The Future of Electronic Drumming

[@AdamNeely]

dude catgazer was supposed to be a secret

[@Merlincat007]

Haha dude I'm stealing that band name!

[@ShawnCrowder]

cat's out of the bag

[@jacobpotts7954]

333rd like lmao

[@xander1052]

now the hype can get real.

[@huldraslaat225]

I lost my leg to cancer a few years back and I’ve been looking into getting back into drumming in an adapted way and this kind of stuff is so intriguing to me. Thanks for making this video!

[@StinsonTango]

Go kill it my dude!! x

[@xyzyzx1253]

You can do it!

[@callummcarthur199]

You've probably already considered this but with a double bass you can play a hihiat with the bottom and the bass drum with the top of your food it you angle your foot across both pedals

[@andrewlong7578]

Check out Billy Corgan playing on Letterman solo back in 2005. It might give you some ideas.

[@BobSchoepenjr]

Hit that drums bro!!!

[@martinpaddle]

plays D all the time, and sometimes randonmly a C... that simulates a bass player improvising, haha :-D

[@ahnatek]

thanks for the mention ! :)

[@ShawnCrowder]

My pleasure! Looking forward to the new Tigran album :)

[@chaocrator]

for me, drums are the best human input interface for dancefloor-oriented music.

[@anonduckduck]

I’d have to say the good old launchpad still takes the cake on that, but drum kit is very much a relevant electronic input instrument

[@chaocrator]

@@anonduckduck i intentionally did not specify which kind of drums - full-blown drumset or an ultra-portable drum pad. both do the job. i myself use drum pads a lot for portability reasons, because it's often too much hassle to have any „proper“ drum kit at certain venues, or even there's no space for it.

[@jamesbradford1153]

💯💯💯

[@j_drichmond]

Random bass notes to sound like a bass player improvising... I know you weren’t being dismissive of bass players, but I found it amusing.

[@SamsTheBams]

How to improvise: sometimes you play the note "C"

[@SamsTheBams]

Modular synths are so damn fun. They are a little more "clumsy" than computers and VST instruments. Which, in my ears, adds a personality. Almost like that Ｈｕｍａｎ Ｔｏｕｃｈ™ we like in skilled players, just from a robot instead. Making patches is like playing with Legos. Incredibly expensive Legos. Where you have to research every brick you want in your collection. ...and your room will look more and more like a space ship, which also is fun.

[@reflect7559]

Fantastic video! As a longtime producer of electronic bass music, I'm happy to see the genre get some much-deserved love. I've long believed instrumentalism has been largely missing from modern electronic music, somewhat isolating the artists from the writing process and keeping the genres from reaching their full potential. I feel like this is largely responsible for the lack of musicality that occurs through many styles of electronic music. But independent musicians and bands like Sungazer are breathing new life into this music that I'm so very passionate about. Thank you guys!

[@SunhouseInc]

Thanks for the shoutout! We're big Sungazer fans here at Sunhouse😃

[@jamcorjeff1]

If anyone is interested in electronic music as a drummer, I would suggest watching Akira Jimbo. He's an incredible drummer using electronics. I may be wrong but I believe he was the first to incorporate triggers and drums to sound a 1 man band. If you haven't seen him, pull him up. Amazing👍

[@unoPlox]

I was about to say that, when talking of this approach of hybrid drumsets Akira Jimbo is a MUST, period. His "Fujiyama" VHS/DVD explains his composition method for "Jamming in the Night", which is a great example of music making with hybrid sets, and even breaks down all the configurations of his Yamaha module and trigger placement. Just update his take with some MIDI-DAW tech and it still relevant to this day. Plus, let's not forget about other great ones that used these hybrid set techniques as Neil Peart in his drum solos or the "not so beloved" Rush works from the 80s (by some people out there xD ), Will Calhoun with his experiments with guitar pedals and whatnot, Danny Carey with mandala drums and wavedrum in TOOL, Pat Mastelotto and Bill Bruford in King Crimson, and so on...

