Quote:
Originally Posted by rabblerouser
I sometimes think that the Danny Carey/Neil Peart style of drumming holds more interest for non-musicians/beginner-type drummers because it's flashier, it stands out more, so people think it's "better", just because they don't know any better.
When I was in Junior High, I thought Mitch Mitchell was the best drummer ever, and from 66-68, he was great. But then, in 69-70, he expanded his kit to a double bass and the drugs kind of took over, and he started sounding like sneakers in a dryer. Something 12 year old me would have never admitted.
Nowadays, I prefer the 'pocket' drummers. The guys with technique, taste, and control. I prefer Brain>Herb Alexander in Primus. Buddy Miles to Mitch Mitchell. It's a taste thing. Drummers who don't know when to shut up are annoying. I don't want to hear a drum solo in the context of a song.
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I'm laughing because I used to the be the same exact way. When everyone was into KISS in 1977, I was into Brand X, Return to Forever (with both Al and Bill), George Benson, Al DiMeola, Rush, Yes and later, Saga, because all of those guys could play their asses off, so I learned every guitar lick note for note.
I used to be into very technical drummers like Phil Collins, Neil Peart, Bill Bruford, Alan White and Billy Cobham. All of the drummers I played with were into those guys as well, with two of them owning a Ludwig Octaplus and couple of them owning clear blue Sonor drums. But as I became older, I began to dislike "busy" drummers and found that groove and simplicity was more to my liking than anyone that could copy a Neil Peart drum solo note-for-note.
I still prefer schooled drummers versus non-schooled guys, with the Berkeley drummers as my personal fav's. I've played with a ton of players but the guys that were my favorites are Taylor Hawkins, Brian Tichy and Kevin Valentine, with the least favorite being Rikki Rocket (we jammed a few times at the old Palomino in NoHo and the guy just couldn't play in time).
PS-Mitch Mitchell used to play all the time at the old Coconut Teaser when I first arrived in LA back in 1993 and I was soooooooooooo incredibly stoked to see him play live and man, was I disappointed. Plus, the guy just couldn't hold a conversation, so it was a bummer.
The old adage of "Never meet your heroes" unfortunately applied in this case.