Feature Stories
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.
Remembering "The Chapin Magic"
Modern Drummer’s 2011 Readers Poll Hall of Fame inductee is the late drummer/educator Jim Chapin, who passed away in 2009. An anecdote by his friend Rob Birenbaum provides rare insight into the great man’s humanity. by Rob Birenbaum Jim Chapin,…
Slingerland Radio King Snare
First introduced in 1936—when it could be heard on Benny Goodman’s soon-to-become classic “Sing, Sing, Sing”—Slingerland’s Radio King snare was revolutionary in that it made double-headed, tunable toms available to drummers for the first time. by Mark Cooper The 1936…
Joe Morello: 1928–2011
No one has done more to reveal the inner science and outer beauty of odd time signatures than the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s beloved drummer. Friend and student Steve Fidyk created this fitting musical tribute. Click here to view the complete transcription…
Brian Chase: Indie Invention, Jazz Heart
Brian Chase burst onto the scene at the turn of the millennium with the indie rock/garage punk band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Chase first met vocalist/pianist Karen O while attending the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio in the late ’90s.…
Justin Foley: Killswitch Engage’s Rulebreaker
Killswitch Engage drummer Justin Foley doesn’t quite fit in with the normal metal drummer stereotypes. For one, he’s classically trained, having received his undergraduate degree in percussion from the University of Connecticut and his master’s degree from the prestigious Hartt…
Danny Seraphine: Update 2011
By Bob Girouard It seems that since Danny Seraphine made a comeback of sorts of the 2006 Modern Drummer Festival, he’s kicked the current phase of his drumming career into high gear, appearing at events like Drummers for Jesus, the…
Brian Tichy: Bonzo Tribute
(June 2011 Issue) On September 25, 2010, the thirtieth anniversary of the passing of John Bonham, Whitesnake’s Brian Tichy assembled a cast of eighteen top-notch drummers at Hollywood’s Key Club to pay tribute to the legendary Led Zeppelin drummer. According…
Christoph Schneider: Exploding Expectations With Rammstein
Christoph “Doom” Schneider, drummer of the infamous Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein, was born May 11, 1966, in Berlin, East Germany. His musical interests began in school, where he played the trumpet, but his true calling struck at age fourteen,…
Dale Crover: The Melvins' Thunder King
(May 2011 Issue) by Michael Parillo In Modern Drummer’s May 2011 cover story on the Melvins’ Dale Crover, out now, we get into serious detail. We speak with Crover about the first time he saw the Melvins, way back before he…
Yes's Alan White: Revisited
As Yes continues their world tour – featuring the return of keyboardist Rick Wakeman, signifying the reborn “classic” lineup – the band simply gets hotter and hotter. Drummer Alan White recently sat down with Modern Drummer, inaugurating the magazine’s brand-newPlayback column,…
Billy Ward: Deep Thoughts, Deep Rhythms
Billy Ward is a unique force in the drum world—a technician of the highest order who can bring taste and creativity to a huge variety of musical situations, a clear and enthusiastic educator, and a notorious drumming thinker who is…
Chris Coleman: Amazing Journey
(January 2011 Issue) by Stephen Styles His is one of the most closely observed careers in R&B, fusion, gospel, and pop drumming, with acts like Israel Houghton & New Breed, Chaka Khan, Christina Aguilera, Babyface, Patti LaBelle, Randy Brecker, and…
John "JR" Robinson: Web Exclusive
(Aprill 2011 Issue) Story by Billy Amendola Between his appearance on this year’s Grammys and his upcoming performance at the Oscars, JR continues his conversation with MD about what a typical day in the studio is like, his early influences,…
Chris Tsagakis: Gearing Up
(April 2011 Issue) More with RX Bandits’ remarkable sticksman—profiled in April’s Gearing Up column—who smoothly covers the broad ground between So-Cal ska and blazing prog rock. by Corrado Rizzi It’s safe to say that you will never see RX Bandits…
