Hammer Smashed Face Blast & Groove Blueprint — Paul Mazurkiewicz (Cannibal Corpse) Drum Lick | MetalForge
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Learn the Hammer Smashed Face Blast & Groove Blueprint drum lick by Paul Mazurkiewicz of Cannibal Corpse. From Hammer Smashed Face (Tomb of the Mutilated (1992)). Paul Mazurkiewicz is the co-founding drummer of Cannibal Corpse and one of the most influential deat...
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1. Paul Mazurkiewicz's Signature Licks — Paul Mazurkiewicz is the co-founding drummer of Cannibal Corpse and one of the most influential death metal drummers of all time. "Hammer Smashed Face" — famously featured in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective — is the song that introduced the band to a mainstream audience and remains their most recognisable track. Mazurkiewicz's drumming on it is a masterclass in how blast beats and mid-paced death metal grooves can coexist in the same song: the opening riff pounds along at a grinding mid-tempo that gives way to ferocious blasting, and the contrast between the two modes is what gives the song its crushing weight. His signature is the deliberate, bone-dry precision he brings to both modes — the blasts are tight and controlled rather than chaotic, and the groove sections hit with a mechanical, industrial heaviness that anchors the riffs rather than competing with them. In the live drum cam footage you can watch how efficiently he executes the transitions: compact technique, no wasted movement, and a pocket so locked-in that the band sounds like a single machine. For drummers, "Hammer Smashed Face" is an essential death metal study. It builds the conventional blast beat, fast and even double bass, and the coordination to move cleanly between blasting and grooving without losing the song's momentum. The approach is to isolate the blast and the groove separately, then practise the gear-changes slowly with a metronome, and only push the tempo once the transitions feel automatic. Mazurkiewicz built Cannibal Corpse's sound on exactly this combination of brutality and precision — and "Hammer Smashed Face" is where that combination is on its most iconic display.2. Paul Mazurkiewicz Profile — Alternate between tight conventional blasts and mid-paced death metal grooves Lock the kick tightly to the riff in both blasting and groove sections Keep the blast precise and controlled — mechanical, not chaotic Drive the groove sections with industrial heaviness rather than flashy fills Practise the blast-to-groove transitions slowly before raising tempo
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