Ever spent hours trying to nail a groove, only to have it sound... almost right?
I learned this lesson the expensive way when I was recording for my project Noradio. We'd built an entire song around this incredible Nate Smith drum loop - the pocket was insane, everything grooved perfectly.
My bandmate said "You should play drums on this instead of using the loop."
Confident? Absolutely. I'm a professional drummer. How hard could it be?
I went into the studio and failed. Miserably. Three times.
The groove had no pocket, no feel, no magic. I was trying to practice the entire thing as one big chunk instead of mastering the fundamentals that made it work.
So I did something different:
→ Slowed the loop to half speed → Isolated every component (hi-hat movement, ghost note placement, that open hi-hat in measure 2) → Spent 4 hours practicing JUST the fundamentals → Put it away for weeks
When I came back to record, I set up a simple kit with 9 mics (yes, overkill for 3 drums, but tone matters), hit record, and played ONE TAKE.
Perfect. That was it.
Here's what I learned: Most drummers practice complex grooves as complete units. But what you really need is to identify and master the building blocks first.
Think about Ringo's tom fill in "Come Together." You could practice that fill for months, but if your:
Single stroke technique isn't fluid Triplet timing isn't rock solid Movement around toms isn't smooth
...the fill will never sound right.
Master the fundamentals, and complex grooves become effortless.
The framework:
-Break it into components
-Practice each element slowly until perfect
-Focus on how it FEELS in your body
-Let it rest
-Return with fresh perspective
Every fundamental you master makes dozens of future grooves easier to learn.
What groove has been frustrating you that might need this building block approach?
I keep getting messages asking about Drum Hub spots, but we're currently sold out. If you want to dive deeper into systematic practice techniques like this and completely transform your approach to drumming, join the waitlist to be first in line when new spots open up: www.dimitrifantinidrums.com/apply?community=Commun…
Dimitri Fantini
Ever spent hours trying to nail a groove, only to have it sound... almost right?
I learned this lesson the expensive way when I was recording for my project Noradio. We'd built an entire song around this incredible Nate Smith drum loop - the pocket was insane, everything grooved perfectly.
My bandmate said "You should play drums on this instead of using the loop."
Confident? Absolutely. I'm a professional drummer. How hard could it be?
I went into the studio and failed. Miserably. Three times.
The groove had no pocket, no feel, no magic. I was trying to practice the entire thing as one big chunk instead of mastering the fundamentals that made it work.
So I did something different:
→ Slowed the loop to half speed
→ Isolated every component (hi-hat movement, ghost note placement, that open hi-hat in measure 2)
→ Spent 4 hours practicing JUST the fundamentals
→ Put it away for weeks
When I came back to record, I set up a simple kit with 9 mics (yes, overkill for 3 drums, but tone matters), hit record, and played ONE TAKE.
Perfect. That was it.
Here's what I learned: Most drummers practice complex grooves as complete units. But what you really need is to identify and master the building blocks first.
Think about Ringo's tom fill in "Come Together." You could practice that fill for months, but if your:
Single stroke technique isn't fluid
Triplet timing isn't rock solid
Movement around toms isn't smooth
...the fill will never sound right.
Master the fundamentals, and complex grooves become effortless.
The framework:
-Break it into components
-Practice each element slowly until perfect
-Focus on how it FEELS in your body
-Let it rest
-Return with fresh perspective
Every fundamental you master makes dozens of future grooves easier to learn.
What groove has been frustrating you that might need this building block approach?
I keep getting messages asking about Drum Hub spots, but we're currently sold out. If you want to dive deeper into systematic practice techniques like this and completely transform your approach to drumming, join the waitlist to be first in line when new spots open up: www.dimitrifantinidrums.com/apply?community=Commun…
4 months ago | [YT] | 16