Friday, December 30, 2011

Cascara Funk

This is a really fun application of putting a common cascara pattern over a half-time funk groove.





Subscribe to LIVE weekly lessons!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Some Videos from the Student YouTube Channel

As you know, most of my focus has been switched to teaching live online. I will be updating the blog in the near future with some more hands on and useful articles, but for right now I'll just keep you in the loop with what's going on in the Shed!

Here's 3 new student videos...






Tuesday, December 27, 2011

30 Second Drum Lesson - Thomas Pridgen - "Wax Simulacra"

I love this whole album. Here's one of the grooves from it.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

30 Second Drum Lesson - Muse "Uprising" Fill

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Silverfox StickBag Review

My take on the Silverfox Sticksack

Monday, December 19, 2011

Getting Out of Your Rut

Had a question come in about getting into a rut with your playing...


"Sup man! My name's Dominic, I was watching a Killers video on here and randomly saw one of your videos on the side breaking down a Ronnie Vannucci fill which was dope! I'm a full time musician...I play at my church and also have a band called Flagship, I have such a passion for drums and music, when I'm behind my kit it's the best feeling which I'm sure you can agree! Hints to the subject title above "Stuck in a rut"...I've just been really feeling like there's so much more inside of me that wants to make it's way out but I feel like I'm trap and stuck...like I've hit a wall...and this happens multiple times! It'll happen for a little while but then I break through it for a bit...it's like a cycle, it repeats itself...is that normal? I've only been playing for 5 years and I've grown a lot in that time but I never want to be satisfied with were I'm at as a drummer, I always want to continue to grow and be taught something new everyday so with that said after watching some of your videos and seeing that you're not only a cool guy but a really good teacher...I feel that I could learn a lot from you, do you think you could help me get out of this rut haha."

What's up Dominic,

Thanks for hittin' me up!

Bro, I completely understand the rut thing. The good news is...everyone goes through that. Here's a couple of things you can do to help yourself get out of the rut...

-Regularly scheduled practice sessions. You put them on your calendar, set the amount of time you'll spend practicing, and you don't leave until the timer goes off.

-A practice log so that you can keep up with your progress. You need to be writing down what your practicing, the progress you made, any fill ideas you had, problems, etc. That way, when you begin to feel in a rut, you can look back and see all that you've accomplished.

-Learn different styles of music, even if you don't like them. Take time daily to listen to different music...jazz, rock, latin, pop, country...develop your ears to HEAR the goodness in every type of music.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Drum Shed Student You Tube Channel

So excited about all of the stuff that's been going on! Seriously, the Drum Shed more than tripled in size this week with new students (a big "welcome" to Scotland and Finland...just added a few peeps from across the pond). On top of that, I've been busy trying to make the live lesson experience as fun and interactive as possible.

First up is the forum for all of the live lesson students. It's simply a place where the students can talk to each other about the lessons, ask me questions, etc. Basically a big drum hang out on the website that's only open to the students. The second "hang out" I've been working on this week is the Drum Shed Student You Tube page. I'm really excited about it! This channel will be available to all of the live lesson students to upload videos to. I needed a way to watch, critique, praise, and see progress. This allows me to do all of those as well as allows the other students to see how others are progressing and challenge themselves to do better. Not to mention the pressure of having to hit "record" will make you practice all the harder! Most of the videos will be of students working through the live lesson exercises. That being said, it's not limited to that. I want it to be a place where ideas can be spread and students can learn from each other. Check out the first two student vids from Marcus. The first one is of him working through some finger control exercises. You need to understand...these are videos of students working through new concepts. They're raw and uncut...I LOVE IT!!! The second is Marcus again, but this time he's sharing a tip that he learned at a recent clinic (one that I've used for years...so glad he threw it up there).





Don't forget...if you sign up for the live lessons before the new year, you'll not only lock in the new low price, you'll get one of my books of your choice sent to your mailbox for FREE.

CLICK HERE to sign up for LIVE drum lessons 4 times a week

Thursday, December 15, 2011

30 Second Drum Lesson - Make Ya Slap Yo Momma Fill

This one is just for fun.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

My Books FREE and Discounted Live Lesson Subscriptions

Well, Merry Christmas! I'll get back to the informative posts and video lessons next week, but, 'Tis the season to be giving, so I am. Check out the video below for everything that's been happening and the details to the new live lesson layout. In short...

Sign up for live lessons before the new year and you can...

-Lock in a subscription price of $18.99 a month (16 half hour lessons a month with sheet music, a live lesson vault to review the old lessons, and a live time chat board to ask me questions and get an instant video response).

-Get any one of MY BOOKS for FREE when you subscribe before the new year.

-The 5th person that signs up after this blog post goes live will not only receive one hard copy of any one of my books, they'll also get PDF versions of my other two books for free!



The live lessons also make a GREAT Christmas gift...I'm just sayin' is all!

So for $18.99 you get a book valued at $19.99 and 16 half hour lessons...that math doesn't even add up! It's not a gimmick...I just want you to have cheap quality drum instruction...period. Merry Christmas...and don't forget to join the live lessons NOW!

New free You Tube lessons will be up next week!

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Breakdown of James Brown's Song "Superbad"

Here's a sample of the live lessons...A breakdown of James Brown's EPIC tune "Superbad"

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

30 Second Drum Lesson - Sextuplets and Paradiddle-diddles



Download video lessons at www.StephensDrumShed.com

Monday, December 5, 2011

You Tuber Video

I've been talking to Dan for a while now on You Tube. He frequents the lessons I do and I always enjoy chatting with him. He sent me his version of "Magic Island" and I really dig it. You should check it out. You guys inspire me to go practice. Keep up the killer work Dan!



You can also check out Dan's website at www.dangerics.com to get a feel for what he's about.