Hey Austin - great video. Been following Study the Great Series for the past 5-6 years. Huge fan of all your work an huge Danny Carey/Tool fan like yourself. Would love to see you breaking down Danny's Rosetta Stone Swiss Triplet pattern or the Descending polyrhythm (where his hands are playing in 7 but the kick drum is keeping time in 3). Thanks again and stay safe!!
yes it's cool, great analysis, thanks for breaking it down, the basic beat (without orchestration) is actually very easy - it's typical of Danny to play this kind of stuff which sounds awesome but actually isn't that hard to play. I wonder how the non drummers feel in Tool though, especially when playing in odd times.
MrFabritzzio certainly, would be nice to have more drummers playing with similar styles as Danny Carey, but I guess that’s what makes it so special right? He’s very unique
What is not explained in this video, is that Danny's mathematical patterns are actually conjuring rain deities for Maynard's vineyard. The tightening of the pattern signifies their arrival!
It comes naturally to you with a LOT of practice. You will "feel" each note and exactly when and how hard you want to hit it. You will feel like the drumset is an extension of your body and you play through songs effortlessly, giving you practice and study them well.
@@yassin6520 That’s my problem is that I can only play sort of fast and do some simple drum fills. Do you just wake up one day after days, weeks, months of practice and be able to play polyrhythms?
I have basically no clue about drumming apart from a layman's appreciation, so this was all Greek to me. But watching it made me realise more profoundly what sorcery Danny is doing on this track. So, thank you for that! You were amazing.
This often gets overlooked because of his other aspects of technical prowess, but you are absolutely right. Dynamics are overlooked generally. I am a guitarist and I really like Mark Knopfler; but even if you get his picking technique right, it is extremely difficult to match his mastery of dynamics.
@@Cars_and_Games Same. I'm a guitar player as well, and my favorites are masters of dynamics. Derek Trucks, Jerry Cantrell, Trey Anastasio, Jimmy Herring.. etc.
@@Cars_and_Games Mark has such a tasteful, elegant approach to his strings. Watching and listening to his playing is like seeing a beam of light traverses through a decorated glass:so spiritually soothing.
Look, Daney can hit the snare better than everyone, but he doesn't perform a lot of ghost notes, even though he imrpoved and worked on his skill playing jazz in NY with a shitton of people or whatever, that's what I heard. I think the next Tool album should have a lot of ghost notes and Daney Carey could produce beauty that's better than Animals As Leaders. Another thing is I think is Tool kinda played out their tribal thing and should dump it, and go for beautiful guitars and perhaps a look outward instead of inward. Imagine praises to Jesus and God instead of bemoaning him and cursing him. Unlikely? Yes, but the lord all mighty deserves praise, he's made some wonderful things. Okay, he made people, but he made other stuff as well. And some people aren't so bad. I love my girlfriend.
Not a drummer, but I did notice Danny Carey also varies how hard he's hitting at certain times in addition to the polymeter. It just adds another layer to what I can't comprehend. I was so happy when this cam footage came out. It just shows me what a living legend he truly is.
That’s interesting that not being a drummer you picked up on “dynamics”. That’s how much you vary how hard or soft you play & Danny is a wizard with that. Good catch!
Yea he's using sound dynamic to his advantage mixed with the precision, as my dad says who's a music mixer and also been a drummer for 44 years. My dad can play all the shit Danny plays in terms of technicality but he's not 6'7 and huge like Danny and not as fit as he used to be though so....
Best comment I've heard on the subject of this song, and specifically the middle section here: "So on the little "solo" around the middle of the song the math gets insanely complex. His right hand is playing the triplets on FIVE different drums, his left is playing quadruplets, his hihat is going in 3s and 4s and his kick drum is keeping the overall beat of the song. (I think) On top of this, he is also counting the bars, and taking away some of the toms on both (but mostly his right) hands while playing up to the crescendo towards the end of the section, so in his head he is keeping count of 4 different rhythms plus one count. FIVE DIFFERENT COUNTS! He could play a fifth rhythm, but he'd need to be naked."
My main take away from watching Danny play is that some people are better at their jobs than others and there’s just not anything anyone else can do about it
@@NutritionalZero That's a bit harsh. Adam and Justin are very talented musicians, and Maynard is a fantastic lyricist, but Danny is so far ahead of 99.99% of professional musicians that it'd make anyone look like an amateur.
@@NutritionalZero I'll admit that Adam Jones is very functional, but Justin Chancellor is a great bassist in his own right, and Maynard's vocals are still on point. Either way, if you take any of Tool's 4 members away, they wouldn't be Tool anymore.
@@NutritionalZero That is just straight up false, they're all great musicians, it's just that Danny is in a league of his own when it comes to drummers.
I am a brand new drummer. I am literally still learning the language and how to hold my sticks. Tool is the reason I decided to finally learn. There's an push inside that I can't ignore so here we are. This breakdown was really great and you are really easy to listen to.
A great Tool beat to learn is the main groove in “Sober.” I remember when I started playing, that was the first beat that really messed my brain up. But once you get it, it unlocks a lot for you ;)
@@abbdrums Thank you for the direction. I am super excited for all of mental challenges and the expansion. What a cool new journey this is going to be. I dig how you present material, thank for all of the resources you've created. xo
And in the midst of all that drumming Danny is doing. He changes how hard he hits" accents " "dynamics " drums throughout these rhythms to Create another rhythm. It's insane and I doubt it can be duplicated by anyone.
yeah Austin does that at least a few of the times here, varying the loud/soft dynamics of the left hand snare/etc pattern in particular.. just so many little wrinkles and details, awesome
The entire band is built on this. Danny is, arguably, the most technical of the four. Even if the other parts aren’t as complex it’s the dynamics and nuance that make them heads and shoulders above anyone else out there. Would love to be a fly on the wall when they are writing....
Outstanding analysis. Most of us hear those polyrhythms and go, "OMG, Danny is a god and I'll never get there," but you took it apart and provided a path forward. You even developed an overarching observation on Danny's playing and demystified it a little...even the greatest are all just human, ya know. Excellent, skilled pedagogy...upvote and thanks!
