Playing along to songs, help?

Veganxo

Junior Member
Hi everyone im new to drummer world,
i have been getting drum lessons for about a year and a half and while a feel im progressing i am finding it difficult to play along to music,
i can hear what the drums are doing in songs but i find it hard to pick what exactly to play on my kit, i just cant pick the notes.
Can anyone offer me any advice or good songs to try to play along with?
Curretly i listen to As i lay dying, parkway drive, alexisonfire, slipknot etc etc
Please help getting really frustrated!
 
You may want to start with easier songs. I'm not too familiar with the bands you listed, but I doubt any of them have songs at a beginner level. Popular starting songs are Back in Black by AC/DC and Blitzkreig Bop by the Ramones. The first one I did was Simple Man by Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Instead of trying figure it out on your own AND learning to play along with it at the same time (separate skills), you may just want to find the sheet music/tab for the song and learn what to play that way... Then come back to learning transcription later.

I also like to isolate sections of the song and practice them over and over one at a time. Using most sound editing software (like Audacity which is free), you can set loop points that will allow to just like, loop the verse, or loop the chorus over and over (give yourself 5-10 sec before and after the section of interest to come in).

If something in the song is well beyond your skill level (ie a fill), don't get hung up on it, dumb it down for now to get through it, then come back to it later.
 
If you are trying to cover a song note for note, you will have to have most of the gear (chinas, splashes, effect cymbals, same number of toms, world percussion...etc.) that the drummer uses. It would be best to watch a video of a cover or of the artist performing and go by that or go to a drum tab site.
 
you picked some pretty challenging music to start out with. that's the problem with modern metal music. it's hard! but that's what all the kids want to play.

if i were you i'd start out with some easier "classic" metal like metallica or black sabbath. maybe ac/dc. the ramones was a good suggestion.
 
Definitely pick some easier songs to play .. I can't stress how important it is to have fun playing drums. If you're getting frustrated, take a break.

Also .. part of the problem could be your time? An iPod won't adjust to your tempo changes as a band would .. do a basic AC/DC beat to a slow click for 5 minutes. Bump it up a bit .. play it again for 5 minutes .. rinse and repeat until you're in time with the click. Try and resist the temptation to increase the tempo by large amounts as you'll just end up being frustrated again.

You can do it!
 
Here is a blog video post I just did concerning learning songs. It will help you think of the song form ... and break the song up in segments. Take a simple section and determine how it works.

http://playdrumsinaband.com/2010/06/11/learning-songs/

All the advice here is very good ... SIMPLIFY!! ... and then build from there. If you like a song, pick a beat you like and play along. Have fun.

MarshallG
 
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