[@unoPlox]

Here the song "Jamming in the Night" if someone wants to check: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gYiYnnamo9ataKM

[@pettersundlof]

Greg Fox is a fantastic example of doing this in a very expressive and creative way

[@obsoquasi]

Triggering to me has always dealt with the problem that there is no way to trigger a sample with a long attack phase reliably. The longer the attack, the more the sample will lag behind. So what is really needed in this field is some sort of predictive sensor, that notices a hit is about to occur before it actually occurs. This would be quite complicated - accelerometer, gyro sensor, maybe even some sensors on the muscles of the drummer - because the drummer lines up his strike quite a bit before the actual hit occurs. Just thinking out loud though. It's not as if I had an actual idea :D.

[@onesyphorus]

your video on drumming open handed helped me immensly in getting ambidextrous!

[@mr_wessumz]

I’ve always wanted to implement electronics the Akira Jimbo way. I cannot tell you how many times I watched his ‘Metamorphosis’ VHS as a kid. That kind of work has always blown my mind.

[@Packbat]

The designed randomness of the various electronic parts makes me think of the specific experimental genre of generative music - it's interesting thinking how similar concepts fit into pieces which as a whole are more directly composed by the musician, like yours.

[@TylerHNothing]

Zach Hill does some next level and amazing drumming on a TD25 in Death Grips. The Powers that b Part 1 features Zach sampling Bjork's voice and arranging it on the electronic kit pads and literally plays the music for that album while someone raps over it (he also drums some other more regular electronic drum sounds as well). On some other albums he does great stuff with it as well. If you listen to Black Quarterback you wouldn't guess it's a TD25 kit but a year later when they released physical copies, the booklet credited Zach Hill for performing Bjork's voice on the TD25.

[@endlessmike1611]

Awesome video, thanks Shawn!

[@guttula1961]

This kind of drumming is the future of IDM and also the savior of IDM

[@hdrumboy9744]

Tony Venderosa & Yamaha should be given credit because they were the 1st ones to promote this idea with their trigger system back in the late 1980s or early 1990s. Dave Weckl had a song based on this concept; “Trigger Happy” from the album “Heads Up“.

[@laurapham7264]

if you want to change key centers, you could link the pads to some dummy clips that automate the scale effect it can get pretty crazy when you start playing with dummy clips and m4l devices

[@laurapham7264]

as another example, you could use follow actions on dummy clips to trigger chords every other hat, or play a specific melody every number of bars, or trigger an effect at regular intervals so much stuff you can do with the way ableton works

[@tonicblue]

Well that's a happy coincidence. A JoJo Mayer & Nerve track called Triptych just came up in my Discover Weekly on Spotify. Thought it was only alright until the third "movement" which floored me. The drumming, atmosphere, rhythm, soundscape, everything was utter bliss. Must have listened to it a hundred times in the last week. Need to find more by this guy. Thanks for the vid :)

[@jethrojangles9541]

I've burnt out a couple of youtube servers rewatching jojo's live performance of 'jabon'

[@tonicblue]

@@jethrojangles9541 Hah, that was the first thing I listened to after leaving my comment. I can see why you had that on repeat. Mans got skills

[@thatgreenparrot9732]

I got your video randomly recommended. All these artists you're featuring are making crazy music that I didn't know I need to hear lol. Super cool

[@nsiepmann]

Chiminyo from the UK is a GREAT example of the 'everything triggered live' approach, with gorgeous vivid arrangements - hugely worth a look.

[@AkeJay02]

I've been doing this same type of thing through VCV Rack for a while, and it's the most fun thing ever. Cool to see it's more common than I thought.

[@Qwazim0d00]

Appreciate the jacob Mann shout out

[@phlector]

Does this mean Adam’s out of the band?

[@davis4218]

This was incredible, and you introduced me to 4 new (amazing) artists. Thank you!

[@genmce]

Thanks so much for bringing this out, keep up the great work!

[@sair338]

Hey Shawn, love the topic you've covered. Triggering melodies/arps in ableton with my e-kit is always fun. The one thing I wish I could make it do was have it come up with weird/logical harmonic ideas or non-diatonic stuff on the fly. I'd be interested in knowing if anyone had a go at "simulating" that sort of stuff as well.

[@Skradgee]

Bruh, Jojo Mayer is amazing. Also: Johnny Rabb. Check the world records! Electronic pioneering.

[@grandolddrummer]

When it comes to electronics and drums, it's good to also check out Akira Jimbo

[@phukaoprommolmard5282]

Nice video as always man, but you might want to consider lighting up your background or do something about that blocky/compressed black background

[@ShawnCrowder]

I think YT's compression destroyed the shadows. :/ Looks fine on my computer.

