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Drums: How to

The drums are Rock Band 2's most demanding instruments. If you plan to use them through Expert and beyond, playing them requires strength, stamina, and great coordination. Before you start banging away, treat your arms and legs to a good stretch. Afterward, settle into a sturdy chair (see: "Positioning Yourself") and fire up RB2's drum tutorials. They'll demonstrate the basics, and this "How-To" section will elaborate upon their instructions to teach you the rest.

Positioning Yourself:

Most gaming areas aren't set up for drumming. Cushy armchairs and sofas don't provide the leg and back support you'll need for safe, long-term playing. Before all else, we highly recommend procuring a solid chair that you won't sink into, like a wooden one from a dining set, or the plastic porch variety. The best option of all is a drum throne (which is like a miniature bar stool), but a nice firm chair will do well enough. Ideally, its height will enable you to use the kick pedal without making any awkward movements.

When you ran through RB2's tutorials, you likely noticed that their black-and-white drummer was sitting fairly straight. Proper stature like that is essential; you don't want to hunch forward or lean too far back. With the kit about a foot away from you, you should be seated upright in your chair, and your leg should be at a near 90 degree angle in relation to the kick pedal.

If being a foot away from the kit isn't working for you, use the 90 degree-ish angle of your knee as a guideline. Move it toward or away from you till you find a comfortable distance. Discovering the proper height for the drum pads is simple, too. First, you'll want to take one drum stick in each hand (per the tutorial's example), and sit upright. Then, try to hit the center area of the pads. If you can do this easily—even lazily—without hitting the plastic or stretching your arms, the height is good. If not, adjust it accordingly.

Holding the Sticks:

As a quick note on the drum sticks, the handling style shown in the tutorial isn't the only option. You can also hold them like pencils, and tap the side of the stick head against the pad. For some players, this is preferable on drum rolls and makes passing songs easier overall. It's not a method many hard rock musicians use, but if it puts you at your most nimble, there's no reason to say no. It could also be helpful to learn both styles, as switching off between them slightly changes how you're using the muscles in your arm. On demanding Hard and Expert runs, that'll do wonders for dealing with fatigue without hurting yourself.

Working the Pedal:

Since you've played through the drum tutorials, you've a general idea of how to press that pedal. Like the matter of holding drum sticks, however, the way RB2 suggests using the kick pedal isn't your only option. As a matter of fact, there are many drummers (including their virtual counterparts in games) who do move their entire leg to hit the bass, directly contradicting what the tutorial advises. This doesn't strictly boil down to a matter of what's more comfortable for you, either, although that is a factor; some drummers find that moving more of their leg provides superior accuracy, and enables them to do more than just using their foot would.

For example, you'll encounter double bass notes in RB2 which can be very difficult, if not nearly impossible, to hit by moving your foot exclusively. (This really only applies to Hard and Expert mode, so if you're not at those levels yet, don't fret.) On these, it's advisable to use your leg and foot together, or to employ a "slide method." To elaborate a little further, let's envision a double bass note coming your way. You've tried to get the timing down for hitting it by tapping your foot twice, and that's not working. Instead, try lifting your foot before the notes come in. Press down with the rear half of your foot for the first, and tap your toes to hit the second. This may enable you to hit a double note without much trouble.

Another method is the aforementioned slide, which numerous pro drummers utilize. To do this, we'll imagine a set of double notes is coming your way yet again. First lift your leg slightly, and when the first bass note arrives, tap your toes against the center of the pedal. Then immediately slide your foot forward and flatten the pedal for the second note. This should see you through any double notes, though they're not the only way to pass them (see: "Double Bass Pedals").

To get any of the aforementioned methods to work, you might have to try different kinds of shoes (like flat-bottomed skater sneakers), or only wearing socks. Don't go barefoot, you'll regret it.

Earning and Using Overdrive:

Ready and willing to rock the drum charts, you're passing through some songs and are noticing white, glowing notes. Hitting a full sequence of them will provide you with Overdrive Energy, subsequently filling its meter. If you've read about it in the guitar section, you know what this can be used for, but its execution is different for a drummer. Good thing too, as lifting that whole kit would be hardcore, but awkward, and we want to be as smooth as possible.

