From Cop Knocks To Petrified Hand Claps, the Finest Drum Sounds of 2011

In this era of ubiquitous sound manipulation software, each year is better than the last in terms of sonic variety. Amidst all the classic synth comebacks and samples taken from the most unlikely places, the percussion sounds, the primal building blocks of rhythm, are the universal identifier for what we refer to as "song hotness." No matter your language or taste, you can feel a solid bass drum in your gut, a hi-hat pattern can make you wince, and a really good snare can crack you across the face, eliciting the forward bob of your head in that first bar after the beat drops.

Of the thousands of drum sounds compounded and tweaked into existence in 2011, these are some of the best.

By Abdullah Saeed, reposted from Motherboard’s sister site Noisey.

SNARES by laudableheads

Lorn & Dolor – "Super Glue/A Drawing" – DRUGS

A dozen petrified hands clapping, each one shattering to dust upon impact.

Torky Tork – "The Parkslope Sucking" – Sextape

The final victorious break of tiny man freeing his boot from impossibly viscous mud.

Groundislava – "Very Basketball" – Book of Tech

A man clapping is hit with a stun gun at the moment his hands meet.

Johnny Boy – "Pizza (box) Collection" – Timewarp Espresso

Dropping a sack full of smooth, flat, round stones (the kind perfect for skipping across water) onto a sheet of corrugated steel clap, with a tiny little click thrown in at the close a distinct finish.

Co. Fee – "Gypsy Skirt" – Easy Listening

A hollow snare and a cheesy clap combine to form a neck-snap, simultaneously bone-breaking and head bobbing, worthy of the RZA.

KICKS by laudableheads

Dibiase – "Gold Mine" – Swingology 101

On the quietest night of the year, Mr. Dibiase detonates a mortar a mile above your head.

Modeselektor – "Grillwalker" – Monkeytown

The unmistakable sound of an unconscious club kid falling off a third floor balcony onto the dancefloor below.

Samiyam – "My Buddy" – Sam Baker's Album

A mind blanking kick in the teeth reminiscent of when J Dilla used to kick us in the teeth regularly while wearing that signature smile.

Muta – "All Impulse Part I" – Runner

Pixelated NES-era bombs, the round and black variety, barfing equally pixelated projectiles of multicolored puke.

Thundercat – "Fleer Ultra" – Golden Age of Apocalypse

Low attack kick hits in short, urgent bursts, a pattern sometimes referred to as the "cop knock" configuration.

HATS by laudableheads

fLako – "Inner Trouble" – Carving Away the Clay

Alongside some classic 808 hihats, a sharp pattern of castanets permeate the track, at times giving way to what sounds like the squeak of small robotic animals.

Siriusmo – "Idiologie" – Mosaik

A seemingly normal stick on cymbal pattern filtered to draw out the synthetic, monotone of a single key on the low end of a harpsichord from hell.

Galapagoose – "Insider" – Parquet

Half a dozen stock hi hat sounds, some tight as hell, and some jangly and looser than a set of keys dance around each other in a nearly unpredictable pattern.

Wols – "Justma" – Unframe

A Chorus of West African metal bells and shakers create a circular pattern punctuated by jittery snare sounds.

Kuedo – "Truth Flood" – Severant

A classic 808 sound experiences a debilitating yet methodical seizure, spazzing its way in and out of robotic rolls.

Did we miss any? Let us know in the comments! You can follow more of Abdullah’s insanely nerdy thoughts at @ImYourKid, and check this recent treatise on tweaking for his beat-obsessed Noisey column Square Wave.