[@freddielo4330]

It's more about how low color depth affects darker color rather than just compression. A static background with lighter colors/ static image background will look better even with compression.

[@jrwstudios]

Nicely done. I'm a fan of Adam Betts take on the same concept, his video version of 'I lost Detroit' is a pretty good listen

[@rodrigodepierola]

I'm never sure about the music you make (or Sungazer's), but I love the video, Clear and insightful and full of good information. Lots of opportunities for drummers/percussionist to extend what they do.

[@melodyhittle4149]

I'm really enjoying your content, glad I subscribed. Keep up the amazing work!

[@PatrickHaeslerMusic]

Most of these uses seem to be solo/duo/trio ensembles. It would be interesting to hear, or hear you talk about applications with large ensembles. I know you have a much larger band for the sungazer tours, how do you work with the augmented electro-kit in those situations, where you are blending with many other instruments?

[@ruairidhsaunders]

I own a Roland SPDSX sample pad, triggers, all the works, as I know modern drumming requires it a lot more. However I have the notorious "Gear Fear". I'm extremely naive toward and intimidated by computerised controls, triggers, sampling, patching etc. I really wish I could get over that fear but my lifelong acoustic drumming mentality keeps me at a distance. I don't even know how to set up my sample pad properly, while a lot of my friends just get it.

[@Terrible_Peril]

As a bassist, I am keenly interested in drums and drum sounds and drummers. I have an obsession with sketching and mentally building kits of varying sizes that make most drummers cringe, and then a kid like JD Beck plays a similar kit and drummers drool over it (GRRRRRRR!).

[@ProjectBeats_]

Cool. Akira Jimbo been at it since 70s/80s. Style is a bit different but I dig the new direction and tech.

[@drewb5775]

shoutout jacob mann

[@AidanMmusic96]

This is gold. Thanks Shawn!

[@MrGloupo]

Very interesting video! It reminds of the band Deux Boules Vanilles: two drummers, and a looot drum triggered synths!

[@drumdog]

Great video, really entertaining 👍

[@probotdrummer]

Young Josh Freese was on that Simmons commercial :)

[@paulgeorgmusic]

So so inspiring! Could you please share a more detailed instruction on how you go about setting this up?

[@ShawnCrowder]

I did on my Patreon :)

[@paulgeorgmusic]

@@ShawnCrowder See you there soon! 😉

[@bradwilson9339]

A guy called Egoless from croatia (usually makes stuff in a dub or dubstep kinda style) is releasing a project soon similar to this with the drums triggering his modular synths. Should be pretty sick think its gonna be called symbiosis check it out

[@JohnSearleFangirl]

Release. The. Kitten. Track.

[@YevheniiDubovyk]

Hi, Shawn! Can I set up something similar using Max MSP without Ableton? Thanks!

[@THEGMH1998]

I love this kind of stuff. Greg Fox is doing a lot of great work in this style

[@teddyboyat3109]

Interesting video! Thanks

[@everettsutton35]

Can we get a full version of the cat drum lofi?

[@ShawnCrowder]

catgazer? :D

[@everettsutton35]

You read my mind! Hahahaha

[@TheGamingDandy]

KJ Sawka is really good at making music with synths and stuff while drumming, check him out if you haven't.

[@StyxYRenegade]

I was wondering if you might ever go over Bonzo's Montreux. I'v always wondered how that drum solo was played.

[@rubenrossi4033]

Ehi guys, check out this amazing drummer, Andrea Belfi

[@neithere]

Instantly guessed your native language from "ehi" :)

[@paulofrois9025]

awesome!

[@AbhiBass96]

I like your voice

[@ShallieDragon]

Sent this video over to my drummer friend. Hopefully this'll give him some ideas.

[@myriadpath]

not even a mention of Akira Jimbo? tsk... Shawn kicks ass tho

[@joewignell8943]

Hi. I made a max for live device which can produce the same chord effect but follow a midi track rather than having to mess with the scale effect which is annoying if you want to play in multiple keys etc. Could share it with you if you are interested but it's a bit rough and ready as I just built it to make things easier for me!

[@ShawnCrowder]

Hey, I'd be curious to check it out! Please send me an email via my website or the address listed on my channel "about" page.

