Simple Drum Sequencing Tip! (Works on ANY Groovebox)

Simple Drum Sequencing Tip! (Works on ANY Groovebox)

Today I've got a simple drum sequencing tip to help change up your workflow! I don't know a single electronic musician who hasn't fallen into the monotony of starting a session with a "4 on the floor" kick drum. It's fast, easy, and familiar. However, it can also immediately limit your directions, at least initially, when starting to work. So instead of starting with drums at all, I recommend starting with a bass or lead line BEFORE figuring out your drum sequence. This will force you to think more about what you actually want your drums to be, rather than just resorting to your go-to patterns! Enjoy the video :)

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[jahovahjira]

Another fantastic video, FB! Thanks! I once worked in a music store where Billy Joel's drummer, Liberty DeVito gave a seminar for drummers. One of the students asked what method he used to come up with the right drum part for the songs and he said, "I just listen to whatever the bass is doing and work from there, " So this tutorial is in agreement with one of the all- time greats! You are so very generous with your time and talent! Thanks for being a GIVER in a world full of takers. I love your work!!!

[MrEMann]

This! I've been trying this for awhile and it leads to much more realistic and syncopated rhythms.

[randynovick]

Nice! Great way of explaining it!

An oddball approach I've used (that I still get sucked into, unfortunately) was to get to "drums" (well, just tempo, really) by way of long drones. Take a slow metronome beep bpm of something like 42, hold a drone for 21 beeps and then key change (maybe up a fourth?) for the next 21 beeps, then go back and add three different (occasionally harmonic?) long chord pads of 7 beeps each on top of each 21-beep drone... and keep going, dividing up each new layer (bass, strings, woodwinds, etc) with another layer of tones until the beats start to "fall out"... and when they fall out I frame them with tunable drums like congas. The most interesting things seem to happen when I purposely avoid kick, snare and hihat.

[KristovMars]

Neat trick!

I was recently inspired to try something similar while listening to an EBM DJ on Twitch, but haven't made the time to tinker with it yet.

[saintmoz]

This is a great method for laying in a groove, this is something I’ve struggled with and this will help tremendously.

[enoodle]

yessirr bass comes first! playing live it's also useful to start with a 4xfloor to use as a metronome and then change the pattern after picking an idea, then you can think of more variations after

[electroshox]

Great tip mate to get more variety. You may also start with snare on 2 and 4 only, then put some other stuff in, leave out the kick completely and fill the gap with some crazy cowbell and other percussion.

[jasonbesant]

What a great tutorial and tip. This will be fun to try.

[Ritefita]

Yeaaah. Very nice tip. Thank you.
great idea with reason and the result

[magnuseriksson]

I actually never start like that ☀️😃🎶 Love how you came to a totally different more alive beat. I always play the drums on my pads though, maybe I should try the sequencer more ..

[JackAcid]

Love it! Off to get my Deluge and practice this!

[SimpleHold]

Good idea! I find that when I start with something besides drums, it influences not only the drum beat but what sounds I use, too (maybe the melody suggests I use no snare, for example, or maybe use hand drums).

[trickfall]

This is a great tip and one I use a lot. I would also suggest that if you are working with traditional song structures a lot of the evolution of the beat you created could be used to give variation to the song. The sparser beat could be for an intro, fuller for the verse and then with more of a lift going into the chorus. I think a good follow up video for this would be strategies for working in more varied tempos.

[bartjanc]

I almost always start with the bassline, must be my (jazz/bluess/boogie) piano background 😅

Yet still mostly do 4 on the floor, must be my non-drum musical background haha

[sinewaymusic]

I'm guessing it's different for everyone, but for me, this is how I've always done it (melody first). Whenever I start with the drums, I end up feeling constrained just like you describe it, and I'm going nowhere. I simply can't finish a song that starts with drums.

[Decoy]

typically I use a one bar loop of a single closed hi hat on every step of 1 bar (16 steps). That, I feel, allows me to really be more selective, experimental, and explorative.

[BombstractGnome]

I take it a step further and resample that bar and use it as a loop so I can humanize get it off the grid some more

[sarexsarex]

Excellent as always. Most informative channel on YouTube. Can I ask for advice. If you had the the choice of the digitakt and digitone together or the new syntakt; which would you choose? Regards to the channel

[lrkx_]

Interesting technique. How would you go about applying it to a stylistically rigid genre like techno, which is very much based on a 4 on the floor? There are exceptions, but in general how would you do it?

[ndguardian]

@Free Beat - "How many of you start your jams like this?"

Me - I'm in this video and I don't like it. :D