Sheen, what's with the 15x17 and 19x23 "power" rack toms?? I mean, you're killin', but them toms is HUGE!!!!!!!!!
Are you on any recordings? I'd love to check out some stuff you've put on "wax."
LOL! That was at a church in Indiana! I am not responsible for those tom sizes! LOL! But as far as recordings, unfortunately I have never recorded something that has actually hit the market for sale! So everything I have is copywritten and cannot be released. Check my music page,
www.myspace.com/drummasheen1 I have a few snippets on there. The bass player from the video (Lance) produced the last 3 tracks on my page. He's playing bass and all keys.
Share a little about your practice regime of old, doc. In terms of mindset/approach, influences, listening etc.
Thanks Sabe! When I practice, I just sit down and play what ever is on my mind. I dont practice to click tracks or music. This might sound weird, but I actually compose my own music in my head when I practice sometimes. If I stumble across an idea, I dont move on until I master it. No matter how long it takes. My idea is to make everything as clean as possible. Dynamics are very key as well. From a simple groove to the fastest lick. Everything must be clean and precise, otherwise whats the point, you know? I always try to find the easiest way to get the sound I'm looking for in terms of equally distributing the notes I play between my hands and feet. I also try not to play notes that just look good, which sometimes makes the idea look harder than what it really is.
I grew up on the Yellowjackets and Dave Weckl. Will Kennedy is the man. Period. He's a heart player and it took me a while to gain that concept but thats what really matters. Your heart doesnt lie. You just gotta listen and feel. When you rush and try to force things to happen, your heart will convict you. I still experience this sometimes and its just a reminder to play what's nesassary. Even when I'm practicing. I dont say, "today I'm going to work on fast stuff and tomorrow, I'll work on grooves." No. I just sit down and play what I'm feeling at the time and build from there. Clean everything up. Before you know it, your skills have improved.
I practice 3 hours a day, 3 times a week. I used to do alot of shedding with other drummers but nowadays, I'm either practicing by myself or with a bass and keyboard player. Sometimes I practice with a saxophone player just because it makes you think differently. I like to put myself in challenging situations like that in order to become more musical in my playing. And I dont mean soloing and playing more licks, just cause there are less musicians at the time. I mean blending in with my musical surroundings, no matter what the instruments involved are.
Right now I am listening to alot of Robert Glasper. His piano playing is heavily influencing my drum playing! This guy is very inspiring. For those of you who dont know, Robert Glasper is the keyboard player on most of the underground Chris Dave clips you hear. But he has 3 solo projects on the market with his trio. If you love real jazz, (not that smooth, watered down crap) then I recomend anyone to check them out.