Anyway, once your Overdrive meter is at least halfway full, you'll see drum fills appearing on screen. You might remember these from the tutorial. To utilize them, bang on the drums in any way you'd like, and don't miss the green note at the very end. This will double the amount of points you're earning, and will send your crowd approval skyrocketing. Don't feel obligated to use this at first glance, though.

As with any instrument, you can preserve Overdrive by ignoring the fills and only playing the regular notes, thus saving your Energy for a difficult area you can't pass normally. Leaving the fills alone doesn't penalize you either, so they can be used as opportunities for brief breathers, and that can do wonders for your stamina during a nasty track.

Guitar/Bass:

Holding the Guitar
+ Using the Frets

Holding the Guitar:

aid you in finding the perfect form for musical combat, and you can meld bits and pieces of each methodology to create your own style. In the end, choose whatever is most comfortable for you, for it will lead you to certain victory.

For acoustic and living room guitarists alike, the most common pose is as follows: sit upright, rest the curve of the guitar's body against your leg, and put your left hand on the frets with your right on the strum bar. Lefties would reverse their hand positioning, but everything else would stay the same. This is the most traditional method, but the small size of the plastic Stratocaster will make it uncomfortable for some people. However, it could prove useful to those practicing power strumming (see: "Strumming in Style").

Let's assume you do enjoy sitting, but don't like resting the guitar's body on your leg. Try this: tighten the shoulder strap till the guitar is resting against your chest (closer to your head), and then place your hands on the fret and strum bar accordingly. This one is a real endurance-tester, and if it sounds uncomfortable to you before you try it, it's likely not for you. Regardless, some guitarists adore this style and prefer it to all the others. It's easier to manage if you're sitting in a chair with arm rests, too.

Now, there are surely some of you who really don't want to stand, but didn't like the aforementioned suggestions. Here's one more for you: seat yourself in front of a table or desk, lay the guitar flat on its back in front of you, and learn to play it "keyboard style." Though it's nothing like the real deal, this method appeals to players of all types. For the kiddies, it's a way of overcoming their inability to hold the guitar while supporting its weight, and lets them enjoy Rock Band 2. Meanwhile, professional fretters use tabletops to expertly tap their way through the most demanding tracks in musical gaming (see: "Tapping & Speed Strumming"). You'll need to secure the guitar somehow if you don't want it sliding all over the place.

When you're ready to stand on your own two feet, it's time to break out the true performer's style: standing up, you'll loosen the shoulder strap till the guitar is hanging near the bottom of your torso, and will curl your fret hand around the front of the neck while your strumming arm rests against the instrument's body. Maybe this isn't as "traditional" as the first method, but it's how electric guitarists love to shred it up on stage. By resting the palm of your fretting hand against the back of the guitar's neck, you'll alleviate some of the pressure on your back, and your fingers won't wear out as quickly. Additionally, setting the base of your wrist against the axe's body will lighten your load even more, and help you stay oriented.

Any of those four styles can be yours, or they might help you develop your own. Go ahead and try all of them out, unless one feels so right that once you've tried it, you can't look back. Each of them can carry you through every difficulty in the game as long as you're confident about whichever you use. Don't force yourself to utilize a method that isn't natural at all, because whether you're doing this casually or with a vengeance, the point is always to have fun.

Using the Frets & Open Strum:

You've settled into a comfortable position, have a firm grip on your tool, and need to know one more thing: how to use it. You wouldn't have any fun if we didn't help you out (what are friends for, right?), so we'll start with fret education. Those five, stripe-labeled buttons at the top of the guitar's neck are the frets we speak of. They come in five delicious colors, which are (from top to bottom): green, red, yellow, blue, and orange. When the appropriate button is depressed, you'll use the white strum bar to actually hit a note. In the beginning, you'll quickly make friends with the green, red, and yellow frets, as they're the only three utilized in Easy Mode.

Your pointer finger may instinctively head for the green button, but you must resist that temptation! Ideally, your four fingers will be placed like so: pointer on the red, middle on the yellow, ring on the blue, and pinkie on the orange. To hit the green notes, you'll slide your pointer upward on the fret board, and return it to the red button afterward. This is important to learn if you want to surpass Easy Mode, and will impress any nearby witnesses who haven't played Rock Band themselves. Then you can invite them to jump into the game with you. Win-win, right?

