Hey, folks! My name is Mykul Lee, and I play for the band Oh No Not Stereo, from Hollywood, California (and I play SJC Drums). So excited to be writing to you from Modern Drummer land!

My longtime partner in crime Skyler Nielsen (vox/guitar) and I started Oh No Not Stereo about nine years ago as a duo—before I was twenty-one years old—right here in Hollywood. Both of us being multi-instrumentalists, we did anything we could to weasel our way into clubs or bars to play music for whoever showed up. Over the years we’ve expanded into being a full-on four-piece traveling band. We’ve done a plethora of national and international tours, released four studio albums, licensed music to TV and film, and are responsible for a ton of shameless self-promotion along the way.

Our latest record, InCaseOfStaresUseFire, came out last fall and is sure to get your feet tappin.’ Hell, maybe even your head banging at times! We were able to use some of our favorite musical and recording techniques on this record. As far as drumming technique, I pretty much grew up on punk rock and heavy alternative/hard rock. Over the years I’ve gained a huge respect for metal and progressive music as well, especially in the drum realm.

One of my favorite things about songwriting as a drummer is the potential dynamic available in every process, whether it’s melodically, rhythmically, or in regards to tempo or meter. I’ve always been attracted to music that has a lot of dynamic changes. Don’t get me wrong, I can get into some acoustic/singer-songwriter stuff just as much. But when it comes to playing and recording drums with this band, I’ve gotten entirely used to hitting hard and never compromising on it. And it’s always fun to record drums! Advertisement

We did a music video for every song on this last album—that’s TEN music videos! You can check them out at YouTube; search “ohnonotstereo.” My favorite part about everything we’ve accomplished, however, is that we did it all independently. We’re very proud to be able to sustain in today’s competitive, dog-eat-dog industry on our own eight feet! Although, the only reason we’re really able to do so is through outlets like Modern Drummer who support and reach out to drummers/artists. We have extreme amounts of respect for anyone who supports music—especially independent music! So thanks for reading, and nice to meet all you modern drummers! Cheers!

 

For more on Mykul Lee and Oh No Not Stereo, click here.