions These drums are offered in standard five-piece configurations with three add-ons: a 7x8 rack tom, and 12x14 and 16x18 floor toms. The shells are said to sound full, resonant, and responsive. Features include True-Pitch tension rods,…
Savannah Harris
She’s all over the jazz, avant-garde, and crossover scenes, playing gigs with everyone from stately ambassadors like Kenny Barron to the fierce hip-hop collective Standing on the Corner. Here the drummer discusses her ideas about playing and composing—including how kindness…
Justin Tyson
Savannah Harris, who we profile elsewhere in this issue, sits with the remarkably daring drummer, who’s commanded our attention with Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, and so many other movers and shakers. Among the things we discover? Sometimes it’s about more…
