Tool · 2001 · 9 · 8 · 7
The 9 · 8 · 7 alternating meter in Lateralus by Tool
Press play to count the meter or try the original drum exercise. Slow the pulse down or speed it up to feel how the pattern works.
Original practice groove. Practise a bar of nine, then eight, then seven eighth notes. These drum hits are an original counting exercise, not the recorded part.
● Hit · empty cell = rest. Switch a part off and play it yourself.
Bars in sequence
Count 9, then 8, then 7. Repeat after 24 eighth-note pulses.
Practice tempo: 55 BPM (quarter-note beat)
One click per eighth note. Accented cells sound stronger. 110 eighth-note pulses/min. Choose half speed for easier counting.
Note: The demo plays 9/8, 8/8 and 7/8 in sequence. Its drum exercise is an original teaching pattern, not Danny Carey’s recorded part. The practice tempo does not synchronise with Spotify.
Tempo: The tempo shifts between sections on the record, so no single BPM applies. The demo pulse is set for comfortable listening.
Simplified educational demo, not a transcription of the recording.
Hear the real thing
Playing the track pauses the demo automatically (and vice versa) so they don't fight each other.
What's happening rhythmically
The chorus riff of Lateralus cycles through bars of 9/8, 8/8, and 7/8, a sequence Danny Carey and the band have discussed openly, and famously tied to the Fibonacci-patterned vocal phrasing.
On the record those meters happen one after another, not at the same time. The demo now follows that order: nine eighth notes, then eight, then seven, repeating after twenty-four pulses. Switch between count clicks and an original drum exercise to practise the changing bar lengths.
What to listen for
- On the record: the riff shrinking by one pulse each bar (9, then 8, then 7)
- In the demo: each bar starting on one, with the complete sequence repeating after twenty-four pulses
- How a single missing eighth note completely changes a riff’s center of gravity
Practise this rhythm
Hear the pattern
Choose Drum exercise at half speed. Count nine, eight, then seven, returning to one at each bar.
Play the missing snare
Mute Snare and tap its marked hits yourself. Keep the hi-hat pulse steady as the bar gets shorter.
Play the missing kick
Restore Snare and mute Kick. Play its marked hits yourself for two complete cycles, then return to Count clicks.
