3 fills to learn, played 11 times across 183 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, snare and kick. 38 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 2. 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 ride, snare and kick. 73 out of 100 -- demanding -- and what decides that is how many notes a second it asks for. In the song it lands on bar 7. 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. 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 76. 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 →3 distinct fills, played 11 times: bars 1, 6, 58, 73-75, 88 and 133-135, and 1 more place.
The one at bar 6, at 81 out of 100. 183 bars at 175 BPM -- fast, and 4:10 of it without a break -- on crash, ride, snare, high tom, mid tom, floor tom, kick and hi-hat foot.