On the Beat
Modern Drummer is the world’s most widely read drum magazine, is dedicated entirely to the art of drumming and caters to the needs of amateur, semi-pro, and professional drummers.
Drummer Blog: Martin Levac on Channelling Phil Collins
Hello Modern Drummer, my name is Martin Levac and I am a drummer, singer, keyboardist, lyricist, and composer, best known for my on stage impersonation of British drummer and singer Phil Collins. My passion for the music of Genesis and…
Drummer Blog: The Color Morale’s Steve Carey Visits Tracks From the Band’s Latest Record
“Outer Demons” is a very upbeat, alive and electric song for me to play on drums. It was one of the first songs we wrote for Hold On Pain Ends and the whole purpose of it was to make kids…
Drummer Blog: Salvador Placencia and Garrett Ray of Fool’s Gold
Garrett Ray of Fool’s Gold Greetings drummers of the modern age! We are Salvador Placencia and Garrett Ray, percussionist and drummer for the band Fool’s Gold from Los Angeles. We thought it would be fun to interview each other to…
Drummer Blog: Drummer Reflections from Rick Hall of Muscle Shoals/Fame Studios
Jerry Carrigan was the first drummer I used as a studio musician when I produced my first hit record for Arthur Alexander. It was called “You Better Move On.” Jerry went on to play drums on my second hit, with…
Drummer Blog: Polyphia’s Brandon Burkhalter on Keeping Things Simple
What’s up Modern Drummer! My name is Brandon Burkhalter. I play drums in instrumental progressive rock quartet Polyphia, and when I’m not doing that I’m singing, playing piano, writing music, or lending myself to the next generation of up-and-coming shredders…
Drummer Blog: Shauney Recke on Keeping an Open Mind and Being Prepared for Anything
Hello drummers and all others. My name is Shauney Recke, known to most as Shauney Baby, a name I adapted some time ago in my hometown of Washington, DC while playing in the first-ever all female go-go band called Pleasure.…
Drummer Blog: Translator’s Dave Scheff Talks Past Influences and Upcoming Shows
Hi, MD readers! Dave Scheff here. Though I’ve drummed my way across the spectrum, with acts as disparate as comedian Jerry Van Dyke and icon Joan Baez, while also touring with Dead Kennedys and recording and touring with Half True,…
On the Beat: Bayside’s Chris Guglielmo Explains the Hits Between the Hits
Hi, Modern Drummer people! My name is Chris Guglielmo, and I play drums in a band called Bayside. I play Ludwig drums, Sabian cymbals, Promark sticks, and Evans heads. I remember getting my first set of drums in middle school.…
Drummer Blog: Downtrend’s J.D. Hall on Fusing Backwoods Heritage and Metal
Greetings, MD readers! My last blog was back in 2010 and much has happened since then. I am currently slamming the skins for the Pikeville, Kentucky–based hard rock/metal band Downtrend. We are signed to an indie label called Vision Metal…
Drummer Blog: Brutai’s Mathieu Bauer
Hello world! Mathieu Bauer here, of the band Brutai. I am French and twenty-two years old, but most of all I am a drummer. A little about myself—the tale begins when I was five years old learning classical percussion in…
Drummer Blog: Royal Thunder’s Evan Diprima Talks New Record, Crooked Doors
Hello all! This is Evan Diprima here from Royal Thunder. Our new full-length record, Crooked Doors, is coming on April 7. This video (below) documents some of the journey through the recording process with our good friend/producer and Aria Recording…
Drummer Blog: Dirty Heads’ Matt Ochoa on Playing Through the Drum
Hey, Modern Drummer! My name is Matt Ochoa, and I live in Huntington Beach, California. I play drums in a band called Dirty Heads. We’re an alternative group with influences of hip-hop and reggae. Our style can mix up acoustic…
Drummer Blog: the Blues Magoos’ Geoff Daking Talks Greenwich Village, Engineering, and Session Work
Hey drummers! I’m Geoff Daking of the Blues Magoos. We have a new CD out called Psychedelic Resurrection. I started playing in the early ’60s in Delaware. When I was in high school I came to New York City on weekends to see Monk,…
Drummer Blog: Issues’ Josh Manuel Talks Studio Work and Collaborating on Rhythm and Grooves
Hey guys and girls! My name is Josh Manuel, and I’m the drummer of the very genre-confused band Issues. In early 2014, we released our first full length, and to our surprise it peaked at number nine on the Billboard…
