198 thoughts on “The ineffability of Ringo”

  1. Thanks for that.
    Ringo, best air fills ever, among his other innovative drumming attributes. “A Day In The Life” is the prime example.
    Random stuff:
    One of the drummers — was that Springsteen’s — mentioned “Ticket To Ride”. Actually, McCartney came up with that drum sequence for the song and suggested it to Ringo. Paul also played lead guitar in that song, as he did, spectacularly, for George’s “Taxman”.
    By the way, one of the drummers, Abe Laborile (sp?) featured in the vid, has been McCartney’s drummer for 15 years.
    The Starr-McCartney drumming competition was a source of some friction through the years. If Ringo wasn’t in the studio, Paul didn’t hesitate to lay down a drum track now and again. For example, that’s him drumming on “Back In The USSR”.
    To this day, the two of them jab each other about it. Ringo, who never lets an opportunity go by to poke George Martin in the eye about the latter’s decision to hire a session drummer over Ringo (who played tambourine on the song) on “Love Me Do”, is always pointing to the camera in his interviews and winking “Right, Paul?”, when the subject of Ringo’s drumming preeminence comes up.
    I just saw a very recent (last year) session featuring Paul and Klaus Voorman (fascinating life interwoven with the Beatles: he “discovered” the Beatles in Hamburg, Stu Sutcliffe stole his girlfriend Astrid Kirchkerr – who herself came up with the iconic Beatles haircut – then he designed the classic cover art for “Revolver”, among other records, and THEN became a fine bass player himself and recorded on solo albums with Lennon and Harrison) coming up with a cover version of an old R&B classic and after Paul and Klaus worked the song out and had some provisional bass, guitar and vocal takes down, Paul looked into the camera and said to Klaus, “I really want and ought to lay down a drum a track while I’m at it …. just to piss off Richie” … who was showing up the next day or two to do that very thing himself for the song.
    Hey, things could have been worse.
    Think how Pete Best feels.

    Reply
  2. Thanks for that.
    Ringo, best air fills ever, among his other innovative drumming attributes. “A Day In The Life” is the prime example.
    Random stuff:
    One of the drummers — was that Springsteen’s — mentioned “Ticket To Ride”. Actually, McCartney came up with that drum sequence for the song and suggested it to Ringo. Paul also played lead guitar in that song, as he did, spectacularly, for George’s “Taxman”.
    By the way, one of the drummers, Abe Laborile (sp?) featured in the vid, has been McCartney’s drummer for 15 years.
    The Starr-McCartney drumming competition was a source of some friction through the years. If Ringo wasn’t in the studio, Paul didn’t hesitate to lay down a drum track now and again. For example, that’s him drumming on “Back In The USSR”.
    To this day, the two of them jab each other about it. Ringo, who never lets an opportunity go by to poke George Martin in the eye about the latter’s decision to hire a session drummer over Ringo (who played tambourine on the song) on “Love Me Do”, is always pointing to the camera in his interviews and winking “Right, Paul?”, when the subject of Ringo’s drumming preeminence comes up.
    I just saw a very recent (last year) session featuring Paul and Klaus Voorman (fascinating life interwoven with the Beatles: he “discovered” the Beatles in Hamburg, Stu Sutcliffe stole his girlfriend Astrid Kirchkerr – who herself came up with the iconic Beatles haircut – then he designed the classic cover art for “Revolver”, among other records, and THEN became a fine bass player himself and recorded on solo albums with Lennon and Harrison) coming up with a cover version of an old R&B classic and after Paul and Klaus worked the song out and had some provisional bass, guitar and vocal takes down, Paul looked into the camera and said to Klaus, “I really want and ought to lay down a drum a track while I’m at it …. just to piss off Richie” … who was showing up the next day or two to do that very thing himself for the song.
    Hey, things could have been worse.
    Think how Pete Best feels.

    Reply
  3. Thanks for that.
    Ringo, best air fills ever, among his other innovative drumming attributes. “A Day In The Life” is the prime example.
    Random stuff:
    One of the drummers — was that Springsteen’s — mentioned “Ticket To Ride”. Actually, McCartney came up with that drum sequence for the song and suggested it to Ringo. Paul also played lead guitar in that song, as he did, spectacularly, for George’s “Taxman”.
    By the way, one of the drummers, Abe Laborile (sp?) featured in the vid, has been McCartney’s drummer for 15 years.
    The Starr-McCartney drumming competition was a source of some friction through the years. If Ringo wasn’t in the studio, Paul didn’t hesitate to lay down a drum track now and again. For example, that’s him drumming on “Back In The USSR”.
    To this day, the two of them jab each other about it. Ringo, who never lets an opportunity go by to poke George Martin in the eye about the latter’s decision to hire a session drummer over Ringo (who played tambourine on the song) on “Love Me Do”, is always pointing to the camera in his interviews and winking “Right, Paul?”, when the subject of Ringo’s drumming preeminence comes up.
    I just saw a very recent (last year) session featuring Paul and Klaus Voorman (fascinating life interwoven with the Beatles: he “discovered” the Beatles in Hamburg, Stu Sutcliffe stole his girlfriend Astrid Kirchkerr – who herself came up with the iconic Beatles haircut – then he designed the classic cover art for “Revolver”, among other records, and THEN became a fine bass player himself and recorded on solo albums with Lennon and Harrison) coming up with a cover version of an old R&B classic and after Paul and Klaus worked the song out and had some provisional bass, guitar and vocal takes down, Paul looked into the camera and said to Klaus, “I really want and ought to lay down a drum a track while I’m at it …. just to piss off Richie” … who was showing up the next day or two to do that very thing himself for the song.
    Hey, things could have been worse.
    Think how Pete Best feels.

    Reply
  4. that’s bonnie bramlett with the cane, and she still lights up the room when she walks in.
    it’s less common than it used to be, but for a long time it was almost a rite of passage for young drummers to put down ringo. he plays too simple, he’s sloppy, he has no chops.
    all of this demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of the role of the drummer in popular music. which is to say, the role of the drummer, full stop, because the drum set as an instrument is a creature of popular music.
    what makes ringo ineffable is that you can’t point at any one thing he does and say, “there, that is the magic”.
    the simplicity of the specific parts he plays is part of it, because he plays just enough to make the song work, and no more. that leaves room for everything else to happen, without leaving any other part unsupported.
    his “sloppiness”, which is to say the non-robotic imprecision of his execution, is also part of it, because that is how inflection is expressed in rhythm, and inflection is the source of meaning and subtlety in any musical expression. or, really, any human expression. ringo’s “sloppiness” is not accidental, it is chosen, and is chosen specifically to support the particular needs of a particular song. he can play on top of the beat, behind the beat, right in the middle of the beat, and any combination thereof, as needed.
    His choices of what to play – what rhythm pattern or beat, what fills to use to articulate the structure of the song and set up changes between song sections, when to bring the energy level up or settle it back down – are all perfect for their context.
    It’s really impossible to imagine the Beatles catalog without Ringo on the drums. They wouldn’t be the same songs.
    What I always say about Ringo is that if you don’t like Ringo, you don’t like music. He’s a brilliant musician who happened to choose the drums as his instrument.
    I steal everything I can from him, any time the opportunity arises.
    He’s also the coolest, nicest, most chill guy on the planet. He’s a big part of why the Beatles survived until 1970.
    It’s nice when nice guys finish first.
    thanks for letting me get my drum nerd on, lj!

