As Metallica headline another UK festival, the debate on Lars's drumming erupts! Is he any good? Should that matter considering what he has done in the past? They are the biggest metal band in the world so should we just suck it up?
It got me thinking. I'm def not the best drummer in the world. I don't even come close to the 100th best drummer in the world. I struggle to do a paradiddle at any reasonable speed for Christ's sake, so I'm not really qualified to mention who I think is a shit drummer, but for the record I don't consider Lars to be shit. He does things live that annoy me but at the end of the day, it's his gig and he'll do what he wants. I'll still watch it and enjoy it but I can't help wishing he'd play those patterns and fills he played on the albums instead of the strange things he does now.
Throughout the years drumming has got crazier and crazier and there are some insane drummers that keep surfacing,in big bands and small bands, but I always go back to my idols to draw inspiration from them. Why? Because I like their songs and their drumming grabs my attention more. Drumming to me is about playing the song and giving it some groove. I can't stand it when a band seems to have written all their songs around the awesome drummer they have. It's boring (in my humble opinion).The Guitar riff should come first then the drums give it some feel.
So, I thought I'd share with you who some of my favourite drummers are, who I get inspiration from and why I like them.You'll be able to hear their influences in all my recorded work right from the 4ft days through to my latest Reign of Fury album "Death Be Thy Shepherd".
My drumming style is bang in the middle of Skate Punk and Heavy Metal. In fact, I remember Rob from 4ft once storming off stage in Leicester after a gig in a pissy mood. When I got to the dressing room he told me "I can't play with you anymore, you're far too metal". We then had an argument about my double kick pedal and how he thought it shouldn't be in punk. HA HA HA!
In no particular order,these are the drummers that moulded my style into what it is today.
Lars Ulrich - Metallica
Lars and Metallica have written some of the best metal songs ever written. They defined and era in metal and the grooves Lars comes up with on the albums complement the songs perfectly.He puts double kick where it needs to be and stays off it when the song doesn't need it.
He's the drive of that band and I seriously think that if Lars wasn't in Metallica, Metallica would not exist. He gets the job done, musically and business wise.
People slag him off for the whole Napster thing but he did have a very good point.Thats another story.
Like I said before though, I wish he'd play the songs the way they were written. I mean, he can do what he wants, but I get a bit disappointed when I air drum the big fill at the start of "Creeping Death" and he doesn't play it.The same goes for the first fill in "Fade to Black". It would be like Kirk not playing the memorable bits of his solos.
Saying that though, after watching their set on telly I go to bed, wake up the next day with an unexplainable urge to put "Kill em All" on and listen out for that awesome ride cymbal ticking away in the intro for "Hit the Lights", then find myself air drumming to the thundering toms of "Whiplash"!!
Say what you will about Lars, he is still a massive inspiration.
Smelly aka Groggy Nodbeggar aka Semour Butts- NOFX
Smelly (or whatever he is called in any particular NOFX album) is one of my biggest influences. I accidentally became a drummer. 4ft needed a drummer and I happened to be buying a drum kit at the time. I was originally a guitarist but said I'd drum for them until they get another one.I then got asked to be their permanent drummer after a few weeks and stayed their drummer for 12 years.
NOFX was the perfect skate punk sound to me. Slayer speed on the faster stuff with a very catchy sound. Smelly's drumming sounded like something I could do so I set about teaching myself to play fast. Again, he plays what needs to be played but just as you think to yourself "I could play that" he accents the beats with something slightly crazy that makes you sit back ant think about it.
The fast beat I use in a lot of my songs back then and today is still the beat I learnt from Smelly. At rehearsals sometimes we even refer to it as the "NOFX beat". And in the new album there are some little half beat stops in one of the songs that we refer to as "NOFX stops".
Listen to him live and you'll discover he is the glue of that band.
Vinnie Paul- Pantera, Hellyeah
Vinnie Paul needs no introduction. His sound is the sound every metal drummer tries to get.In fact, I used to tell my sound man in 4ft to make sure my kit sounds like Vinnie Paul's every night! And that was when I had used an eighteen inch kick drum! Two mics made it sound somewhere near Vinnie's.