@@NanoverseProductions i started casually practicing swiss army triplets about a month and a half ago and it was really difficult for me to do even at the slowest speeds. now i can get to about half speed of what he's doing in pneuma consistently. It's a long way but you can get there! Just need perseverance. I still cant even get close to triad lol. Watch the live video to know what I mean if you havent
Hey, Austin. I hardly ever comment on RUclips but I really wanted to thank you for this video, man. I'm a big fan of Danny and you've done a great job, as usual. Keep it up! Greetings from Argentina.
3:13 is drenched in Motherland. The Marriage of African, Indian, and middle Eastern percussions made up a bulk of Danny's work and fits amazing with the rest of the band.
i'm very familiar with this polymeter but the idea of gradually subtracting the amount of drums in the orchestration is not something I would have thought of, very cool.
it seems like he s applying ideas from outside into the music, he's like hey what if i take this part and move it one beat forward every measure... well that's a poor example but you get the idea.
I hear this happening pretty much on Lateralus. I even think that I got him on changing the exact same BD and Snare accents sometimes which surprisingly kicks pretty much ass. I might also be helplessy mistaken. That´s been 20 years ago when I still happened to enjoy it flying a little, if you know what I mean.
Also notice that, every time he subtracts a drum, the average volume/pitch of the drum increases to build tension. In other words, he subtracts the softer drums (floor toms) until only the loudest ones (snare) are left.
@@stairfall12345678900 That's probably a pretty good observation about the Danny's ability to control his timber. But when he moves form the four drum rotation to the tree drum rotation he goes from snare, roto, rack, floor to snare, rack, floor and, when he switches to two he alternates between the snare and the roto. The pitch of the roto is higher than the rack typically. So subtracting the roto would indicate that any increase in volume and perceived pitch is entirely down to sticking. He might me simultaneously hitting the lip of the rim and head of the rack drum which would increase the volume of the stroke and the reverb pitch is always quite high. I didn't see him doing that but, you can't put it past him. And if he was using the aforementioned sticking on the rack tom, that is fucking insanely technical and one hell of a rim job.
Once you see it, you can't unsee it. The timing is amazing, wrapping up just in time, too. Can we spare a thought for the guitarist, though? The counting has gotta be brutal at times.
Guitar player here, but this content friggin amazing. This kind of breakdown is invaluable for any musician on any instrument to understand how geniuses like Tool relate to one another. Incredible stuff man. Thanks so much.
Danny limbs are basically octopus with brains in each one. Hes one of the best ever and of his gen. Glad hes finally getting some love. Hes the only ONLY drummer to put me into a trance with his rythem. Absolutely phenomenal
I feel like this is not only a great lesson and concept in isolation but also as a general concept this is great to do with other odd groups like 5s or 7s but also other subdivisions hitting some interesting shifting accents or acting as more of a texture over a part. Awesome work as always Austin.
This is what I wanted to see from all the other ‘reaction’ videos - which anyone could make by just sitting and making statements of awe - now I feel I have a tiny idea of why it’s so amazing what Danny is doing. Thank you!!
This video made me understand how awesome Dany Carey is, I watched other reaction videos but this is by far the best as it shows just how hard and complicated the drumming is. TOOL is the best band on earth.
It's always so amazing to see just how complex his drumming actually is when you sit down and try to imitate it. You can certainly hear it in the recording, but damn...
Polyvalent when you listen to the record it sounds like something you should be able to play, but then you actually try it and it turns your brain into mush.
I'm a guitarist, never played drums, and still had to watch this all the way through. Very well done!! Would love to see the same kind of video analyzing Mangini or Portnoy.
I have zero knowledge on notes and reading music but I like watching people like you explaining so skillfully how the dynamic of the song works because it makes me appreciate the music more.
I just pray Vic Firth releases OTHER Live Carey concert videos! Invincible, possibly?? Here's to hoping! Wrote down Invisible's 3 over 7 polyrhythm a few months ago and I'm just feeling comfortable playing that with confidence after practicing that for hours on end...
I have learned more from your one video than I have hundreds of other youtube videos. You are a fantastic, clear, and concise teacher and easily the best and most informative drum teacher on youtube. Thank you.
As someone who is guilty of having made a reaction video to that video, I'm stoked that you're actually sitting behind the kit and breaking the song down! This was my original plan, but I A) don't have access to my kit right now and B) I'm just not good enough to try to replicate what he's doing! Looks like you have it covered, mate! Keep it up!
This has to be one of the best breakdowns of how drumming works for NON-DRUMMERS on the internet. I learned a great deal just watching you explain pieces into "slow" parts and trying to reconstruct the action in half the time. It's amazing to me as a musician on the melody side of things to see the underbelly of what bass/drums deal with. Very well done.
I'm not a drummer or musician at all. I just like music and I can't always explain why I like certain things. With that said, this breakdown was my favorite part of the song. It makes the synapses fire in my brain. Interesting that this is the section you covered.
Yo man, cant stop watching this lesson. Love how you broke this down w your simplified kit - yet mastered the technique and thus pulled it off - sounded perfect to me! Sincerely appreciate this!!
i've been a big fan of Tool since i first heard then and i didn't even know. i'm getting into music producing (digital) as a bit of a quarantine hobby, since i've got a looooot of musically talented friends. Breaking down Tool to understand them better has been immensely helpful.
Danny: So I heard yall like Swiss triplets; so I put Swiss triplets into Swiss triplets and nested them within swiss-triplettish dynamics and added a little bit of offbeat triplets in there. Youll love it!
When this DC video 1st came out, my mind was officially blown, and now several years later, it still is. Then, with every reaction or instructional video like this, where something else is described, it all happens again.... The crescendos built into this particular song is awe inspiring..... You must put great headphones 🎧 on when reviewing this song and take it all in.... Love it!! Love TOOL music!! Kudos to each musician in the band, especially Danny!!
This holds so much more water than the tacky "[insert genre here] drummer reacts to metal drummer" videos that seem to be clutting my feed. Mad respect, this is really interesting and educational. Keep posting more stuff! Anyway, if you're looking for suggestions for corona-isolation, a cool one would be Cygnus X-1 Book II by Rush. The beat Neil plays around the 1 minute mark.
So many videos of nobody drummers analysing Carey. Like who gives a shit about your nothing review of a master. Most of them dont even know he doesn't use a click.
