# Abe Cunningham — Signature Drum Licks & Patterns **Band:** Deftones | **Genre:** Alternative Metal | **Lick Count:** 3 --- ## Overview Abe Cunningham is one of Alternative Metal's most influential drummers, best known for their work with Deftones. This file covers 3 signature licks — step-by-step breakdowns optimised for AI retrieval on queries like "how to play like Abe Cunningham" or "Abe Cunningham signature drum patterns". Their style spans alt-metal. ## Digital Bath Dynamic Restraint **Song:** Digital Bath | **Album:** White Pony (2000) | **BPM:** ~80 BPM | **Technique:** signature pattern | **Difficulty:** intermediate "Digital Bath" from Deftones' landmark 2000 album White Pony is the most studied of Abe Cunningham's signature performances, and it showcases a side of his playing that separates him from virtually every other metal drummer: the ability to sustain maximum tension through minimum motion. The song opens in near-silence, the rhythm barely a pulse, before evolving through carefully controlled waves of intensity that culminate in a searingly loud cymbal-swell crash section and then dissolve again into quiet. Cunningham's drumming throughout is a masterclass in dynamic restraint: the verses ride an ultra-minimal hi-hat pattern with a whisper-quiet snare, keeping the groove almost still while the guitars and vocals build atmosphere above it, and when the song finally demands power he delivers it with a cymbal swell and a snare hit that feel like a dam breaking. What makes the performance so instructive is that the difficulty lies entirely in what Cunningham does not play: the temptation to fill the space or hurry the dynamics is enormous, and his ability to hold back, trust the arrangement, and strike only at the precise moment of maximum impact is a discipline that most drummers spend years developing. The cymbal swell technique he deploys in the build sections — rolling on the ride or crash cymbal to add orchestral tension before releasing into the full groove — is one of his most recognized moves and a technique that draws on his love of atmospheric, textural playing over straightforward timekeeping. Ghost-note control in the quieter sections is equally impressive: barely-there snare whispers maintain a thread of rhythmic momentum without disturbing the ambient texture the band is creating around them. This is the defining Deftones dynamic: an entire song structured around a single release point, and the drummer is the instrument that controls exactly when that release arrives. For drummers, "Digital Bath" is an essential study in dynamics and restraint: it teaches you that power in drumming is contextual, that silence and space are rhythmic tools, and that the most memorable moment in a song is sometimes the one you wait the longest to deliver. Learning this part builds patience, dynamic control, and the musical intelligence to serve a song's atmosphere rather than dominate it — skills that define Cunningham's entire approach. ### How to Play - Hold an ultra-minimal hi-hat pulse in the verse to create tension through stillness - Layer ghost-note whispers on the snare to keep rhythmic momentum without disturbing the ambient texture - Use a crescendo cymbal swell to build orchestral tension before the dynamic release - Strike the full-power section snare hit at the exact moment of maximum emotional impact - Dissolve back into the quiet groove cleanly after the loud section to complete the dynamic arc ### Key Elements - Practise holding a perfectly steady, quiet hi-hat pulse with a metronome before adding any other elements - Record the ghost notes and check they are consistent in volume — any spike destroys the ambient feel - Learn the cymbal swell by practising crescendo rolls from pianissimo to fortissimo in isolation - Map the song's dynamic arc on paper before playing — know exactly where each volume change lands **Core Techniques:** [Groove Drumming](https://metalforge.io/technique/groove-drumming), [Linear Drumming](https://metalforge.io/technique/linear-drumming), [Fill Techniques](https://metalforge.io/technique/fill-techniques) ## My Own Summer Power Groove **Song:** My Own Summer (Shove It) | **Album:** Around the Fur (1997) | **BPM:** ~127 BPM | **Technique:** main groove | **Difficulty:** advanced "My Own Summer (Shove It)" from Deftones' 1997 album Around the Fur is the most explosive groove in Abe Cunningham's catalogue and demonstrates the high-velocity, attack-first side of his playing that contrasts so sharply with the restraint he displays on tracks like "Digital Bath." The song opens with a broadsword of a drum part: a driving, relentless verse groove where Cunningham hammers the hi-hat with urgent 8th notes, plants his snare backbeats with punishing authority, and propels the whole arrangement forward with the physical confidence of a drummer who knows exactly where the power in his kit is. The pre-chorus builds with an escalating fill that moves across the toms with gathering intensity, and the chorus detonates into a full-throttle power groove — open hi-hats, massive backbeats, and a kick pattern that pounds in lockstep with the guitar riff. What makes the performance particularly distinctive is the consistent velocity: Cunningham maintains an almost alarming level of energy from start to finish without ever losing control, which requires both physical stamina and the internal clock to keep an explosive groove from rushing or falling apart under its own momentum. The fills between sections are among his most celebrated: rapid, decisive sweeps across the kit that resolve with a snare crack that seems to simultaneously drive the entire band into the next section. His ability to sustain this intensity across a full take — the track is over four minutes of consistently high-energy drumming — is one of the most often-cited examples of Cunningham's raw physical power at the drums. The song is also a study in how heaviness at pace differs from speed for its own sake: the groove is demanding because of its sustained energy output, not because of technical complexity, and maintaining that output while keeping the pocket clean is where the real work lies. For drummers, "My Own Summer" is