    Reply
  5. that’s bonnie bramlett with the cane, and she still lights up the room when she walks in.
    it’s less common than it used to be, but for a long time it was almost a rite of passage for young drummers to put down ringo. he plays too simple, he’s sloppy, he has no chops.
    all of this demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of the role of the drummer in popular music. which is to say, the role of the drummer, full stop, because the drum set as an instrument is a creature of popular music.
    what makes ringo ineffable is that you can’t point at any one thing he does and say, “there, that is the magic”.
    the simplicity of the specific parts he plays is part of it, because he plays just enough to make the song work, and no more. that leaves room for everything else to happen, without leaving any other part unsupported.
    his “sloppiness”, which is to say the non-robotic imprecision of his execution, is also part of it, because that is how inflection is expressed in rhythm, and inflection is the source of meaning and subtlety in any musical expression. or, really, any human expression. ringo’s “sloppiness” is not accidental, it is chosen, and is chosen specifically to support the particular needs of a particular song. he can play on top of the beat, behind the beat, right in the middle of the beat, and any combination thereof, as needed.
    His choices of what to play – what rhythm pattern or beat, what fills to use to articulate the structure of the song and set up changes between song sections, when to bring the energy level up or settle it back down – are all perfect for their context.
    It’s really impossible to imagine the Beatles catalog without Ringo on the drums. They wouldn’t be the same songs.
    What I always say about Ringo is that if you don’t like Ringo, you don’t like music. He’s a brilliant musician who happened to choose the drums as his instrument.
    I steal everything I can from him, any time the opportunity arises.
    He’s also the coolest, nicest, most chill guy on the planet. He’s a big part of why the Beatles survived until 1970.
    It’s nice when nice guys finish first.
    thanks for letting me get my drum nerd on, lj!

    Reply
  6. that’s bonnie bramlett with the cane, and she still lights up the room when she walks in.
    it’s less common than it used to be, but for a long time it was almost a rite of passage for young drummers to put down ringo. he plays too simple, he’s sloppy, he has no chops.
    all of this demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of the role of the drummer in popular music. which is to say, the role of the drummer, full stop, because the drum set as an instrument is a creature of popular music.
    what makes ringo ineffable is that you can’t point at any one thing he does and say, “there, that is the magic”.
    the simplicity of the specific parts he plays is part of it, because he plays just enough to make the song work, and no more. that leaves room for everything else to happen, without leaving any other part unsupported.
    his “sloppiness”, which is to say the non-robotic imprecision of his execution, is also part of it, because that is how inflection is expressed in rhythm, and inflection is the source of meaning and subtlety in any musical expression. or, really, any human expression. ringo’s “sloppiness” is not accidental, it is chosen, and is chosen specifically to support the particular needs of a particular song. he can play on top of the beat, behind the beat, right in the middle of the beat, and any combination thereof, as needed.
    His choices of what to play – what rhythm pattern or beat, what fills to use to articulate the structure of the song and set up changes between song sections, when to bring the energy level up or settle it back down – are all perfect for their context.
    It’s really impossible to imagine the Beatles catalog without Ringo on the drums. They wouldn’t be the same songs.
    What I always say about Ringo is that if you don’t like Ringo, you don’t like music. He’s a brilliant musician who happened to choose the drums as his instrument.
    I steal everything I can from him, any time the opportunity arises.
    He’s also the coolest, nicest, most chill guy on the planet. He’s a big part of why the Beatles survived until 1970.
    It’s nice when nice guys finish first.
    thanks for letting me get my drum nerd on, lj!

    Reply
  7. I like the use of “falling down the stairs” to describe Ringo’s sound. It’s wacky fun.
    One thing that jumps out is hearing the drums from the intro to “Come Together” all by themselves. I never realized how much of an iconic riff that was until I heard the drums isolated from the rest of the instruments. It’s immediately recognizable and makes your ears perk right up.

    Reply
  8. I like the use of “falling down the stairs” to describe Ringo’s sound. It’s wacky fun.
    One thing that jumps out is hearing the drums from the intro to “Come Together” all by themselves. I never realized how much of an iconic riff that was until I heard the drums isolated from the rest of the instruments. It’s immediately recognizable and makes your ears perk right up.

    Reply
  9. I like the use of “falling down the stairs” to describe Ringo’s sound. It’s wacky fun.
    One thing that jumps out is hearing the drums from the intro to “Come Together” all by themselves. I never realized how much of an iconic riff that was until I heard the drums isolated from the rest of the instruments. It’s immediately recognizable and makes your ears perk right up.

    Reply
  10. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    today’s music is a collage of sounds aligned to microsecond precision by a guy with a computer. and this obsession with perfect time and perfect pitch is deeply inhuman and off-putting, IMO.

    Reply
  11. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    today’s music is a collage of sounds aligned to microsecond precision by a guy with a computer. and this obsession with perfect time and perfect pitch is deeply inhuman and off-putting, IMO.

    Reply
  12. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    today’s music is a collage of sounds aligned to microsecond precision by a guy with a computer. and this obsession with perfect time and perfect pitch is deeply inhuman and off-putting, IMO.

    Reply
  13. Excellent comments; many thanks to the Count and russell, in no particular order.
    I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer, but a lot of people who actually know drumming (russell most persuasively) have told me otherwise. I’m starting to budge off that position.
    Jim Keltner and Stewart Copeland also have a wee bit of credibility that is moving me, ever so slowly; possibly in time for the next election.
    He said, wryly.

    Reply
  14. Excellent comments; many thanks to the Count and russell, in no particular order.
    I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer, but a lot of people who actually know drumming (russell most persuasively) have told me otherwise. I’m starting to budge off that position.
    Jim Keltner and Stewart Copeland also have a wee bit of credibility that is moving me, ever so slowly; possibly in time for the next election.
    He said, wryly.

    Reply
  15. Excellent comments; many thanks to the Count and russell, in no particular order.
    I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer, but a lot of people who actually know drumming (russell most persuasively) have told me otherwise. I’m starting to budge off that position.
    Jim Keltner and Stewart Copeland also have a wee bit of credibility that is moving me, ever so slowly; possibly in time for the next election.
    He said, wryly.

    Reply
  16. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    What cleek said.

    Reply
  17. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    What cleek said.

    Reply
  18. compared to today’s pop songs, most music pre-1980-ish is ‘sloppy’, because it’s the sound of actual people playing music together, reacting to each other being human.
    What cleek said.

    Reply
  19. I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer…
    Same here.
    There are a lot of people who get too hung up on pure technical ability. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads, many of whom are themselves musicians. I went through a phase of that, myself.
    I still enjoy seeing and hearing super-proficient musicians play what would seem to be inhumanly difficult stuff to pull off on whatever instrument(s). It’s just not the be-all, end-all of music that some people seem to think it is.
    I like a little Yngwie Malmsteen once in a while, but I could listen to early AC/DC kind of a lot. If it rocks (or does whatever it is that blows your skirt up), does it really matter how hard it is to play from a technical standpoint?
    It’s not a fncking contest.

