March 2014 Issue – Volume 39 • Number 3

March 2014 Issue – Volume 39 • Number 3

Alex Rüdinger

The new drummer with the progressive metal band the Faceless has turned heads with a combination of old-world ethics and future-shock techniques. Alex Rudinger has built a great deal of musical momentum on the technical metal scene, all at the…

Beyond "Funky Drummer"

Great Drum Breaks of the '60s and Early '70s Much has been written about Clyde Stubblefield’s legendary drum break on James Brown’s 1969 song “Funky Drummer.” Those few bars laid the groundwork for dozens of hip-hop tracks, and Stubblefield’s playing…

Stick Control Revisited Part 4

Part 4: Up-Tempo Studies Welcome to the fourth and final installment in our series on Stick Control drumset applications. This month we’ll explore ways of interpreting author George Lawrence Stone’s exercises while playing up-tempo swing rhythms. As you practice the…

The 50 Greatest Drummers of All Time

Whose playing endures through the decades? Whose music do we reach for when we want new ideas? When we want to practice? Who inspires and delights us most? Following are the drummers who, regardless of genre or era, are revered…

Rhythm And Timing, Part 1

Part 1: Three-Note 16th Groupings In this five-part series we’re going to develop not only timing and rhythmic accuracy with triplets and 16th notes, but also accent/tap control using the four basic strokes (full, down, tap, and up). To some,…

Nate Wood

His playing in the resolutely unclassifiable band Kneebody seems like a match made in heaven. But you might be surprised by what he has―and hasn’t―focused on while perfecting his craft. Is Kneebody the contemporary version of New Orleans’ beat-slaying band…