Ditch The Met: Playlist Resource
You go grab your pad, sticks and sticker-infested Hydroflask to go start a practice session; one you’ve told yourself you were gonna do yesterday.
And the day before that.
But finally, you’ve committed and you’re READY. Zoom classes are done for the day and you just saw auditions are happening for the Drumline of dreams.
It’s now or never.
The met app opens up on your phone and you hear that boring drone that you’ve literally heard in your sleep. Don’t get me wrong, the met is one my BEST friends and one that has gotten me through a lot of accomplishments, trials, and improvements in my music career. But sometimes, you need that musician inside you to be free and get your head out of the details for a bit.
With the help of Spotify, recommendations from trusted percussionists and my own hours spent listening to music, I put together a playlist that would cure the “metronome fatigue” I would get during my practice sessions.
And I’ve decided to share it all with you.
Below I’ve outlined each track, its BPM and what rhythms, exercises, and skillsets could be used for the track. Use it as a guide, or don’t! That’s the beauty of music. Play what you feel, use the tracks for what you hear/need. It will only make you better and more importantly, ENJOY your practice sessions!
So let’s dive in, shall we!
But first, Follow the Playlist
1. Lift Off by Bad Snacks
90 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Stick Yoga, 8’s, Tap Pyramid
The intro track. Your Warm-Up. Use it for the Stick Yoga sequence, some nice big legato 8’s or 8-8-16, and even for some Tap Pyramid. Use it as many times as you need to get the hands feeling open, warm, and ready to take on the world.
2. Basket Case by Brasstracks
97 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Tap Pyramid, 16th Note Grid
This track takes a while to get started so feel free to skip ahead to about 27 seconds in. BUT - once it gets going, this track is one of my favorites to play to. The horns, the 16th note rhythms, the hi-hat grid. Totally helps with the “pocket.” Depending on where you’re at in your practice sequence, you can use it for more tap pyramid, or use it to play around with some 16th grid variations. Flams, Cheese, Fives, Double accent, get creative! That’s the beauty of this track’s grid. And it’s amazingly FUNKY.
3. Yesterday by Animal Kingdom
109 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Stick Yoga, 8’s, Stick Control
Building up some speed for Stick Yoga and your 8’s sequences, feel free to experiment with dynamics, and some different accent patterns. A favorite of mine to do with this track is to dive into some Stick Control patterns. Good vibes, chill melody. All keeps the hands super relaxed. Key for an extensive Warm-Up.
4. Experience by Victoria Monét, Khalid, SG Lewis
112 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Triple Strokes/Flam Taps, Paradiddles, !6th Note Grid (Flams)
One word: FUNK. Triple strokes is the name of the game for this track and the hi-hat gives you a triple stroke constant throughout pretty much the whole track. It’s like your own programmed DB-90 ;). Move in and out of triple strokes and flam taps as you build up our chops. But remember most of all, keep those hands nice and relaxed.
This one is also good for moving in and out of paradiddle patterns. If you want to stick with some flam stuff, we’re keeping the 16th Grid alive and well with this track.
5. JUNE by NASAYA, Floyd Fuji
114 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Triplets, "Let It Go,” Swiss Army Triplets, Quick Accents (triplet meter)
Into a triplet feel we go, leaving those straight 8th corners behind. A lot of triplet exercises will work with this one including a double beat pattern (see Let It Go), some Swiss triplet work, and if you know the exercise Quick Accents, you can exercise the brain and play it in a triplet meter. A little mental workout, but fun, I promise!
6. Chemicals by SG Lewis
114 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: 8’s, Accent Tap, Paradiddles, 8th note diddles, Pugadahs
Another funky track. Sorry not sorry…You’ll thank me later. I LOVE doing this paradiddle exercise to this track. Keeps the mind thinking of groove instead of super finite details. There’s a time and place for both right? This time and place requires some pocket and groove.
