These double bass drum grooves can be played by advanced beginners, intermediate players, and above. Double kick beginners should try this very slowly to start with.

These grooves can be played in professional songs, they are mostly generic metal grooves and widely used by metal drummers.

These 8 metal drum grooves are all played with a quarter note hi hat ostinato, which is notated to be played with open hi hats. These should be played slightly open rather than fully open, to achieve that slushy hi hat sound heard in the majority of hard rock and metal songs. Many metal drummers keep the hi hats permanently in this position by setting up the height of the top hi hat cymbal to be only just a slither higher than the bottom one. This enables the drummer to have both feet free to bring the thunder on the bass drum pedals, whilst still being able to play a mixture of open and closed hi hats when needed.


  1. FOOT PATTERN: R L R L [x4



  2. FOOT PATTERN: R L R L – L R L [x2]



  3. FOOT PATTERN: R L R – [x4]



  4. FOOT PATTERN: R L R – – L R [x2]



  5. FOOT PATTERN: – L R L [x4]



  6. FOOT PATTERN: – L R – [x4]



  7. FOOT PATTERN: – L – L [x4]



  8. FOOT PATTERN: R L – L – L – L [x2]


The drum sheet music can be used as seperate exercises (1 per line), or as a complete exercise.