Hey man,

I love your drumming me and the guys in my barracks watch you and your band all the time. I was wondering how often you go through your cymbals? I go through my crash cymbals like crazy. I cant stand it. All my friends say it the Marine coming out of me and getting violent with them lol. I am a hard hitter but i go through cymbals like in 3 months. Its very frustrating and costly. Could it be the way Im hitting the cymbals? Also any advice for double pedal and tom fills would be great!  Im trying to get faster with fills around the kit but just cant figure out how you guys do it.

Thanks a bunch.
Lnc Cpl. Jason
Semper Fi do or die
Thats right im a Marine, much more im a Marine Drummer. Not only am I a warrior but I hit things for a hobby! Ohh Rahh!!!

Well first of all I commend you for being in the service, I wanted to be a Marine when i was a kid too, but then I got into metal and grew my hair!!  Ha ha

Cymbals - hmm hard to answer without seeing how you set them up and how tight you have them
Generally speaking crashes should be loose and free to move when they’re struck.  The cymbal should NOT be flat where you are striking INTO it,  I like to put mine at a slight angle towards me so that I can properly strike the cymbal.  Your hit should not be a full-on strike into the cymbal, but more so a glancing stroke (picture an artist, making a brush stroke across a canvas) across the cymbal’s edge.
Rides can be played flat and tight - not many people break a ride by just riding
splashes - keep them loose too, they’re only so big, and can take only so much

Chinas- mine are moderately tight (and the cymbal I break the most- anywhere from 1-3 on a 5 week tour), but they should follow the same protocol as the crashes

FIRST AND FOREMOST - your cymbals should be kept in a warm,comfortable climate.  if you come in from outside with your cymbal bag was and its cold, allow them to warm up to room temp, before beating them down - this is what causes my stuff to break a lot on tour since it goes from cold trailer to hot venue back to cold trailer, etc,etc.  Cymbals need to breathe and they need love.

double bass and fills - What Drive the Beat- my Hudson DVD has a lot of these ideas in it.  http://www.hudsonmusic.com

but heres a few things
db kick - sixteenth note patterns, triplets, 32nds, db strokes
fills - try any fills where your hands/feet call and reponse 4 notes up top, 4 notes on the feet, 8 up top, 8 with the feet
any combos of 2’s 4’s 6’s and 8’s work great, and once you get those down try odd groupings 5’s and 3’s 7’s 9’s

here’s one i like based on a 5 - 5 -3 -3 concept

sn-tom2-sn right kick,left kick, (5) tom3-tom1-tom3- r kick,l kick (5) sn-tom2- r kick (3) sn-tom1-LEFT kick (3)  (all 16th note phrased)