My biggest takeaway from this is that you have the best analysis of this solo on RUclips. I watched like 10 of these "Drumming instructor reacts to Pneuma" videos and none of them went into any depth about the patterns. Some of them didn't mention anything at all, they just stood in Awe of Mr. Carey. Sure, i get it, i'm in awe too. But i can sit in awe watching the video myself. What i want to see from a drumming instructor is an in-depth analysis of the patterns - and you provided that. So big thanks here.
his left hand also switches how he's playing. it seems he's alternating b/w 2 drums w/ equal measure during the 5 section, 2 different drums but in a 3 pattern of 2 high, 1 low during the 4 section, then back to 2 w/ equal measure in the 3 section, then adding accents in the 2 section. I think the point is to create different and varying pattern cycles that will eventually match up but not always be on the beginning of the measure.
I am a musician and always saw what Danny did on drums as madness but this in depth look really allows you to see into the incredible compositional mind of Danny! Also the speed at which he plays
Hi from France ! Virgil Donati is incredible, his drumming is the most difficult and his music is very interresting. Danny's drumming is perhaps a little less difficult, but this music is emotional and addictive for me! Thank you!!
That arrow placement was as incredible as Carey's drumming.. That descending cycle part was so brilliant, Carey knows when to play and just what to do to make his playing as effective as possible, simply by referring to him as a legend brings more value, impact, and credibility the very status.
Just to clear one thing up in case people don’t know, the synth sound Adam Jones plays for a big part of this section is a keyboard, not a guitar, then he switches back to guitar when we hear the guitar tone again
Played self taught rock cover guitar since I was around 20 (I'm 59 now). Last year when Peart died I gifted myself an electronic drum set. Drums were always my favorite instrument. What I've learned is how little I knew about music, and stuff like Carey's is great confirmation of my opinion of myself. Thank you so much for this video. It gives me the info I really need to fix that issue.
I've been doing Swiss triplets for years, but I didn't realise that what they were. Thanks! I attempted this song for the first time today. It did not go well.
So to make it more clear , take the step high hat as the 4/4 measure , hes playig a 3/4 polyrythym between the cross stick and the high hat and hes adding the toms making the polyrythym a triplet 3/4 one and with the bass hes playing a 6/4 polyrythym
One thing not mentioned on the initial breakdown was just how he accents that rimshot. That's what kills me with that part of the song is the deliberate choice to flip the stick for a different sound, then choosing deliberately how hard he wants to hit it, giving this fade in and out effect that's just incredible. Danny is completely methodical in how he plays, very attentive to detail.
Thank you for this, I've been obsessed with this performance since the first time it popped up in my RUclips suggestions. Been listening everyday since, i am not even a drummer or that much of a tool fan. But it's just so mesmerizing. This gives me a bit of an insight on how it is constructed, because i was frying my brain trying to understand how it all works and why it speaks to me so much. It still left me with more questions and awe, but you gave me a "tool", that helps me in understanding why this is so amazing to me.
What an excellent breakdown. I'm no musso but I have been watching a few of these and yours is by far the most comprehensive and understandable. Excellent
Do you think you could do a "Study the greats" on Bill Bruford? Discipline would be absolutely amazing, though it might be difficult for copyright reasons.
I'm not a musician, and yet I love watching those skilled in the arts and theory deconstruct some of my favorite music. I have always wondered what it's like to listen to music when you're someone like Burcham or Beato who can pick all this stuff out whereas I'm just enjoying the groove. I guess there is something to be said for both. Austin, you are a very skilled drummer, dude, and thanks for the breakdown.
I'm a complete music illiterate. I couldn't play an instrument to save my life. Yet here I am enjoying Austin's mathematical explaination of Danny Carey's greatness.
It never ceases to amaze me that he is that large of a guy, yet moves not only fast, but fluid and accurate. More so than most other drmmers. He's well known as one of the best ever in any genre, and that's awesome. Yeah, he's in good shape and has some guns on him for sure, but that's also more weight to push and pull, stop and start, and swing around. I think that's why a lot of people love watching him, whether they know why or not. I remember how entertaining that video was that he did at the basketball game where he plays with the band. He just dwarfs that drum set. I'm pretty sure he really is part octopus, or alien of some type.
hey Austin, another fantastic video :) Just wanted to say that your video production is incredible. I've been a sub since The Undo cover and have always enjoyed your attention to detail when it comes to your content, it's looking super clean!
Dude, that makes so much sense. I’ve been trying to figure it out since the album dropped. Once I set up my kit in a month, I’m gonna be trying it out.
What I Learned: There's a method to the madness that IS Danny Carey. For the second section I thought he was just playing doubles, breaking down that flam-triplet (whatever it's called) is just mind blowing because of how the pattern creates its OWN SPACE for the notes being played when sped up (what does it sound like on a double pedal..?) Great video man thank you so much!! As a guitar player there's a ton of interesting rhythmic variety I can take away from a quick lesson like this so I really appreciate it!
Carey is the one drummer that you absolutely need a breakdown like this to achieve any sort of resemblance to his playing. Can't tell you how much brain strain I've had trying to figure this one out. Great work. Thank you.
There are plenty of others that can play similar difficult drum lines...He is definitely at the top but like I said there are plenty of others as well...
Learn the Swiss triplet, it is Danny's secret weapon, for this song anyway. He has the most comprehensive set of weapons to be a near perfect percussionist. An almost universal , natural sense of rhythm and structure and dynamics, long limbs, well built, perfect meter, innate ability of total limb independence of each other. He is polymetric and polyrhythmic. Which allows him to play any genre of music.
hundreds of "drummers" have recorded themselves reacting (or just inventing new ways to say "wow that's cool") to this video. You're the only one who actually dives into the specifics to explain what is happening and recreate it. Well fucking done!
Really nice analysis. That "flat-flam" pattern is something Danny has pulled out several times before, on 'Third Eye', ' Triad', and again on middle of 'Rosetta Stoned'. Has a very tribal, African feel, rhythmically.
Danny Carey is the most amazing drummer I think I’ve ever heard. 26 years old and just got into tool last year. As a musician, i wish I would’ve studied this more when I was younger.
I'm a guitarist. My mind melts thinking about playing different rhythms with each foot while your hands are doing something different. Like, how the fuck man.
This is one of the best explanations I've seen, and its still mindbogglingly complex. Every time someone breaks it down I'm blown away all over again. The idea that he just randomly improves on top of all that! Holy crap!
I'm a TOOL fan and I don't have a clue about drums but i can say this is one of the best videos i ever seen. We received gold for free. We thank you, sir!
