DRUMDRILL STORY

The seed of Drumdrill germinated a few years back when Philippe, my studio partner, and I were trying to come up with an idea that would encourage our college students to sit down at the pad more regularly and develop a healthy routine, showing that it would be universally beneficial for all kinds of music.
We started as a small group workshop that we ran in our studio where the emphasis was doing rather teaching. Of course, because of our background, we shared (and continue to) our knowledge and would suggest adjusments, challenging mindsets and approaches but the main driver was alway to facilitate practicing and can very easily seem pretty dry and boring material. Like a martial art, team sport or class yoga class we used the group dynamic as a motivator.
This ran successfully for quite a while, however, the logistic of finding the right space, the right time and enough people to keep this affordable became too much of a challenge for us both at the time and so we reluctantly shelved it.

Fast forward a few years, in an ever-online and post pandemic world and I decided it was time to kickstart this idea again!

So Drumdrill has now move completely online. The means is digital but it is still very much about providing a solution to very human needs: Connection. Us drummers are the epitome of connection. It is literally our job to create a bond between all  of the instruments on stage and communicate & project to an audience. Super primal stuff [more on this later in another post]
The live sessions are now ran via Zoom (currently 3 times a week) and we’ve created an online platform were members can interact, keep up to date, work at their own pace using offline material (pdf, videos…) and even run their own ‘Members Sessions‘ within the privacy of the network. [Read more on what the Members Sessions are HERE]

As mentioned above and on the home page, the main drive is to create a positive environment to encourage drummers to practice more consistently.
Being able to grab a coffee, a pair of sticks & pad and have a bit of banter with fellow drummers while getting some work done.

We want to keep things light but also meaningful. We are on the pad but we’re thinking drums and we are thinking music. We are not doing technique for technique sake we are trying to get our hands to feel better to play the music we want to play feel and sound better. The aim is not to play fast or develop olympian practice pad chops. The aim is to sound good ON THE KIT.

I grew up playing rock stuff and the only encouragement I got as a kid to practice paradiddles was pretty much: ‘well, because you must, it’s important’ (‘ben, parce qu’il faut, c’est important.’ technically)
So with such sterling argument it took me quite a while to get round to the idea and eventually, what really did it, is when I realised that all of the drummers that I was really digging, all of them, had great hands. Not because they were ‘technical’, playing fast or loud or fancy music or whatever. They all had a great sound and real conviction in their playing. That’s what did it for me. These guys, in no particular order and missing just as many more did it for me:

Michael Bland with Prince, great hands, Danny Carey with Tool, great hands, Brian Blade with Joshua Redman, great hands, Josh Freese with A Perfect Circle and NIN and everyone else, great hands, Matt Chamberlain with Fiona Apple; Steve Jordan with…everyone; James Gadson with Bill Withers, hello! great hands;  Joey Waronker with Beck; Sonny Pain with Count Basie; Stewart Copeland with The Police; Vinnie Paul with Pantera; Matt Cameron with Soundgarden; Mario Duplantier with Gojira; Lenny White with Chick Corea; Christian Vander with Magma, Vinnie Colaiuta with Sting; Terry Bozzio with Zappa and Missing Persons, Carlton Barrett with The Wailers; Gene Lake with Meshell Ndegeocello; Alan Myers with Devo, Abe Laboriel Jr with our french Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Halliday; Steve Gadd with Rickie Lee Jones; Carlos Vega with James Taylor; Chris Whitten with Dire Straits; Fergal Lawler from the Cranberries; John Stanier with Helmet and Battles; Al Jackson Jr and Howard Grimes with Stax records; Clyde Stubblefield! Jeff Porcaro! Jim Keltner, Zach Danziger, Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Tony Allen, Morgan Agren, John Bonham, Alex Van Halen, Jon Theodore, Deantoni Parks….it goes ooooooon.

Let’s be honest the ‘rudimental’ world is not easily very attractive, not nowadays and not until you understand that working on that stuff isn’t necessarily about crazy chops but about building your relationship with the sticks so that you draw your* sound out of the drums; at least that’s how I see it. We are not doing practice pad Olympics or fancy tricks here.

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re already quite invested in your drumming.
Our tribe is a varied one. From jazzers to metalheads, electro wizards to 2&4 pop-rockers. It is an open and inclusive place and there are many different reasons why drummers like you get started:
• You feel a little out of touch with the technique stuff and need a boost of confidence.
• You’re not sure where to start or who to listen to.
• You’re struggling with procrastination or keeping to a regular schedule.
• You feel intimidated by the technical players out there.
• You’ve been playing and gigging for years but never really invested time in all of this.
• You’re  feeling uninspired, in a rut and locked into the same old ideas.
• You’d like some guidance, perhaps starting some long overdue hand maintenance.
• Learn new ideas and get some inspiration.
• Connect with like-minded drummers, find moral support…and contribute to our terrible drummer jokes!

‘What If I’ve never practiced rudiments?’

This is honestly one of the biggest barrier that we put up against ourselves.
What if indeed? It is exactly why I started Drumdrill. That world can be intimidating for a number of reasons and personally I’ve always felt the weight of the ‘tradition’ looming, the guilt of not living up to my elderly peers.
Honestly, it’s fine, music changes and so does drumming. You can be an awesome drummer without having spent any time on any of this… but it’s all bonus when you start getting into it.

To that end, there is a ‘Starter Pack’ waiting for you when you sign up. It will guide you through some of the material that we regularly use in our sessions and perhaps more importantly it will give you an insight on how we approach using the material.
It is also important for me to mention that the sessions are always a great place to ask questions, there is always room for it.
If this ever feels confusing, a bit too dense or you just want direct guidance to kick things in and get you going please ask for help!
You can also book a 1-1 with me any time, either online or in-person by reaching out using the Contact Form. AAA and VIP members get a discounted rate too!

Lastly, at Drumdrill, there’s no performance, no tricks, no judgements, no shortcuts, no distraction, we just show up and do it. You don’t need to ‘prepare’, it’s spontaneous and no two sessions are the same. We try things together, and yes sometimes we make fools of ourselves…and no one cares.
Everyone who is on board understands that it is as much about what we practice together than it is about who we do it with.
Come see for yourself by Booking A FREE SESSION.