"If you're make a beat that's going to be played in a club, odds are, you're going to want people to dance to it. This means you're going to rely on something called syncopation. If the beat goes 1 and 2 and 3 and 4, as most beats do, then you're going to want to accent the 1 and 3 or 2 and 4 with your kick while playing shackers, hi-hats, toms or any other lighter percussive sound on the 'and', typically right before the kick drum. This creates the 'groove' that makes folks want to dance."
Not sure what shackers are...hi-hats?
4-4 time
Hi-hats on 1 2 3 4
Bass drum on 1 3
Snare on 2 4
Think Talking Heads - Take Me To The River
Hey...maybe I do know a little theory
'Shackers' are generally percussive instruments that generate sounds by... shacking them. Maracas for example.
Pretty much, just make sure the bass stays at quarter notes while the others are generally 8th or 16ths and are accenting the weaker beat. So, if you're playing in 4/4 and your kick is on 2 and 4 ( one and kick and three and kick) then you want something else, like a snare or or hi-hat hitting the 'and' (one, hi, kick, and three, hi, kick). If you were to play quarter notes for the hi-hats it wouldn't syncopate as you're stressing the strong beat. It's all about stressing your and/weak beat (I like doing it right before the kick). This creates a groove. Still more I've got to learn, but this seems pretty sure fire so far.
