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📢 Show Off Your Drum Kit!
We want to see your drums! Hit reply and send a photo of your kit along with any details you'd like to share, whether that's the story behind a particular drum, a wild DIY mod, or just a proud "this is mine." Would love to feature it in the newsletter!
⚡ Quick Hits
🕳️ Learn to play halftime on any song and you will turn heads
@Nate Mueller
Nate Mueller drops a halftime flip over the entire last chorus of Stephen Stanley's "Changes," turning an already heavy tune into something that sits even deeper in the pocket. The Nashville session player's groove is locked, even as his glasses and headphones stage their usual rebellion. A quick reminder that taste and feel outweigh chops every time.
🎸 learn the "renegade" breakdown Styx have played for 20+ years
Todd Sucherman pulls apart the iconic breakdown in Styx's "Renegade," the John Panozzo groove he has carried live for over two decades. In 47 seconds, he shows how the part evolves through the song, where he honors the original feel, and which subtle choices make it breathe. A reminder that the simplest rock parts are usually the hardest to nail.
🎙️ bernard purdie narrates his own shuffle in 78 seconds
Bernard Purdie breaking down his own groove in real time is a masterclass you can watch in 78 seconds. The Purdie Shuffle architect walks through the feel with the casual authority of a man who has played on more sessions than most drummers have heard. Drumfluence's clip is the kind of thing you rewatch with a practice pad in hand.
🌊 Deep Dives
🎸 Gregg Bissonette playing Van Halen's swagger on "unchained"
Gregg Bissonette digs into "Unchained" from Van Halen's 1981 Fair Warning, channeling Alex Van Halen's swagger with the kind of pocket and shuffle feel only a session veteran can summon. It's a masterclass in serving a rock classic without overplaying it. Worth the watch for anyone studying how to cover an icon with respect and personality intact.
🎤 van romaine on staying in demand from morse to enrique
Van Romaine sits down with Nick D'Virgilio at the Count Basie Center, filmed right from his kit on stage before a Steve Morse Band gig. Across 20 minutes, they dig into the versatility that's carried Van from Steve Morse's rock-fusion to pop backbeats with Nena and the B-52's to Latin grooves behind Enrique Iglesias. Expect career philosophy, a rig rundown, and honest talk on staying in demand.
🎓 Practice & Skills
⚙️ one sticking, endless grooves: the six stroke roll workout
@Lucas Alves
Lucas Alves breaks down a deceptively simple six-stroke roll variation in this quick Instagram clip, built around the sticking RLLRRLRLLK. It is a compact pattern worth drilling slowly before pushing tempo, since the double-left and double-right clusters demand clean hand balance before the kick closes it out. A tidy vocabulary piece for anyone sharpening rudimental fills around the kit.
🦶 the paradiddle, but split between your hands and feet
@Meinl Cymbals
Justin Scott turns the paradiddle into a full-body workout in this Meinl clip, splitting the sticking between hands and feet for a coordination challenge that rewires how you hear the rudiment. Try it slow on a practice pad and kick, then map the pattern around the kit to open up new fill and groove ideas. His breakdown lives on jscottdrummer.com if you want the full method.
🔥 turn the six stroke roll into a kit-traveling fill
@Daniel Hegerle
Daniel Hegerle's latest "Steal This Fill" takes the humble six stroke roll and sends it traveling around the kit, turning a rudiment most drummers already know into a usable chop. It's a quick Instagram reel, but the concept is worth woodshedding: lock in the sticking first, then experiment with orchestrating each stroke across toms and cymbals. A solid two minute practice prompt for your next session.
🛒 Gear Picks
🎪 inside josh manuel's bilmuri road rig: sweet meets trashy
@Zildjian Company
Josh Manuel of Bilmuri walked Zildjian through his road rig, and the cymbal stack is a study in contrasts: a 21" A Sweet Ride and 18" K Sweet Crash for warmth, stacked against a 10" A Custom EFX, 18" FX China, and a 16" K EFX over K Light Bottom for trashy bite. The 15" K Fat Hats anchor it. Full interview lives on YouTube.
🔇 the rods every drummer should own for quiet gigs
ProMark's Thunder Rods are the heaviest hitter in the Rods lineup, bundling seven extra-large birch dowels under a red plastic wrap to land somewhere between brushes and full sticks. At 16 inches and .675 diameter, they give hard hitters a fuller, more cutting sound for acoustic gigs and small rooms without resorting to a shield. Great for quiet practice or small performances. Every drummer needs to own a pair.
🌎 From The Community
🐢 why slow practice fixes your weak hand (Reddit)
A Reddit drummer's weak-hand struggle points to a practice trap worth avoiding: grinding single strokes at 160 bpm where the bicep tenses up only reinforces the tension. The fix is counterintuitive but proven. Drop the metronome to tempos where your weaker hand stays completely relaxed, then creep up gradually, letting the nervous system learn the motion before speed enters the picture.
🌄 sublime at red rocks: bud gaugh on the reunion groove
@Modern Drummer Magazine
Bud Gaugh turned up at Red Rocks with Sublime this past weekend, and Modern Drummer caught him reflecting on reuniting with Jakob Nowell and the chemistry pushing the band into a new chapter. He talks spontaneity, fresh material taking shape, and the pull of playing fully in the moment. A grounded look at a drummer settling back into one of ska punk's most recognizable grooves.
That's it for today! Thank you for carving out time to read! This community means a lot to me, and I'm grateful you're here. 🙏
If you have feedback, a story, or something you'd love to see in the newsletter, just reply to this email. I read every message and respond to each one.
Happy drumming,
Matteo