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December 2017 Issue – Volume 41 • Number 12

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Articles in December 2017

An Editor's Overview

Learn to Love Easy

There’s a folksy old saying that goes something like, “People sure do make things more difficult than they need to.” We’ve all made that observation at one time or another about others—and, let’s be honest, at times we even make…

by Adam Budofsky
Oct 31, 2017
Features

Queens of the Stone Age’s Jon Theodore

It’s been four years since the esteemed ex–Mars Volta drummer began playing in QotSA. Now we’ve been gifted with the multifarious Villains, and at long last we get to hear what he sounds like on a full-length record with the…

Story by David Ciauro | Photos by Andreas Neumann
Oct 31, 2017
Education

Jon Theodore Style and Analysis

From his days playing mind-melting Mars Volta compositions to his current gig with the rock giants Queens of the Stone Age, Jon Theodore has inspired drummers with powerful grooves, explosive fills, and rock-solid time. His ability to craft the perfect parts…

by Austin Burcham
Oct 31, 2017
Features

Modern Drummer 2018 Readers Poll

Make your voice heard in the most important poll in the drumming world! Voting is open November 1-24, 2017. Hall of Fame Jimmy Cobb Roger Hawkins Levon Helm Danny Seraphine Clyde Stubblefield Studio Jay Bellerose Matt Chamberlain Steve Jordan Miles…

Modern Drummer
Oct 31, 2017
Features

The Psychedelic Furs’ Paul Garisto

Paul Garisto  joined the iconic post-punk band the Psychedelic Furs in late 1983 and remained with them until early 1988. After that initial run with the band, he toured and recorded the album Instinct with Iggy Pop, contributed to albums…

by Chris Boyle
Oct 31, 2017
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Features

Roy McCurdy

On playing on the classic 1963 album Sonny Meets Hawk! I’d been working with Sonny Rollins for about a year prior to recording that album. Sonny was such a strong player that he made me play strong. He loved Coleman…

Interview by Bob Girouard
Oct 31, 2017
Features

Justin Brown

Thirty-three-year-old Oakland, California, native Justin Brown is an extremely busy bicoastal musician whose drumming with Thundercat, Gerald Clayton, Christian McBride, Stefon Harris, Kenny Garrett, Esperanza Spalding, and Vijay Iyer is simply a foretaste of his brilliant debut album as a…

Story by Ken Micallef | Photos by Paul La Raia
Oct 31, 2017
Features

Eli Keszler

When the Brooklyn-based performer and composer Eli Keszler settles in behind a drumkit, it’s likely that he’s given as much thought to the space he’s playing in as the notes he’s filling it with. “As a composer it’s essential that…

Story by Keith Carne | Photos by Brendan Burdzinski
Oct 31, 2017
Features

Dennis Bryon

Since the mid-’70s, Dennis Bryon’s hypnotic grooves have been responsible for luring most of the civilized world’s population onto the dance floor. Bryon accomplished this feat by playing with one of the most successful groups of all time, the Bee…

Interview by Zoro
Oct 31, 2017
Features

John Blackwell Jr.

On July 4, the drumming world suffered a heavy blow with the passing of John Blackwell Jr. Known for his deep pocket, powerful playing, and visual flash, Blackwell was a renowned performer and educator whose work included tours and recordings…

Story by Drew Schultz | Photo by Miguel Monroy
Oct 31, 2017
Features

12 Heartland Prog Albums

In the 1970s, defiant artists native to America’s erroneously labeled “flyover country” developed thriving and idiosyncratic music scenes far from the media glare of the coasts, in cities as unlikely as Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Louisville, Kentucky. Here we present…

by Will Romano
Oct 31, 2017
Basics

Dressing Up Your Fills

Fresh Ideas to Kick Off the Band

by Powell Randolph
Oct 31, 2017
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Education

Flowing Diddles, Triple Strokes, and Paradiddles

Essential Motions for Smoother Transitions

by Bill Bachman
Oct 31, 2017
Education

Fill Displacements

Deepen Your Vocabulary

by Dave DiCenso
Oct 31, 2017
Education

Rhythmic Conversions - Part 5: Brazilian Grooves and the Half-Note Triplet

In this lesson we’ll superimpose a new tempo over an existing pulse using a half-note-triplet subdivision. We’ll then manipulate the subdivision to create Brazilian grooves in the new tempo. I recommend that you practice these patterns with a metronome and…

by Steve Fidyk
Oct 31, 2017
Education

The Circuit - An Ambidextrous Routine for Ultimate Control

https://vimeo.com/239498551 This month we’ll check out a challenging coordination study. The goal of this routine is to become comfortable playing any pattern leading with either side of the body. Right-handed drummers typically play with the right hand on a cymbal,…

by Aaron Edgar
Oct 31, 2017
Concepts

Drum Design Knowledge, Part 2: Shell Types and Thicknesses

Last month we discussed hoops. This time we’re discussing the thickness of the shell and what you can expect sonically from the various designs. Drum shells have been made in different thicknesses over the years, from a single half-inch piece…

by Russ Miller
Oct 31, 2017
Equipment

Yamaha - Rydeen RDP2F5 Drumset

An excellent entry-level option with quality sound and sturdy hardware.

