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Drummer Josh Freese

Josh Freese






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Note: Some MD articles are only available in pdf format. Those articles do not appear in this list. Subscribers to Digital and All-Access can view every Modern Drummer issue in their available formats. Browse all MD issues from our archive here.
September 2019:
Josh Freese With the Vandals

I have two kits at my house. One is set up in my studio with microphones on it, so that never leaves. This kit is what I use for quick gigs here and there.


June 2011:
June 2011 – Volume 35 • Number 6

Josh Freese, Phil Collins, Philly Joe Jones, Brian Tichy, Floyd Sneed, John Von Ohlen, Lenny White, Danny Seraphine, Robert Sweet, Kevin Crabb, Troy Zeigler, Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez, Marco Giovino


December 2009:
December 2009 – Volume 33 • Number 12

Max Weinberg, Jay Weinberg, Michael Giles, Steve Gorman, Blake Dixon, Michael “Leroy” Bram, Obed Calvaire, Gregg Bissonette, Russ Miller, Chris Frantz, Josh Freese, E.J. Strickland, Brian Blade, Mark Zonder


March 2009:
March 2009 – Volume 33 • Number 3

Earl Palmer, Ronnie Vannucci, Josh Freese, Vinnie Colaiuta, Franscisco Mela, Sean Reinert, Marco Minnemann, Jay Bellerose, Russ Kunkel, Jimmy DeGrasso, Benny Greb, Mickey Hart


September 2007:
September 2007 – Volume 31 • Number 9

Josh Freese, Jeff Porcaro, James Gadson, Vinny Appice, Morgan Rose, Vicki Randle, Ryland Steen, Artimus Pyle, Stephen Flinn, Steve Smith, Abe Laboriel Jr., David Garibaldi


March 2004:
March 2004 – Volume 28 • Number 3

John Otto, Ron Spagnardi, Terry Bozzio, Bill Bruford, Simon Phillips, Carter Beauford, Chad Cromwell, Tim Alexander, Josh Freese, Steve Smith, Stephen Perkins, Gary Husband, Gordon Heckaman, Jason Bittner, Martin Atkins, Tony Thompson, Thomas Lang, Matt Sorum, Abe Laboriel Jr.


December 2003:
December 2003 – Volume 27 • Number 12

Morgan Rose, Ed Toth, Sherrie Maricle, Charles Collins, Earl Young, Chad Sexton, Zach Danziger, John Stanier, Evan Stone, Steve Fidyk, John Bonham, Art Blakey, Josh Freese, Tony Royster Jr., Jeff Hamilton


March 2003:
March 2003 – Volume 27 • Number 3

Josh Freese, Ben Perowsky, Marcus Baylor, Dave Grohl, Phil Collins, John Mahon, Jim Keltner, H. Benjamin Schuman, Rickey Shelton, Philly Joe Jones, Fab Moretti, Jimmy DeGrasso, Ralph Hardimon, Mark Schulman


April 2002:
April 2002 – Volume 26 • Number 4

Buddy Rich, Nick D’Virgilio, Joe La Barbera, Steve Smith, Josh Freese, Panama Francis, Jeff Ocheltree, Abe Laboriel Jr., Allen Shellenberger, King Coffey, Richie Hayward, Glenn Kotche, Tommy Aldridge, Mike Heidorn, Slim Jim Phantom, Greg Upchurch, Gene Lake, Joe Morello


November 1997:
November 1997 – Volume 21 • Number 11

Kenny Aronoff, Matt Cameron, Bordin, Stephen Perkins, Chris Vrenna, Tim “Herb” Alexander, Josh Freese, Louie Weaver, Steven Drozd, Alexis Fleisig, Mike Musburger, Dale Crover, Barrett Martin, Brian Reitzell, Dan Peters, J. Mascis, Carl Allen, Jeremy Taggart, Ray Marchica, Michael Urbano, Mark Zonder, Chuck Silverman, Eric Kretz, Mike Bordin, Charlie Cooley, …



Posted: September 28, 2022

Category: News
Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert

By Alex Kluft Photo by Andreas Neumann On March 25, 2022, the world lost one the greatest drummers and member of one of the most important and biggest rock bands of all time, Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters. To honor Hawkins, Dave Grohl put together two of the biggest …


Posted: December 14, 2017

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
On The Beat with Ryan Bennett of Madame Mayhem: Talks New Record and Gear

Hey Modern Drummer readers! My name is Ryan Bennett and I am touring with Madame Mayhem in promotion of her new record Ready For Me.


