L.A. Buckner represents the next generation of creative, young drummers with global influences that are driving powerful new rhythms and taking music to a whole new level of creative expression. L.A. is a performing musician, composer, teaching artist, and producer from North Minneapolis where the "Minneapolis Sound" was born. He holds a master's degree in Percussion Performance from McNally Smith College of Music. He also serves as the co-host on the PBS music education series on YouTube called Sound Field - a two-time Webby Award-winning production. L.A. is also a featured Artist-In-Residence for the Global Music Initiative at the world-renowned MacPhail Center for Music where he leads ensembles based on rhythms from around the world. In August of 2020, L.A. took i-Tunes by storm with the release of his project Big Homie reaching the #1 Jazz position within 24 hours of its release.

L.A.'s artistry is full of energy, excitement, culture, confidence and excellence. A fusion of his musical influence of Gospel, R&B, HipHop, African Rhythm, and Jazz explodes in a fiery journey of syncpation and truth, earning the respect of the most trained musical ear to the everyday music lover that appreciates a deep groove. Collaborating with some of the finest musicians in Minnesota, including a feature by Mint Condition's Stokely Williams, L.A. is definitely a writer, producer, and performer to be reckoned with.

Music credits

• Intro Music: Dddun, L.A. Buckner & Big Homie with Stokley Williams
• Outro Music: Ooowee, L.A. Buckner & Big Homie

Michael Bissonnette has been studying drum set and percussion since he was 10 years old. He has built a name for himself pursuing his love for world rhythms and currently plays with multiple bands in continual roatation featuring music from West Africa, Ireland, Brazil, India, Italy and other countries around the globe. Current ensembles include Katie McMahon ( of Riverdance), Boiled in Lead, Sarah Groves, Terminal 3, East Side, Louis and Clarke, Laura MacKenzie, Brass Lassie, Dean Magraw, Heart of the City, and The Robert Everest Expedition. Michael is endorsed by Remo and Vic Firth.

In this episode, Michael talks about how he got into world rhythms and how he built his expansive collection of world percussion instruments. (The display in his studio is quite impressive!) He discusses his approach of learning traditional rhythms on instruments from each country, then interpreting them on the drum set.

Michael is constantly listening to rhythms of other nations and has even created a West African drum curriculum that is now being used in several music education institutions.

He talks about how he no longer practices for chops, but focuses on depening the style and culture in his playing. He describes his role as a drummer is to listen to the rest of the band and play with passion and sensitivity to make everyone sound better. He creates a new groove by listening to the other players and placing accents to accentuate the lines from their instruments.

Michael talks about the huge influence world percussionist Marc Anderson (https://www.marcanderson.org/bio) has had on his playing and his gigging. He advises other drummers to not let old band friendships keep you from moving forward. Get out and seek new relationships to keep you from stagnating. Always be gig-ready for when you get the call for new opportunities.

• Intro/Outro music from Louis and Clarke featuring Michael Bissonnette
• Follow Michael at https://www.facebook.com/michael.bissonnette

This episode takes a little different approach with the bass player's point-of-view of drummers playing in a live band. This insightful discussion comes from Bruce Smith - a fantatic bass player with the enviable retirement gig of being in four working bands. He's having the time of his life and playing with lots of drummers across multiple genres. Bruce's current bands include:

• High & Mighty - Funk/R&B
• Critical Mass - Rock
• LXG (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) - Modern Blues
• Janelle Burrell Band - Jazz/Pop/Current Hits

Bruce's musicianship started on drums and then moved to bass which he's been playing for 58 years with killer chops. He brings a clear perspective on the special relationship between drummers and bass players., and what it means to the overall sound of the band. Bruce talks about the growth process as a musician and what it's like to understand why you're playing what you're playing. Within this framework, he also discusses...

• Why trust is so important between bass and drums.
• The perils of overplaying.
• Understanding what your job is as a drummer.
• Why fills can sometimes kill the groove, and why there's nothing wrong with silence. Music needs space.
• Locking in with the bass player is the toughest thing for most drummers to get right.
• After training in 16 drummers in his biggest band, Bruce helps drummers understand how to make the process of gelling with the band easier.
• Bruce's best advice for drummers - "Don't play so many fills."
• Why someone has to take the lead - either bass or drums - on each tune to get locked in.