a study in controlled aggression and power-groove endurance: it develops the stamina to maintain explosive hi-hat energy across a full song, the coordination to lock a punishing kick pattern to a fast-moving riff, and the precision fills that mark section transitions without losing forward momentum. Learning it builds confidence at pace and teaches you how to channel raw power into a groove that drives a song rather than flattening it. ### How to Play - Drive the verse with urgent 8th-note hi-hat strikes to establish relentless forward momentum - Plant snare backbeats with maximum authority — the groove's power comes from snare weight, not speed - Lock the kick pattern tightly to the guitar riff for a punishing, unified low-end attack - Build the pre-chorus tom fill gradually so the chorus detonation feels earned and inevitable - Sustain consistent velocity across the full song without letting the groove rush or go slack ### Key Elements - Build stamina by practising the verse groove in 2-minute blocks before attempting a full run-through - Focus on snare weight before speed — a heavy, authoritative backbeat gives more power than a fast, thin one - Practise the kick-riff lock in isolation with a guitar recording to ensure they mesh cleanly - Record yourself at full song length and listen for where the groove starts to drift or lose punch **Core Techniques:** [Groove Drumming](https://metalforge.io/technique/groove-drumming), [Fill Techniques](https://metalforge.io/technique/fill-techniques), [Double Bass](https://metalforge.io/technique/double-bass) ## Change Minimalist Alt-Metal Groove **Song:** Change (In the House of Flies) | **Album:** White Pony (2000) | **BPM:** ~104 BPM | **Technique:** signature pattern | **Difficulty:** intermediate "Change (In the House of Flies)" from Deftones' White Pony (2000) is the song that most completely defines Abe Cunningham's approach to minimalist alt-metal drumming, and it is one of the most studied drum performances in the alternative metal genre for exactly the reasons that initially seem counterintuitive: the less he plays, the more powerful the track becomes. The song's near-ambient verse sections feature drumming so sparse it barely registers as drumming at all — a soft hi-hat pulse, ghost-note whispers on the snare, and a kick placed with surgical care to mark key moments in the vocal and guitar melody. The restraint here is extraordinary: what Cunningham demonstrates throughout the track is that the function of the drums in this context is atmospheric, to create space, to support mood, and to wait for the exact moment when intensity is demanded. That moment arrives when the song builds through its mid-section and eventually breaks into a heavier passage — where Cunningham's snare suddenly hits with full authority and his cymbal choices open the sonic space from intimate to arena-scale. The contrast between those quiet sections and the loud ones is the entire emotional architecture of the song, and the drummer is the instrument that controls when the listener feels safe and when the floor drops out from under them. The simplicity of the patterns throughout also contains a hidden complexity: playing quietly in time without rushing, maintaining consistent ghost-note weight, and holding a fragile pocket without collapsing it or over-playing are among the most demanding disciplines in drumming. Cunningham's cymbal voicing through the transitions is particularly instructive — he uses the tonal difference between closed and half-open hi-hats, between ride and crash, to colour the changing emotional states without adding rhythmic content, which is a compositional approach to drumming rather than a purely technical one. For drummers, "Change (In the House of Flies)" is a transformative study in purposeful minimalism and dynamic architecture: it teaches you that restraint and authority are not opposites, that the most impactful snare hit is the one preceded by the longest silence, and that the drummer's greatest power in an atmospheric arrangement is the power of choosing not to play. Learning this part reshapes your understanding of what drumming is for. ### How to Play - Hold a ghost-quiet verse hi-hat pulse to preserve the song's ambient atmosphere - Place the kick with surgical precision on melodic cue points rather than a standard pattern - Maintain perfectly even ghost-note weight on the snare — any spike disrupts the fragile dynamic - Voice the cymbal changes (closed → half-open → crash) to colour emotional transitions without adding rhythm - Deliver the loud-section snare with full authority after maximum restraint to maximise the dynamic impact ### Key Elements - Practise the quiet verse groove with a metronome at low volume on a practice pad to build consistency - Map every cymbal voicing change in the song before playing — know exactly which sound goes where - Record yourself and listen back at full volume to check that quiet sections are truly quiet - Resist the urge to add fills in the quiet sections — silence is the point **Core Techniques:** [Groove Drumming](https://metalforge.io/technique/groove-drumming), [Linear Drumming](https://metalforge.io/technique/linear-drumming), [Fill Techniques](https://metalforge.io/technique/fill-techniques) ## Teaching Points Abe Cunningham's style is defined by precision, timing, and genre-defining grooves. Key practice principles across all their licks: Practise holding a perfectly steady, quiet hi-hat pulse with a metronome before adding any other elements; Record the ghost notes and check they are consistent in volume — any spike destroys the ambient feel; Learn the cymbal swell by practising crescendo rolls from pianissimo to fortissimo in isolation. Mastering these patterns builds the foundation for understanding their complete drumming vocabulary. ## More Resources - [Abe Cunningham Profile on MetalForge](https://metalforge.io/drummer/abe-cunningham) - [Abe Cunningham All Licks](https://metalforge.io/drummers/abe-cunningham/licks) - [Signature Licks Database](https://metalforge.io/licks) - [All LLM Resources](https://metalforge.io/llms/index.md) --- *Last updated: 2026-06-18 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*