Posted: October 10, 2017

Clif Magness
Category: Drummers, On the Beat
On The Beat with Grammy Winning Producer-Drummer-Guitarist-Songwriter Clif Magness

Hi MD. My love affair with drums began in my mother’s car. When I was around six years old, I was pounding away “Wipe Out” on the headrest when she decided then and there to rush me into drum lessons. A few years later, my parents bought me the Yamaha …


Posted: August 31, 2016

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Mark Stepro on Recording With Butch Walker

Mark Stepro is an in-demand studio and live performer who handles everything from alt-country to rock. The drummer, who placed in MD’s 2016 Readers Poll in the Pop/R&B category, can be heard on new records from Gaslight Anthem’s Brian Fallon, the Wind and the Wave, and Butch Walker, who calls …


Posted: September 19, 2014

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Drummer Blog! Eric Jackowitz on Playing Different Styles With Caleb Hawley

Playing Caleb’s tunes is a pleasure. The first record is more Motown inspired, and his second record has a more funk/synth/Prince-y vibe, so I’ve been getting to let out my inner Ndugu Chancler/Steve Jordan/Questlove….


Posted: March 7, 2014

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Beau Kuther of Smallpools

Good day, fellow Modern Drummer fanatics. Most of you don’t know who I am, but if you skim your way through this brief and painless memoir of my drumming existence, you’ll probably end up knowing more about me than you bargained for….


Posted: October 25, 2013

Category: Clinics and Events, Drummers, News, News and Events
MD Writer “Pistol” Pete Kaufmann Conducts “Big Picture Drumming” Clinic

Musician and Modern Drummer writer “Pistol” Pete Kaufmann will be conducting his clinic on “Big Picture Drumming” at Warlock Drum studios in Downtown Jersey City, Saturday, November 9th, from 1 to 3pm. Big Picture Drumming is based on Pistol’s Modern Drummer Magazine educational piece and concepts will be geared towards …


Posted: August 1, 2013

Category: Clinics and Events, News, News and Events
Guitar Center Launches Its 25th Annual Drum-Off Competition

Guitar Center’s Drum-Off launches its 25th annual search for the next great undiscovered drummer.


Posted: July 16, 2013

Category: Album/Song Reviews, Drummers, Reviews
Sublime 3 Ring Circus: Live at the Palace, October 21, 1995

Sublime is that rare band that enjoyed most of their success and acclaim after breaking up. Following the death by heroin overdose of vocalist and guitarist Bradley Nowell on May 25, 1996, the remaining members, drummer Bud Gaugh and bassist Eric Wilson, decided they didn’t want to go on without …


Posted: October 10, 2012

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Joseph Reilly of the Winter Sounds

As a kid I always envisioned myself as the guitarist in a hair metal band. But from the minute I first sat behind a drumset, I knew it was my place in a band.


Posted: February 22, 2012

Category: News, News and Events
Feb Web Update News

Vinnie Colaiuta, Jeff Hamilton, and Karriem Riggins are on Paul McCartney’s latest, Kisses on the Bottom. Riggins performed with the former Beatle at the Grammys, as did McCartney regular Abe Laboriel. For more, visit www.paulmccartney.com. Speaking of the Grammys, Low Millions drummer/producer Erik Eldenius was in the house band again …


Posted: January 26, 2012

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Josh Freese: How to Promote Yourself, and Other Insights

This article originally ran in the December 2009 issue of Modern Drummer magazine.   1. Think marketing. I made my latest record [Since 1972] on my own dime. So I thought, How can I do something cool and interesting to make people aware of it? My last record sold so …


Posted: December 13, 2011

Category: Drummers, News, News and Events
Bud Gaugh to Sit Out of the Next Sublime with Rome Tour

Sublime with Rome have announced that longtime drummer Bud Gaugh will not be on the band’s next tour.


