Category: Jam Session
Please note that all of them have inspired me in one way or another!
5:vinny paul
4:Jeremy spensor
3:joey jordison
2:gene"the atomic clock"hoglan
1:Chris Adler
Having been a drummer (not a particularly great one, but I love it) for almost 10 years, here are my favorites (do not coincide with yours but, heck, always fun to check out new styles) . none of these is particularly obscure. I noticed my favorite drummers tend to come from jazz backgrounds, I like the technical ones.
Honorary mention to Chad from Red Hot Chilli Peppers, very good drummer, Blood Sugar Sex Magic is just the sound of 4 amazing musicians having fun and the drums on that album (especially Breaking the Girl), are unbelieveable.
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6. Matt Tong (Bloc Party).
Just listen to "Silent Alarm", especially tracks 1 and 11, and you see what I mean. Very inspired drumming, not 100% accurate, but he just sounds like he is having so much fun.
5. Travis Barker (Blink 182). The guys is extremely skilled technically and has a very lively drum technique. Just listen to "Always" from their self titled album. Notice how the drum patterns for every verse, pre chorus and chorus are always different, technical, fast and accurate. I am not a big fan of the band, per ce, but here the guy shows of some incredible skills.
4. Paul Banks (Shed Seven). I don't know exactly what I find so attractive about this guy. He's never flashy, no great speed, no showoff, but he is one of the most consistently dependable and subtly excellent drummers I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. His rhythm is infalible even for slow songs, where many drummers get into trouble (myself included), it is very relaxed, very confident, check out "Ocean Pie", or "Chasing Rainbows" for samples.
3. Fyfe Ewing (Therapy?). This guy perfected the double snare technique and is just such an aggressive and fun drummer to listen to, may be not the most technically advanced of all drummers (though he is fantastic), but I like his inspiration and the urgency he adds to the songs, and he often totally carries them. Check out the entire "Baby Teeth" album, especially the opening track for an example of what I am talking about.
2. Danny Carey (Tool), Schism, Ticks and Leeches is just played at absolutely inhuman speeds (especially the last part). But it is mostly his weird time signatures and little accents that make him such a great drummer to me.
1. Jimmy Chamberline (Smashing Pumpkins).
The guy instantly showed me a whole new style of drumming, very floating, very reactive to the music, just listen to the drums on "Cherub Rock" from "Siamese Dream" how the drums follow the music for a bit and then take over with authority once the distortion kicks in. I think he's a little bit of a one trick pony at times, but his skills are amazing and he really made the drums an interesting instrument to me.
Oh, bleah, sorry, the drummers name is Alan Leach, Paul Banks is the singer (I never studied their drumming in detail, I just like how dependable it is)
My favourite drummers, and i'd like to point out I'm a jazz drummer myself first, are
in no particular order...
buddy ritch
cozy powell
steve gad
billy cobham
cozy cole
more later...
thanks all. Oh, almost forgot Jason Bitner from Shadows Fall! dam! that guy's awesome, he's both technical and kills at double bass, along with others. Also like Mercedes Lander from Kittie. mmm!
I almost forgot, someone who I may dedicate an entire topic to later, enferno! enferno! all hale! he's from behemoth, a pollish death metal band and he's a god!
Kittie! Wow.
So I didn't like most of their older stuff, and I don't listen to much of that kind of metal but Funeral For Yesterday was an amazing album. Their new one was good but, it doesn't quite compare.
Mmmmmm
Kittie
Yay anyway.
I don't really know who my favorite drummers are because I don't remember names but on another, opposite note: has anyone ever noticed how many mistakes Evanescence's drummer makes? God.
So let's see, a few bands whose drummers I like: Dream Theater, Tool, hmmm let me think. I notice individual songs the most but I'll start paying attention to individual bands now.
Oh wait I'm about to go absolutely random. There's this group called Vas that does a lot of Eastern type music. And though its not even close to the drumming you're talking about, I find all that strange drumming amazing.
that's just me so,
Your right about funeral for yesterday, though most of there albums were good in my opinion. The only one I didn't care for was spit. Never noticed about evanescence's drummer, i'll have to go back and see if i can tell, hmm. eastern music, have to givie it a listen.
oh I forgot to mention art blakey from the jazz messengers, and neel pyrt of rush. And jephro tull's first drummer too, forgotten his name.