I was going through all the reaction videos hoping someone would get more technical but I didn't expect someone to actually play the grooves. This is awesome
Awesome that you broke down that 5-4-3-2-1 progression! That was probably the thing that I found the coolest when I first saw the Pneuma video; I love that Danny creates an order to the (apparent) chaos in that section. Your eye for detail is impressive! Keep it up man!
Unknown pleasures oh he does, i'm not saying he only does polymetric stuff. i'm more annoyed at the fans who confuse polymeter and polyrhythm, because they're vastly different things
This was amazing. I have no clue what 75% of these words even are, but I love watching people who are really good at things (and other people who understand).
Love how all these other drummers who clearly have forgotten more than I know, try to analyse this guy, they try and pick out a section to try and replicate it, with varying levels of success. Now, this is absolutely not a dig at any of them including this dude. But what it graphically shows is just how much on another level to ANYONE Danny Carey is.. I'm going to do a reaction video from a perspective of a clueless Joe, for the man on the street and explain in layman terms just what Danny Carey is doing... not in an analytical way, because quite frankly, I haven't got a clue! But just in a way that will convey the off this planet difficulty of what he's doing...should be a laugh..
this section is really impressive and unique. The main section with all this rythm changes is something I can not still get, even listening to this quite a few times.
The part up to 06:22 is clearly borrowed from West Africa! We use it as intro to a Djembe solo, along with three different bass drums and three bells. As much as I admire 'four-limb-drummers', I can say that it's more powerful and dynamic when four drummers bring it together! Great video, anyway - hope many will learn from it!
Hey guys, hope you dig this one! You can download the notations here → www.abbdrums.com/danny-carey
Hey Austin - great video. Been following Study the Great Series for the past 5-6 years. Huge fan of all your work an huge Danny Carey/Tool fan like yourself.
Would love to see you breaking down Danny's Rosetta Stone Swiss Triplet pattern or the Descending polyrhythm (where his hands are playing in 7 but the kick drum is keeping time in 3).
Thanks again and stay safe!!
yes it's cool, great analysis, thanks for breaking it down, the basic beat (without orchestration) is actually very easy - it's typical of Danny to play this kind of stuff which sounds awesome but actually isn't that hard to play. I wonder how the non drummers feel in Tool though, especially when playing in odd times.
Hey Austin, great as always! I wrote you an email - I have my own Channel now and make some Videos in english from time to time. Check it out! Lutz
Your video are helping a lot understanding some odd rythm. Tanks a lot for that.
you are a great teacher. thank you ^^
This kind of content could save humanity
MrFabritzzio certainly, would be nice to have more drummers playing with similar styles as Danny Carey, but I guess that’s what makes it so special right? He’s very unique
but he forgot cycles of one man lol jk yeah it's fucking dynamite
But we all forgot our pens...
*should
?
So in summary, he is playing 4 different rhythm patterns, one with each of his limb. That is just absolutely mind blowing.
Polyrhythms- he was influenced by Neil Peart from Rush who also had amazing limb independence on the drums
He would play five patterns, but he's asked to keep his pants on during concerts
@@nervmichnich best comment here lol
practice...
zach hill
What is not explained in this video, is that Danny's mathematical patterns are actually conjuring rain deities for Maynard's vineyard. The tightening of the pattern signifies their arrival!
Did you catch the syllable count based upon the Fibonacci sequence?
better get your cheese back on your cracker there bub!
@@MaIContent I think there's a possibility they were joking. Then again, you never know with Tool fans
So true…so true.
@@ronaldviens7862 i heard the use the Fettucini formula in one of their song
you drummers are insane. how you can separate all your limbs I'll never understand. major props
This isn't "us drummers", this is just Danney Carrey and us try hards who try to immitate him lol :)
It comes naturally to you with a LOT of practice. You will "feel" each note and exactly when and how hard you want to hit it. You will feel like the drumset is an extension of your body and you play through songs effortlessly, giving you practice and study them well.
@@yassin6520 That’s my problem is that I can only play sort of fast and do some simple drum fills. Do you just wake up one day after days, weeks, months of practice and be able to play polyrhythms?
Its definitely a challenge haha
@@frostythasnowman9562 not really lol you just start to be able to hear rhe notes and it begins to just fall in place
I have basically no clue about drumming apart from a layman's appreciation, so this was all Greek to me. But watching it made me realise more profoundly what sorcery Danny is doing on this track. So, thank you for that! You were amazing.
Stefan Pana Same for me. All I know is Danny as well as some others put a new meaning to multitasking
WhoDarestheMAN gamer I will always hold Danny above Matt but LD50 is one of the best drum albums of all time. The whole thing is a masterpiece.
@WhoDarestheMAN gamer Meh? You think Danny Carey is meh? lol Riiiiiight......
WhoDarestheMAN gamer Well Danny doesn’t play in Mudvayne, so of course Matt does it better. But does he play Tool better?
My thoughts exactly.
DYNAMICS are one of Danny Carey's least discussed Jedi powers.
Every good drummer has great use of dynamics. Modern bashers not so much.
This often gets overlooked because of his other aspects of technical prowess, but you are absolutely right. Dynamics are overlooked generally. I am a guitarist and I really like Mark Knopfler; but even if you get his picking technique right, it is extremely difficult to match his mastery of dynamics.
@@Cars_and_Games Same. I'm a guitar player as well, and my favorites are masters of dynamics. Derek Trucks, Jerry Cantrell, Trey Anastasio, Jimmy Herring.. etc.
@@Cars_and_Games Mark has such a tasteful, elegant approach to his strings. Watching and listening to his playing is like seeing a beam of light traverses through a decorated glass:so spiritually soothing.
Look, Daney can hit the snare better than everyone, but he doesn't perform a lot of ghost notes, even though he imrpoved and worked on his skill playing jazz in NY with a shitton of people or whatever, that's what I heard. I think the next Tool album should have a lot of ghost notes and Daney Carey could produce beauty that's better than Animals As Leaders. Another thing is I think is Tool kinda played out their tribal thing and should dump it, and go for beautiful guitars and perhaps a look outward instead of inward. Imagine praises to Jesus and God instead of bemoaning him and cursing him. Unlikely? Yes, but the lord all mighty deserves praise, he's made some wonderful things. Okay, he made people, but he made other stuff as well. And some people aren't so bad. I love my girlfriend.