Once you've worked up the courage to approach Medium Mode, you'll start using that formerly neglected ring finger. Knowing how to slide your pointer will become even more important, especially when you finally move on to Expert, and bring the orange fret into the fray. Once you have reached the hardest mode in the game, learning to use your pinkie for the orange button will be essential. Practice makes perfect, and remember: it pays to be versatile.

Oh, and here's a special technique for you bass players: the "open strum." Whenever you see a solid line descending along your highway, you'll want to release all the frets, wait for it to reach the bottom, and then hit the strum bar. It might sound tricky, but mastering this unique note is the key to complete fretting satisfaction.

Assuming you're feeling more confident now, it's time for you to learn the finer details of playing with the frets.

Hammer-Ons & Pull-Offs
+ Struming in Style

n the glossary, we touched on how hammer-ons ("HOs") and pull-offs ("POs") function. You won't encounter challenging HOPOs till Hard Mode at least, but you should learn about them beforehand. Fortunately, the in-game tutorials for guitar will do a fine job of enlightening you, and you should complete them ASAP. Those aside, here's a deeper explanation of how they work:

The top green button represents the lowest notes on the musical scale, while the orange fret is for the highest. Naturally, this means that to move from low to high equals going from the top of the fret board to the bottom. Hammer-ons are low-to-high notes sequences, and they begin with one normal-sized rectangular note followed by one or more smaller bars.

What makes these so special is that you only have to tap the fret buttons for the smaller, subsequent notes—you won't have to strum all of them. This is roughly akin to the real life hammer-on it takes its name from, where guitarists strum the strings just once and use tapping (or "fretting") to hit a few notes more. Their name also helps you understand that you'll be going from low to high, as you will be "hammering on" your fingers subsequently, from your pointer to your pinkie.

Their opposite is the pull-off, which takes you from the high end of the scale to the lower. Like the HO, this method gets its name from "pulling off" or away from the frets, by withdrawing your fingers from the pinkie to the pointer. Neither HOs nor POs (or their back-and-forth big brother, the HOPO) necessarily require the use of every single fret, to note; that just helps paint a clearer mental picture by explaining their largest potential range.

A pull-off may be as simple as strumming an orange note and following with a tap of blue, then nothing else. Likewise, a hammer-on could consist of a yellow strum, then a blue tap. Technically, you could strum every note whether it's part of a HO or a PO, but you shouldn't. No matter how simple they are, you should try your best to tap the smaller notes instead of strumming them. Learning to HOPO is important, and the only way to thoroughly conquer both the Hard and Expert difficulties. It will also ease your strumming arm by giving it necessary breaks during particularly tough pieces, though when it comes to the craziest songs, you might not use your hand to strum much at all (see: "Tapping & Speed Strumming")!

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Strumming in Style:

When it comes to that oft-mentioned and slender strum bar, there's more than one way of using it. You already know its purpose—it's to be used in conjunction with the fret buttons to hit notes—but how you utilize it is up to you.

One common usage is called "down-strumming," where a player uses the underside of their thumb to strike the bar downward. Not only does this method come naturally, but it is used by many of the most seasoned players out there. It lets you keep the base of your palm steady against the guitar's body, which also makes activating Overdrive easier (see: "Earning & Using Overdrive"). You can rock through every difficulty in RB2 using down-strumming, but it isn't the best style for every situation.

Another method is "alt-strumming," or "up/down strumming," with the latter being the more self-explanatory convention. Alternate strumming relates to moving the strum bar both up and down, usually by gripping the most narrow part of the bar like a guitar pick. Aside from being useful during very repetitive and/or fast-paced note sequences, some players find it more comfortable than using their thumb. Exclusively relying on alt-strumming could make hitting your Overdrive button tougher, but if you really like this style, you'll find a way.

The most advanced players utilize both sorts, using down-strumming to pass certain parts and alt-strumming for others. Combining the two styles successfully is a great accomplishment, but it will take time and dedication. If you don't feel up to it, that's not a mark against you; RB is all about having fun. If you fight for perfection and burn yourself out, you're defeating its purpose. Use the strumming style that works best for you, while gradually working the other in. Over time, you will learn how to switch off between them.

