Glastonbury!

A glasto report, and a some ideas to inspire...

Author

Iain Potter
July 18, 2023

Glastonbury!

Hey fellow drummers!

It’s been a couple of weeks since the last newsletter, the Glastonbury recovery period…

Now that the dust has settled - literally - let’s get back to business!

So wha’ do we got fo’ ya?

👉️ Glastonbury Festival highlights ⛺️ 
👉️ Inspiration to get you picking up the sticks 🥁 
👉️ Top 5 picks from YouTube 📺️ 

The fantastic Stanton Moore ran a livestream recently. Great player and instructor, fielding some interesting questions from viewers!

For the intermediates and beginners, Rob Brown gives us 5 habits to avoid…

Get productive with Emily Dolan Davies! She mentions the book “atomic habits”, which I also covered in a previous post.

The latest “Drummers Only” podcast features a chat with Steve Smith.

Meg White is sometimes unfairly criticised by drummers, Drumeo set things straight with a nice feature on her this week.

My wife and I recently attended The Glastonbury Festival - a world-renowned five-day music event that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England. This was our fourth time attending the festival, and probably the hottest we’ve been to ☀️ . So much so, that at one point we were even taking shelter in the shadow of the flags at West Holts…!!!

Any port in a storm

A vibrant mecca of culture and art, Glastonbury is a legendary experience, famous not just for its diverse line-up of musical acts, spanning genres from rock to hip-hop, indie to electronica, but also for its non-musical features such as dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret, and other arts. Embracing an ethos of peace, love, and environmental sustainability, the festival transforms the rolling English countryside into an electrifying playground for music lovers, attracting hundreds of thousands of attendees from around the globe.

The festival, which started in 1970, stands as a testament to the vision of dairy farmer Michael Eavis, its founder, and his daughter Emily Eavis who continues to oversee its execution.

It has played host to some of the most iconic performances in music history - from David Bowie's 2000 performance to Beyonce's groundbreaking 2011 headline show, making Glastonbury a rite of passage for many artists.

Every year, the iconic Pyramid Stage becomes the epicenter of cultural conversation, while the labyrinthine sprawl of smaller stages and areas each offer their own unique, unforgettable experiences.

Whether you're dancing to a superstar DJ in the glade, discovering a new indie band in a small tent, or participating in a sunrise yoga session, Glastonbury Festival offers a boundless, immersive experience that is truly like no other.

So little time, so much to see. What were our highlights this year?

Elton John isn’t really my cup of tea, so whilst my wife attended with friends to close out the final night, I headed off with my mate to see Queens Of The Stone Age. They hit the ground running and that really set the tone for the show!

Jon Theodore is currently on tubs for them and did an amazing job.

Credit to my wife for picking out Mellowmatic, who really deserved a rest after playing many sets over the weekend! We caught them on the final day in the glade, and they were still crushing it. Marcus Fisher wasn’t on my radar until the festival - brilliant performance!

Maybe best known for being a member of “Simian Mobile Disco” and “Last Shadow Puppets”, James Ford sat behind the kit to bring us an eclectic and idosyncratic set on The Park Stage. Wasn’t sure what I’d make of it, but I loved it!

We didn’t set out to see Korean band ADG7, but they were on before Louis Cole, and we were in early - so glad we caught them! A really lively performance with catchy tunes, great musicianship and some mesmerising percussion.

Playing on “The Other Stage”, The Teskey Brothers were a great afternoon listen. Fantastic blues rock!

Louis Cole is one of my favourite artists at the moment, so he was always on my “non-negotiable” list. Maybe not the perfect environment for him, and there seemed to be some technical issues, but the quality of the musicianship and improv moments were superb.

The Churnups played an amazing set at Glastonbury - this band will probably do well! Possibly the worst-kept secret set in the history of the festival, turning out to be The Foo Fighters, the vibe at this one was fantastic. Josh Freese behind the kit!

There was SO MUCH MORE that we wanted to get to, but it’s just not feasible! There’s limited time left, but check out the BBC’s coverage if available in your region (or failing that, there’s plenty on YouTube).

If there’s someone or something I missed, let me know!

Need some inspiration or ideas?

✅ Improve your groove: pick a simple groove, set the metronome, settle in and play the same groove (without fills or changes) for 20 minutes. Very meditative and great for improving your main job in the band!

✅ Rudimental review: check the set of rudiments and find one you either haven’t studied or is your weakest and work on it.

✅ Notation night: pick a few bars of a drum piece and try and transcribe it. (Check out this video if you need a refresher)

✅ Subdivision session: practice your triplets, quintuplets etc. etc. (I recommend page 19, Study #1 of “Rhythm and Meter Patterns” by Gary Chaffee if you don’t know where to start). If you’re just starting with this, use a pad, but if you’re an advanced player, try using different voices around the kit for each of the notes in a linear fashion. (See Robb Ryan’s great video for ideas).

✅ Habit honing: adjust your routine and habits to get more productive! Pick something from the list in “Atomic Habits for Drummers”, implement it and let me know how it goes…

You’ve been rick-rolled! (sort of) 👇️ 

And whilst we didn’t get there, make sure you check out Rick playing the songs of “The Smiths” with "Blossoms…what a great idea!