Not a drummer, but I did notice Danny Carey also varies how hard he's hitting at certain times in addition to the polymeter. It just adds another layer to what I can't comprehend. I was so happy when this cam footage came out. It just shows me what a living legend he truly is.
you are right, the volume also big important in the groove he and increase and decrease in every moment
That’s interesting that not being a drummer you picked up on “dynamics”. That’s how much you vary how hard or soft you play & Danny is a wizard with that. Good catch!
Dynamics are the difference in playing music and being musical.
while there is some great music actually without dynamics, yeah dynamics are certainly key to this
Yea he's using sound dynamic to his advantage mixed with the precision, as my dad says who's a music mixer and also been a drummer for 44 years. My dad can play all the shit Danny plays in terms of technicality but he's not 6'7 and huge like Danny and not as fit as he used to be though so....
Best comment I've heard on the subject of this song, and specifically the middle section here:
"So on the little "solo" around the middle of the song the math gets insanely complex.
His right hand is playing the triplets on FIVE different drums, his left is playing quadruplets, his hihat is going in 3s and 4s and his kick drum is keeping the overall beat of the song. (I think)
On top of this, he is also counting the bars, and taking away some of the toms on both (but mostly his right) hands while playing up to the crescendo towards the end of the section, so in his head he is keeping count of 4 different rhythms plus one count. FIVE DIFFERENT COUNTS!
He could play a fifth rhythm, but he'd need to be naked."
LOL !
Danny is an extraterrestrial
You could not have put it down in words better than this.
My main take away from watching Danny play is that some people are better at their jobs than others and there’s just not anything anyone else can do about it
Also one of the rare instances these days where the drummer is the only decent musician in the band.
Dallas Freeman and yet he’s just vibing with it too. I don’t even play drums and I’m ashamed of myself
@@NutritionalZero That's a bit harsh. Adam and Justin are very talented musicians, and Maynard is a fantastic lyricist, but Danny is so far ahead of 99.99% of professional musicians that it'd make anyone look like an amateur.
@@NutritionalZero I'll admit that Adam Jones is very functional, but Justin Chancellor is a great bassist in his own right, and Maynard's vocals are still on point.
Either way, if you take any of Tool's 4 members away, they wouldn't be Tool anymore.
@@NutritionalZero That is just straight up false, they're all great musicians, it's just that Danny is in a league of his own when it comes to drummers.
I am a brand new drummer. I am literally still learning the language and how to hold my sticks. Tool is the reason I decided to finally learn. There's an push inside that I can't ignore so here we are. This breakdown was really great and you are really easy to listen to.
A great Tool beat to learn is the main groove in “Sober.” I remember when I started playing, that was the first beat that really messed my brain up. But once you get it, it unlocks a lot for you ;)
@@abbdrums Thank you for the direction. I am super excited for all of mental challenges and the expansion. What a cool new journey this is going to be. I dig how you present material, thank for all of the resources you've created. xo
Terrific reason to get into drums!
This comment is two years old. She’s probably shredding the 46/2 solo by now.
Great content. As a non-drummer this was easy to follow yet impossible to fathom.
Couldn't have said it better myself! I guess you are a guitarist such as myself
This was a great breakdown. Thank you!
Hey Bobby, can't believe I find you here. Love your videos, and great music taste!
Are you a drummer?
You're welcome!
Making droom sticks out of wewd
Yo bobbyyyy good to know you got taste
And in the midst of all that drumming Danny is doing. He changes how hard he hits" accents " "dynamics " drums throughout these rhythms to Create another rhythm. It's insane and I doubt it can be duplicated by anyone.
yeah Austin does that at least a few of the times here, varying the loud/soft dynamics of the left hand snare/etc pattern in particular.. just so many little wrinkles and details, awesome
Danny Carey's dynamics are very underrated.
yes!
The entire band is built on this. Danny is, arguably, the most technical of the four. Even if the other parts aren’t as complex it’s the dynamics and nuance that make them heads and shoulders above anyone else out there. Would love to be a fly on the wall when they are writing....
Called accents
This man is gorgeous. I'm not gay but damn, I know a beautiful man when I see one.
Haha thanks Jon. Love your vids man!
Christian Bale stunt double
YOU'RE GAY!!!
u sure ur notgay...lol j/k
I have Bad News for u...
I don’t drum, just wanted to comment that this was a really well put together video, the host is brilliant.
Outstanding analysis. Most of us hear those polyrhythms and go, "OMG, Danny is a god and I'll never get there," but you took it apart and provided a path forward. You even developed an overarching observation on Danny's playing and demystified it a little...even the greatest are all just human, ya know.
Excellent, skilled pedagogy...upvote and thanks!
He's definitely an alien
@@Fnberg744 But.. you can get there with an alien amount of practice.
Just watched the whole video and it makes zero sense to me lol but I could prob play it. So crazy.
@@NanoverseProductions i started casually practicing swiss army triplets about a month and a half ago and it was really difficult for me to do even at the slowest speeds. now i can get to about half speed of what he's doing in pneuma consistently. It's a long way but you can get there! Just need perseverance. I still cant even get close to triad lol. Watch the live video to know what I mean if you havent
Hey, Austin. I hardly ever comment on RUclips but I really wanted to thank you for this video, man. I'm a big fan of Danny and you've done a great job, as usual. Keep it up! Greetings from Argentina.
Glad you dig it!
Aguante argentina y aguante tool papaaa
@@leonardojacobo7999 ¡De una! Abrazo toolero.
Gran batero! Copado para practicar durante la cuarentena.
@@brunete2505 ¡Sí! Este tipo es un fenómeno. Ojalá siga haciendo videos y ojalá Danny largue algún video más como el de Vic Firth. Me hizo muy feliz.
3:13 is drenched in Motherland. The Marriage of African, Indian, and middle Eastern percussions made up a bulk of Danny's work and fits amazing with the rest of the band.
Only drummer to ever put me intona trance with his rythem
This is an old comment I used before but it work here. Danny: “Comon Maynard, grab your calculator, we got band practice”
The old joke for Tool;
Q:What time signature is this?
A: All of them! 😉
But he's probably not even thinking in numbers. He's probably thinking in sacred geometrical patterns and higher dimensional complex polyhedrons. 😐
@@kaerbear He's probably not thinking.