While you're at it, learn how to use more than just your hand and wrist, too. Like real guitarists, you should rely upon more of the muscles in your arm (and more movement) to keep playing. If you're rigid and expect your wrist to get you through it all, you'll tire yourself out fast.

Earning & Using Overdrive:

We've referred to Overdrive a few times already, and since you're familiar with both the frets and the strum bar, it's time you learned about this. Whenever you see solid white bars descending your on-screen highway, those special sequences of notes are called "Overdrive Phrases." By playing all of them, you'll add some gold, glowing power to your Overdrive Meter.

What does this ability do, and how do you activate it? Whenever your meter is at least halfway full, you can either hit the Select button on the guitar's base, or quickly tilt the guitar skyward. Those are your two Overdrive triggers. They're best to use whenever you have a high score multiplier going, as they'll double it (e.g., taking x4 to x and help your points grow. Multiple bandmates using Overdrive bestows even bigger bonuses. Also, if you're struggling during a song and your highway is flashing red, Overdrive will save your butt by driving the crowd wild, and empowering your notes with extra people-pleasing power.

If you've tried a track several times and one of its segments keeps causing problems, try to save a full Overdrive meter for that section. Activate it when the trouble-making begins. This will help you limp through it as long as you hit a few notes here and there.

Vocals

Know Your Limits:

Aside from breathing regularly and correctly, there's other means that'll keep your throat healthy. One involves warm-ups, which involve singing in various tones and pitches. That'll get your vocal chords ready. Another is to sing only within your range. If you aren't aware of what it is, try singing along to some of your favorite songs with their volume turned relatively low. Whichever ones you can sing along and alike to without much trouble—maintaining harmony—are probably within your range. Truthfully, this isn't the most accurate means of determining what your range is, but unless you're willing to pursue professional analysis, it'll do.

If you can't hit the high notes naturally, don't fight it. Instead, drop an octave (see: "Octave," Glossary) and sing within your normal range. For some cases, the opposite is true, and you'll want to sing a little higher than the original artist. So long as you harmonize with them, you're doing A-OK, and RB2 will reward you for vocalizing correctly.

In any situation, you should remember to sing with your lungs, not just your throat. If you're being loud and want to add extra emphasis into higher notes, or need to last through a longer one, open your throat and let your breath come right through. Don't tighten up, ever. Not only will that decrease how long you'll be able to play for, it can literally hurt your throat and leave you sore.

One more thing: keep some water handy. That'll protect you even more, and will keep you hydrated. Guzzling juice, soda, or booze alone will only damage your chances of success, and potentially make you sick after hours and hours of dehydrated gaming.

Learning to Breathe:

Running out of breath during a song's verse won't help you, nor your bandmates. One of the most important aspects of singing is learning how to breathe effectively. Prior to any line of lyrics, you should take in a quick and deep-as-possible breath. When they're done, let out the rest of the air and bring in a fresh gulp of it (or just suck some more in if that feels better). Teach yourself to do this all of the time, and consider it as important to your performance as reading the words on-screen. If you strain yourself to complete sequences, you'll mess with your natural breathing pattern and wear yourself out quicker. Don't be a party pooper.

Advanced

Two-Handed Tapping:

Learning how to tap for HOs and POs is one thing (see: "Hammer-Ons and Pull-Offs"), but mastering the craft is an entirely more challenging feat. This is because of two-handed tapping, the most advanced method there is. As its name indicates, you must abandon the strum bar to do it, as you'll be using both your hands on the frets. Sound impossible? It isn't, and there's a couple ways it can be done.

First, we'll get into the oldest method, which pre-dates Rock Band and universally applies to all guitar games. Its adaptability comes at a cost, though: it's the toughest of the two styles.

Your main fretting hand will have its most useful fingers—most likely your pointer and middle—on green and red, while your strum hand will cover the last three. If that's not working for you, try three fingers from the fret hand and two from the strummer. Play with the buttons a bit, fretting from low to high and in reverse sequences, and then mix it up a bit. Practice until this comes naturally, and then you'll be ready to move on to strumming it.

