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Today we have drummers who can play two hour drum solos without breaking a sweat. We have drummers - whom through years and years of practice - can play a double paradiddle with their left hand and left foot, while simultaniously playing a single paradiddle between their right hand and right foot. We have drummers that can play on a click track, behind a click track AND/OR ahead of the click track. It seems like we have it all - but - how many drummers do we know that play 110% everytime they hit the stage? How many drummers do we have that are really pushing the envelope emotionally these days (NOT TECHNICALLY!).
Think Stewart Copeland (in his prime) or Vinnie Colaiuta (on a good day - live). Guys that are not afraid to break a sweat and play their hearts out with "reckless abandon" and maybe even try something new - ON THE SPOT!
I'm not talking about Gavin Harrison (as much as I love him) cerebral, mathamatical, calculated, relaxed drumming. I am talking about a "f*** you, this is how I play, like it or not", almost punk attitude - but with some facility, of course. EDGY!
You can name Minnemann, Mangini, Lang, Donati - any of these "drum technicians" but they do not apply... they are amazing, but not emotionally captivating. "Oh, Virgil - you really touched me with your 240bpm double bass runs. My metronome won't even go that high!" - yeah right! Heheh.
Anyways, just something I noticed the music industry and drum community is really lacking these days. Everyone is too worried about speed and chops and power and technique, while PASSION, EMOTION and ART fall behind. Sad, really.
So, who is the last drummer you saw or heard that blew you away on an emotional level? For me, it has to be this cat from "gospelchops" named Jeremy Haynes... though he was quite laid back, he played with INTENSE emotion and also subtlety. He had "chops" coming out of his a**, but nothing was overly cliche or typical. It was fresh... exciting, passionate! He kept you on the edge of your seat, much like Stewart Copeland is/was capible of doing, but in HIS OWN way.
Now, I'm not saying that Vinnie, Stewart and Haynes are the only guys who play this way, but honestly - when's the last time you have seen someone play on that kind of emotional level!? I want to know! [img]smile.gif[/img]
P.S. The last time I saw Billy Cobham play, he really floored me in this context.
<font color="#a62a2a"><font size="1">[ September 03, 2005 06:25 AM: Message edited by: CLWarunki ]</font></font>
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ September 03, 2005 04:12 PM: Message edited by: CLWarunki ]</font>
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Ha!!! I knew the first reply would be STEVE GADD. Yeah, I agree with you there. I saw him playing with the vibes, and old video clip, and it was crushing... I think he still kinda plays like that too [img]smile.gif[/img]
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Yeah we're talking about L'image here right? That clip from the ADAA DVD; Some of the most intense drumming ever recorded.
(By the way, new Mew album out in Denmark 19th September, I can send you a copy if you want ).
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ September 03, 2005 07:21 AM: Message edited by: Klemme ]</font>
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Ahhh, yes - that's it: L'image! INTENSE! Man, I gotta dig through my archives to find that again. That was some hot s***! Infact, I didn't care for Gadd too much until I saw that footage (recently). Blasphemey, I know.
[img]graemlins/devil.gif[/img]
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Christian Vander is another one...
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I feel loads of emotion in Carlos Vegas playing!
I'm sure Jeff has it too from what i've heard but I'm not really one to comment on that because I still have to check Jeff out!
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I agree that many of the uberfusion drummers don't really kill me with emotion. That was what I dug about Bozzio in his Zappa/Missing Person years - he'd be killing you with chops, while at the same time knocking you out with his energy.
But I think if you look at some of the heavier popular music, you'll see quite a crop of very intense drummers. Jon Theodore from The Mars Volta is probably on the forefront, but these days your average angry metal band on MTV usually has some pretty good drumming being played by a guy who's playing for keeps. Dave Grohl was a HUGE influence on the latest crop of drummers, and it really shows - Grohl was the first guy I saw who got SO into his rock playing back when he was with Nirvana, but never at the expense of his sound. He always grooved hard, but he played every note like it was his last. There's a lot of young guys out there in metal bands who are carrying on that tradition. Most of them aren't as good as Grohl, or as clever with their drum parts, but they've all learned that the added physicality they bring to the instrument can really heighten the affect of their music.
If you ever saw Myron Grombacher or Liberty DeVitto in their heyday, you also saw some guys who kept the intensity cranked up to "11" at all times.
And here's the thing: the audience LOVES that stuff. Not just the drummers, but the Great Unwashed Civilians - you know, the people who actually buy the records! It's a lesson that seems to be lost on many chops-focused drummers, who spend so much time being effortless and cerebral that they forget that a primary function of live music is to ENTERTAIN.
(I just KNOW I'm gonna get killed here for saying that)
Anyway, I'm a huge advocate of emotional, demonstrative drumming. I really believe it can be done with no artistic sacrifice - hell, in many ways it enhances the artistry. Guys ranging from Keith Jarret to Carlos Santana have figured out that when they just let themselves get into their own playing, the audience digs it. I've always been a very emotional player, and I used to catch a lot of crap about it (calm down, kid!), but then I was lucky enough to see Peter Erskine in his late teens touring with Stan Kenton (my alltime favorite bigband). Peter was GOING FOR IT in a big way, rising up off his stool with his biggest cymbal crashes, just going nuts on the kit.
I saw that, and knew I was on the right track. If it was okay for this guy - who was a monster even then - to play so relentlessly, it made me feel it was okay for me to play in a similarly unrestrained way. I had that epiphany in my early teens, and am glad of it. I've been a highly animated drummer ever since, and it's never hurt my career - I'd be more inclined to think it has helped it.
So check out some of today's young headbangers. Even the punk drummers, who play with an energy their audience finds contagious. Then try bringing some of that into your own playing. You CAN play with finesse and precision while playing hard and physical. As somebody else has pointed out, if you've ever seen Gadd live, he's the ultimate combination of smooth yet physical/emotional. Face it, it's a terrific combination!
Mr. A.
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ September 03, 2005 09:39 AM: Message edited by: Mr. Acrolite ]</font>
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Omar hakim [img]tongue.gif[/img]
