Half-time groove: drum pattern and how to play it
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Practice
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Song grooves
· Simplified drum grooves in the style of famous songs — not exact transcriptions.
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Tempo
- 76–90 BPM
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Loop
- 4 bars
| Hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
| Hi-hat | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snare | ||||||||||||||||
| Kick |
Each row is one drum, each column one step. Large dots are accents, small dots normal hits, faint dots ghost notes.
About this groove
The time is kept with straight 8th notes on the hi-hat. The kick plays on 1, 2& and 3&. The snare hits only on beat 3, which gives the heavy half-time feel. The loop is 4 bars long, and the fourth bar ends with a short fill on the snare.
In our catalog 3 songs use it, from 76 to 90 BPM.
Who plays what: notes per bar
| Cymbal hand | 8 |
|---|---|
| Snare hand | 1 |
| Kick foot | 3 |
Every kick lines up with a cymbal stroke, which makes this one of the easiest coordination patterns to start with.
How to practice it
- Press Play and listen to a few loops while counting out loud: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &.
- Lower the tempo to 50 BPM and play just the kick and snare along with the player.
- Add the hi-hat part. When the loop feels relaxed, move up to 65 BPM.
- Finally play the full groove at 84 BPM, including the fill, then try it without the player.
Compared with the nearest groove
Compared with “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (Nirvana, grunge open hi-hat beat), this groove leaves out the kick on 3, adds snare accents on 3 and drops the snare on 2 and 4 — and it runs 33 BPM slower. If you can already play that one, this is your next step. grunge open hi-hat beat →