Now that your fingers are firmly in position, try pushing your elbow against the strum bar. Depending upon the length of your arm and your flexibility, this might not work for you. If it does, it'll help you remain coordinated after you strum the first note and tap away at the rest. If that's too awkward, you'll need to start HOPOs by hitting the strum bar quickly and then immediately moving that hand back up to the frets (or use the alternative method that's mentioned below). The latter strumming style might sound easier, but truthfully, it usually isn't.

Quickly moving your hand from the strum to the frets requires lightning-quick reflexes and plenty of practice. There may be some exceptions to this, such as in a song where the beginning of the HOPO relies on the green, red and yellow frets predominantly, thus giving you time to get your other hand up there without losing your tapping streak. Either way, mastering this play style will carry you through every song in Expert Mode.

With that, we've concluded the original way to rule massive HOPOs, so we'll get into the second method, which is exclusive to Rock Band. It involves those thin fret buttons at the bottom of the guitar's neck. Aside from big finishes, you can use these for HOPOs. You'll strum the first note, and then bring that hand upward to those thinner fret buttons, while leaving the other at the top. Alternatively, you can slide your fret hand down to meet it and wail away at the smaller buttons instead. Any combination will work, as all ten frets will respond so long as you've strummed the first note.

By now, you can probably comprehend the comparative ease of the Rock Band tapping style. It doesn't necessitate using your elbow nor moving your hand all the way across the guitar, but it still requires coordination and practice. It's going to take time to learn either method, and you shouldn't burn yourself out by grinding away at it again and again. Practice it over time, preferably by yourself rather than with bandmates.

Speed Strumming:

When an onslaught of notes are rapidly approaching and there aren't any HOPOs in sight, the two-handed tap won't save your bacon. You'll need to know how to speed strum, which is another trick that—once combined with two-handed tapping—can make you invincible. Well, sort of. Practice still makes perfect, and we'll show you how to get started.

If you've never watched videos of players FC-ing songs, now may be a good time to do so. They're a useful reference point when it comes to learning how to secure your instrument while preparing to strum like a madman. Some players use clamps and/or stands, others rest their guitars on desks keyboard-style, and another way involves pinning the guitar between your torso and legs.

For most of us, using our own bodies is the only option. It's as simple as the last paragraph made it sound: with the instrument pinned between your torso and legs, you'll put your fingers on the strum bar as if you were holding a guitar pick (see: "Strumming in Style") and prepare to go nuts. Naturally, you'll be using the alt-strum method of moving up and down, and in rapid succession.

One of the best songs in RB2 to practice up/down on is "The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World, because it's an easy song that you can alt-strum to death. It'll help you learn how to keep the rhythm while not using your thumb to hit the notes, which you can subsequently apply at a higher speed on nastier tracks.

Double Bass Pedal:

Within the "Working the Pedal" section, we discussed hitting double notes, but there's another option for those who can't get the slide down. It'll require an additional monetary investment, and it's arguably a frivolous indulgence, but it'll impress your friends! It's the double bass pedal, which various heavy metal drummers use, and it's possible with RB2's drum kit. In fact, it can be done with the original RB set as well, and we'll talk about that first for those of you who haven't upgraded.

Because it wasn't designed for dual pedal input, the original RB kit only has one port. However, a conventional headphone Y-splitter can be plugged into it, and two pedals can in turn be plugged into that. This will allow you to hook a second RB pedal up, but there's a complication: because the kit wasn't designed for that, it can only detect one signal at a time. What does this mean? If you have one pedal depressed, hitting the other won't work. You'll have to depress one, completely release it, and then hit the other pedal if you want both kicks to register.

There are third-party peripherals which are smart enough to register both kicks, but that would require even more spending on your part. Another option is to procure the actual RB2 set, and utilize its additional port. Obtaining another kick pedal is a challenge too, though; you could either fork out for a honest-to-goodness kick pedal modified to work with RB, make one yourself, or borrow a friend's. In the end, make your decision based upon how much you play drums, and if you'd really be able to coordinate using both feet for the bass. If it sounds like a lot of fun, go for it!

Hope this helped you all out.

More info coming soon!

Very nice info Newfie! Very helpful.

Are you sure you don't work for Harmonix? lol jk You should have made the tutorials in the game

Very nice post dude VERY informative and helpful.

very nice newf.