You can also hit some accent tap patterns to dive into your tap quality and rhythmic integrity. One step down from the paradiddle exercise is to just work on some 8th note diddles or pugaduhs.
7. Unfamiliar by Seeb, Goodboys, HRVY
123 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Triplets, Triplet Grid, Flam Rudiments
T-R-I-P-L-E-T-S. Man there's so many possibilities with this one. If you want to dissect some flam rudiments, start with the skeleton of a flam accent (just right hand, then just left) and build your rudiment throughout the track. You can also do the same with triple strokes and flam taps.
If you want to fill it all in, use the triplet grid to work on some timing consistency and flam quality. Flam on 1, flam on 2, flam on 3 are all great options. This one’s a banger.
8. Something Has To Change by The Japanese House
125 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Accent Tap, Paradiddles, Short-Short-Long, Stick Yoga
This track brings us back down to Earth. Such a smooth and mellow vibe that sometimes I put the sticks down at this point and just close my eyes and listen. Use theses chill vibes to stretch and refocus for the rest of my session. That’s not always the case, because clearly this track wouldn’t be on the playlist if it wasn’t fun to play to.
We’re back in 8th notes and 16th notes so some quicker accent tap, paradiddle work, and even some 8th note short-short-long will sit really well with this track. Stick Yoga is a little quick for this one, but great if you’re trying to build up those chops.
I still highly encourage you to put the sticks down for a rep, and close your eyes. Listen. Clear your mind. It’s a game changer.
9. Gutta Cavat Lapidem by Key Crashers
140 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Triplets, Triplet Grid, Triplet Diddle, Triplet Stick Control (Doubles)
BUCKLE UP. This track MOVES. The second you press play, you’re off to the races. Whoever said you couldn’t practice to music, is wrong because this track could quite literally become an exercise in itself (hint hint..coming soon).
I don’t have much to say other than the triplet grid in this one is your driving force. So anything revolving around that will do. Get in some triplet diddles, some triplet stick control and challenge yourself with some diddle on 1, diddle on 2, diddle on 3 triplet grid.
Have fun!
10. clover by KAMAUU
188bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Let It Go, Swiss Army Triplets, Triplet Stick Control, Pugaduhs
First off, this guys voice is killer. Take the beginning to listen and start your practice at around the 40 second mark. Some triplet doubles are sooo comfy at this tempo and can be translated to stick control, Swisses and pugaduhs.
The faster allow for you to apply a little bit of the slower skillset work to maybe even a show passage or lick that you’ve written.
This is the time in your practice session to go a step further with the chopouts or, like I said, a show application.
11. LINGER by Ellie Duke
192 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Paradiddles, Suzy, Jive, Stick Control
The space in this track gives you a TON of options. My old school peeps, use this one for Suzy. It will be sooo funky. On the flip side, some diddles are a great option for this track a well. Specifically 7/8 paradiddles or playing the paradiddles/paradiddles according to the accent of the bass in the track. You can also use these if you don’t have one handy: Paradiddles, Jive.
Hit up some more Stick Control, or anything around the 8th note/16th note grid. You’ll be amazed at what you can fit in there.
12. Legend by French Braids, Brandyn Burnette
113 bpm
Exercises/Skillsets: Warm Down, 8’s, Big doubles, Stretch it out!
Alright, last song on the playlist. This is one I use all the time to “warm down” from a chop out or long practice session. Use it to play some big 8’s, big doubles, anything that helps open the muscles back up. Maybe even go back to Stick yoga ;)
But congrats! You made it!
If you got all the way through, bravo my friend! I hope this playlist serves to be useful and I can’t wait to update it with some more tracks in a few weeks! I would LOVE to know how you all used these tracks and what you worked on. Leave me a comment down below and once again, don’t forget to FOLLOW the playlist so you can access it anywhere and stay up to when I create a new routine.
Thanks all, Happy Practicing!
-Nicole
