15 fills to learn, played 49 times across 206 bars. Two fills that share a rhythm and differ only in how they are spread round the toms are one fill here, learned once and orchestrated twice.
On crash, ride, hi-hat, snare and kick. 51 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is the independence between the hands and the feet. In the song it lands on bar 5. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, hi-hat, snare, high tom, floor tom and kick. 44 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 8. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, ride, hi-hat, snare, high tom, floor tom and kick. 51 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is the independence between the hands and the feet. In the song it lands on bar 16. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare and kick. 42 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is the independence between the hands and the feet. In the song it lands on bar 33. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, ride, hi-hat, snare, high tom, mid tom, floor tom and kick. 45 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 37. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare, high tom, mid tom, floor tom and kick. 43 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 53. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare, high tom, mid tom, floor tom and kick. 33 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 89. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare and kick. 61 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 93. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare, high tom, mid tom and kick. 56 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 97. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare and kick. 61 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 101. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare, high tom and kick. 55 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 105. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, ride, snare, high tom and kick. 61 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 193. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash, snare, high tom, floor tom and kick. 46 out of 100 -- a step up -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 196. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash and kick. 28 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is how much of it falls off the beat. In the song it lands on bar 204. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
On crash and kick. 32 out of 100 -- a fair first song -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 207. The exercise loops the figure on its own first, and the one after it puts it back: one bar of rest to count yourself in, the figure, then the landing with the time still running. Getting out of a fill is the half most people never practise.
A fill is rhythm before it is orchestration. The room plays the whole figure on the snare first, puts the feet under it second, and moves it round the toms last -- looped on its own, round and round, until the hands know it. Then it puts the fill back where it lives: a bar of rest to count in, the figure, and the downbeat it lands on, because landing square is the other half of the job.
PRACTISE THESE FILLS →15 distinct fills, played 49 times: bars 1-4, 6-7, 10-15, 32, 35-36 and 43-44, and 17 more places.
The one at bar 191, at 69 out of 100. 206 bars at 160 BPM -- fast, and 5:09 of it without a break -- on crash, ride, hi-hat, snare, high tom, mid tom, floor tom and kick.