I believe Josh Freeze was on drumming duties for Evanessence, at lesat on their most famous album.
He is not flashy but he is as pro as they come (plays with a lot of bands, a Perfect Circle probably the most famous one).
If you find their drummer sucky it must be someone else, because this guy is rock solid.
For some reason, like I said, I do not find his style very inspiring or interesting, but that guy *never* makes mistakes.
I wish I was that good *sigh*.
Also, it is a bit cliche and a bit obvious but Dave Grohl is a heck of a drummer, his Queens of the StoneAge gig just proves it and back on Nevermind, when I drummed with Nirvana, that album is partly carried by his very aggressive drumming.
Lot of new drummers I never herd of above I need to check out. I never was very good. but if you want to hear a guy that is just amazing go find some dave weccle. The music is very wierd jazzy electronic stuff. but the guy must get a work out.
also there is a guy I don't know the name of from australia who can do anything with his feet that he can do with his hands
Dave weckle is amazing, forgot about him. Some of his funk stuff is just unbelievable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln6b_nBM-V8
amazing! and after hearing lots of drum solo's not much impresses me anymore. but the third peace is pretty nice!
Ah, not that one. Their drummer on most of their really old stuff made loads of mistakes. I have nothing to complain about when it comes to the drummer on Fallen and The Open Door, though.
I am never that impressed with speed or technical ability by itself, neither with drummer nor guitarists (nor any instrument really, though good bass playing is just freakin awesome, go Primus).
I like more subtle and innovative playing, using unexpected time signatures or effects or chords or back up vocals, something that makes you go "whoa" first time you hear it but then starts making sense.
Notice, for instance, the drumming in "Learn to Fly" by the Foo Fighters (don't think it is Dave though). In the verse part the drummer plays the snare drum ahead of the beat but switches to straight forward drumming for the chorus. This is very necessary because the song always has the same chords, and you need more than just the vocal melody changing to feel you got a complete song, but the drumming really distinguishes nicely between the verse and the chorus.
When I listen to the Offspring I find every single one of their fast drumming songs uninteresting. They have a lot of great songs and they are all slower, less thrashy drumming.
Another thing I really like about drummers are those who use electronic drum beats and play with them, good examples:
Take a Picture by Filter
the Letter by David Bowie
Angel by Massive Attack
Idioteque by Radiohead (especially live)
Hmmm yes good point. lots of people can be fast. fewer can be subtly amazing.
true, I know what you mean. I myself try to find a solid middle when it comes to my drumming abilities. I admit I like to do some of the more thrashier/speed stuff, but I also try to do some slower and other interesting aspects as well.
Feathery, is there a particular album by vas you think is best?
My all time top drummer is Neil Peart from Rush. The guy is amazing, enough said.
My other favorite drummers, in no particular order, are as follows:
mike portnoy from dream theater
yoshiki from X japan
carter boford, from dave mathews band, he is such an eclectic and fantastic player! He's the only reason I started listening to them in the first place.
alvin jones
the guy from triumph, I don't remember his name right now.
phil collins
steve gad
john boddum from led zep
stewart copland
dave wekl
steve jordan
charlie watts from the stones. he's a sloppy player but it fits the band's music so well.
I forgot about Dave Matthews, that guy is fantastic, just listen to his phrasing in "So Much to Say", "BarTender" and so on, he is utterly spot on, and in the live recordings of "Two Step" he goes absolutely overboard, in the best way.
"Dyer Maker" definitely is one of the coolest drum based tracks with live druming of all time (when we get into sampling DJ Shadow has some unbelievable beats and samples, and Prodigy is fun, for their raw energy).
Another very loose drummer is the guy from Reef, that completely fits the band.
I love Carter Boford. That guy does some really amazing stuff. Chad from the Chili Peppers isgreat too. I've just gotten in to that band in the last few years.
Other drummers I really enjoy
buddy rich of course
Kenny Arnoff love the guys drum tones
Max Weinberg super tight player.
I've been inspired by lots of different styles and drummers and always looking for new ideas.
neil peart!!
the drummer from the 60s band love!
been listening to their albums again quite a lot recently, amazing technique