    Reply
  20. I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer…
    Same here.
    There are a lot of people who get too hung up on pure technical ability. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads, many of whom are themselves musicians. I went through a phase of that, myself.
    I still enjoy seeing and hearing super-proficient musicians play what would seem to be inhumanly difficult stuff to pull off on whatever instrument(s). It’s just not the be-all, end-all of music that some people seem to think it is.
    I like a little Yngwie Malmsteen once in a while, but I could listen to early AC/DC kind of a lot. If it rocks (or does whatever it is that blows your skirt up), does it really matter how hard it is to play from a technical standpoint?
    It’s not a fncking contest.

    Reply
  21. I thought for a long time that Ringo was a lightweight drummer…
    Same here.
    There are a lot of people who get too hung up on pure technical ability. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads, many of whom are themselves musicians. I went through a phase of that, myself.
    I still enjoy seeing and hearing super-proficient musicians play what would seem to be inhumanly difficult stuff to pull off on whatever instrument(s). It’s just not the be-all, end-all of music that some people seem to think it is.
    I like a little Yngwie Malmsteen once in a while, but I could listen to early AC/DC kind of a lot. If it rocks (or does whatever it is that blows your skirt up), does it really matter how hard it is to play from a technical standpoint?
    It’s not a fncking contest.

    Reply
  22. Oh, yeah.
    Autotune. I turn off the radio immediately when I can hear it, which is way too often. Fortunately I don’t listen to mainstream-pop radio, or it’d never be on longer than the station break.
    Maybe others can’t hear it like I do. Or maybe it doesn’t annoy others the way it does me.

    Reply
  23. Oh, yeah.
    Autotune. I turn off the radio immediately when I can hear it, which is way too often. Fortunately I don’t listen to mainstream-pop radio, or it’d never be on longer than the station break.
    Maybe others can’t hear it like I do. Or maybe it doesn’t annoy others the way it does me.

    Reply
  24. Oh, yeah.
    Autotune. I turn off the radio immediately when I can hear it, which is way too often. Fortunately I don’t listen to mainstream-pop radio, or it’d never be on longer than the station break.
    Maybe others can’t hear it like I do. Or maybe it doesn’t annoy others the way it does me.

    Reply
  25. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    I know a lot of people like to say Ringo is a hack, but I’m sitting here listening to Revolver and um, yeah, absolutely fricking no.
    And honestly, even if he is a hack, so the f*ck what? The Beatles wouldn’t have been The Beatles without him and we’d all be much the poorer for the lack.

    Reply
  26. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    I know a lot of people like to say Ringo is a hack, but I’m sitting here listening to Revolver and um, yeah, absolutely fricking no.
    And honestly, even if he is a hack, so the f*ck what? The Beatles wouldn’t have been The Beatles without him and we’d all be much the poorer for the lack.

    Reply
  27. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    I know a lot of people like to say Ringo is a hack, but I’m sitting here listening to Revolver and um, yeah, absolutely fricking no.
    And honestly, even if he is a hack, so the f*ck what? The Beatles wouldn’t have been The Beatles without him and we’d all be much the poorer for the lack.

    Reply
  28. i like to think that Paul and John would’ve kicked Ringo out if they thought he wasn’t up to the task. it’s not like they wouldn’t have had their pick of drummers at any point in the Beatles’ existence.
    and, if he was good enough for those two, he’s good enough for me.

    Reply
  29. i like to think that Paul and John would’ve kicked Ringo out if they thought he wasn’t up to the task. it’s not like they wouldn’t have had their pick of drummers at any point in the Beatles’ existence.
    and, if he was good enough for those two, he’s good enough for me.

    Reply
  30. i like to think that Paul and John would’ve kicked Ringo out if they thought he wasn’t up to the task. it’s not like they wouldn’t have had their pick of drummers at any point in the Beatles’ existence.
    and, if he was good enough for those two, he’s good enough for me.

    Reply
  31. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads
    Metal has become something of a virtuoso genre over the last 20 years or so.
    Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    It’s not a world I live in as a player, but I have a lot of respect for what they do. A lot of it is really freaking hard.

    Reply
  32. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads
    Metal has become something of a virtuoso genre over the last 20 years or so.
    Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    It’s not a world I live in as a player, but I have a lot of respect for what they do. A lot of it is really freaking hard.

    Reply
  33. As a fan of metal, I see it a lot among a certain strain of metalheads
    Metal has become something of a virtuoso genre over the last 20 years or so.
    Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    It’s not a world I live in as a player, but I have a lot of respect for what they do. A lot of it is really freaking hard.

    Reply
  34. In Speed Metal, Fastest Drummers Take a Beating

    When new technologies arrived, metal drumming standards entered the realm of the physically impossible. Today, many bands write songs using computers without even rehearsing them. When an English band recently came to Mr. Mynett’s studio, “none of the musicians could play the parts they’d written,” he said. The band’s bass-drum tracks—the foundation of metal songs—had to be digitally constructed.
    Some bands say they like the cold, inhuman quality of machine sounds. But the trend raises hackles among purists, because metal aficionados put a premium on authenticity and virtuosity, and sometimes don’t know that they are being duped. Paradoxically, to make drum tracks sound more human, metal producers deliberately introduce mistakes into their own programming. “They cover it up,” Mr. Mynett says. “The idea is to make people think the virtuoso is real.”

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304591604579288531126033944

    Reply
  35. In Speed Metal, Fastest Drummers Take a Beating

    When new technologies arrived, metal drumming standards entered the realm of the physically impossible. Today, many bands write songs using computers without even rehearsing them. When an English band recently came to Mr. Mynett’s studio, “none of the musicians could play the parts they’d written,” he said. The band’s bass-drum tracks—the foundation of metal songs—had to be digitally constructed.
    Some bands say they like the cold, inhuman quality of machine sounds. But the trend raises hackles among purists, because metal aficionados put a premium on authenticity and virtuosity, and sometimes don’t know that they are being duped. Paradoxically, to make drum tracks sound more human, metal producers deliberately introduce mistakes into their own programming. “They cover it up,” Mr. Mynett says. “The idea is to make people think the virtuoso is real.”

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304591604579288531126033944

    Reply
  36. In Speed Metal, Fastest Drummers Take a Beating

    When new technologies arrived, metal drumming standards entered the realm of the physically impossible. Today, many bands write songs using computers without even rehearsing them. When an English band recently came to Mr. Mynett’s studio, “none of the musicians could play the parts they’d written,” he said. The band’s bass-drum tracks—the foundation of metal songs—had to be digitally constructed.
    Some bands say they like the cold, inhuman quality of machine sounds. But the trend raises hackles among purists, because metal aficionados put a premium on authenticity and virtuosity, and sometimes don’t know that they are being duped. Paradoxically, to make drum tracks sound more human, metal producers deliberately introduce mistakes into their own programming. “They cover it up,” Mr. Mynett says. “The idea is to make people think the virtuoso is real.”

