Indians War Dance Breakdown — Charlie Benante (Anthrax) Drum Lick | MetalForge
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Learn the Indians War Dance Breakdown drum lick by Charlie Benante of Anthrax. From Indians (Among the Living (1987)). "Indians" from Anthrax's 1987 album Among the Living is one of Charlie Benante's most celebrated per...
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1. Charlie Benante's Signature Licks — "Indians" from Anthrax's 1987 album Among the Living is one of Charlie Benante's most celebrated performances and a track every thrash drummer eventually has to confront. The song is a two-part lesson in dynamics and intensity. The main body is fast, aggressive thrash: Benante drives it with rapid kick patterns, a relentless backbeat, and the kind of precise, fluid tom fills that became his signature, all while locking tightly to the band's galloping riffs. Then comes the moment the song is famous for — the breakdown often called the "War Dance," where the band drops into a slower, monstrously heavy half-time feel and Benante anchors a chant-along groove that has detonated mosh pits for decades. The contrast between the frantic main sections and that titanic breakdown is the whole point: it demonstrates how a drummer can use a tempo drop and a wide-open pocket to make a passage hit harder than speed alone ever could. Benante's execution is a study in control — the fast sections demand stamina and clean, even strokes, while the War Dance demands the discipline to lay back, leave space, and make every backbeat land like a hammer. For drummers, "Indians" is a benchmark in thrash feel, fill vocabulary, and dynamic arrangement: it develops foot speed and endurance, the coordination to keep a busy groove tight at high tempo, and the musical sense to use a half-time breakdown for maximum impact. Learning it builds the powerful, controlled thrash drumming Benante helped define, along with the judgement to know when to drive and when to pull back. Because the song is so widely transcribed and covered, the fast patterns and the famous breakdown are well documented, giving advancing players a clear roadmap. It remains one of Benante's defining performances and a genuine milestone for any drummer serious about thrash.2. Charlie Benante Profile — Drive the fast thrash sections with rapid, even kick patterns and a relentless backbeat Lock the busy groove tightly to the band's galloping riffs at high tempo Drop into the half-time War Dance with a wide-open, hammering pocket Leave space in the breakdown so every backbeat lands with maximum weight Connect the sections with fluid tom fills that resolve cleanly on the downbeat
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