[@borislavpetrovdrummer]

Fantastic video as usual! Would you be so king to share what kind of piezo mic are you using on the hihat? Thanks!

[@garygordon4277]

this is super inspiring, man. keep it up!

[@Rqmod]

do you prefer triggers or sensors for perfomng

[@romistako2938]

WOWW!!!! HOLY SHIT WOWWWW WOW AMAZING!!!

[@martinpaddle]

Saw Jojo in the thumbnail, clicked like

[@QuidProQuoGroup]

Hi Shawn, Thanks a lot for the video! What do you use to translate audio signal from hihat, snare or kick to the MIDI signal? Is there a cheap option to do it in real time? not in production after the live set. Tnx, AM

[@golduckroger]

Awesome

[@TimSuliman]

What are you using to trigger the hi-hat? Is that a piezo contact mic? Totally rad video, BTW.

[@ShawnCrowder]

Yes, exactly. Piezo trigger/contact mic.

[@limeflashlight4101]

Zach Danziger epic

[@SlyHikari03]

This shit is so cool.

[@lamecasuelas2]

Now, how do i make my guitar to play drums?

[@mohddalibinzali1165]

I want to register as a student to learn play a drum.. But im worry if in future there is no need drummer to drum the songs.. I mean the keyboardist take all the part. So..i dont knoq what to do.. I want make a drum as my carier for my bright future but 😭😭

[@mjKlaim]

*halfway in the video* I am wondering: Why didn't you use the stuffs in Probability Pack instead of this custom random chord generator?

[@mellowtron214]

Curious if any of you have ever heard of *Dosh* or Martin Dosh, he used to drum for Andrew Bird. He always played some very interesting mixture of electronic instruments, pianos, synths, loops, all situated around a drum kit. m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYenk6NomrJsg5o Here’s a random example I found. Reminds me of that Canadian art rock band called Caribou/Manitoba. This video is a bit old. But it would be interesting to consider this kind of drum additions to the musical landscape of drumming.

[@danichatin]

Great video! Which device are you using to convert the audio to midi?? Thanks Shawn!

[@danichatin]

or to trigger the MIDI :D

[@Covesthur]

Yeah, now we can replace bassists!

[@matyastorok]

Hey guys, anyone one reading this, i have an Alesis ControlPad that I got dirt cheap and I am trying to figure out how to use ableton live light with it, anyone knows anyone that teaches it, ie I can share my screen with them and they offer live lessons, I have spent hours watching videos and reading but I figure even if I can setup the basics, I will still be missing 95% of functionality from it.

[@mathisaubry8360]

You probalby do know him but in case you don't i recommend checking out Ian Chang, fantastic drummers who play electronic music using sensors !

[@ShawnCrowder]

I've seen/heard some of his music. Awesome stuff!

[@Merlincat007]

His live performances of Romeo are especially cool in my opinion! He's fully into the Sensory Percussion stuff.

[@stevie8271]

sensory percussion seems like it'll be AMAZING for IDM/breakcore drumming, fuuuck

[@stagg8699]

Check out Eli Keszler! Insane Drummer who brought me into triggering

[@lost68er1]

I don't mean to nag, but rhythmically that sounds pretty crooked. Is that wanted, or is it latency in the signal flow?

[@ShawnCrowder]

4:39

[@cambriakilgannon12]

Tinkerbell falling down stairs?

[@cubaross2361]

A little early

[@dinospumoni5611]

I don't really see the point. It's just a more complicated version of hitting the play button once. Why complicate things in a way that doesn't add creative value? If randomness is the goal, that can easily be done without all this unnecessary human input (and in fact has been a thriving compositional technique for decades).

[@goldmund2902]

Because it sounds cool, which shouldn't really come as a surprise, as it is probably the main reason of music in general. Also, I could see this being tremendously fun to use whilst "jamming" alone by yourself. Btw: If you don't get this, check out Steve Reich, Karl Heinz Stockhausen or John Cage.

[@revolutionairerebel9511]

Think that Rudy is out of the band, now.

[@jamesrobson8702]

No offence but i find this abit ridiculous.Roni size and london electricity were doing this over 20 years ago. Drummers are so out of touch its insane.Question how many raves and club nights have jojo mayer etc played at? How many dj's have played their music in clubs? Nerves productions sound like they from 1994. You know people have had midi and used midi since the 90's?