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304591604579288531126033944

    Reply
  37. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Reply
  38. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Reply
  39. Russel @ 9:26 Re playing just enough to make the song work, an artist friend of mine once said that knowing when to stop – doing the right amount and no more – is what makes a true artist.
    This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Reply
  40. As a kid, of maybe 10 or so, I aspired to do the opposite of just enough musically. I always gravitated toward the louder, harder music that was available, mostly via FM radio. As one would expect, there were songs that I considered among my favorites. There were, in turn, parts to those songs that were my favorites, usually involving a drum or guitar solo or whatever it was that took the song up a notch.
    In my 10-year-old mind, I thought I would someday be in a band, and that band would play songs that were like my favorite parts of my favorite songs all the time. (I mean, it’s so obvious. Why wasn’t everyone doing that already?) It would be the craziest, rockin’-est stuff anyone ever heard, and everyone would love it because it would be so much cooler than everything else – a non-stop musical climax, like Neal Peart and Eddie Van Halen going bananas, both at the same time, from beginning to end.
    I was a slightly weird kid.

    Reply
  41. As a kid, of maybe 10 or so, I aspired to do the opposite of just enough musically. I always gravitated toward the louder, harder music that was available, mostly via FM radio. As one would expect, there were songs that I considered among my favorites. There were, in turn, parts to those songs that were my favorites, usually involving a drum or guitar solo or whatever it was that took the song up a notch.
    In my 10-year-old mind, I thought I would someday be in a band, and that band would play songs that were like my favorite parts of my favorite songs all the time. (I mean, it’s so obvious. Why wasn’t everyone doing that already?) It would be the craziest, rockin’-est stuff anyone ever heard, and everyone would love it because it would be so much cooler than everything else – a non-stop musical climax, like Neal Peart and Eddie Van Halen going bananas, both at the same time, from beginning to end.
    I was a slightly weird kid.

    Reply
  42. As a kid, of maybe 10 or so, I aspired to do the opposite of just enough musically. I always gravitated toward the louder, harder music that was available, mostly via FM radio. As one would expect, there were songs that I considered among my favorites. There were, in turn, parts to those songs that were my favorites, usually involving a drum or guitar solo or whatever it was that took the song up a notch.
    In my 10-year-old mind, I thought I would someday be in a band, and that band would play songs that were like my favorite parts of my favorite songs all the time. (I mean, it’s so obvious. Why wasn’t everyone doing that already?) It would be the craziest, rockin’-est stuff anyone ever heard, and everyone would love it because it would be so much cooler than everything else – a non-stop musical climax, like Neal Peart and Eddie Van Halen going bananas, both at the same time, from beginning to end.
    I was a slightly weird kid.

    Reply
  43. Maybe my mucic experience is just way too limited. But the thing that I recall being unusual about Ringo is that he was a drummer who actually sang. Not just the la-la-la that background singers do, but really sang. (Including singing lead sometimes.)
    The only other drummer that I can recall noticing actually singing was Karen Carpenter. (Why saw herself was a drummer who sang, even though she was regarded as a singer who played drums.)

    Reply
  44. Maybe my mucic experience is just way too limited. But the thing that I recall being unusual about Ringo is that he was a drummer who actually sang. Not just the la-la-la that background singers do, but really sang. (Including singing lead sometimes.)
    The only other drummer that I can recall noticing actually singing was Karen Carpenter. (Why saw herself was a drummer who sang, even though she was regarded as a singer who played drums.)

    Reply
  45. Maybe my mucic experience is just way too limited. But the thing that I recall being unusual about Ringo is that he was a drummer who actually sang. Not just the la-la-la that background singers do, but really sang. (Including singing lead sometimes.)
    The only other drummer that I can recall noticing actually singing was Karen Carpenter. (Why saw herself was a drummer who sang, even though she was regarded as a singer who played drums.)

    Reply
  46. Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    I went through a metal phase in my late teens/early twenties, and I was only in it for the technical aspects – well, okay, and I did like some “message metal” in the form of early (and unsurprisingly, very angry) feminist-influenced death metal. My only musical talent has ever been vocal, which isn’t on display in a lot of the genre, but I could still very much appreciate the precision and execution of something like Carcass.

    Reply
  47. Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    I went through a metal phase in my late teens/early twenties, and I was only in it for the technical aspects – well, okay, and I did like some “message metal” in the form of early (and unsurprisingly, very angry) feminist-influenced death metal. My only musical talent has ever been vocal, which isn’t on display in a lot of the genre, but I could still very much appreciate the precision and execution of something like Carcass.

    Reply
  48. Some of the stuff the metal cats do is hard to even understand, let alone execute.
    I went through a metal phase in my late teens/early twenties, and I was only in it for the technical aspects – well, okay, and I did like some “message metal” in the form of early (and unsurprisingly, very angry) feminist-influenced death metal. My only musical talent has ever been vocal, which isn’t on display in a lot of the genre, but I could still very much appreciate the precision and execution of something like Carcass.

    Reply
  49. (I think I was going somewhere with that, but I lost my train of thought, so it’ll have to stand as a vapid interjection.)

    Reply
  50. (I think I was going somewhere with that, but I lost my train of thought, so it’ll have to stand as a vapid interjection.)

    Reply
  51. (I think I was going somewhere with that, but I lost my train of thought, so it’ll have to stand as a vapid interjection.)

    Reply
  52. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.
    I like Jimmy Vaughn more then Stevie Ray, same reason.

    Reply
  53. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.
    I like Jimmy Vaughn more then Stevie Ray, same reason.

    Reply
  54. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.
    I like Jimmy Vaughn more then Stevie Ray, same reason.

    Reply
  55. This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Dave Gilmour does more with timing than most people do with everything else, but I know about as much about guitar as I do about drumming.
    Still, I like his playing a lot.

    Reply
  56. This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Dave Gilmour does more with timing than most people do with everything else, but I know about as much about guitar as I do about drumming.
    Still, I like his playing a lot.

    Reply
  57. This is why I have always considered Clapton the best rock guitar player. He can do awesome stuff, but seems to always do just what the song needs.

    Dave Gilmour does more with timing than most people do with everything else, but I know about as much about guitar as I do about drumming.
    Still, I like his playing a lot.

    Reply
  58. My teen music bent was Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Steppenwolf, Santana and even the James Gang moving on to The Who and Deep Purple. Then rock fractured into Folk, Glam, Punk, Metal and Pop. Metal never really made it for me except the occasional heavy metal ballad. Ozzie got tiresome. But then all that is definition.
    Turkey soup finished off the turkey yesterday.

    Reply
  59. My teen music bent was Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Steppenwolf, Santana and even the James Gang moving on to The Who and Deep Purple. Then rock fractured into Folk, Glam, Punk, Metal and Pop. Metal never really made it for me except the occasional heavy metal ballad. Ozzie got tiresome. But then all that is definition.
    Turkey soup finished off the turkey yesterday.

    Reply
  60. My teen music bent was Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Steppenwolf, Santana and even the James Gang moving on to The Who and Deep Purple. Then rock fractured into Folk, Glam, Punk, Metal and Pop. Metal never really made it for me except the occasional heavy metal ballad. Ozzie got tiresome. But then all that is definition.
    Turkey soup finished off the turkey yesterday.

    Reply
  61. When people talk about metal drummers their thoughts usually drift towards the technical, but I have a real soft spot for musical, jazz influenced metal drummers on the prog end of metal. Sean Reinert of Cynic and Martin Axenrot of Opeth spring to mind. The latter just won some accolades for his playing on Opeth’s latest.
    YouTube — Opeth – Eternal Rains Will Come
    He’s got the technical skill to play the really fast, intricate, double bass and blast beats for the brutal songs, but can switch in a heartbeat to play with taste and feel.

