Nic Collins

As previously reported on moderndrummer.com, Simon Collins is releasing his new album, Becoming Human (Frontiers Music s.r.l.), on September 4. The drummer/leader took time to answer some questions about it. MD: What was the writing and preparation process like prior to the recording of Becoming Human? Simon: I spent quite …

The event, which benefits Black Lives Matter Global Network, the David Lynch Foundation, MusiCares, and WaterAid, airs on Youtube July 7 and featured performances by Ringo, Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Gary Clark Jr., Sheryl Crow, Sheila E, and Ben Harper. Starr continues his peace and love initiative and invites everyone …

New Episode: Music, Technology and Writing Spun into Gold (and Platinum) with Modern Drummer publisher David Frangioni interview.

Hey Modern Drummers, Fred Eltringham here with an update from the road. I’ve been having a super exciting summer. In June we toured Europe supporting the great Phil Collins, who has been a massive musical inspiration for me.

After I subbed for the inimitable David Garibaldi with Tower of Power in 2004, it was great to be acknowledged in MD. Getting to do that was a bucket list and dream gig that changed my career forever.

Backstage Auctions, Inc presents the upcoming “All Access David Frangioni” auction event which will feature a host of impressive and historic rock and audio memorabilia including drums and drum kits, audio equipment, and more, from award-winning audio engineer, author, and collector David Frangioni.

The nominees for the 39th Annual Blues Music Awards, presented by the Blues Foundation, represent a prestigious collection of acclaimed performers and rising stars that reflect the breadth and diversity of today’s blues m

On Saturday, February 18, 2007, we lost a singularly unique artist, Mr. Clyde Stubblefield, known to musicians worldwide as “The Funky Drummer.” Check out the August 2017 print and digital versions of Modern Drummer for a look at Clyde’s life, career, and insights from the man himself, as well as …

On Nathan East’s second solo album, Reverence, he once again steps into the spotlight as bandleader. Produced by East and Yamaha Entertainment Group of America founder Chris Gero, it’s no surprise that shortly after its debut (less than one month ago), the album hit the number-one spot on both the …

To borrow from the great Walt Whitman: Bill Stevenson is large. He contains multitudes. Over the last four decades, the hulking drummer has tirelessly propelled the likes of Descendents, All, and Black Flag—a trio of trailblazing bands as skilled at progressive, fusion-inspired jams as they are straight-up punk rock burners …

Hello MD! I am excited to tour again throughout the USA, Canada, and England in 2016. I’m also looking forward to performing at iconic stadiums like Citi Field (New York) and Fenway Park (Boston)….

Hey MD, I’m a drummer/lead singer in a live scenario and in an animal spirit sense. I wear the Justin Bieber headset and I also trigger samples on my Roland SPD-SX drum sampler. People know me as Shmu, the solo artist, as well as the drummer, singer, and songwriter in …

Over the course of his forty-year career traveling the globe to teach, perform, and conduct clinics, Dom Famularo has interacted with some of the finest drummers and drum instructors in the world. The following list contains many of those names, organized by country/continent. If you’re looking for top-notch drum instruction, …

Phil Collins has been advised by doctors not to travel for the time being because of major back surgery that he recently had to undergo. As a consequence, the singer and longtime drummer with Genesis is unable to undertake the extensive promotion campaign and other creative obligations planned internationally on …

Music Technologist David Frangioni is set to perform during the Little Dreams Foundation brunch on May 17th. Scheduled to attend is Phil Collins, among other celebrities and musical personalities.

We asked the members of the Modern Drummer Education Team if they felt that it’s important for drummers to learn to play other instruments (piano, bass, guitar, etc.), or should they focus on honing their craft at the kit exclusively? Here’s what they had to say….

The renowned Latin and jazz drummer/percussionist has always known how to get his point across, whether in the studio, on stage, or in the classroom. Here he offers words of advice that all of us, regardless of age or preferred musical style, should take heed of….

