By Steve Holmes
As a result of some of the extreme technique that’s been demonstrated over the last few years, I think people’s expectations have naturally adjusted in terms of what one might think is possible on the drums. I myself don’t think I would surprised by much these days in terms of speed and technique with guys like Thomas Lang and Virgil Donati to show us the boundaries of what’s possible with extreme determination. I find it impressive, but I’m often left wanting more.
It takes years of dedication to learn the language of drumming. Once freedom is achieved on the drumset, your playing truly reflects what you want to say. Some drummers get caught up in showing their speed and dexterity, and many listeners are satisfied with that. One might argue it’s the classic style vs. substance debacle but we’re talking about music and so there’s no real correct answer obviously.
This past year, 2 performances reached me on several levels as a drummer. I find myself touched in a sense by these two guys who have learned the language and tell musical stories that I find not just impressive on a technical level, but musically intriguing. There’s depth, originality, finess, and emotion in addition to the chops you’d expect from big names. These guys offer much more above and beyond speed and dexterity in my opinion, and it’s refreshing.

TOSS PANOS on “Ghouls and Goblins” from The Michael Landua Group LIVE!

One of the things that impresses me about great drummers is the fact that they can pretty much create whatever part they want (within reason) and they choose to play THIS. Creating cool ideas much less executing them on the kit can often be very difficult and Toss communicates his ideas nicely on this tune. The intro is an extremely cool groove using rims and cross-sticks while insinuating the intro figure with his cymbals. Once Jimmy Johnson comes in on bass you know there’s a beast of a tune ahead. Further in, the interaction is almost chaotic, with hardly any 2 bars being the same. Instead of sounding unsettled however it sounds like seasoned musicians listening to each other and making great music. This is rare in instrumental pieces like this where ideas often stem from what sounds cool on an individual level, as opposed to the piece itself.
I created an edited sample of this tune, with two sections included. I encourage you to support this recording so you can have the whole (9 minute) tune as well as the rest of the CD which doesn’t have a bad tune on it. In addition to Toss’ insane drumming, Mike Landau’s playing is musically immortal.

DAVE DICENSO: Modern Drummer Fest 2006.
My sexual orientation is straight but I’m pretty sure I have an innocent man-crush on Dave Dicenso after watching his MD fest performance. His drumming is that good. During his unaccompanied solo, Dave shows many aspects to his playing that all add up to an impressive demonstration of dynamics, patience, chops, and feel. Watching Dave dance behind the kit reminds me of Gadd. Guys with this much chops usually don’t have anywhere near as much feel and pocket as Dave. Behold:

Dave really seems like he’s trying to improvise, despite having many licks obviously on deck and ready to go. He’s patient and has a fantastic sense of structure within his solo. His use of polyrythms and metric modulation doesn’t sound mathematic, or contrived. He seamlessly weaves in and out of the quarter-note showing he has complete control of where he wants to be in relation to it. All the while communicating the pulse to the audience with a left foot cowbell, or chicking hats. Just when the quiet is enough he’ll unleash his (Weckl-inspired) 32nd-note flurry down the toms to make sure he’s still got your attention. Then he finds a new cool groove, then tells a new story over it. Rinse. Repeat.
Oh and for good measure he has ridiculous feet, often ending rolls down the kit with his feet instead of hands. This is where my man-crush ends and my anger and jealousy at him begins. Thanks a lot Dave. Guess I should go quit practice.
Until next time..