Joined a new band, could use advice!

I've been posting a few threads recently on how to improve my playing and I think one of the important things is to actually get out and play with people rather than messing about on my own.

These guys' music is pretty standard and it's not difficult to play to it but I'm finding it hard to do fills and stuff that are interesting.

Just looking for some ideas or advice on this!

One particular thing they want me to do is some beat involving just toms and snare which I can't get the hang of. I can play something they think is good but I reckon it's rubbish.

Can't read music or drum tabs so I'm limited as to what I can look at.

I've been posting a few threads recently on how to improve my playing and I think one of the important things is to actually get out and play with people rather than messing about on my own. These guys' music is pretty standard and it's not difficult to play to it but I'm finding it hard to do fills and stuff that are interesting. Just looking for some ideas or advice on this! One particular thing they want me to do is some beat involving just toms and snare which I can't get the hang of. I can play something they think is good but I reckon it's rubbish. Can't read music or drum tabs so I'm limited as to what I can look at.

Don't limit yourself thinking you won't be able to read drum music. Get a few basic books and you will see how easy it reads once you get the hang of it.

online drummer is a good source. http://onlinedrummer.com/drum_lesson_video.php?Id=54

also remember that it's not always a bad thing to just play simple, a drummer who can keep a steady beat will do much more for the band then somebody who is trying to hard and making really complicated beats.

1.) LEARN TO READ MUSIC: That way, you can check out some online transcriptions of drum parts you know you like and see how they were physcially done. When I first started learning how to drum, I bought a drum book to Metallica's black album, and seeing how Lars made those parts opened my drumming vocabulary up.

2.) WATCH DRUMMERS: Head to YouTube and do a search for a drummer who you really like (ie: Danny Carey of Tool), and then find some clips of him. Identify what he's doing with his hands and feet to get the sounds he's getting.

3.) MOVE AROUND: When it comes to fills and beats, get your sticks in different places and on different surfaces. Instead of just playing "4E&A" on the snare, move your hands down the drums to get a different tonal selection, and go from there!

Good luck, and I think it's a great idea to play with musicians. All the chops in the world don't matter if you don't know how to tastefully use them in the actual context of music.

I totally agree on the statement that you shouldn't be afraid to keep it simple. Listen to a lot of Jim Keltner, Kenny Aronoff or ANYTHING from AC/DC. 99% of it is simple stuff, yet two of those are considered in the greats of session drummers and one is near the top of hard rock bands of all time.

You need to be the backbeat first and just drive the train. After that, nice simple fills.

As for a tom beat, try just taking your right hand off the hihat and putting it on the floor tom. Play the same thing you would play (probably straight eighths) and see where that gets you.

Finally...COUNT!

One of the most important things I learned in my drumming career is when less is more. Knowing when to just keep a beat and let the other instruments 'fill' the gaps is crucial.

We've got a few songs with parts where I play nothing but toms and they sound pretty good. It's not the whole song, just a few measures of toms with snare accents.

What kind of music?

I second the learning to read music thing. I'm sure there are DVD's or programs to teach you. Best is a teacher. It's essential for drummers.

Personally, I'd leave a boring band, but that's just me. I will never be a Ringo or Rudd type drummer.

Same here

DITTO!

The thing I forgot to mention is I'm dyslexic, so for me reading music is really difficult.

This is the band anyway: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=40600656

That's not me on the recordings and I'm already changing most of the drum parts in these songs to something I actually want to play. Some of it they want me to just play your standard ACDC style thing.

I like the sort of music they play and I dig their influences so I don't mind, but I'll probably end up out growing them as I prefer much more interesting music to play - check the band in my sig I play guitar for

I'm just happy to be playing with people v.s. nothing at all to be honest