Customer Reviews

Next Step [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

To all you drummers out there that need a new direction in their playing, this for me goes beyond your expectations. I've never even thought about playing in odd time let alone in 5/8, 7/8 and 9. He breaks it down and shows you the easier way to feel and count it. Also he has his solos and playing with trax. He also talks about "backwards" playing and playing dead on the down and going around the groove. You have to watch this in order to really appreciate this great video. If you are new to Dave or already know what he's all about tackle this one.

You can be an Einstein drummer, but the video sometimes contain too much performance material, and lacks instructional information. The content of the video is not structured at all. It almost seemed as if Dave was adlibing as he went along. Moreover, he should slow down technical chops (maybe slow motion) and show us more technical fills then performance, because it is very difficult sometimes to grasp his ingenuity.

A super one from Dave. This is one the best instructional video and is a must buy after his initial 'Back to Basics' video. It's the answer to all those 'How does he do that! ' queries and an essential tutorial for any drummer serious on progressing. Kudos to Dave for bringing out such wonderful learning material.

I guess I liked this video more than the other reviewers did. Weckl's first vid, Back to Basics, is excellent in every way, and I think a lot of people compare The Next Step to it, rather than consider the material alone.

I loved, for instance, his triplet exercises between the hands and feet. When he does it up-tempo, you realize that that's basically all he does while he solos: he goes in and out of triplets, sixteenths, and thirty-second notes. It's still tough as hell, but at least we understand how he's doing it.

Most helpful, though, is his explanation of how to approach odd time signatures. Even advanced drummers typically can't "feel" nine, seven, or five, and Weckl offers some great tips on how to think of them in a musical, half-time feel. Good stuff. I still use the cowbell click track he uses when I practice odd meters.

This is a great instructional video. Dave is not an excellent teacher, but he is a very good one. His got amazing technique which he tries to pass on to you. Not for beginners tho; this is an intermediate level (at least) video.

This is a great DVD. Dave Weckl explains in great detail on technique and creating fills. I only wish he would explain his foot technique. Overall, this is a pretty good DVD. I recommend that you add it to your library.

Dave Weckl is a fantastic drummer without question. This video however tends to really lack uniformity and direction and is aimed more at displaying Dave's phenomenal drum technique than illustrating his musical and instructional abilities. There is way too much performance on this video and all these performances tend have a very soloistic element about them. If you know anything about drum set playing, one should realise that drum soloing is probably the least important aspect of performance. I don't feel Dave stresses this at all, in fact he seems to over-play in every performance on the tape quite easily misleading young drummers into thinking that the more fills and licks you play the better you are.
The music which he plays along to is also painfully tacky. The bass sequence, "Rainy Day" and "Island Magic" are extremely painful to listen too, especially "Island Magic".
Like most DCI productions, this was just another quick money making effort using one of the worlds great drummers.