Noah Levy is the epitome of 'in-demand'. He lives in St. Paul, MN and has toured and recorded with a long list of international artists including Brian Setzer, Five For Fighting, The Honeydogs, Peter Frampton, The Bodeans, Golden Smog, Lowen and Navaro, Mason Jennings, and many more. As a session player, Noah has hundreds of album credits and has performed on stages and in studios around the world.

In this episode, Noah talks about...

• How he's spending more time on the sounds that he can get from his drums and reveals his secret for the best kick drum sound.
• Finding like-minded players who are better than you is key to advancing your skills and your band.
• Practice with a metronome to establish your sense of time.
• The role of the drummer is to be the quarterback and serve the song - "It's not about you."
• Developing a deep pocket and the importance of intentional playing.
• Using simple hand-written charts to learn and remember new songs.
• How to create a unique groove for new songs.
• How to find out what kind of drummer you want to be.
• If you're feeling stuck, find other players that listen.
• Physical posture and warm-up routines.
• How to gel with a new band.
• Bonus: The Moises app for playing along with songs.

Intro Music: Noah plays with the Honeydogs

Outro Music: Noah plays with the Brian Setzer Orchestra

Follow Noah Levy on Facebook and Instagram

David Anania is a powerful drummer in a band called Those Medley Kids who are currently performing an exciting catalog of classic progressive rock tunes from some of the biggest prog rock bands like Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Genesis, and Rush. He's also a long-time drummer and Creative Consultant for The Blue Man Group, and has performed on stages around the world with stars like Moby, David Bowie, and Busta Rhymes. He has also performed on major television networks including The Tonight Show, Good Morning America, Rosie O'Donnel, CBS This Morning, and several shows in Europe.

In this episode, David talks about his journey in becoming an accomplished drummer, and what he likes most about drumming. He also provides a robust list of influences that have shaped his artistry and style along the way. David reveals some of the best ways to find other players who are like-minded with your own musical tastes along with how the role of the drummer is to serve the song. He goes deeper into playing what is necessary and how to lay down the main pulse of the song.

David shares some of his biggest breakthroughs in his own playing along with some specific tunes to challenge yourself to reach higher in your drum-craft. He also provides the process he uses to learn new material, and how to understand phrase lengths. He talks about the importance of intentional drumming and how to make every note count while subtracting unnecessary notes to create space. David then delves into melodic playing and how to maintain a solid meter throughout each song, with or without a click track.

He touches on how to develop your own style and unique voice to a song, along with the importance of body position and kit set-up to support the physicality of drumming. He shares warm-up and practice routines and advises to be patient with yourself and practice healthfully. He encourages practicing with purpose and to experiment with your drum-kit setup to achieve a good flow around the kit.

Links: https://www.instagram.com/ananiamusic_official

Petar Poucki is the drummer for the nations #1 Led Zeppelin tribute show called Zed Leppelin. He's been laying down the John Bonham grooves like nobody else for years. In this follow-on episode, Petar reveals how to find the groove in new songs, the role of the drummer in delivering songs to the audience, the process of learning new songs, establishing a deep pocket in a groove, Playing with confidence and authority, and a tip from a jazz giant that changed his life on developing melodic phrasing. He also discusses how to make every note count with intentional playing, and the importance of recording yourself during practice sessions and rehearsals. Other tips include tuning and mic placement, warm up and practice routines, how to approach soloing on the drums, why consistency is important, and how discipline is the key to advancement.

Petar Poucki You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/@PetarFroggpond

Petar Poucki is a powerful drummer for the nations #1 Led Zeppelin tribute show called Zed Leppelin. He's been laying down the John Bonham grooves like nobody else for years. Petar talks about building 4-way independence, the importance of listening to other band members, how bandmates with a good attitude are more important than chops, the basic of productive rehearsals and mutual respect, breaking through obstacles to advancement, soloing, having fun on stage, managing stage volume, and how ghost notes help him keep in time. He also reveals the most important songs that were breakthroughs for his playing

Petar Poucki Links: https://www.youtube.com/@PetarFroggpond

Moises App for removing drum tracks from songs to play along: www.moises.ai