    Reply
  62. When people talk about metal drummers their thoughts usually drift towards the technical, but I have a real soft spot for musical, jazz influenced metal drummers on the prog end of metal. Sean Reinert of Cynic and Martin Axenrot of Opeth spring to mind. The latter just won some accolades for his playing on Opeth’s latest.
    YouTube — Opeth – Eternal Rains Will Come
    He’s got the technical skill to play the really fast, intricate, double bass and blast beats for the brutal songs, but can switch in a heartbeat to play with taste and feel.

    Reply
  63. When people talk about metal drummers their thoughts usually drift towards the technical, but I have a real soft spot for musical, jazz influenced metal drummers on the prog end of metal. Sean Reinert of Cynic and Martin Axenrot of Opeth spring to mind. The latter just won some accolades for his playing on Opeth’s latest.
    YouTube — Opeth – Eternal Rains Will Come
    He’s got the technical skill to play the really fast, intricate, double bass and blast beats for the brutal songs, but can switch in a heartbeat to play with taste and feel.

    Reply
  64. God, I haven’t listened to Cynic in probably 15 years. I transitioned from growlly deathmetal to prog metal (to baroque classical to electronica), so I did spend a decent chunk of time listening to some of the less speed-obsessed metal. Good stuff, that.

    Reply
  65. God, I haven’t listened to Cynic in probably 15 years. I transitioned from growlly deathmetal to prog metal (to baroque classical to electronica), so I did spend a decent chunk of time listening to some of the less speed-obsessed metal. Good stuff, that.

    Reply
  66. God, I haven’t listened to Cynic in probably 15 years. I transitioned from growlly deathmetal to prog metal (to baroque classical to electronica), so I did spend a decent chunk of time listening to some of the less speed-obsessed metal. Good stuff, that.

    Reply
  67. Gilmour’s timing, and his tone, are fantastic. i especially love when he’s in his very restrained mode : ex. those long quiet stretches in Shine On You Crazy Diamond where he just sketches-in some simple lines now and then.
    i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.
    and speaking of understated Beatles: i just figured out how to play George Harrison’s solo from Something. the song itself is a masterpiece, of course, but that solo has always been my favorite part. it’s so simple and so concise but it has so much to say.

    Reply
  68. Gilmour’s timing, and his tone, are fantastic. i especially love when he’s in his very restrained mode : ex. those long quiet stretches in Shine On You Crazy Diamond where he just sketches-in some simple lines now and then.
    i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.
    and speaking of understated Beatles: i just figured out how to play George Harrison’s solo from Something. the song itself is a masterpiece, of course, but that solo has always been my favorite part. it’s so simple and so concise but it has so much to say.

    Reply
  69. Gilmour’s timing, and his tone, are fantastic. i especially love when he’s in his very restrained mode : ex. those long quiet stretches in Shine On You Crazy Diamond where he just sketches-in some simple lines now and then.
    i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.
    and speaking of understated Beatles: i just figured out how to play George Harrison’s solo from Something. the song itself is a masterpiece, of course, but that solo has always been my favorite part. it’s so simple and so concise but it has so much to say.

    Reply
  70. Nous, there was a point in the 90s when I was no longer aware of all metal traditions. My knowledge of newer stuff is fractured. I like some newer bands, but there are just so many bands and genres that I sort of gave up on having anything approaching the sort of comprehensive knowledge of what was going on like I had 20 years ago.
    I know Opeth isn’t all that new of a band, but I haven’t really heard any of their stuff that I can recall and probably have been confusing them with Otep to boot.
    Anyway, I really dug that track in a 70s prog-rock sort of way, reminiscent of King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, etc. I’ll be digging deeper based on that introduction. Thanks!

    Reply
  71. Nous, there was a point in the 90s when I was no longer aware of all metal traditions. My knowledge of newer stuff is fractured. I like some newer bands, but there are just so many bands and genres that I sort of gave up on having anything approaching the sort of comprehensive knowledge of what was going on like I had 20 years ago.
    I know Opeth isn’t all that new of a band, but I haven’t really heard any of their stuff that I can recall and probably have been confusing them with Otep to boot.
    Anyway, I really dug that track in a 70s prog-rock sort of way, reminiscent of King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, etc. I’ll be digging deeper based on that introduction. Thanks!

    Reply
  72. Nous, there was a point in the 90s when I was no longer aware of all metal traditions. My knowledge of newer stuff is fractured. I like some newer bands, but there are just so many bands and genres that I sort of gave up on having anything approaching the sort of comprehensive knowledge of what was going on like I had 20 years ago.
    I know Opeth isn’t all that new of a band, but I haven’t really heard any of their stuff that I can recall and probably have been confusing them with Otep to boot.
    Anyway, I really dug that track in a 70s prog-rock sort of way, reminiscent of King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, etc. I’ll be digging deeper based on that introduction. Thanks!

    Reply
  73. I don’t know if you’ve heard of Zevious, but you might want to check them out, Nous, especially if you like jazz-oriented drumming.

    Reply
  74. I don’t know if you’ve heard of Zevious, but you might want to check them out, Nous, especially if you like jazz-oriented drumming.

    Reply
  75. I don’t know if you’ve heard of Zevious, but you might want to check them out, Nous, especially if you like jazz-oriented drumming.

    Reply
  76. Opeth has been drifting Prog-wards for a while now, much to the chagrin of the Trüe Kült Metal crowd. They’ve really got their own thing going on.
    Metal is a lot like jazz in that the genre has diversified to the point that is bewildering to outsiders. Most of the metal I like is from Northern European bands that started in the late 80s/early 90s in the extreme metal scene but whose love of non-metal music had them stretching the genre to encompass bits and pieces of King Crimson, Floyd, Camel, Alan Holdsworth, early Scandinavian music, etc.. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.

    Reply
  77. Opeth has been drifting Prog-wards for a while now, much to the chagrin of the Trüe Kült Metal crowd. They’ve really got their own thing going on.
    Metal is a lot like jazz in that the genre has diversified to the point that is bewildering to outsiders. Most of the metal I like is from Northern European bands that started in the late 80s/early 90s in the extreme metal scene but whose love of non-metal music had them stretching the genre to encompass bits and pieces of King Crimson, Floyd, Camel, Alan Holdsworth, early Scandinavian music, etc.. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.

    Reply
  78. Opeth has been drifting Prog-wards for a while now, much to the chagrin of the Trüe Kült Metal crowd. They’ve really got their own thing going on.
    Metal is a lot like jazz in that the genre has diversified to the point that is bewildering to outsiders. Most of the metal I like is from Northern European bands that started in the late 80s/early 90s in the extreme metal scene but whose love of non-metal music had them stretching the genre to encompass bits and pieces of King Crimson, Floyd, Camel, Alan Holdsworth, early Scandinavian music, etc.. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.

    Reply
  79. “i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.”
    I like some of the later songs, and his Tulsa sound guitar is simplistic, but I saw him live during the 409 Ocean Boulevard tour and he played a(at least) ten minute solo that ruined me. Just enough to impress while taking you somewhere, by himself, center stage, everyone else took a break. That is the kind of journey I expect from Pat Metheny’s whole group.
    As a Texas boy I am required to say Stevie Ray is unequalled, but truly he is often too much.

