Drums & Percussion

Kick Drum

Also called: Bass drum, BD

The deep thump at the bottom of almost every modern song.

1 · Hear it

Listen twice: once alone, once with the band. The second one is how you'll actually hear it in songs.

2 · What it actually is

The biggest drum in the kit, played with a foot pedal. It makes a short, low boom you feel in your chest.

Its job

It marks the floor of the beat — the moments your body reads as 'down'.

Listen for

Low, round, no ring. It disappears fast instead of buzzing.

You've heard it in: Every dance track, every hip-hop beat, every rock chorus.

3 · Words that go with it