“Is 2020 over yet?” Not until we get through the holidays! This season has given us something to look forward to all year, so here’s a whole grab bag of green-and-red fun to get you in the spirit (and give you something to watch and read while you wait for that Zoom call with your cousins to end).
Josh Trager, drummer for the Sam Roberts Band, spent one Christmas season performing on a festive train traveling across Canada. Here’s an excerpt from our interview:
It’s called the CP Holiday Train – which is sort of self explanatory – combined with a fundraiser and food drive for local food banks. We live on the train, travel across the country during the holiday season, and perform in one of the cars that has been converted into a stage. That stage opens up on one or both sides, depending on where the audience is. Once the train stopped at each venue, we’d play for a local audience, which would consist of families that often spanned 3 generations.
The drums are set up on day one, and bolted down on a revolving riser for the remainder of the tour. Several times a day, we would perform 20-35 minute sets consisting of holiday classics as well as our own music as we’d travel through some of Canada’s most beautiful towns.
Aside from playing in freezing temperatures and doing it multiple times throughout the day, on occasion the train was stopped at a bit of an angle. This made it incredibly difficult to maintain balance. Needless to say, this definitely posed a problem during sections of songs where both feet would be playing busier parts. I compensated by literally trying to center myself as best I could.
On the second leg of the tour, we traveled and performed through the Rocky Mountains. It was gorgeous, but the train they used was from 1916 and was most definitely haunted. There was an actual murder back in the ‘30s where…
Read the rest of the interview here!
While it may be too late to pick something up in time for Christmas, the post-holiday sales are hot (especially on Drumeo-branded products…hint hint) and you might know a drummer who has a birthday coming up.
If you want to get inspired and browse through some cool drum products, here are a few to scratch that itch:
Drumeo P4 Practice Pad ($79)
Evans Real Feel Practice Pad ($30)
Audio Technica ATH-M50x Headphones ($150)
Shure SE215 In-Ear Monitors ($99)
Roland TD-1KV V-Drums ($499)
Yamaha EAD10 ($499)
Drumeo Drum Lessons
The Drummer’s Toolbox ($29.99)
Reclaimed Cymbal Bottle Opener ($12-15)
DrumLite ($80-200+)For a much longer and more thorough list of drum gifts, check out this gift guide!
From 2013 to 2019, the entire Drumeo team – yep, that includes programmers, editors, accountants, and customer service reps – released an annual drum performance around Christmas. While not everyone who works at Drumeo is a drummer, everyone loves music and has been willing to participate in whatever way they know how!
To get in the holiday spirit (and see the team behind the scenes at Drumeo), watch all seven videos full of drum solos, beautiful mistakes, and very cheeky captions:
You know what time it is. You’re starting to think about packing up the tree and decorations, and maybe planning a clean sweep in other parts of your life while you’re at it. If you need an excuse to set a resolution for 2021 – or give yourself a couple of drumming goals – here are some tips to make sure you meet them:
If you set impossible goals – or even reasonable goals on an impossible timeline – you’re unlikely to achieve them, which will only bring you frustration and make it less likely that you’ll follow through.
Saying “I want to be a better drummer” is a good place to start, but it’s a big, broad target that gives you too much room and can be overwhelming. What are some components that will contribute to your improvement? How far can you break down your goal? What do you have to learn or improve on to get there?
A great plan means nothing if you can’t make room in your schedule. No matter how badly you want to hit your targets, and no matter how rarely you make excuses, it may not be physically possible to put the work in if you haven’t set aside blocks of time in advance. And that’s exactly what needs to happen, whether it’s before you go to work or school, after rehearsal with the band, or when the kids are out with a relative. If you wait until you ‘feel like it’ or until you have a spare moment, you’re less likely to practice. Maybe ‘stop procrastinating’ is one of your resolutions.
When it comes to staying focused, it’s easier said than done. Everyone hopes they’ll maintain a steady track forward toward goal completion. The best way to focus is to eliminate as many distractions as possible and carefully control your environment when you’re practicing.
Click here to read the full article (what you just read is an excerpt) and to get a free downloadable practice timesheet!
While you shouldn’t suddenly forget everything you just read about goals, Drumeo’s head honcho Jared Falk explains in this podcast episode why it’s even more important to make plans:
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Drumeo Team - We're professional, award-winning drummers and drum teachers, coaches, recording artists, and content specialists who are passionate about drums and helping drummers around the world. This post was written and/or edited by Sam Landa, Brandon Toews, Jared Falk, Dave Atkinson, or another pro on our team (which has a combined 1000+ years of drumming experience). Are you looking for inspiration, education, and support to take your playing to the next level? Join the Drumeo community today!
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