Practice

"Practice makes perfect" is what the saying is, but how perfect can we really be? Granted I'm no rudiment speed drummer, or a big solo drummer, but I do love groove drumming. I know I need to always be practicing to keep my grooves and chops polished. The more time I spend in practice the better I'll be, but don't let the perfection stop you from practicing. Not saying I don't want to be perfect, but I always want to have the attitude to never think I am perfect so I can always be learning. Learning from all kinds of drummers, and other musicians. The minute you think you have it all, you best check yourself and know that there is always a better drummer out there, and more than likely he doesn't act like he is God's gift to drumming and music. Practicing is a huge part of being a better drummer, you should be practicing whenever possible, even making time to do so. Practice to a metronome and play around the click. When I was learning how to groove and do fills I always played to a slow click and played all around it. Lock into that groove and go with it, don't hold back, make mistakes, and learn how to mess up so you can always recover without anyone noticing. You'll find that the more you recover mess ups, you won't stop and get lost. You'll flow with it and play through it as if you meant to do what you messed up on. Learn to feel the music and the groove you're playing, this will help a lot in knowing where you are in the song and being a few steps ahead to play what you want to, seamlessly. "Now, go get your drum on."