Under the Radar (Indie) - Walkthrough

Preview

# Music Lesson: "Under the Radar" - Classic Rock Groove

With the indie piece **"Under the Radar,"** we're starting the song and finishing it with quite a classic rock groove.

## Basic Groove Structure
- **Hi-hat:** Eight notes
- **Bass drum:** Plays on beats 1 and 3
- **Snare drum:** Plays on beats 2 and 4

The groove reduces in the middle of the piece to play fewer notes before we build back up to that classic groove. Let’s explore that journey.

## First Line
- **Bars 1 and 3:** Classic rock patterns.
- **Bar 2:** Snares drop out.
- **Bar 4:** Features a nice little drum fill.

**Drum Fill Breakdown:**
- Mark beat 1 with the hi-hat and bass drum.
- Follow with a **quarter note rest.**
- Hit snares on beats 3 and 4.

### Sticking Patterns
- As a starting point, if you're right-handed:
- Play the numbers with the **right hand**
- Play the "ands" with the **left hand**

**Counting Example:**
1 and 2 and 3 and 4

For variation, try this sticking pattern for the snares in bar 4:
- Beat 3: Left hand
- Beat 4: Right hand
- And of 4: Left hand

### Counting for Feel
Try counting as follows to feel the space:
1, 2, 3, 4,
1 and 2 and 3 and 4

### Note on Sticking
At this stage, avoid playing three snares in a row with the same stick to work on balance and single strokes.

## Second Line
Unusually, the song reduces slightly here:
- **From eighth notes to quarter notes.**

### Snare Activity
- Not much snare activity until **bar 4** where we have snares on beats 4 and the “and” of 4.
- **Right-handed players:** Choose to play those snares **right, left** to lead back into the hi-hat at the beginning of the third line.

### Observations
- There is a lot of space with rests in the snare and bass drum parts.
- Hi-hats serve as the primary timekeeper; not much to flag up in the third line.
- Watch for the reintroduction of the snare in the **fourth bar** of the third line.

## Last Line
The last line is fairly similar to the first line, but pay attention to:
- **End of bar 3:** Two snares on beat 4 and the “and” of 4 leading into beat 1 where we finish the piece with the hi-hat and bass drum.

### End of Piece Breakdown
**Last two bars example:**
1, 2, 3, 4

### Using Crash Cymbals
If you feel adventurous and your crash cymbals haven't been played much, you can choose to end the last note with a crash cymbal.

- This mimics the sound you'd hear when playing with a band, similar to songs you enjoy.

**Ending with Crash:**
- Let the crash ring out; mute it with your hand if necessary while talking to someone.
- If playing with a guitarist and bassist, you may want to stop the crash at the same time they finish their phrases.

### Mute Technique
To mute the cymbal:
- Use the other hand to stop the vibrations.

**Practice example:**
- Mute it on beat four:
1, 2, 3, 4
1, 2, 3, 4

Control the length of the crash sound, especially as you incorporate it into your final ending. This could be a nice touch to your performance!

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