    Reply
  80. “i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.”
    I like some of the later songs, and his Tulsa sound guitar is simplistic, but I saw him live during the 409 Ocean Boulevard tour and he played a(at least) ten minute solo that ruined me. Just enough to impress while taking you somewhere, by himself, center stage, everyone else took a break. That is the kind of journey I expect from Pat Metheny’s whole group.
    As a Texas boy I am required to say Stevie Ray is unequalled, but truly he is often too much.

    Reply
  81. “i really like Clapton’s stuff with the Bluesbreakers and Cream: when he was trying to be a hotshot blues player. but the stuff after that – when he stepped back to play more rhythm in the service of more complex songs – doesn’t hold my interest.”
    I like some of the later songs, and his Tulsa sound guitar is simplistic, but I saw him live during the 409 Ocean Boulevard tour and he played a(at least) ten minute solo that ruined me. Just enough to impress while taking you somewhere, by himself, center stage, everyone else took a break. That is the kind of journey I expect from Pat Metheny’s whole group.
    As a Texas boy I am required to say Stevie Ray is unequalled, but truly he is often too much.

    Reply
  82. I had heard of Zevious, but had not checked them out. Will have to DL some and make an effort to match speeds. They seem, on first blush, to be the sort of band that takes a few listens to grok.

    Reply
  83. I had heard of Zevious, but had not checked them out. Will have to DL some and make an effort to match speeds. They seem, on first blush, to be the sort of band that takes a few listens to grok.

    Reply
  84. I had heard of Zevious, but had not checked them out. Will have to DL some and make an effort to match speeds. They seem, on first blush, to be the sort of band that takes a few listens to grok.

    Reply
  85. Thanks, Russell. I’m old enough to remember the Beatles conquest of the US and their appearance on Ed Sullivan. But I know nothing about the techniques of music. Thanks for the education.
    I also remember when I moved into the freshman dorm and the roommate had a substantial record collection. I had none. So naturally, he asked what I liked, and I responded, “Jazz”. To prove my case I went out and by pure happenstance purchased a Thelonious Monk album with “Lulu’s Back In Town”. You should have seen the look on my roomy’s face when we played that one.
    After than…went out and bought more Monk. Great stuff.
    Still don’t know crap about music.

    Reply
  86. Thanks, Russell. I’m old enough to remember the Beatles conquest of the US and their appearance on Ed Sullivan. But I know nothing about the techniques of music. Thanks for the education.
    I also remember when I moved into the freshman dorm and the roommate had a substantial record collection. I had none. So naturally, he asked what I liked, and I responded, “Jazz”. To prove my case I went out and by pure happenstance purchased a Thelonious Monk album with “Lulu’s Back In Town”. You should have seen the look on my roomy’s face when we played that one.
    After than…went out and bought more Monk. Great stuff.
    Still don’t know crap about music.

    Reply
  87. Thanks, Russell. I’m old enough to remember the Beatles conquest of the US and their appearance on Ed Sullivan. But I know nothing about the techniques of music. Thanks for the education.
    I also remember when I moved into the freshman dorm and the roommate had a substantial record collection. I had none. So naturally, he asked what I liked, and I responded, “Jazz”. To prove my case I went out and by pure happenstance purchased a Thelonious Monk album with “Lulu’s Back In Town”. You should have seen the look on my roomy’s face when we played that one.
    After than…went out and bought more Monk. Great stuff.
    Still don’t know crap about music.

    Reply
  88. actually, i’ll be up at the dolphin striker in portsmouth nh tomorrow night (12/4) with a good cuban band. corner of bow and ceres streets, right downtown.
    most of my gigs are bog standard bar music (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) but the cuban band is actually pretty good and a hell of a lot of fun. we hit about 9:00.
    if you’re out and about in coastal NH or southern ME, stop by and say hi!

    Reply
  89. actually, i’ll be up at the dolphin striker in portsmouth nh tomorrow night (12/4) with a good cuban band. corner of bow and ceres streets, right downtown.
    most of my gigs are bog standard bar music (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) but the cuban band is actually pretty good and a hell of a lot of fun. we hit about 9:00.
    if you’re out and about in coastal NH or southern ME, stop by and say hi!

    Reply
  90. actually, i’ll be up at the dolphin striker in portsmouth nh tomorrow night (12/4) with a good cuban band. corner of bow and ceres streets, right downtown.
    most of my gigs are bog standard bar music (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) but the cuban band is actually pretty good and a hell of a lot of fun. we hit about 9:00.
    if you’re out and about in coastal NH or southern ME, stop by and say hi!

    Reply
  91. Ok 461. I’m old.
    Not unless you are old enough to remember 409 as a song. You know, when “women in sports”, surfing and drag racing in that case, meant being decorative around the edges while the guys did the actual athletics. 😉

    Reply
  92. Ok 461. I’m old.
    Not unless you are old enough to remember 409 as a song. You know, when “women in sports”, surfing and drag racing in that case, meant being decorative around the edges while the guys did the actual athletics. 😉

    Reply
  93. Ok 461. I’m old.
    Not unless you are old enough to remember 409 as a song. You know, when “women in sports”, surfing and drag racing in that case, meant being decorative around the edges while the guys did the actual athletics. 😉

    Reply
  94. My favorite of Gilmour’s work is Dogs, actually. Yes, it’s a really long song at 17 minutes, but there’s a lot of emotion there in the middle. Starting at about 3-4 minutes in. And then again at about 6 minutes in. Even the acoustic work is very cool. I doubt many people listen to it the way I do, though.
    Shine on You Crazy Diamond is also fantastic. I am going to have to give that whole album another listen, which means I probably have to put it in my iTunes library.
    That I love his work even though Gilmour is a self-professed liberal, a socialist, even, and that Dogs is about the human tragedy/trainwreck that comes from setting aside everything decent in yourself in the name of Getting Ahead is just part of the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.

    Reply
  95. My favorite of Gilmour’s work is Dogs, actually. Yes, it’s a really long song at 17 minutes, but there’s a lot of emotion there in the middle. Starting at about 3-4 minutes in. And then again at about 6 minutes in. Even the acoustic work is very cool. I doubt many people listen to it the way I do, though.
    Shine on You Crazy Diamond is also fantastic. I am going to have to give that whole album another listen, which means I probably have to put it in my iTunes library.
    That I love his work even though Gilmour is a self-professed liberal, a socialist, even, and that Dogs is about the human tragedy/trainwreck that comes from setting aside everything decent in yourself in the name of Getting Ahead is just part of the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.

    Reply
  96. My favorite of Gilmour’s work is Dogs, actually. Yes, it’s a really long song at 17 minutes, but there’s a lot of emotion there in the middle. Starting at about 3-4 minutes in. And then again at about 6 minutes in. Even the acoustic work is very cool. I doubt many people listen to it the way I do, though.
    Shine on You Crazy Diamond is also fantastic. I am going to have to give that whole album another listen, which means I probably have to put it in my iTunes library.
    That I love his work even though Gilmour is a self-professed liberal, a socialist, even, and that Dogs is about the human tragedy/trainwreck that comes from setting aside everything decent in yourself in the name of Getting Ahead is just part of the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.

