Alice in Chains · Dark, heavy pocket built from repetition, space and tension.
A slow, heavy half-time groove where the snare on beat 3 feels like a hammer blow.
Practise: Play a half-time beat at a slow tempo, focusing all energy into making the beat-3 snare hit as heavy as possible.
Comes out of: Stage 1 — Foundations — weight and space
Heard in: We Die Young · Man in the Box · Them Bones
WorkoutMatching the kick drum pattern note-for-note to a guitar riff's rhythm.
Practise: Sing or play a riff rhythm, then copy it exactly on the kick drum under a steady hi-hat.
Comes out of: Stage 1 — Foundations — weight and space
Heard in: We Die Young · Man in the Box · Them Bones
WorkoutAn off-beat snare hit that adds bite to an otherwise simple groove.
Practise: Play a basic groove and add a single accented snare hit on an off-beat, keeping everything else unchanged.
Comes out of: Stage 1 — Foundations — weight and space
Heard in: We Die Young · Man in the Box · Them Bones
WorkoutA short, forceful fill using minimal drums, landing hard on the next downbeat.
Practise: Build a one-bar fill from snare and floor tom only, practising it at low and high volume without changing the notes.
Comes out of: Stage 4 — Fills & transitions — simple but powerful
Heard in: Would?
WorkoutPlacing a crash cymbal slightly after the expected beat to create unease rather than release.
Practise: Play a groove and deliberately delay the crash hit by a sixteenth note, listening for the tension it creates.
Comes out of: Stage 2 — Core grooves — half-time pocket
Heard in: Man in the Box · Angry Chair · No Excuses
WorkoutRaising the intensity of a groove purely through touch, with no change in pattern.
Practise: Loop one groove for 16 bars and plan a slow, steady rise in touch and volume with no fill at the end.
Comes out of: Stage 1 — Foundations — weight and space
Heard in: We Die Young · Them Bones · Would?
WorkoutA stripped-back, brushed or light-touch groove used on the band's quieter material.
Practise: Play a simple groove using only ghost-note volume throughout, resisting the urge to build.
Comes out of: Stage 1 — Foundations — weight and space
Heard in: We Die Young · Them Bones · Would?
WorkoutSwapping between ride, hi-hat and china textures to change a groove's mood without changing its rhythm.
Practise: Play one groove for 4 bars on hi-hat, 4 bars on ride, 4 bars on a darker cymbal, keeping the pattern identical.
Comes out of: Stage 2 — Core grooves — half-time pocket
Heard in: Man in the Box · Angry Chair · No Excuses
Workout