Every other band: “we need to think out of the box”
Tool; “You guys still use boxes?”
"It's harder than it seems"
Bruh, I didn't even noticed the measures pattern was changing to begin with.
i'm very familiar with this polymeter but the idea of gradually subtracting the amount of drums in the orchestration is not something I would have thought of, very cool.
it seems like he s applying ideas from outside into the music, he's like hey what if i take this part and move it one beat forward every measure... well that's a poor example but you get the idea.
I hear this happening pretty much on Lateralus. I even think that I got him on changing the exact same BD and Snare accents sometimes which surprisingly kicks pretty much ass. I might also be helplessy mistaken. That´s been 20 years ago when I still happened to enjoy it flying a little, if you know what I mean.
Also notice that, every time he subtracts a drum, the average volume/pitch of the drum increases to build tension. In other words, he subtracts the softer drums (floor toms) until only the loudest ones (snare) are left.
@@stairfall12345678900 That's probably a pretty good observation about the Danny's ability to control his timber. But when he moves form the four drum rotation to the tree drum rotation he goes from snare, roto, rack, floor to snare, rack, floor and, when he switches to two he alternates between the snare and the roto. The pitch of the roto is higher than the rack typically. So subtracting the roto would indicate that any increase in volume and perceived pitch is entirely down to sticking. He might me simultaneously hitting the lip of the rim and head of the rack drum which would increase the volume of the stroke and the reverb pitch is always quite high. I didn't see him doing that but, you can't put it past him. And if he was using the aforementioned sticking on the rack tom, that is fucking insanely technical and one hell of a rim job.
Once you see it, you can't unsee it. The timing is amazing, wrapping up just in time, too. Can we spare a thought for the guitarist, though? The counting has gotta be brutal at times.
Guitar player here, but this content friggin amazing. This kind of breakdown is invaluable for any musician on any instrument to understand how geniuses like Tool relate to one another. Incredible stuff man. Thanks so much.
really happy this wasn't an April Fools video lol
Just a video of him staring at a picture of Danny for 15 mins.
@@DavidOakesMusic haha - honestly, any Austin content, is great content, soooo...
Danny limbs are basically octopus with brains in each one. Hes one of the best ever and of his gen. Glad hes finally getting some love. Hes the only ONLY drummer to put me into a trance with his rythem. Absolutely phenomenal
I feel like this is not only a great lesson and concept in isolation but also as a general concept this is great to do with other odd groups like 5s or 7s but also other subdivisions hitting some interesting shifting accents or acting as more of a texture over a part. Awesome work as always Austin.
This is what I wanted to see from all the other ‘reaction’ videos - which anyone could make by just sitting and making statements of awe - now I feel I have a tiny idea of why it’s so amazing what Danny is doing. Thank you!!
This video made me understand how awesome Dany Carey is, I watched other reaction videos but this is by far the best as it shows just how hard and complicated the drumming is. TOOL is the best band on earth.
It's always so amazing to see just how complex his drumming actually is when you sit down and try to imitate it. You can certainly hear it in the recording, but damn...
Polyvalent when you listen to the record it sounds like something you should be able to play, but then you actually try it and it turns your brain into mush.
"Danny is playing a huge hybrid kit, so it's going to be nearly impossible to recreate what he's doing. " So I pulled out the COWBELL!
Holy hell, if Danny pulled out the cowbell.
LOL
(like, for real)
I'm a guitarist, never played drums, and still had to watch this all the way through. Very well done!! Would love to see the same kind of video analyzing Mangini or Portnoy.
I have zero knowledge on notes and reading music but I like watching people like you explaining so skillfully how the dynamic of the song works because it makes me appreciate the music more.
I just pray Vic Firth releases OTHER Live Carey concert videos! Invincible, possibly?? Here's to hoping!
Wrote down Invisible's 3 over 7 polyrhythm a few months ago and I'm just feeling comfortable playing that with confidence after practicing that for hours on end...
On top of all of this that tapping he does on the left stick he makes dynamic loud and quiet hits. It's so amazing.
Austin's editing and production is always top notch.
Unreal breakdown man. I would have just happily accepted the genius at play without bothering to try and figure that out. You nailed it.
This guy actually knows what he's talking about
Indeed!
After watching many many reaction/analisis videos about this performance, this is the better one...
I have learned more from your one video than I have hundreds of other youtube videos. You are a fantastic, clear, and concise teacher and easily the best and most informative drum teacher on youtube. Thank you.
As someone who is guilty of having made a reaction video to that video, I'm stoked that you're actually sitting behind the kit and breaking the song down! This was my original plan, but I A) don't have access to my kit right now and B) I'm just not good enough to try to replicate what he's doing! Looks like you have it covered, mate! Keep it up!
This has to be one of the best breakdowns of how drumming works for NON-DRUMMERS on the internet. I learned a great deal just watching you explain pieces into "slow" parts and trying to reconstruct the action in half the time. It's amazing to me as a musician on the melody side of things to see the underbelly of what bass/drums deal with. Very well done.
I'm not a drummer or musician at all. I just like music and I can't always explain why I like certain things. With that said, this breakdown was my favorite part of the song. It makes the synapses fire in my brain. Interesting that this is the section you covered.
Yo man, cant stop watching this lesson. Love how you broke this down w your simplified kit - yet mastered the technique and thus pulled it off - sounded perfect to me! Sincerely appreciate this!!
you are the man for breaking this down. I'm working on learning this song and I had no idea what he was doing in this part.
i've been a big fan of Tool since i first heard then and i didn't even know. i'm getting into music producing (digital) as a bit of a quarantine hobby, since i've got a looooot of musically talented friends. Breaking down Tool to understand them better has been immensely helpful.
Danny: So I heard yall like Swiss triplets; so I put Swiss triplets into Swiss triplets and nested them within swiss-triplettish dynamics and added a little bit of offbeat triplets in there. Youll love it!
When this DC video 1st came out, my mind was officially blown, and now several years later, it still is. Then, with every reaction or instructional video like this, where something else is described, it all happens again.... The crescendos built into this particular song is awe inspiring..... You must put great headphones 🎧 on when reviewing this song and take it all in.... Love it!! Love TOOL music!! Kudos to each musician in the band, especially Danny!!
This holds so much more water than the tacky "[insert genre here] drummer reacts to metal drummer" videos that seem to be clutting my feed. Mad respect, this is really interesting and educational. Keep posting more stuff!
