I am a guitarist looking to get into drumming. What info/songs to learn first?

[Merlin Coryell]

Its a General Fault with the Sarcasm Firmware that runs these boards. It messes up because of the DST changeover every season.

[HumanFuseBen]

so over the past week, i've definately gotten better! i can play Brain Stew by Green Day, yay!

[twosticks]

For Fun: First, to be a real drummer, you have to learn to play "Wipeout" the old surfer tune by the Ventures, No one will believe you are a drummer until then, at least that's how it was when I started. Next is "Freebird" Lynard-Skynard. You hear it yelled out in all kinds of clubs and gigs and until you can play it, you ain't a drummer. Then is Rush and "Tom Sawyer", other Rush songs are close, but unless you can play "Tom", you have not arrived. Is fun to watch people's eyes pop and jaws drop went you lay into the beginning groove! Now you are in the world of Drum Gods and you are ready to try some Led Zepplin and John Bonham (aka "Bonzo") drumming, "Black Dog" "Rock and Roll" "Fool in the Rain" etc. Then is off to studio greats Steve Gadd on Paul Simon's "50 way to leave your lover" and "Aja" by Steely Dan. Jeff Pocarro on Boz Scagg's "Lido Shuffle" and "Lowdown" as well as the Toto classic "Rosanna" LOL

 

For real, get lessons, learn how to hold the sticks and use the stick bounce, how to use good posture etc. The others really are correct, even if you get a few lessons, it will be WAY worth it so you don't start with bad habits at the start! Drummers are known to get Carpel Tunnel in the wrist, tennis elbow, back aches all down the back and leg craps over time from not knowing the proper way to hit the head and use the rebound, etc. Plus hitting wrong is good way to crack cymbals, dent up your heads and chew up sticks. At least one or two lessons will give you some pointers and usually makes it easier for you to practice and pick up on things, let alone, a trained person watching how you play and giving you pointers in person!

 

Main thing in beginning drumming is ROCK SOLID timing and learning the beat. AC-DC, Beatles, etc are mostly easy 4/4 songs. Also just practice keeping a steady rhythm on your own for at least 5 mins, even if it's just snapping your fingers. Drummers get good by knowing how to keep the time steady, not rushing or dragging, and knowing where the beat so they know where to come in and where to back up. At practicing 3-5 a week, it may still take months to get a few basics down and years to second nature at it. I hope this helps and I wish you luck!! Let us know if you have more questions okay?

[HumanFuseBen]

awesome thanks so much for the advice! I've also heard i need to become a solid drinker to get into drumming. i also need to be broke. i'm working on it

 

so what is the proper way to hold a stick and to hit? I'm guessing i shouldn't follow my drummer's example. He is a phenom, but he hits hard as a mother{censored}er. He breaks probably at least 3 sticks per practice, and his cymbals last a few months. Every one of them is busted.

[Merlin Coryell]

Breaking sticks is normal and means you are doing it right, many reasons they break over time.

 

Breaking heads and cymbals means you are doing it WRONG! No matter what anyone says, if you use a conventional drumstick or mallet and you break one of these, you have improper form. I can hit as loud and hard as I want, and never break these, even thin splashes. Its all about HOW you hit them that makes the difference.

 

Other bashers that accept its normal to break cymbals are clueless. I have had 4 breaks ever. 1 cymbal was clamped too hard, another was too flat. One floor tom head was angled too much toward my stick, and one snare head was attacked by a drunkard at an open mic.

 

That all said, heads to get weak over time. Good heads can last years (I have some on kit now that are from 2003, dad still has black dots from 1980, though he doesnt use them anymore), but due to temps and tension, they can get more brittle and break after a while.

[lsits]

 

First, to be a real drummer, you have to learn to play "Wipeout" the old surfer tune by the Ventures,

 

 

FYI, WIPEOUT was performed by The Surfaris with the great Ron Wilson on drums. Just sayin'. It's one of those songs that goes over well in both my surf and classic rock bands. I always see a lot of air drummers playing along. It's easy to learn. In fact, I learned it even before I had a kit.

[twosticks]

FYI, WIPEOUT was performed by The Surfaris with the great Ron Wilson on drums. Just sayin'. It's one of those songs that goes over well in both my surf and classic rock bands. I always see a lot of air drummers playing along. It's easy to learn. In fact, I learned it even before I had a kit.

Thanks, I thought maybe I had that wrong. I remember learning to play and was mostly into 80's rock then and a guy I jammed with had to play it on his guitar and sound out the drum part. I was amazed how simple it really is to play and soon got tired of everyone wanting to hear it! LOL

[twosticks]

I haven't broke a stick in awhile. Is hard to describe in words and is best to shown. Basically in a matched grip (both sticks are held the same way) the stick should be loosely between the thumb and first forefinger with the hand cupped around it with the butt of the stick hanging out about a 1/4" to 1/2" out of the end of your hand. You should move the stick by rotating your wrist only and loose enough that that the tip of the stick can rebound or "bounce" back up. Your ARE NOT burying the the stick into the head like a shovel. You get faster and smoother controlling the stick bounce and letting it rebound rather than lifting the stick up and down each hit. Let the stick do the work and not your hands or arms.

 

You want just the bead (tip area) of the stick to hit the head in the middle of the head area. Also you want to play "On Top" of the cymbals and NOT on the edge of the cymbal with the edge or shoulder of the stick. You want to use "glancing blows" or sideswipe the cymbal with the stick. Hit the cymbal and then recock or pull the stick back, unlike a baseball bat where you want to swing all the way through. Hitting it with a sideways blow and lifting the stick back lets the cymbal make more noise and sound fuller since your stick isn't stopping it from vibrating. You are NOT beating the cymbal into submission.

 

Okay maybe the broken sticks since you're playing heavy metal, but the constant broken heads and cymbals is just dumb! Playing heavy metal with small sticks or thin cymbals is not smart either. Again is why lessons work! They pay for themselves as they help you play better and you play with better technique and don't tear up you stuff! Hope this helps!

[adslalex]

I began drums in 2003, after 8 years of guitar.

I assume it has always been for fun, so I didn't take lessons or methods, just played over music.

The two hardest things for me were :

-To have a good grip, making drum rolls

-Separate each body part, doing not synchronised stuff

In the end, we are near 2012, I play with feeling and through the different style I heard and practiced.

I have a good sense of rythm, maybe from birth, maybe from playing rythm guitar long enough, I don't know.

 

I would just say go for it ! Playing drums along with guitar is great to complete rythm mastery and finding inspiration