    Reply
  97. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.
    I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?

    Reply
  98. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.
    I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?

    Reply
  99. I don’t spend much time listening to mainstream metal at all.
    I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?

    Reply
  100. …the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.
    You’ve got to be crazy.

    Reply
  101. …the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.
    You’ve got to be crazy.

    Reply
  102. …the fractal, rotating set of contradictions that I get to live with as resident of my own skull.
    You’ve got to be crazy.

    Reply
  103. iTunes charts seem to be pretty mainstream for everything else, so i assume they’d be mainstream for metal, too.
    http://www.popvortex.com/music/charts/top-heavy-metal-albums.php
    that means these bands are the top ten in mainstream metal:
    Blueprints
    Ice Nine Kills
    The Contortionist
    System Of A Down
    In This Moment
    Ghost BC
    Pantera
    Danzig
    Slipknot
    Beartooth
    and that Pantera record is a best-of. Danzig? i saw him open for Metallica in 91. Slipknot are those guys in clown masks. that’s all i know about mainstream metal.

    Reply
  104. iTunes charts seem to be pretty mainstream for everything else, so i assume they’d be mainstream for metal, too.
    http://www.popvortex.com/music/charts/top-heavy-metal-albums.php
    that means these bands are the top ten in mainstream metal:
    Blueprints
    Ice Nine Kills
    The Contortionist
    System Of A Down
    In This Moment
    Ghost BC
    Pantera
    Danzig
    Slipknot
    Beartooth
    and that Pantera record is a best-of. Danzig? i saw him open for Metallica in 91. Slipknot are those guys in clown masks. that’s all i know about mainstream metal.

    Reply
  105. iTunes charts seem to be pretty mainstream for everything else, so i assume they’d be mainstream for metal, too.
    http://www.popvortex.com/music/charts/top-heavy-metal-albums.php
    that means these bands are the top ten in mainstream metal:
    Blueprints
    Ice Nine Kills
    The Contortionist
    System Of A Down
    In This Moment
    Ghost BC
    Pantera
    Danzig
    Slipknot
    Beartooth
    and that Pantera record is a best-of. Danzig? i saw him open for Metallica in 91. Slipknot are those guys in clown masks. that’s all i know about mainstream metal.

    Reply
  106. I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?
    Lamb of God is mainstream, sure, though on the extreme edge of it, what with Randy Blythe’s growls.
    Judging by brief forays into metal radio and streaming, however, I’d say that it’s Avenged Sevenfold, Five Finger Death Punch, Trivium, Halestorm, Slipknot/Stone Sour, Hellyeah, All That Remains, Disturbed, Godsmack, with Gojira and Mastodon on the edge of mainstream with Lamb of God.
    Leaven that heavily with the bands of old metalheads’ youth: Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Pantera, Testament, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath/Ozzy, AC/DC, Guns ‘n’ Roses, with System of a Down on the modern end of gone-but-still-selling-like-new.
    Tool probably fits in there, but I have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that they are mainstream.

    Reply
  107. I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?
    Lamb of God is mainstream, sure, though on the extreme edge of it, what with Randy Blythe’s growls.
    Judging by brief forays into metal radio and streaming, however, I’d say that it’s Avenged Sevenfold, Five Finger Death Punch, Trivium, Halestorm, Slipknot/Stone Sour, Hellyeah, All That Remains, Disturbed, Godsmack, with Gojira and Mastodon on the edge of mainstream with Lamb of God.
    Leaven that heavily with the bands of old metalheads’ youth: Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Pantera, Testament, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath/Ozzy, AC/DC, Guns ‘n’ Roses, with System of a Down on the modern end of gone-but-still-selling-like-new.
    Tool probably fits in there, but I have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that they are mainstream.

    Reply
  108. I’m not even sure what counts as mainstream metal these days. Lamb of God, maybe? Or are they too whatever-core?
    Lamb of God is mainstream, sure, though on the extreme edge of it, what with Randy Blythe’s growls.
    Judging by brief forays into metal radio and streaming, however, I’d say that it’s Avenged Sevenfold, Five Finger Death Punch, Trivium, Halestorm, Slipknot/Stone Sour, Hellyeah, All That Remains, Disturbed, Godsmack, with Gojira and Mastodon on the edge of mainstream with Lamb of God.
    Leaven that heavily with the bands of old metalheads’ youth: Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Pantera, Testament, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath/Ozzy, AC/DC, Guns ‘n’ Roses, with System of a Down on the modern end of gone-but-still-selling-like-new.
    Tool probably fits in there, but I have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that they are mainstream.

    Reply
  109. So, aside from the old stuff and some stuff on the extreme edge, I don’t like any mainstream metal. It is, apparently, but for those exceptions, the stuff that sounds like metal but that gets on my fncking nerves (like the glam stuff did in the 80s).
    (I like to use the word “stuff” a lot when discussing music.)

    Reply
  110. So, aside from the old stuff and some stuff on the extreme edge, I don’t like any mainstream metal. It is, apparently, but for those exceptions, the stuff that sounds like metal but that gets on my fncking nerves (like the glam stuff did in the 80s).
    (I like to use the word “stuff” a lot when discussing music.)

    Reply
  111. So, aside from the old stuff and some stuff on the extreme edge, I don’t like any mainstream metal. It is, apparently, but for those exceptions, the stuff that sounds like metal but that gets on my fncking nerves (like the glam stuff did in the 80s).
    (I like to use the word “stuff” a lot when discussing music.)

    Reply
  112. Pretty much.
    Meanwhile, I’m listening to Opeth, Amorphis, Enslaved, Klone, Gojira, Paradise Lost, Sólstafir, Mastodon, Cult of Luna, Hamfer∂, Borknagar, Agalloch, Daylight Dies, Barren Earth, Swallow the Sun, Meshuggah.
    Only two of that batch are from the US and only Mastodon gets any play on Modern Rock radio.
    Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.

    Reply
  113. Pretty much.
    Meanwhile, I’m listening to Opeth, Amorphis, Enslaved, Klone, Gojira, Paradise Lost, Sólstafir, Mastodon, Cult of Luna, Hamfer∂, Borknagar, Agalloch, Daylight Dies, Barren Earth, Swallow the Sun, Meshuggah.
    Only two of that batch are from the US and only Mastodon gets any play on Modern Rock radio.
    Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.

    Reply
  114. Pretty much.
    Meanwhile, I’m listening to Opeth, Amorphis, Enslaved, Klone, Gojira, Paradise Lost, Sólstafir, Mastodon, Cult of Luna, Hamfer∂, Borknagar, Agalloch, Daylight Dies, Barren Earth, Swallow the Sun, Meshuggah.
    Only two of that batch are from the US and only Mastodon gets any play on Modern Rock radio.
    Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.

    Reply
  115. I read somewhere that Lennon brought “Come Together” into the studio as an acoustic guitar piece with a conventional rhythm and arrangement in mind.
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic) and Ringo on drums got hold of it and soaked it in that swampy sound that made it roomy in the hips and helped Lennon hear what he really wanted.
    Then he could lay down that great vocal with lyrics only Lennon could conceive.
    I don’t know what the dynamic was in those sessions, but it could be said that Ringo and Paul were midwives to the birth of that song.
    As Paul said during the previews of the Cirque du Soliel soundtrack for the Vegas show, “the Beatles were a great little band”.