Posted: October 19, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Nia Lovelis of Cherri Bomb

When I was really young my parents took me horseback riding, and the sound and feel of the rhythm got stuck in my head. It was then I knew I wanted to play drums. I come from a musical family: My mom was the lead singer/songwriter in an alt-rock band, …


Posted: September 22, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Matt Ochoa of the Dirty Heads

My name is Matt Ochoa, and I play drums for the Dirty Heads. For those who don’t know us, we’re a reggae-infused rock band with a solid hip-hop influence. I’ve been with the group since ’07, and we’re currently recording our second album and getting ready for a co-headlining tour …


Posted: August 3, 2011

Category: News, News and Events
Web Update News 8/11

Find out what your favorite drummer is up to now (Web Update News 7/21/11).


Posted: August 1, 2011

Category: News, News and Events
Guitar Center’s Drum-Off, World’s Largest Drumming Competition, Kicks-Off

Guitar Center has announced the launch of the 23rd annual Guitar Center’s Drum-Off the nationwide search for the next great undiscovered drummer.


Posted: July 1, 2011

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
MD Readers Poll 2011 Results

Welcome once again to the MD Readers Poll, where the greatest drummers on the planet are honored by the most educated drum fans around. Let’s get right to it: the envelope, please….


Posted: June 24, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Elias Logothetis with Ryan Star

I’d like to thank the folks at Modern Drummer for inviting me to share a little bit of history and a few of the upcoming events going on with Ryan Star. I’ve been playing drums with Ryan for a little over a year and a half now. I started back …


Posted: June 8, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Steve Clifford of Circa Survive

Hello, reader of Modern Drummer, my name is Steve Clifford and I play the drumset in the band Circa Survive. I’m really excited/honored to be a guest blogger for MD. Before I dig into my story I wanted to give you all a quick update of what we’ve been


Posted: March 9, 2011

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Mark Garza of the Famine

Photo by Chris Law Okay, listen up, modern drummers! Mark Garza here, and first off, I grew up always dreaming of being on the cover of Modern Drummer. Now, I know this is not the cover, but it is a feature in which I can tell you a little bit …


Posted: December 6, 2010

David Phillips Modern Drummer Drummer Blog
Category: Drummers, On the Beat
David Phillips: "A Drummer’s Perspective???

Photo by Marc Rouve You can probably guess I dabble a bit on the old drumkit myself, and it is always difficult trying to explain to someone what it looks like sitting on that throne—the best seat in the house. With my images in the book I try to give …


Posted: December 6, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
David Phillips: “A Drummer’s Perspective???

Photo by Marc Rouve You can probably guess I dabble a bit on the old drumkit myself, and it is always difficult trying to explain to someone what it looks like sitting on that throne—the best seat in the house. With my images in the book I try to give …


Posted: August 19, 2010

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Brian Reitzell: Total Immersion In Sound

Brian Reitzell came to attention in the early ’90s as the drummer with LA pop-punk band Redd Kross, touring with them and playing on the albums Phaseshifter and Show World. As great as the music on those records is, though, it hardly prepared fans for the depth and breath of …


Posted: August 11, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Bell Gardens’ Charlie Woodburn

Hello, Modern Drummer readers! I’m Charlie Woodburn, and I am a session drummer in Los Angeles, California. First, I would like to say thank you to Modern Drummer for letting me add to the blog because I have been reading the magazine since I was fifteen years old. MD has …


Posted: May 24, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Kevin Hogle of 500 Miles To Memphis

What’s up, MD readers! Thanks for taking the time to read this blog entry, and a huge thanks to Modern Drummer for giving me the opportunity to do so! My name is Kevin Hogle, and I play in a band called 500 Miles To Memphis. We hail from Cincinnati, Ohio, …


Posted: April 7, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Bigger Lights’s Ryan Seaman

I started playing drums at the age of eight, when my father introduced me to the Beatles.


Posted: April 7, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Bigger Lights's Ryan Seaman

I started playing drums at the age of eight, when my father introduced me to the Beatles.


