Merry Xmas! There are two version of the piece - one slow for beginners & one fast for more advanced players. If you have any questions regarding the lesson you can email me: zelfiredrums@gmail.com
Download & print the PDF
Play along to the original Youtube clip I wrote the piece to in the link below
There is one thing that worries most
serious musicians, more than a brief dry spell of work or a chip to their
beloved instrument, and that is - INJURIES.
Sprains, RSI, broken bones, torn ligaments,
carpal tunnel – any can affect your ability to play your instrument from
anything from a few weeks to years, and sometimes, you can never play the same
again.
Unfortunately, drummers seem to suffer more
than most when it comes to sustaining an injury – first and foremost being that
drums are such a physical instrument. All four limbs are required, wrist
injuries are common, shin splints can play up in your right leg, even cases of
back pains due to bad posture sitting at the kit. Theres little injuries too.
How many drummers out there have smashed themselves in the face with the
drumstick when playing with a little too much flair? Or smacked their hand on
the side of the snare whilst rim-shotting, and sliced your hand on the cymbal
going in for the choke? Then there’s blisters… exploding all over the kit mid-set,
leaving your hands slippery and the stick digging into raw open wounds on your
hands. Nice.
The worst thing is - I don’t think the most
dangerous injuries that a drummer can sustain come when playing the drums. Oh
no. It’s the ‘live fast’ attitude that I would say a majority of drummers seem
to display is what gets us in the most trouble. Singers, yes, they are stupid
too, but they only have their vocal chords to protect and egos to hurt, and the
latter often restrains them from doing anything that might be detrimental to
their health or Image.
Drummers are stuck at the back of the stage
during the show – so when it comes to getting attention, almost ANY challenge
will be accepted… and if there is not a challenge or dare? They will get into
some crazy trouble anyway. Here are some examples:
Travis Barker – broke a bunch of bones
skateboarding. Was one of 2 only survivors in a major plane crash. Biggest injuries:
broken bones, and major burns.
Keith Moon – drove a Rolls Royce into a
swimming pool, smashed up many hotels rooms and was a general lunatic. His
injury list: two broken ankles, split teeth, a cracked collarbone, and
countless bumps and bruises!
John Bonham – drank more than twice his own
body weight in booze, got into fights regularly. Biggest injury: death
Those are 3 of the biggest drummers of our
time, but if you type ‘drummer injured’ into google you will see countless
other examples of drummers hurting themselves due to the ‘live fast’ mentality!
I myself have been the victim of a few
injuries. A couple of years back when holidaying in Australia, I drunkenly
climbed a tree and thought it would be a great idea to attempt jumping from
branch to branch. The result? A fractured wrist. Luckily it had time to heal
before I went back to England so my bandmates didn’t kill me. It did make me
acutely more aware however of my mortality and fragile body structure.
Fast forward a few years later and I’m in
Israel, on tour with my new band Pettybone. More careful this time was I with
risk-taking, yet still managed to strain my wrist very badly doing the lamest
thing: trying to open a bottle of water. I played the remaining shows with my
wrist strapped up tightly and through a haze of painkillers and booze. I don’t
advise it in the slightest, but it was the only way I could still play and not
cancel any of the gigs. When I got back the doctor advised one thing: rest.
In all seriousness, injuries can be a
nightmare for the touring drummer, and in most cases all the experts will just
advise you to rest - healing takes time. Here are a few ways in which you can
prevent injuries, and also a few ways to work around any injuries you might
already have:
1.Warm up! Drumming is very
physical - it’s like a sport. You need to stretch your muscles out and warm up
your wrists and hands before going onstage. Even if you just spend ten minutes
going through single and double stroke rolls then stretch your wrists and arms
out, trust me, you will see the difference. Cramps, and a variety of tendon and
nerve problems can be avoided by doing simple warm-ups… there will be more in
depth info on warm ups in my next article.
2.Keep fit! Endurance is
important for high-energy drummers and also those who have to play long sets.
The fitter you are, the easier your drumming will become. Even if you have a
wrist injury, jogging is something that you can do to keep your endurance up.
3.If you feel a twinge, stop!