    Reply
  116. I read somewhere that Lennon brought “Come Together” into the studio as an acoustic guitar piece with a conventional rhythm and arrangement in mind.
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic) and Ringo on drums got hold of it and soaked it in that swampy sound that made it roomy in the hips and helped Lennon hear what he really wanted.
    Then he could lay down that great vocal with lyrics only Lennon could conceive.
    I don’t know what the dynamic was in those sessions, but it could be said that Ringo and Paul were midwives to the birth of that song.
    As Paul said during the previews of the Cirque du Soliel soundtrack for the Vegas show, “the Beatles were a great little band”.

    Reply
  117. I read somewhere that Lennon brought “Come Together” into the studio as an acoustic guitar piece with a conventional rhythm and arrangement in mind.
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic) and Ringo on drums got hold of it and soaked it in that swampy sound that made it roomy in the hips and helped Lennon hear what he really wanted.
    Then he could lay down that great vocal with lyrics only Lennon could conceive.
    I don’t know what the dynamic was in those sessions, but it could be said that Ringo and Paul were midwives to the birth of that song.
    As Paul said during the previews of the Cirque du Soliel soundtrack for the Vegas show, “the Beatles were a great little band”.

    Reply
  118. Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.
    How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic)…
    That bass is what obscured for me how iconic the drums were until I heard the drums by themselves. When you vocalize the instrumental, you do the bass line (if you’re me).

    Reply
  119. Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.
    How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic)…
    That bass is what obscured for me how iconic the drums were until I heard the drums by themselves. When you vocalize the instrumental, you do the bass line (if you’re me).

    Reply
  120. Back on the original topic, the iconic Come Together drum intro had me thinking about Bonham’s When the Levee Breaks and Larry Mullen’s intro’s to Sunday Bloody Sunday and Bullet the Blue Sky.
    How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Until McCartney on bass (equally iconic)…
    That bass is what obscured for me how iconic the drums were until I heard the drums by themselves. When you vocalize the instrumental, you do the bass line (if you’re me).

    Reply
  121. How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Yes, please.
    And my 2¢ on the guitar side of the equation for those discussing Clapton and SRV… hanging with a bunch of Finnish metalheads online has introduced me to some great music, including the Finnish psychedelic blues legends, Kingston Wall:
    YouTube — Kingston Wall – Two of a Kind
    And if you like them, check out The Vintage Caravan (from Iceland) as well.

    Reply
  122. How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Yes, please.
    And my 2¢ on the guitar side of the equation for those discussing Clapton and SRV… hanging with a bunch of Finnish metalheads online has introduced me to some great music, including the Finnish psychedelic blues legends, Kingston Wall:
    YouTube — Kingston Wall – Two of a Kind
    And if you like them, check out The Vintage Caravan (from Iceland) as well.

    Reply
  123. How about McBrain on Where Eagles Dare?
    Yes, please.
    And my 2¢ on the guitar side of the equation for those discussing Clapton and SRV… hanging with a bunch of Finnish metalheads online has introduced me to some great music, including the Finnish psychedelic blues legends, Kingston Wall:
    YouTube — Kingston Wall – Two of a Kind
    And if you like them, check out The Vintage Caravan (from Iceland) as well.

    Reply
  124. Thanks for linking to the video. I’d seen it from other sources, but it’s neat. There’s an unmistakable flavor from more contemporary drummers of “Minimal kit; minimal electronics; produced drum licks that a billion people recognize a half-century later; do you have any idea how hard that is?”
    I spent a lot of time working in a very different field, but have the same question aimed at contemporary developers about some of the software written in the 70s. Given the limitations of hardware at the time, do you have any idea how hard it was to accomplish a lot of that stuff? Do you think you could do as well?

    Reply
  125. Thanks for linking to the video. I’d seen it from other sources, but it’s neat. There’s an unmistakable flavor from more contemporary drummers of “Minimal kit; minimal electronics; produced drum licks that a billion people recognize a half-century later; do you have any idea how hard that is?”
    I spent a lot of time working in a very different field, but have the same question aimed at contemporary developers about some of the software written in the 70s. Given the limitations of hardware at the time, do you have any idea how hard it was to accomplish a lot of that stuff? Do you think you could do as well?

    Reply
  126. Thanks for linking to the video. I’d seen it from other sources, but it’s neat. There’s an unmistakable flavor from more contemporary drummers of “Minimal kit; minimal electronics; produced drum licks that a billion people recognize a half-century later; do you have any idea how hard that is?”
    I spent a lot of time working in a very different field, but have the same question aimed at contemporary developers about some of the software written in the 70s. Given the limitations of hardware at the time, do you have any idea how hard it was to accomplish a lot of that stuff? Do you think you could do as well?

    Reply
  127. I find I mostly listen to either Viking metal (Tyr, Turisas, Heidevolk) or symphonic black metal (mostly Summoning — I just can’t resist their writing songs about Middle-Earth . . . in Orcish!).

    Reply
  128. I find I mostly listen to either Viking metal (Tyr, Turisas, Heidevolk) or symphonic black metal (mostly Summoning — I just can’t resist their writing songs about Middle-Earth . . . in Orcish!).

    Reply
  129. I find I mostly listen to either Viking metal (Tyr, Turisas, Heidevolk) or symphonic black metal (mostly Summoning — I just can’t resist their writing songs about Middle-Earth . . . in Orcish!).

    Reply
  130. Have not seen any of these bands live, but I’ve seen Ensiferum, Moonsorrow, and Amon Amarth a few times. Excellent shows with excellent musicians. The audience, however, went completely insane in every case. I spent most of each show on the edge of huge pits trying to keep the muppets from flying into the rest of the crowd (or the railings) at ballistic speeds.

    Reply
  131. Have not seen any of these bands live, but I’ve seen Ensiferum, Moonsorrow, and Amon Amarth a few times. Excellent shows with excellent musicians. The audience, however, went completely insane in every case. I spent most of each show on the edge of huge pits trying to keep the muppets from flying into the rest of the crowd (or the railings) at ballistic speeds.

    Reply
  132. Have not seen any of these bands live, but I’ve seen Ensiferum, Moonsorrow, and Amon Amarth a few times. Excellent shows with excellent musicians. The audience, however, went completely insane in every case. I spent most of each show on the edge of huge pits trying to keep the muppets from flying into the rest of the crowd (or the railings) at ballistic speeds.

    Reply
  133. Late to the party, but in terms of restraint – what people were praising Clapton and Gilmour for – you don’t get better than Portishead’s Adrian Utley. A brilliant guitarist who half the time plays like three notes on the whole song.

    Reply
  134. Late to the party, but in terms of restraint – what people were praising Clapton and Gilmour for – you don’t get better than Portishead’s Adrian Utley. A brilliant guitarist who half the time plays like three notes on the whole song.

    Reply
  135. Late to the party, but in terms of restraint – what people were praising Clapton and Gilmour for – you don’t get better than Portishead’s Adrian Utley. A brilliant guitarist who half the time plays like three notes on the whole song.

    Reply

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