Under the Radar (Indie) - Walkthrough
With
Sophie AllowaySophie Alloway walks through 'Under the Radar', an indie drum piece built on a classic rock groove that strips back in the middle before building up again.
What's in the course
114 lessons (3h 47m) · 1 free
01. Rock Drumming Introduction
7:55
02. Example 1 - Single Strokes
2:44
03. Example 2 - Double Strokes
1:28
04. Example 3 - Paradiddles
2:37
05. Bonus - Combining Singles, Doubles, and Paradiddles
2:22
06. Rock Lesson 2 - Adding Rests
1:48
07. Example 1 - Rest on Beat 4
1:56
08. Example 2 - Rest on Beat 2
1:36
09. Example 3 - Moving Rests
1:05
10. Example 4 - Piston Bars 12-16
1:56
11. Bonus Exercise 1
1:49
12. Bonus Exercise 2
1:02
13. Rock Section Summary
1:50
01. Pop - Adding the Hi-Hat
1:31
02. Example 1 - Quarter Notes on Hi-Hat
1:40
03. Example 2 - Resting on Beat 1
1:42
04. Example 3 - Two Consecutive Quarter Note Rests
1:28
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:11
06. Bonus Exercise 2
1:10
07. Pop Lesson 2 Example 1 - Combining the Hi-Hat & Snare
1:11
08. Example 2 - Moving Quickly Between Drum Voices
1:17
09. Example 3 - Two Drum Voices in One Bar
0:59
10. Example 4 - Take It to the Top Bars 1-4
1:10
11. Bonus Exercise 1
1:08
12. Bonus Exercise 2
1:04
13. Pop Music Section Summary
0:51
01. Introduction to Country Music
4:13
02. Skills Checkpoint
1:54
03. Example 1 - Half-Note Rest
1:18
04. Example 2 - Placing of the Half-Note Rest
1:31
05. Example 3 - Bass Drum Phrases
1:29
06. Bonus Exercise 1
1:27
07. Bonus Exercise 2
1:10
08. Country Lesson 2 - Combining Bass Drum, Snare, and Hi-Hat
3:07
09. Example 1 - Combining the Bass Drum & Hi-Hat
1:40
10. Example 2 - Adding the Half-Note Rest in Various Positions
1:10
11. Example 3 - Moving Quickly Between Drum Voices
1:10
12. Example 4 - Borderlands Bars 1-4
1:06
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:30
14. Bonus Exercise 2
0:56
15. Country Music Section Summary
0:26
01. Metal Introduction - Playing Two Drum Voices
3:35
02. Example 1 - Focusing on Coordination
2:19
03. Example 2 - Bass Drum Variations
1:16
04. Example 3 - Coordinating the Hands
1:09
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:05
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:50
07. Metal Lesson 1 Summary
0:25
08. Metal Lesson 2 - Playing Your First Full Beat
1:56
09. Example 1 - Basic Rock Beat Hi-Hat Pattern
1:08
10. Example 2 - Adding the Back Beat
0:58
11. Example 3 - Adding the Bass Drum
0:59
12. Example 4 - Power Trip Bars 13-14
1:32
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:10
14. Bonus Exercise 2
0:53
15. Metal Section Summary
1:05
01. Indie - Introduction to the Style
1:26
02. Example 1 - Resting on Beat Three
1:01
03. Example 2 - More Variations
1:00
04. Example 3 - Coordinating the Limbs
2:16
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:10
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:50
07. Indie Lesson 1 Summary
0:25
08. Indie Checkpoint - Mallets
2:46
09. Indie Lesson 2 - Introducing 8th Note Bass Drum and Snare
1:25
10. Example 1 - Eighth-Note Snare
1:36
11. Example 2 - Eighth-Note Bass Drum
1:04
12. Example 3 - Eighth Note Phrase
0:59
13. Example 4 - 'Big Mouth' Bars 1-4
1:48
14. Bonus Exercise 1
0:38
15. Bonus Exercise 2
0:59
16. Indie Section Summary
0:34
01. Hip-Hop Introduction - Basic Beats and Fills
1:33
02. Example 1 - Snare & Bass Drum Fill
1:10
03. Example 2 - Snare & Hi-Hat Fill
1:08
04. Example 3 - Fill Using Snare, Hi-Hat & Bass Drum
1:09
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:38
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:47
07. Hip-Hop Lesson 1 Summary
0:32
08. Hip Hop Lesson 2 - Introduction to Eighth Note Beats
3:53
09. Example 1 - The Basic Eighth-Note Beat
1:19
10. Example 2 - Snare Drum Variations
1:28
11. Example 3 - Bass Drum Variations
1:09
12. Example 4 - 'The Dogg' Bars 13-16
1:56
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:04
14. Bonus Exercise 2
1:09
15. Hip-Hop Section Summary
0:32
01. Introduction to the Pieces
1:04
02. Piston (Rock) - Walkthrough
4:57
03. Piston (Rock) - Performance
0:46
04. Take it to the Top (Pop) - Walkthrough
3:58
05. Take it to the Top (Pop) - Performance
0:50
06. Borderlands (Country) - Walkthrough
3:49
07. Borderlands (Country) - Performance
0:48
08. Power Trip - Walkthrough
5:04
09. Power Trip (Metal) - Performance
0:51
10. Big Mouth (Indie) - Walkthrough
5:26
11. Big Mouth (Indie) - Performance
0:52
12. The Dogg (Hip Hop) - Walkthrough
6:14
13. The Dogg (Hip Hop) - Performance
0:51
14. Overload (Rock) - Walkthrough
5:23
15. Overload (Rock) - Performance
0:50
16. Slam (Metal) - Walkthrough
4:28
17. Slam (Metal) - Performance
0:51
18. Under the Radar (Indie) - Walkthrough
You are here5:02
19. Under the Radar (Indie) - Performance
0:50
Lesson transcript
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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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Sophie Alloway is a session and touring drummer at the heart of the London jazz scene. She has performed with Jason Rebello, Yazz Ahmed, Laurence Cottle and Tony Allen, and notably played for Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace shortly before he became King.
Touring credits include Roots Manuva, the Thriller musical and Paul Stacey (Oasis / The Black Crowes). She is also the drummer in original fusion band Lydian Collective, with over six million Spotify streams.
Sophie has recorded sessions at Abbey Road, AIR and Angel studios, and her television appearances include Later… with Jools Holland, Glastonbury and two series of Adrian Dunbar’s drama Ridley. She is featured on Abbey Road Masters: The Drum Sessions and performed for the BBC Young Jazz Musician 2024 finalists, broadcast on BBC TV and Radio. Jon Newey of Jazz FM dubbed her the “goddess of groove”.