Don’t keep drumming unnecessarily if you think you may be injured. Take a break
and go back to drumming in a few days (making sure that you warm up first) if
you still feel the twinge – go get it checked out. The chances are your rest
time will be a lot shorter if you catch the injury before it gets too bad.
4.Practice with the limbs that
aren’t damaged! If you hurt your right hand, it’s the perfect excuse to get
that lagging left hand up to speed, (and vice versa for lefties) also, don’t
forget about your feet! You might not be able to get up to the double pedal
speed of Dave Lombardo in the time it takes for your injury to heal, but you
can damn well give it a try.
5.Get creative! There you are
whining about a little sprain, while the drummer from Def Leppard gets up
onstage and kills it night after night with only one arm!Travis Barker too - when he broke his
left wrist he re-learnt the songs with triggers on his left foot, changed the
way he played the songs slightly and still went on tour. Figure out how to play
songs without the use of your damaged hand, play around with using triggers on
your left foot – be creative and don’t let your injury hold you back from doing
something that you love.
Stoked to be playing drums for amazing UK based Danish political hiphop artist Frhetoric here's a sneak preview of me practicing for our upcoming show this Friday in Epsom. Fired up Fridays! Event listing below https://www.facebook.com/events/741190899241344/
On Sunday I facilitated a Free Drum Workshop at the Shacklewell Arms in East London for the 'First Timers' project:
http://firsttimersldn.tumblr.com/
About 15 people came down & we had a blast running through the basics of drumming, including grip, stick control, technique, reading, counting, rudiments, basic beats, playing with a bassist, & more! Everyone got a free booklet handout with all the topics covered to take home and practice.
“The drum is a musical instrument with great power and presence that gives the ‘pulse’ or backbone to the music it is incorporated with.”
1. DRUMMING IS GOOD FOR YOU! Physical activity A well as being one of the more fun instruments, drums are also one of the most energetic & physically demanding. A recent study (1) with Clem Burke, the veteran Blondie drummer, revealed that 90 minutes of drumming could raise his heart rate to 190 beats a minute, and one hour in concert could burn between 400 and 600 calories. Comparable to top athletes! This obviously applies more liberally to more intensive rock drumming, but you’ll still be working out a little even just on a practice pad for half an hour. Besides, your body isn’t the only thing that can get a workout… Stress relief There is NO better stress-relieving instrument than the drums - If you need to vent, what better way than to hit something? In fact, a friend told me that in one of the London offices he worked in, they had introduced an electronic drum kit so that stressed office workers could go and drum away some frustration! It’s not only the action of smashing the skins that can help relieve stress, listening to the rhythms you create can be meditative which helps to reduce anxiety and tension (2, 3). Brain Power
Improved IQ scores can now officially be added to the growing list of benefits from playing drums! Drumming activates both sides of the brain and can help the mind achieve hemispheric coordination, a situation where both halves of the brain are active and brain waves are synchronized. A recent study shows that playing the drums or other percussion instruments actually improves IQ scores of children. While previous studies have hinted that musical training improves a child's literacy and math skills, this is the first time that a study has shown that one's intelligence level can be improved by drumming (4). Another recent study demonstrated that the synchronous brain activities induced by drumming can be beneficial for ADHD, alleviating anxiety & (as mentioned before) stress relief (5).
2. DRUMS ARE FUN Any time I have left the room at any band practice - the guitarist, singer or bass player ALWAYS take the opportunity to jump behind the drums & have a go. Everyone secretly wants to be a drummer - and that’s because drums are a super fun instrument to play! (6) Drumming is a very physical way of musical expression, and creating rhythm is a very primitive and gratifying experience.
Just to let everyone know that I will be facilitating a free drum workshop for beginners, hosted on the 22nd of September at the Shacklewell Arms in East London.
Bryony Benyon is the organiser & has arranged for a drum kit to be available at the venue, along with a shedload of drum sticks & practice pads so everyone can get involved!
The workshop will run for approximately 3 hours & I'll be answering all your drum related enquires, as well as showing fundamental hand technique, giving out some stick control exercises that we can all run through together, getting some newbies on the drum kit for their first go, AND breaking down some of the basic concepts, beats & fills within rock, punk & heavy music.
