Metric superimposition is the trick of implying a different meter on top of the meter you're actually in. The bar is still 4/4. The band is still in 4/4. But you play a phrase whose natural length is 5 beats, and you keep repeating it. The phrase moves through the bar — its accents land on different counts each time around — and only after several bars does it line up with the downbeat again. That's the "wheel".
This is not the same as being lost. The bar of 4/4 is still ground truth. You are aware of where 1 is on every bar, but you are choosing to play a 5-beat melody on top of it, the way Elvin Jones chose to phrase quarter-note triplets across a 12/8 swing or Vinnie Colaiuta would loop a 5-stroke pattern across a 4/4 fusion groove. The ear hears the disagreement and the resolution.
The math
- 5 over 4: a 5-beat phrase repeats every 5 beats. The 4/4 bar is 4 beats. They reconcile every 5 bars (20 beats = 4×5 = 5×4). The phrase rotates through the bar.
- 7 over 4: a 7-beat phrase reconciles every 7 bars (28 beats). Slower wheel, more disorientation.
- 3 over 2: a 3-beat phrase against a 2-beat bar (or half a 4/4 bar) reconciles every 6 beats — the cleanest rotation.
How to keep your place
Plant the bar with your feet. Kick on 1 and 3, hat on 2 and 4. Your hands play the implied phrase. As long as the feet hold the truth, the hands can wander and you won't get lost.