The use of the drum kit in grunge
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Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can identify the key features of grunge and its drum beats and have created a grunge-style drum beat.
Key learning points
- Grunge is a style of of heavy rock music featuring distorted guitar sounds and angry lyrics.
- Key musical features include the use of riffs, distorted guitars and simple instrumentation.
- These are influences taken from punk rock and heavy metal.
- Drum beats in rock have a strong pulse and snare backbeat.
- Grunge drum beats often contrast between sections, and use open hi-hats or crash cymbals to create powerful effects.
Keywords
Grunge - Grunge is a style of heavy rock music featuring distorted guitar sounds and angry lyrics.
Riff - A riff is a short, repeated musical idea that forms the basis of a pop or rock song.
Distortion - Distortion is a fuzzy effect often added to guitar sounds.
Common misconception
Rock is a specific, narrow genre in itself.
Rock is a very broad term for lots of different musical genres, spanning a wide range of influences and using very different musical features. There are many sub-genres of rock, including grunge, punk rock and heavy metal.
Teacher tip
When developing their drum beat, encourage pupils to create interesting rhythmic patterns. They may want to imitate drum beats that they have heard in other rock songs or draw on them for inspiration, but reinforce the importance of the fundamental drum kit beat characteristics.
Equipment
A DAW or other suitable compositional tool or instrument
File needed for this lesson
Grunge template 414.72 KB (ZIP)
Download this file to use in the lesson.
Licence
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