Anyway, if you're looking for suggestions for corona-isolation, a cool one would be Cygnus X-1 Book II by Rush. The beat Neil plays around the 1 minute mark.
Reaction videos are, for the most part, a complete waste of time. About as original as top 10 lists.
So many videos of nobody drummers analysing Carey. Like who gives a shit about your nothing review of a master. Most of them dont even know he doesn't use a click.
Jazz.
Rush is overrated
My biggest takeaway from this is that you have the best analysis of this solo on RUclips. I watched like 10 of these "Drumming instructor reacts to Pneuma" videos and none of them went into any depth about the patterns. Some of them didn't mention anything at all, they just stood in Awe of Mr. Carey. Sure, i get it, i'm in awe too. But i can sit in awe watching the video myself. What i want to see from a drumming instructor is an in-depth analysis of the patterns - and you provided that. So big thanks here.
his left hand also switches how he's playing. it seems he's alternating b/w 2 drums w/ equal measure during the 5 section, 2 different drums but in a 3 pattern of 2 high, 1 low during the 4 section, then back to 2 w/ equal measure in the 3 section, then adding accents in the 2 section. I think the point is to create different and varying pattern cycles that will eventually match up but not always be on the beginning of the measure.
I am a musician and always saw what Danny did on drums as madness but this in depth look really allows you to see into the incredible compositional mind of Danny! Also the speed at which he plays
Hi from France ! Virgil Donati is incredible, his drumming is the most difficult and his music is very interresting. Danny's drumming is perhaps a little less difficult, but this music is emotional and addictive for me! Thank you!!
That arrow placement was as incredible as Carey's drumming..
That descending cycle part was so brilliant, Carey knows when to play and just what to do to make his playing as effective as possible, simply by referring to him as a legend brings more value, impact, and credibility the very status.
Just to clear one thing up in case people don’t know, the synth sound Adam Jones plays for a big part of this section is a keyboard, not a guitar, then he switches back to guitar when we hear the guitar tone again
Its seemless sex to be honest 🤣🤣 Insane live.
Played self taught rock cover guitar since I was around 20 (I'm 59 now). Last year when Peart died I gifted myself an electronic drum set. Drums were always my favorite instrument. What I've learned is how little I knew about music, and stuff like Carey's is great confirmation of my opinion of myself. Thank you so much for this video. It gives me the info I really need to fix that issue.
I've been doing Swiss triplets for years, but I didn't realise that what they were. Thanks! I attempted this song for the first time today. It did not go well.
Your comment made me lol. I hope subsequent attempts have seen improvement
Just be happy that the attempt didn't get your mind
So to make it more clear , take the step high hat as the 4/4 measure , hes playig a 3/4 polyrythym between the cross stick and the high hat and hes adding the toms making the polyrythym a triplet 3/4 one and with the bass hes playing a 6/4 polyrythym
Danny's an octopus. Austin is pretty good, too for figuring this all out! Great breakdown!
One thing not mentioned on the initial breakdown was just how he accents that rimshot. That's what kills me with that part of the song is the deliberate choice to flip the stick for a different sound, then choosing deliberately how hard he wants to hit it, giving this fade in and out effect that's just incredible. Danny is completely methodical in how he plays, very attentive to detail.
Danny Carey is like a wrestler version of Nicko Mcbrain.
Nico mcBigBrain
totally agree with what you said!
i dont know mcbrain, but if he has 8 arms and 9 brains and is called the octopus, then we think the same...^^
Where Eagles dare can't be undone.
Thank you for this, I've been obsessed with this performance since the first time it popped up in my RUclips suggestions. Been listening everyday since, i am not even a drummer or that much of a tool fan. But it's just so mesmerizing. This gives me a bit of an insight on how it is constructed, because i was frying my brain trying to understand how it all works and why it speaks to me so much. It still left me with more questions and awe, but you gave me a "tool", that helps me in understanding why this is so amazing to me.
Well it's just a simple matter of this incredibly complex stuff that only Professor Frink could possibly comprehend, mmmHAY
Ssssssssssssssnnnnnnnnnes drunk!
Dude! The snes drunk guy
love your channel dude, glad to see you in here
Awesome to see the one and only Snnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnes Drunk! You rock bro!
What an excellent breakdown. I'm no musso but I have been watching a few of these and yours is by far the most comprehensive and understandable. Excellent
Do you think you could do a "Study the greats" on Bill Bruford? Discipline would be absolutely amazing, though it might be difficult for copyright reasons.
KC's INDISCIPLINE!
I second this!!!!!
Also do you guys know Pierre Moerlen from Gong? If not, go listen to Isle of Everywhere RIGHT NOW it's going to change your life.
fun fact, there's an old vid of danny carey in a studio pretty much fanboying over discipline
This one.
crifox16 ~ ruclips.net/video/QF3A6VQWLUg/видео.html - 2:58. Had never seen this before! So cool. That album is revelatory!
I'm not a musician, and yet I love watching those skilled in the arts and theory deconstruct some of my favorite music. I have always wondered what it's like to listen to music when you're someone like Burcham or Beato who can pick all this stuff out whereas I'm just enjoying the groove. I guess there is something to be said for both. Austin, you are a very skilled drummer, dude, and thanks for the breakdown.
I'm a complete music illiterate. I couldn't play an instrument to save my life. Yet here I am enjoying Austin's mathematical explaination of Danny Carey's greatness.
It never ceases to amaze me that he is that large of a guy, yet moves not only fast, but fluid and accurate. More so than most other drmmers. He's well known as one of the best ever in any genre, and that's awesome. Yeah, he's in good shape and has some guns on him for sure, but that's also more weight to push and pull, stop and start, and swing around.
I think that's why a lot of people love watching him, whether they know why or not. I remember how entertaining that video was that he did at the basketball game where he plays with the band. He just dwarfs that drum set. I'm pretty sure he really is part octopus, or alien of some type.
hey Austin, another fantastic video :) Just wanted to say that your video production is incredible. I've been a sub since The Undo cover and have always enjoyed your attention to detail when it comes to your content, it's looking super clean!
Thanks Drew 🙏🏼
The level of decomposition you did there. Wow. Really great breakout. Thank you so much!
Danny Carey makes other drummers look like bass players.
As a bass player of 33 years, I couldn't agree more!
