How to Play a Punk Beat on Drums

Some say the "punk" genre, or at least its traditional iterations, reached its crest in the late 80s, but the appeal of punk rock remains strong for many. A punk drummer provides ballast to his crew by setting the pace of the music. The whole essence of the live punk show requires a drummer with stamina and volume. Here's how to keep the beat as a punk drummer.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Make sure your kit is up to the challenge. An immaculate professional jazz kit is not a good tool for a punk show, nor is a rickety pile of toms that will go to pieces under the withering attack of a punk drummer. Get the gear you need to play punk.

2. Don't sweat the formalities. Punk does not have a rigid form. Instead of scholarly attention to detail, use brute power and raw energy to speak volumes on the drum kit.

3. Work on the two-stroke beat. As opposed to conventional genres, such as rock/pop and country that use a 4/4 rhythm, punk often segues into a faster, two-beat progression, a simple toggle between polar beats, one harder for emphasis, the other slackened. Practice variations of this from punk records using bass and tom or another similar configuration.

4. Stay in shape. Like metal/grind/industrial drummers, punk drummers profit from being in peak condition to be able to really put power into every beat. In practice, rely on steadily building up speed and force, and maintaining a "balance" while playing faster rhythms.

5. Get ready for a riot. Part of playing punk on drums, at least in live shows, is being ready for whatever reality dishes out, whether it's flying food, flying fans, or a surreptitious punch to the ear. Veteran punk drummers will tell you a large part of their work is being able to "push back" against physical or mental distractions from play, because when the drums stop, so does the song.