Hello, Modern Drummer, it’s nice to be back with a follow up after an amazing concert for the Phil Collins Little Dreams Foundation. The concert, albeit with a bit of drama, was a success. The Little Dreams Foundation sold out the Fillmore in Miami Beach and raised a lot of …

What is the rhythmic essence of progressive music? What makes prog so different from other genres? Does it require a specific skill set on the drumkit, or does the nature of the music make it open to interpretation? MD posed these and other questions to the drummers in Spock’s Beard, …

The 19th KoSA International Percussion Workshop, Drum Camp, and Festival celebrated its annual week of intensive learning, living, and playing with internationally celebrated drum and percussion masters this past July in the serene mountains of Vermont. KoSA co-founders and directors Aldo Mazza and Dr. Jolán Kovács relayed a simple message …

The East Coast Drum Jam will take place on Sunday, September 21, 2014 at the DoubleTree Hotel Ballroom at US Hwy 1 South in Princeton, New Jersey….

Check out what’s in the August 2014 issue of Modern Drummer magazine featuring Shannon Leto of 30 Seconds to Mars!

Not that anybody perusing a drumming website should need convincing at this point, but Phil Collins is one badass drummer. Recently unearthed recordings add to the already mountainous evidence.

Mastodon’s sold-out show at London’s O2 Academy Brixton on February 11, 2012, was captured on film, and now it’s available as a digital-only product.

The road I took to get here was definitely curvy. Out of college, I toured with Lacy J. Dalton, and after that I worked extensively with local guys in Nashville, playing clubs, colleges, and even some cruise ship tours….

Guitarist Adrian Belew, bassist Tony Levin, and drummer Pat Mastelotto are bringing their Three of a Perfect Pair music camp back to Full Moon Resort in Big Indian, NY for the third year in 2014….

Clinics will take place at the Collective School of Music, which is located at 541 Avenue of the Americas, 4th floor, New York, NY. Seating will be limited and must be reserved in advance by calling the Collective front desk at 212-741-0091 x100….

The October 2013 issue of Modern Drummer magazine features an article in which seven MD Pro Panelists share some of their favorite “hidden gems.??? Here MD’s editorial staff weighs in on their personal favorites….

We were saddened to hear of the passing of Nashville studio great Tommy Wells this week. In honor of Tommy, we’re presenting a portion of his first Modern Drummer feature, from August 1990….

The Collective School of Music will present the following free drum clinics. Clinics will take place at the Collective School of Music, which is located at 541 Avenue of the Americas, 4th floor, New York, NY. Seating for the events will be limited and must be reserved in advance by …

The third annual Regina Drum Festival will take place on September 28 and 29 at the Exchange and the Club in Regina, Saskatchewan, which is located at 2431 8th Avenue….

Odd times, intergalactic themes, and more tom-toms. Rock drumming gets interesting….

I try to be as simple as possible in the decisions I make as a musician. But this isn’t simple at all! It’s actually really difficult….

The Grammy Award-winning master percussionist debuts an interactive, bilingual online music school.

I’m Tim Walsh of the Stepkids, and I’m excited to be on here and hope to add to the wealth of knowledge that is MD’s awesome thirty-five-year history…

Despite the prevalence of educational books, DVDs, and online lessons, most drumming information is still passed down the old-fashioned way: from one player to another, while shooting the breeze at the drum shop. A lot of what we hear, we take at face value, and we repeat these drumming “absolutes??? …

One of the most world-traveled, well-spoken, and high-profile drummer/leaders on the planet tells us what’s what, Sanabria style.