Charles Berthoud makes other bass players look like lead singers, if you want to see some talent on bass
Glenn is that you?
oh boy right in the feels
Go check out Gavin Harrison who is better than Carey in my opinion.
Thanks for showing this. I'm not a drummer, but am fascinated with the stuff Carey so effortlessly plays.
Dude, that makes so much sense. I’ve been trying to figure it out since the album dropped. Once I set up my kit in a month, I’m gonna be trying it out.
Did you try it out?
Mitchell Butler need more toms and to soundproof but hopefully I will.
As a non-musician who struggles with just understanding the basics this vid just makes me appreciate Danny’s drumming even more.
I could watch you do 100 episodes on Danny Carey and his mastery of his style.
What I Learned: There's a method to the madness that IS Danny Carey. For the second section I thought he was just playing doubles, breaking down that flam-triplet (whatever it's called) is just mind blowing because of how the pattern creates its OWN SPACE for the notes being played when sped up (what does it sound like on a double pedal..?) Great video man thank you so much!! As a guitar player there's a ton of interesting rhythmic variety I can take away from a quick lesson like this so I really appreciate it!
Danny loves his Swiss army triplets doesn’t he
He's the only Octopus in the Swiss military
They’re actually Egyptian navy triplets
Rosetta stoned too!
Carey is the one drummer that you absolutely need a breakdown like this to achieve any sort of resemblance to his playing. Can't tell you how much brain strain I've had trying to figure this one out. Great work. Thank you.
There are plenty of others that can play similar difficult drum lines...He is definitely at the top but like I said there are plenty of others as well...
Learn the Swiss triplet, it is Danny's secret weapon, for this song anyway. He has the most comprehensive set of weapons to be a near perfect percussionist. An almost universal , natural sense of rhythm and structure and dynamics, long limbs, well built, perfect meter, innate ability of total limb independence of each other. He is polymetric and polyrhythmic. Which allows him to play any genre of music.
Listen, you just blew my mind. The analysis of how the tension rises up
Amazing
It should be added that it is necessary to have a brain for each limb.
It just a practice from a book from 50's to learn separate the limbs and play independently.
Metagross??
Beelzebub called the humans of Terra, 4 brained beings in G.I. Gurdgieff’s “Beelzebub’s Tales to his Grandson”.
@@fuckyoufuckingweb oh…that’s all. Sweet, I should have a band that stays relevant for 30 years in no time then. Arch out Danny. Here I come
what a gem @7:53. those swiss triplet transitions are fantastic. bravo sir!
Fitting that this was released on April 1st... since it's funny to assume I can play even a second of this.
hundreds of "drummers" have recorded themselves reacting (or just inventing new ways to say "wow that's cool") to this video. You're the only one who actually dives into the specifics to explain what is happening and recreate it. Well fucking done!
Really nice analysis. That "flat-flam" pattern is something Danny has pulled out several times before, on 'Third Eye', ' Triad', and again on middle of 'Rosetta Stoned'. Has a very tribal, African feel, rhythmically.
Danny Carey is the most amazing drummer I think I’ve ever heard. 26 years old and just got into tool last year. As a musician, i wish I would’ve studied this more when I was younger.
60 year old drummer here; been playing since 1975 and just heard tool last year as well. I too wish I would have heard them when I was younger.
I'm a guitarist. My mind melts thinking about playing different rhythms with each foot while your hands are doing something different. Like, how the fuck man.
I'm already having trouble with singing while playing the guitar.
This is one of the best explanations I've seen, and its still mindbogglingly complex. Every time someone breaks it down I'm blown away all over again. The idea that he just randomly improves on top of all that! Holy crap!
One minute of silence - this was the 4/4 part in the song.
Lol😂
I'm a TOOL fan and I don't have a clue about drums but i can say this is one of the best videos i ever seen. We received gold for free. We thank you, sir!
It’s said that Danny made a deal with the devil. The devil got drum lessons, we aren’t sure what Danny got.
Deciphering that was insane, great job. What an amazing track Pneuma is, simple amazing.
4:54 “and this is actually a lot harder than it seems”...
No, it seems pretty fucking hard lol
I was going through all the reaction videos hoping someone would get more technical but I didn't expect someone to actually play the grooves. This is awesome
I didn't understand everything you were talking about (not a trained musician), but I loved the video nonetheless.
Awesome that you broke down that 5-4-3-2-1 progression! That was probably the thing that I found the coolest when I first saw the Pneuma video; I love that Danny creates an order to the (apparent) chaos in that section. Your eye for detail is impressive! Keep it up man!
thank you for calling it a polymeter and not a polyrhythm. that's my biggest pet peeve with tool fans
BRUH DID YOU JUST SAY TOOL?? I LOVE TOOL!! BRUH I LOVE THE MATH AND THE *P O L Y R Y T H M S* AND THE....uhm...AND THE EVEN MORE MATH!
TOOL!!!!1!!1!
Brody Imlay
Nope as Danny’s does both !!
Unknown pleasures
oh he does, i'm not saying he only does polymetric stuff. i'm more annoyed at the fans who confuse polymeter and polyrhythm, because they're vastly different things
Brody Imlay
Yep!! 80% of any fans can’t read music ...don’t get me wrong ,you don’t need to be a geek to enjoy Tool , Rush .........
This was amazing. I have no clue what 75% of these words even are, but I love watching people who are really good at things (and other people who understand).
Love how all these other drummers who clearly have forgotten more than I know, try to analyse this guy, they try and pick out a section to try and replicate it, with varying levels of success. Now, this is absolutely not a dig at any of them including this dude. But what it graphically shows is just how much on another level to ANYONE Danny Carey is..
I'm going to do a reaction video from a perspective of a clueless Joe, for the man on the street and explain in layman terms just what Danny Carey is doing... not in an analytical way, because quite frankly, I haven't got a clue! But just in a way that will convey the off this planet difficulty of what he's doing...should be a laugh..
this section is really impressive and unique.
The main section with all this rythm changes is something I can not still get, even listening to this quite a few times.
"This is a lot harder than it seems." Ah...no, it seems pretty hard already.
The part up to 06:22 is clearly borrowed from West Africa! We use it as intro to a Djembe solo, along with three different bass drums and three bells. As much as I admire 'four-limb-drummers', I can say that it's more powerful and dynamic when four drummers bring it together! Great video, anyway - hope many will learn from it!