D is For Drums

If you hadn't guessed, yes, this post will be about "something that you play with sticks". Now, not being a drummer myself, I can't claim to be particularly savvy to the ins and outs of drumming--I don't know the difference between a diddle and a para-diddle, I wouldn't have the first clue on how to tune a drum, and I couldn't name even one brand of snare. However, I do know when drums really get me groovin, so here is a list of some of my favorite drumming moments in music.




I think there's a sax solo around 4:40, and you know, it's probably pretty good, but Steve Gadd's drumming in this section is always what has always drawn my attention, so even after hearing this song probably over a hundred times, I'm still not really sure what the sax sounds like. How Gadd manages to play such sick fills, still emphasize the chord hits from the rest of band, and stay really tasteful is really just beyond me. Check the outro for more drumming wizardry as well.




I could go on and on for days about this band, many of my close friends know that harbor an almost unhealthy appreciation for them, but I'm not here to talk about Anathallo; I'm here to talk about DRUMS. And let me tell you, the DRUMS are what really make this song; this is an exemplary example of doing a whole lot with very little--the drum beat consists only of hits on the floor tom and on the rim, but the power behind it when four or five members of the band are playing it is undeniable. This is the only song I can think of that I regularly listen to up to four or five times in a row. And I know I said I wasn't going to gush about this band, but if you dig this, you should really check out Anathallo; they're truly hidden gem buried out there in the musical landscape.




I have little reservation about saying that Jimmy Chamberlin is my favorite drummer of all time, and this song is a perfect example of it. Now, when I first heard about Chamberlin's solo album, I had the reaction that most people would have: I assumed it would be an extremely self indulgent affair, drum solo after drum solo, maybe a little music here and there, but mostly the guy on the kit showing off how cool he is. Now I would be totally amiss if I said that this album doesn't showcase how extraordinarily cool Jimmy Chamberlin is, but as it turns out Mr. Chamberlin is not just a hell of a drummer; he's a hell of a musician, and he knows some hells of other musicians too. The music on the album really holds up, and the really great part about Chamberlin's drumming, be it in this group, Smashing Pumpkins, Zwan, or whatever, is that it's always really interesting and awesome while still being completely complementary to what the rest of the band is doing. Jimmy is consistently a powerhouse-groovemeister, but is also always tasteful about how he lets us know how cool he is, leaving room for us to see how cool the other band members are as well, and this song is a case in point.




Being by The Books, it's hard to say whether the percussion in this song consists of live drumming or is all sampled, but it doesn't really matter which it is. The drums in this song play such a central role in the rhythm, dynamics, and overall character of the song, I'd almost call them melodic. Especially creative is the monologue starting around 2:28 being bolstered and punctuated by the drum hits arranged to coincide with the speaking rhythm--I have no idea why it works as well as it does, but it does, and trust me, it's pretty sweet.




If Jimmy Chamberlin did not exist, I'm pretty sure Matt Cameron would take the crown as my favorite drummer. This song wins my award for most tactful and effective drumming performance of the post. Normally, a drummer in a rock band holds his drums and his cymbals in more or less equal regard--even if he's not hitting a lot of crashes and adding lots of color to the sound, he's probably at least riding either the hi-hat or ride cymbal to keep a steady beat. In this song, however, Matt Cameron does no such thing--the guy barely even has hit five cymbals a minute and half in, an aesthetic decision that might not be a particularly obvious choice in a song this aggressive and brutal. However, Matt's conservative use of cymbals allows the toms and bass to really drive the song and make it that much more menacing, and consequently when he does implement the occasional hi-hat choke or crash, it has that much more weight--it's as though the cymbals have much more character for their sparse use, and are that much more effective for it. Additionally, when the song hits the bridge and Cameron finally begins to use the plates a bit more liberally, the song really opens up, and the loudest section of the song is almost a relief after the relentless tom assault the entirety of the song had been up to this point. Of course, when the tom groove kicks back in to end the song, it hits all the harder once again.




I already wrote pretty extensively about this song in one of the first posts on this blog, but the studio version has something that the live version I posted before does not; never before has a drum roll created so much tension than in this song. And even more unnerving than the length of the rolls and the anticipation of a resolution is the jarring choice to give no resolution at all. No cymbal, no big chord; the roll just stops. Props to Low for making the oldest trick in the book make my skin crawl.


Zwan -- Mary Star of the Sea

Alright, I just couldn't resist one more Jimmy Chamberlin performance. If Streetcrawler was Jimmy in groove mode, this is Jimmy engaging in a raucous bout of all out ass-kickery. It starts off slowly enough, but soon enough Jimmy is handing you your ass on a sliver platter, with a generous side of holy crap to compliment it. I'll just let the drums do the rest of the talking on this one, though notable sections are 3:18-4:00, and pretty much the entire latter section of the song, especially 11:38-12:04. Lastly, a WARNING: do not listen to this song immediately before going to bed; I did the other night, and it got me so pumped I couldn't fall asleep for several hours afterward.