Posted: February 23, 2010

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Social Code’s Ben Shillabeer

I started playing in cover bands when I was sixteen, which is still something I do on occasion…


Posted: February 23, 2010

Social Code drummer Ben Shillabeer
Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Social Code's Ben Shillabeer

I started playing in cover bands when I was sixteen, which is still something I do on occasion…


Posted: February 1, 2010

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
The Greats: Josh Freese

If the old saying “He’s been around the block a few times??? applies to anyone, it most certainly applies to Josh Freese…


Posted: October 13, 2009

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Gary Foster of The Sunstreak

What’s up, everyone! My name is Gary Foster and I play drums and percussion with the Sunstreak…


Posted: March 25, 2009

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Guns ‘N’ Roses’ Bryan “Brain” Mantia

He exists at the rhythmic midpoint between Guns N’ Roses, Tom Waits, and Primus. And boy do we love him for it. (continue reading)


Posted: January 16, 2008

Category: Feature Stories
Best Of ’07

I’m convinced that, ten years from now, we’re going to look back at 2007 as an unusually fertile time in music and in drumming.


Posted: September 23, 2007

Category: Drummers, On the Beat
Justin Hanson from So They Say

Recording Life In Surveillance was a great opportunity to play more of what I enjoy as an artist and drummer. Matt has such great ideas, and my drum selection this time around was just outrageous….


Posted: July 16, 2007

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Josh Freese: Time Bandit

Time. Feel. Groove. Pulse. For many, these are illusive concepts with multiple meanings. Does a heavy metal drummer “feel??? the pulse in the same way as a pop drummer?…


Posted: December 15, 2006

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Rocky Gray of Evanescence

All it took was one wildly propulsive radio single to plaster drummer Rocky Gray’s performances all over the musical map. His band, the Little Rock–based alternative rock act Evanescence, entered with its commercial radio knock-out nearly four years ago via an epic hit, “Bring Me To Life???….


Posted: October 15, 2006

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Jeff Hamilton: Swinging to Success

Few jazz drummers have had careers as rewarding and successful as Jeff Hamilton’s. And with several new releases and projects in the works–and an MD Readers Poll win–2006 may be one of his finest years yet.


Posted: July 15, 2006

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Barry Kerch of Shinedown

In 2001, Barry Kerch’s audition for Shinedown consisted of going into the studio, laying down tracks, and seeing what stuck. Within the tryout he performed the band’s eventual single, “45.???


Posted: July 19, 2005

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories
Damien Fahey

Damien Fahey has a dilemma: These days he’s having a difficult time finding the time to play his drums. You see, Damien hosts one of MTV’s most popular shows, Total Request Live, which airs weekdays at 5:00 P.M. EST to an audience of 50 million viewers.


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Josh Freese

Looking at Josh Freese across a Starbucks table, it’s hard to believe I’ve known him since he was eleven years old. Suddenly it struck me that he was then the same age that my son is now, and the comparison was mind-blowing. At eleven years old, Josh was already fiercely …


Posted: May 12, 2004

DrumNation1
Category: Feature Stories, News, News and Events
Drum Nation: Top Drummers Unite On New Recording

You may have spotted the advertisement for a unique CD titled Drum Nation. It represents the music of drummers, created outside of the constraints of record labels. Terry Bozzio, Josh Freese, Bill Bruford, Steve Smith, and Stephen Perkins are just a few of the top players involved….


Posted: May 12, 2004

Category: Drummers, Feature Stories, Update
Jake Fowler of Mad At Gravity

As if recording wasn’t tough enough, imagine having to play drums with a bad cold and having your mouth covered with duct tape. Alas, that’s where Mad At Gravity’s Jake Fowler found himself while recording the band’s debut release, Resonance.



Posted: October 14, 2021

Category: The Modern Drummer Podcast
Episode 53: Billy Amendola with Josh Freese.

Welcome to this week’s Modern Drummer Podcast with Billy Amendola and his guest Josh Freese. If you’re not familiar with his enormous body of work, please look up his discography, and it’ll make your head spin. Since a very young age, Josh has been a touring musician, a first-call studio …


Posted: November 6, 2015

Category: Mike and Mike Podcast, Multimedia, Podcasts
Episode 15: Jim Riley’s Ghost Notes, Dom Famularo, Zildjian’s new K Custom Dark Crashes, Drum Muffling, and More

In this episode, Mike and Mike dig into a few of the stories in the December 2015 issue of Modern Drummer, including Jim Riley’s educational article on ghost notes, the cover story with global drumming ambassador Dom Famularo, and the product review of Zildjian’s new K Custom Dark 19″ and …