Two drummers working it out, face to face—trading licks, contributing to a massive groove, spurring each other on—it’s one of the great musical traditions, and surely it goes back to the very invention of the drumkit at the beginning of the last century. This group of tunes focuses on tracks …

Mark Schulman has been touring with Foreigner all summer and is also on the band’s three-disc set Feels Like the First Time, containing two audio CDs and a live concert DVD. For more, visit www.foreigneronline.com. Also check out Mark’s article “Easy Drum Charts” in the October issue of MD, out …

Read the Little Feat drummer’s feature from March 1988.The drum world will never see another Richie Hayward. The longtime Little Feat drummer, who passed away in August, was among the most musically stylish and quietly influential drummers of the classic rock era, equal parts monster technician and old-soul groove master. …

(October 2010 Issue) Seeing Peter Bjorn And John’s John Eriksson add his fresh sounds to the band’s pop-rock mix is like watching a four-star chef toss ingredient after ingredient into a smoldering pot of stew. We asked Eriksson to share the percussive recipe he followed on PB&J’s last album, Living …

We come from Finland and play epic melodic metal…

My name is Jason “Malletman??? Taylor. I’m a vibraphonist and protégé of the late, legendary Lionel Hampton…

My name is Jason “Malletman??? Taylor. I’m a vibraphonist and protégé of the late, legendary Lionel Hampton…

The March issue of MD (out now) features Billy Ward’s fascinating conversation with Simon Phillips, Doane Perry, Marco Minnemann, Thomas Lang, and Jerry Marotta about the grooves that inspired them to play drums early on, and that continue to today. It seemed to make perfect sense for MD’s editors to …

Hello, everyone, Ed Toth here, with the inside scoop on The Doobie Brothers' tour with Chicago. It's very exciting in that, for the encore, both bands will be on stage together playing each other's songs….

So in case you just got here, here's the story so far. Started on a practice pad at ten learning Haskell W. Harr and Stick Control from Stan Pappas at the mall music store….

There have always been certain British rock bands who’ve been treated like deities at home, but who failed to translate to the American market….

Playing For The Song–And More! Steve Jordan Interviews the Great Levon Helm….

It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that Justin Timberlake, Timbaland, and Nate “Danja??? Hills signed on to co-produce Duran Duran’s latest CD, Red Carpet Massacre. After all, the band—keyboardist Nick Rhodes, singer Simon Le Bon, bassist John Taylor, and drummer Roger Taylor (guitarist Andy Taylor decided to bow out …

by Adam Budofsky Four years after their gold-selling, self-titled third album, Finger Eleven’s new one, Them Vs. You Vs. Me, finds dynamic lefty Rich Beddoe once again delivering the goods, with more multi-limb surprises and an even sharper ear for detail. Though Rich Beddoe wasn’t the original drummer with the …

Mind-twisting rhythms meet super-fat grooves? Gavin Harrison is a rare artist who knows how to do both…

Not many drummers dictated the sound of the 80’s like Tony Thompson. That big, huge drum sound was everywhere: on classic recordings like Power Station’s “Some Like It Hot,” David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin,” Robert Palmer’s “Addicted To Love,” the list goes on.

Steve Jordan has accomplished more in his drumming career than he ever could have imagined. Of the big names he played with, a short list would include Ashford & Simpson, Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Nicks, The Pretenders, James Taylor, Bob Dylan, B.B. King, David Sanborn, Tom Scott, …

For Mastodon drummer Brann Dailor, playing in a band named after a huge prehistoric beast makes perfect sense. “When I’m performing or writing,” Dailor says, “I sometimes think, That definitely sounds like a Mastodon part.”

With all of the samplers, prerecorded loops, and programmers in the studio, how much of what we hear today from a drummer is actual acoustic drums or electronics? MD asked some of the best “hired guns” in the business to comment on their current role and gear requirements in the …

As the saying goes, it’s not what you’ve got, but what you do with it that counts. Australian drummer Grant Collins is proof. Many drummers have a big kit like his. But not many players can audiences amazed with their drum compositions for two hours straight. And Collins performs at …

Phil Collins’ first studio album in six years, Testify, is another brilliant collection of pop songs, textures, and sounds from the singer/composer/drummer/producer, who still considers himself – first and foremost – a drummer….

After shedding most of their hardcore persona a few years back, however, Cave In set out to redefine themselves, morphing into more of a prog-rock act, complete with epic compositions….

Over the past several years one group has been mentioned time and again as the most melodic and listener-friendly of all prog bands on today’s scene. That group is America’s own Spock’s Beard, and their drummer is Nick D’Virgilio.