Kick technique pt. 2 - to bury or not?

Before I started taking lessons, I had thought that you weren't supposed to keep the beater on the head - you don't keep a stick on your snare head after all. But, being a bigger guy I had a harder time keeping my leg up to play heel up.

I put a heavy spring on my kick pedal (IC) and I kind of rode it while it floated, keeping the beater off of the head between notes. I got to where I could bounce on it pretty well, do heel-toe 16ths, etc. but I still had trouble with 4-limb coordination, so I signed up for lessons.

When I started taking lessons, my teacher instructed me to keep the beater on the head between notes. His studio kit is set up with very low tension on the kick pedal and my coordination has improved a great deal, but it still doesn't always feel comfortable (or sound right on my kit at home) if I keep the beater buried. It seems like I'm wasting the rebound from the kick batter.

Are either of these techniques wrong or right?

The way I see it may not be correct but its just how it is.If you bury it you get a short tone, if you draw it back you get a longer tone, they are both available for us to use, its up to us to decide how we use it. Why not use it.

There are no rules,what ever feels comfortable for ya. For me foot down or heel up I'll bury the beater everytime,bad technique maybe but I prefer the shorter bass note.

+1

+1

i also agree with box on this one. theres times when i bury and theres times when i dont. it all depends on what im playing.

you guys actually hit the bass drum

+1 Well said. I heard if you don't use it, you lose it....Is that true?

whats a bass drum?

Would you say the same thing if you were playing an 18" bass drum with no port? God I hope not. REBOUND!!!!

I agree with box. Depends on the situation. However, you are learning independence and co ordination. If you bury the beater, it's a solid hit on the beat, no question. You need that. As you get better and get the whole independence thing down somewhat, you can play with rebound and letting it ring vs. not, etc. For now I'd follow the teacher's advice. Good luck.

My preference now is to not bury it most of the time because I like the ring and boom. However I started out burying it when learning and changed it later.

That's my take on what you're teacher is trying to do.

Beater on the head shortens the sustain of the bass drum.

Why not use both?

I've been working a lot lately on little technique issues and I found myself burying my beater when I'm trying to make a very powerful groove. Though it feels good, the actual sound is better suited for a clean rebound. It's been a great practice tool, and my double bass playing has increased dramatically as a result.

But I agree with the above - they're both tools available to us, so why not employ them both?

Funny, I don't recall any rules written in stone dictating the proper use of a pedal,could you at least post'em for me. Sometimes I'll bury it,sometimes I don't, just depends on my mood. I guess I need to be more aware of my right foot action and spank it when it decides to bury the beater instead of rebounding

Well personally I think it's {censored} technique but whatever...if it works for you then go for it....

Agreed.

In more open parts of a song, I might be more inclined to let the beater release to produce that BOOOOOOOOM. For tighter/faster stuff, burying the beater gives a nice attack and punch and you don't muddle {censored} up with excessive resonance. This is music - your number one job is to create a desired sound, feel and vibe, not to strictly follow some guidelines laid out by others who have no idea how you want your music to sound. Use your ears, and let your body tell you what technique works best for you to execute the sounds you desire.

Sometimes with beginners, if they keep the beater off the head between beats, they get a "double hit" or "flutter" where the beater is bouncing off the head more times than you want. This can happen for many reasons.....the bass drum angle is too steep, or there is a lack of control with the feet of the beginner etc etc. That might be the reason why your teacher is suggesting you bury the beater. If you are not getting these double hits, then there is no reason to use just one technique as far as beater placement. Like the others have said, do what is comfortable for you.

The light at the end of the tunnel is....once you get these techniques into your muscle memory, where you don't have to think about a particular technique to use, and you have control over your feet and the pedals, it becomes more of an emotional decision in regards to technique choices. Like Fitch said, he likes to bury the beater when it gets funky...he makes a decision based on the music and the emotion of the groove - on the spot - and not "what should I do here? shall I bury the beater for perfect sound and thud or shall I release the beater for rebound purposes so I can return to the head faster....." No. You just want to do it, that's all.

Don't sweat it. For less experienced players there is more thinking involved because all this technique stuff hasn't sunk in yet. It will !! Remember the end result is music and making it feel good. It's a process tho, it takes a while. Good luck!

Bury the beater if you want to choke the sound and low tones that the kick drum produces. IE, THUD... instead of BOOM.

I usually lightly rest the beater on the head between notes (especially on more complex kick patterns)... I think I can best explain it as a "known resting spot". It's like a reference point. I think it helps my timing a lot.

I've spent the past few years training myself to not bury the beater. It's been hard to un-train that, and I think I'm a better drummer for it. Sure, I can bury the beater when I want to, but not doing it automatically cleans and speeds up my drumming a lot.

I usually lightly rest the beater on the head between notes (especially on more complex kick patterns)... I think I can best explain it as a "known resting spot". It's like a reference point. I think it helps my timing a lot.

Practiced a little today and was observing how I was placing the beater between notes and noticed that I was allowing for rebound but lightly resting the beater against the head at the end. Whether or not it's correct,it helps to set me up and a technique that I'm most comfortable with.Sorry for the confusion guys.

In my experience, burying the head does not work well for smaller bass drums (16" or even 18") or bass drums with little dampening. You can really hear how the buried beater kills the sound in those cases. However, most people play 22" drums with tons of dampening, so it is certainly a valid way to create slightly more staccato notes. Personally, I think that at least being able to comfortably play without burying the beater will give you more flexibility and potential for dynamics.

wut u guz takin abut... teh beeter stays on teh pedal... be a real pain ta bury it if every time ya wanna hit the dam drum ya gotta go dig it up... hard 2 play teh deth metalz that way...