Again,he plays the song and really does snap in something amazing at exactly the right moment. He has a very simple setup too. Something I try to do with my setup.
Everything he's recorded from "Cowboys from Hell" to "Far Beyond Driven" is perfect. The later Pantera stuff took me longer to get into though, but that was due to the songs not the drumming. But you really should have a listen to Pre-Cowboys era for some great stuff that just won't get the airplay the later stuff does.
Nicko McBrain- Iron Maiden
Probably the best drummer in metal. I don't give a shit about the Nile type drummers, Nicko's ability, knowledge and perfection to the art of drumming is outstanding. He has a massive kit but knows how to use it perfectly and still only uses a single kick drum pedal!!
He has character and groove. Again, you'll hear on all of my later recordings exactly which parts I take inspiration from Nicko on. "Heaven Waits, Hell Takes" from "World Detonation" is one example.
Brett Reed- Rancid
When I first heard "...And Out Come the Wolves" by Rancid, I didn't really like it. It was a bit too soft for me. But it grew on me. Then I got their earlier album "Lets Go". My drumming changed straight away! I realised there was a stepping stone between slow Sex Pistols type drumming to fast Slayer type drumming. "Lets go" was perfect. I started writing songs for 4ft with that beat in mind and it worked, brilliantly! Suddenly I could play fills a lot better too. Brett Reed will prob never know how important his drumming was to my development as a drummer and to my punk rock song writing!
Nick Menza- Megadeth
Groove, groove, groove! That is what Nick Menza is all about.
The first Megadeth song I ever heard was "Skin O' My Teeth". I put "Countdown to Extinction" into my tape player, pressed play and that drum fill kicked things off! It wasn't until years later I worked out how to play it, (with a little help from Greg from hardcore band Primate).
Megadeth were the first band I ever saw live too. Nick Menza was playing a Pearl see through drum kit! As a young kid of 14 years old, this was a great thing to see.
Even some of the stuff we write in Reign of Fury today gets broken down into the "Megadeth Groove" to change the feel of a riff.We really should call it "The Menza Groove". Check out our song "Love of a Dying God".
Paul Bostaph- Slayer, Testament, Exodus, Forbidden
Slayer are my all time favourate band. Paul plays with style. He has a great set up nowadays and his playing is very,very tight with that all important groove. His fills are fast and creative. His skills are what I aspire to achieve. Whether I'll get there or not I don't know.
I first heard him drum when I listened to "Divine Intervention" by Slayer when I was at school and was amazed at the way he played every note on the ride cymbal when playing the fast beat.
When I later took up drumming and learnt to play fast, I made sure I paid homage to Paul by playing every note on the ride and hi-hat too.Nothing pisses me off more than seeing a drummer perfectly capable of doing that but choosing note to, ie: doing that thing where they alternate the hi-hat and snare to play it. Like a slow blast beat. It's just lazy.
I know people will be saying how much better Dave Lombardo is but sorry, I prefer Paul Bostaph.
I first saw Paul play live at Donington '95 and then managed to catch him again when he played for Testament a few years ago.
I bloody glad he's back in Slayer and I'm looking forward to hearing their new album.
Not Forgetting
These are just a few drummers I draw inspiration from. I could go on forever about who else inspires me but I've got to cook the dinner sometime today.
Tommy Lee, Dave Lombardo, Tommy Aldridge, Clive Burr, Charlie Benante and Phil Rudd ,are also among my favourites and all inspire my drumming today. They each have their own style, sound and character but above all else, they have groove and I like the songs they play on. I'am not a fan of Ringo Starr though.
These choices of mine might seem predictable and you may be wondering why Keith Moon, Buddy Rich,Stuart Copeland and other greats aren't in there. The truth is because I haven't drawn anything from them and don't listen to their songs as much.
There are so many great drummers out there but if I don't like their songs, I won't listen to them.Unless by accident.
There is always room for improvement and inspiration so who knows where I'll get my inspiration from for next few albums. The other bands we play with are a good starting point.
"Never forget about your paradiddle"- Nick McBrain
"Hit hard, play fast, have a laugh"- Me
Magic Dave.
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| Photo by Will Tudor |
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