I think it\'s sometimes nice to accentuate the upbeats to give a song more life. Once you play this beat, it's going to sound a bit hip-hop at first, but trust me, playing this kind of beat in a repeting chorus will give the song a fresh life. Say you're playing this basic Rock Beat: HH |X X X X X X X X|X X X X X X X X| SD |- - X - - - X -|- - X - - - X -| BD |X - - - X X - -|X - - - X X - -| Now just get rid of every other hi-hat to give it an up-beat feel: HH |- X - X - X - X|- X - X - X - X| SD |- - X - - - X -|- - X - - - X -| BD |X - - - X X - -|X - - - X X - -| With that in mind, now try playing at different rock rhythms. Here's some that I've experimented with: (note: Instead of the hi-hat the bell of a ride, or just any ride can be used.) A) HH |- X - X - X - X|- X - X - X - X| SD |- - X - - - X -|- - X - - -XXX-| BD |X -X- - X X - -|XX-X- - X - - X| B) HH |- X - X - X - X|- X - X - X - X| SD |- - X - - - X -|- - X -X- - X -| BD |XX-X- - XX-X- X|XX-X- - XX-X-XX| C) HH |- X - X - X - X|- X - X - X - X| SD |- - X -X-X- X -|- - X - X - X -| BD |X - - - - X - X|X -X- - -X-X- -| Just try keping up an up-beat rhythm.