Steve Such plays “Funkin Fusion” by Andre Forbes!

TRACK: “Funkin’ Fusion”

ARTIST: Andre Forbes

Download the play-along track HERE

This was fun! For those curious, here’s a little peek into how I approached playing this song:

GROOVE CONSTRUCTION / CHOICES:

-There are 3 main themes to listen for: the A Section (4/4), the B Section (3/4), and the Solo Section with hits (4/4). 

-Because the tune is pretty syncopated, it gave me several choices for how to construct my groove. For the A section, I started out by keeping the bass drum sparse and playing with the bass line. Then, as this section developed, I embellished the BD a bit more, creating a sort of “conversation” between the BD and the bass line.

-On the 2nd time through the A section, because things are already so syncopated, I decided to play a 4-on-the-floor vibe. Notice how going “against the grain” like this can instantly change up the feel by acting as a counterpoint.

-The B section has a “floaty” & “circular” feel to me, so I moved things to the ride cymbal and came up with a “circular” groove to match. 

-Instead of lining up the ride cymbal bell exactly with the B section melody, I shifted it by a sixteenth note to create a different rhythmic layer.

SOLOING:

-A strategy I like to use for soloing is to think of certain “keywords” in my head as I play. Why do I do this? It allows me to quickly come up with more cohesive/thematic ideas (rather than just playing randomly).

-For example, a “keyword” for me could be the name of a particular drummer (ex: Stanton Moore), a rhythmic value (ex: Dotted Eighths), a vibe (ex: Tribal), or any other word that immediately gives me a small set of vocabulary to use. Remember the game Taboo? It’s like that, but using drumming to describe the word. Saying “keywords” in my head makes it much easier for me to decide what to play in the moment because it eliminates 99% of what I SHOULDN'T play. In other words, restriction spawns creativity. 

-To give you a practical example, here were the 5 keywords I used in this performance: “Steve Gadd”, “Salsa,” "Odd Groupings", “Triplets”, and "Hertas.” It’s strange to actually type these words out, but as I watch back it’s absolutely what I thought of in my brain at the time. Now that you know the keywords, see if you can follow along in the video as I think of these keywords in my head for each of the sections. If you’ve never tried this concept before, see if it helps you out when soloing!

HITS/FIGURES

The last thing to mention is that there are a couple of subtle (yet very intentional) hits/figures that Andre added throughout the tune, so I made sure not to miss any of those. For example, in the “salsa” part of the solo, I played those hits on the timbale because I wanted it to pop. Can you hear any others?

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This tune was a fun exercise in many things: 

-Groove construction: When a track is syncopated and you get to create a groove from scratch, what is your approach? Do you choose to play with the syncopation, or counter against it? Try different levels of both and see which one feels right to you. (For more practice with this concept, check out Tommy Igoe’s Groove Essentials)

-Solo: How can you shape your solo while still playing the hits? Did you save enough gas in the tank for the ending?

-Keywords: Which “keywords” are currently in your arsenal? How many new keywords can you come up with? Make a list and practice by randomly calling them out to see where it takes you.

-Texture: How can you make the B section different than the A section? Through orchestration? Through changing the groove? Through both? How does the song build from start to finish? What can you add (or subtract)?

-When playing musical figures, what are your “short" sounds? What are your “long" sounds? Does it complement what the other musicians are playing?

That’s about it! Hope you enjoyed a little peek inside my brain for how I approached this tune... let me know if you'd like me to do more breakdowns like this in the future!

PS: If you want to give this tune a try, go for it!

Here’s the link to download the play-along

Happy drumming!