The book is about the concept of creating illusions on the drumset. You can create many strange rhythmical effects with these methods - plus you can use them to generate new patterns of your own. It's designed to get inside your head and work with your perception of rhythm rather than a physical workout for your technique.

This may all sound a bit complicated - so I've invented some terminology to help describe the mental process of understanding a Rhythmic Illusion. There are two different states to mentally view both sides of an Illusion.

The A STATUS. A mental state that you should be in whilst creating an illusion .i.e still knowing where the 'one' is - and still keeping the original tempo in your head.

The B STATUS. Where the listeners brain should be whilst you're playing an illusion. In the 'implied new tempo' and or with the 'implied new downbeat'. In other words - fooled into hearing a more obvious rhythm and (in the case of 'Modulation') a new tempo.

YOU ARE NOT MEANT TO PLAY THE B STATUS - it's just there so you can see the illusion you're creating, and probably what the listener will recognise.

Any example number followed by an "A" (1A,2A,3A etc) is referring to the A STATUS. Likewise any example number followed by a "B" (1B, 2B, 3B etc) is referring to the B STATUS.

Let's take a look at some of the examples from the book

Here's an example of a (16th note) Displacement type 1. Perceived in the A STATUS.

(these example numbers are directly from the book)

Ex.3A (the A STATUS) (Download this example)

Notice how it will sound to the listener in Ex.3B (the B Status);


Ex.3B

Here's an example of Modulation Type 1


Ex.18A (Download this example)

Ex.18B Here's what it sounds like to the listener;

Here's an example of Modulation Type 2


Ex.34A (Download this example)

Ex.34B

Here's an example of Modulation Type 3


Ex.107A (Download this example)

Ex.107B

Here’s an example of a Dual Rhythmic Modulation


Ex.116A (Download this example)

Because these are "Dual rhythms" there are two obvious versions of the B STATUS - depending on whether you hear more as a 'swing ride' (EX.116B version 1) or a Latin 'bass drum/hi hat ostinato' (EX.116B version 2)


EX.116B version 1

EX.116B version 2

There's plenty more of this type of thing in the book plus there is an audio CD of me playing many of the exercises. (In fact these samples are taken directly from that CD). I think the whole idea will become a lot easier when you can hear it played for you.