blogs
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.
Sam Anderson with Maylene & the Sons of Disaster
Hello, all, my name is Sam Anderson and I’m an independent drummer and a proud Alabama native. I’ve toured with many different groups, including Meriwether, 10 Years, and Maylene & the Sons of Disaster, who I’m currently on tour with.…
Adam Gray of Texas in July
My name is Adam Gray, and I play drums for a band called Texas in July. I started playing at a very young age, using pots, pans, and sticks from the woods. At age four I received my first drumkit,…
Gunnar Olsen of Knights on Earth
Hello, Modern Drummer readers, my name is Gunnar Olsen. I’m from New York City, and have been a professional drummer for over fifteen years. My band, Knights on Earth, is preparing to release our first album, Move Slow Life Ends. Knights on…
Kurt Reifler of Kill Kurt Reifler
I play guitar and sing in Kill Kurt Reifler, a two-piece rock ’n’ roll circus of sorts. I write songs as a drummer (which is the instrument I really play) and translate the rhythms I hear in my head to…
Kind Beats’ Andrew McAuley
Hey, everyone, I’m back to let you all know about some big developments that have happened over the last year—and believe me, there have been quite a few! The first thing is that I have become an official endorser of…
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…
Ryan Luciani of Empires
Hey, all, my name is Ryan Luciani, and I play in the Chicago rock band Empires. I’m very grateful to have been asked to write a blog for Modern Drummer, since I’ve been reading the magazine for years. First things first!…
Mike Mangini of Dream Theater
by Mike Haid The announcement that Modern Drummer Hall of Famer Mike Portnoy had left his longstanding position as the reigning king of prog-metal drumming with Dream Theater sent shockwaves through the drumming community. Who could replace such an iconic figure…
Ryan Shutler of Lazarus A.D.
Hey, MD readers, my name is Ryan Shutler, and I play drums for the metal act Lazarus A.D. I’ve spent the better part of this year touring in support of our new album, Black Rivers Flow. I was born in Gurnee, Illinois,…
Nate Morton of The Voice
Hi, MD readers. I thought I had faced musical challenges and done difficult gigs. And I believed I knew what it was like to learn a large amount of material in a short time—recording ten songs in a day seemed like…
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…
Susan VanHecke, author of Raggin’ Jazzin’ Rockin’: A History of American Musical Instrument Makers
Hey, drumheads! So, you already know that Zildjian cymbals and Ludwig drums are among the world’s finest. But how much do you really know about the people behind the famous names? I’ve recently written a book to clue us all…
Listen to Sound Files of Meinl Classics Custom Cymbals
The complete review is on page 18 of the June issue of Modern Drummer magazine.
What Do You Know About…John Weathers
(January 2011 Issue) Weathers On Record: Classic Giant Tracks, 1972–77 by Will Romano To connoisseurs of daring first-wave progressive rock, Gentle Giant was hugely important—as awe-inspiring, in its own way, as ELP, Genesis, and Yes. Here we look at…