I'll also be talking about why it's never too late to start playing drums! (article related to this topic will be online soon) how drumming is good for you, and how to get started.
Anyone who attends the workshop will be eligible to get a super sweet deal on some one on one lessons at my studio in North London.
Get more details & sign up for the event right here:
So here is my list of female drummers who will kick your ass - I'm sure after you've watched all the videos you will agree with me.
Feel like I've missed someone out? Tough! This is my list not yours... but please do free to add other worthy contenders in the comment box below.
Yael – My Ruin, The Love Project, Ugly Kid Joe + more.
I first saw Yael when I was 15 years old playing with My
Ruin. She blew me away with her power, precision and positive attitude, and she
is definitely up there with one of my main influences as a drummer. She did an
amazing musical adventure called ‘The Love Project’ (check it out on Youtube)
& she is currently drumming for Ugly Kid Joe. Some rad overhead footage of Yael smashing it below!
Patty Schemel! Hole!
I learnt ALL the hole songs on drums when I started out!
Patty is not only a great drummer; she also deserves a medal for being in a
band with Courtney love for so long. Ugh. Check out the documentary ‘Hit So
Hard’ that features a whole bunch of footage Patty filmed herself when she was
on tour with Hole. It’s great to see but also pretty heart wrenching.
I managed to find a great video of Patty playing with
the rest of the Hole members but WITHOUT Courtney. Heh. Check it out:
Julie Edwards - Deap Vally
Julie's drumming is incredibly unique - she has this loose but groovy openhanded
approach.
Apparently at one point during her life, she was literally obsessed with Keith Moon. Every thought she had revolved around him. Funnily enough though, she rates John Bonham as a higher influence!
SHE'S COOL, SHE'S HOT, SHE'S ALL OVER THE SHOP! I also once saw her play a whole song with a snapped in half drumstick coz she was so in the zone. Check out the head banging!
Janet Weiss - The Furies, Sleater Kinney, Wild Flag + more
Janet Weiss – famous for not ONE rad band but TWO. The incredible Sleater Kinney, & now the amazing Wild Flag. Here’s Wild Flag live on Letterman
Tobi Vail - Bikini Kill
“Tobi Vail describes herself as a feminist thinker/writer/critic and a cultural worker. She tries to make change happen through cultural work via bands, fanzines, songs, essays, documentation of feminism, community building (Ladyfest, feminist book clubs, going to protests, boycotting anti-birth control pharmacies, supporting women’s health clinics, writing letters to the editor of my local newspaper, blogging).” All that, and she’s also the badass punk drummer from influential feminist band Bikini Kill
You can
download the transcription to Rebel Girl by Bikini Kill on my site:
Lets not kid ourselves here, ALL of L7 are badass. They make badass music & have badass attitudes. Just watch the video for Christ sakes
Hannah Billie - The Gossip
I bet you
have danced to this girls drumming at LEAST once on a drunken night out.
Veronica Bellino - Jeff Beck
Some absolutely RIDICULOUS
lightening fast fills on this video (no double pedal!!)
Cindy Blackman - Lenny Kravitz + a bunch of jazz stuff
Originally trained as a jazz player,
she got a break into the mainstream in 1993 when Lenny Kravitz asked her to
play for his band. Jazz or rock - she kills it. Check out this solo!
Lorena Cachito - Window Pane + Those 3
You may not well have heard of her (yet), but Lorena Cachito
is a whirlwind of ferocious energy behind the drums!Lorena first started out in Spain with her
band Window Pane (who actually have a new album coming out soon) & then,
moving to London to pursue drumming further, she joined up with prog rock band
‘Those Three’. Lorena is super passionate about the drums & really shines
through in her playing – plus she can sing and play heavy as hell.
Evelyn Glennie
Ok, she’s technically a percussionist but
whatever, just watch her on this Ted talk on how to truly listen... and feel truly inspired.
ALSO ALSO ALSO - Stef MacKichan
No longer in Mares of Thrace, but she is a rad drummer & they are a sick band!