by Michael Dawson
Oct 31, 2017
Equipment

Paiste - 900 Series Cymbals

Hand-hammered 2002 bronze with a special dark finish for a slightly warmer tone.

by Michael Dawson
Oct 31, 2017
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Equipment

Black Swamp - Dynamicx Sterling, Live!, and BackBeat Snares

Pristinely crafted wood-shell drums for any professional situation.

by Michael Dawson
Oct 31, 2017
Equipment

Los Cabos - White Hickory, Red Hickory, and Maple Drumsticks

Top-notch products from a smaller Canadian company with big-time aspirations.

by Michael Dawson
Oct 31, 2017
Collector's Corner

John Aldridge

The famed engraver, drum tech, and vintage enthusiast helped start a movement.

by Harry Cangany
Oct 31, 2017
Equipment

Janet Jackson’s John Roberts

“I’ve been a Tama artist since 2002,” says Roberts, who’s back on the road with Janet Jackson after the singer took some time off to tend to personal matters. “I especially love bubinga drums because of the warm tones that…

Interview and photos by Sayre Berman
Oct 31, 2017
Equipment

New Gear from Tama, Ahead, Remo and Wuhan!

Tama Lars Ulrich Worldwired Starclassic Drumkit As part of the Starclassic series, this six-piece limited-edition replica kit features 8-ply/7mm maple bass drums and 6-ply/5mm maple toms. This pro-level instrument has the same purple finish as the kit Lars uses on…

Modern Drummer
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

What’s Your Favorite Prog Drumming Record?

To coincide with this month’s feature on twelve heartland prog-rock drumming albums, we asked our readers and social media followers for their own favorite prog records. Plenty of choices featuring drum legends such as Bill Bruford, Neil Peart, and Phil…

Modern Drummer
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

Matt Greiner on August Burns Red’s Phantom Anthem

Pinpoint precision, burning chops, and odd time signatures abound on the veteran metalcore group’s latest offering.

Article by Willie Rose | Photo by Ray Duker
Oct 31, 2017
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Departments

Roy Mayorga With Stone Sour

With the hot new album Hydrograd in hand and health issues put well behind him, the drummer is amped to be back on the road for Stone Sour’s headlining tour.

by Kim Kicks
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

Dave Weckl, Omar Hakim, D'Addario and More!

Dave Weckl Launches Online Drum School Fusion legend Dave Weckl recently launched an online school that includes HD video lessons, play-along packages, and exclusive live footage and lessons from current tours. Courses include hand and foot technique and drum tuning.…

Modern Drummer
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

Mark Guiliana

Touring is tough. And the ordeal of modern flying has upped the headache factor. But Mark Guiliana has learned to deal: He’s traveling ultra-light and loving it. The Mark Guiliana Jazz Quartet is touring the U.S. and Europe in support…

by Jeff Potter
Oct 31, 2017
Critique

Neo-Prog, American Style

The Oakland-based Once and Future Band doesn’t shy away from the influence of progressive rock’s legendary forefathers throughout its self-titled debut, with a heavy emphasis on sunny harmonies and ELO/Yes-inflected song structures. Drummer RAJ OJHA navigates the ever-shifting arrangements with…

by Ilya Stemkovsky
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

Peter Magadini’s Polyrhythmic Life

Given that rhythm is the playground of drummers, polyrhythms seem to have a particular resonance. The possibilities of two against three, three against four, and beyond are continually explored in jazz, rock, and other styles. For many a drummer across…

by Martin Patmos
Oct 31, 2017
Backbeats

2017 DCI World Championship Results

Capping the seventh undefeated season in their sixty-year history, the Blue Devils, based in Concord, California, won a record-breaking eighteenth title this past August 12 at the Drum Corps International World Championships at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. Coinciding…

Text and photos by Lauren Vogel Weiss
Oct 31, 2017
Departments

Sonor Swinger

When the indie rock group Faux in Love went into the Guilford Sound studio in Guilford, Vermont, to record its latest record, drummer Bruce Black decided to bring this vintage, late-1960s Sonor Swinger setup. According to Black, and confirmed to…

Modern Drummer
Oct 31, 2017

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