I was born in the final minutes of May 19th in 1982 in Richmond, Virginia. Even before giving birth, my Mother knew that I was a drummer. I got my first drum set on Christmas in 1983 (pictured left). While obviously I was far too young to truly understand what I was doing or begin working on my drumming, I have always been drawn to drums. I cannot take credit for this, and while I do credit my mother for identifying it and doing her part to nurture and support that major part of me, it was truly a gift from beyond. In essence, I have been a drummer from birth, and I do not take that lightly.
I lived in Richmond in my younger years and even attended my first years of school at Bon-Air Elementary. From there, we moved to Mineral, VA and I spent the rest of my youth there. At age 7, my mother bought a used Ludwig 4 piece drumkit (with no cymbals) and I began working on the fundamentals of playing in the shed, finally graduating from playing on pots, pans, bowls, cups, and tables. I spent many hours outside playing along to the three tapes I owned. Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Second Helping, John Melloncamp’s Scarecrow, and Bruce Springsteen’s Born In The USA. As well as just about anything I would hear on the radio. Phil Collins, Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Elton John, REM, and on and on. I love music, and I could not get enough. I would eat, sleep, ride in the car, do homework, and even play with toys, all with the radio on. Music was my friend, and still is to this day.
On Christmas in 1994, I got my first new drumset and a full set of cymbals. Having not had cymbals for so long, it took a while to figure out how to best use them. In 1995 I began taking notice of Charlottesville, VA natives, the Dave Matthews Band. Carter Beauford’s polyrhythms, syncopated and broken hi-hat patterns, and huge blending of so many styles and huge drumkit really baffled and amazed me. I was so used to the rock anthems and 4/4 linear grooves that I had grown up playing, that I could not comprehend what was going on. Carter opened an entirely new world for me, and so I began really digging into the world of drumming. I dove into the rabbit hole and I am still falling.
Even with all of this learning happening, I was still an untrained player. I had no concept of time signatures, music theory, or really the difference in styles and how they were played. Thankfully, there was a guy at my church at the time who saw my love for music and realized what I was missing. John DeGeorgio (sax player, pianist, composer, jazz lover) entered my life and began working with me one on one and helped me learn about all of those missing elements and also a little about song structure, arrangement, and listening to other musicians. I am certain it was frustrating, but I really owe him a huge debt of gratitude for taking me under his wing and opening up the world of theory and knowledge side of music for me. I can honestly say that without him, I would have been a purely instinctual drummer, and would have never made the leaps I have. I cannot stress the importance of a solid musical base and some proper lessons to build a strong musical foundation for any aspiring drummer or musician of any kind. I did it backwards, and it probably set me back many years.
Not long after working with John and getting my first several shows in front of an audience in, I joined my first actual band, The P.E.A.R.L. Project (no small coincidence that I was playing a Pearl Export drumkit at the time). Here I got to really apply what I had learned from John, but I also got to incorporate countless ideas and licks I had been hearing from Carter and the many other drummers that I had started listening to and ripping things off from. I learned alot about playing with other musicians and listening, but I also began to see patterns in how people played and musical styles, and I also discovered that I had an ability to read other people. The notes the played, how hard or soft, body language, facial expressions, what pedal they were stepping on, it all kind of culminated and really opened up that skill in me. In all honesty, it is a major part of what I do as an independent musician even today. Certainly my meal ticket if you will. The main reason I can jump into fill in gigs or last minute situations with no rehearsals. The instinct as I often think about. Another gift not of my design, simply cultivated.
Once I began working full time and playing often with The P.E.A.R.L. Project, I really got gear crazy and starting buying everything I could think of. By this point, I was really into drummers like Carter Beauford (as stated), Neil Peart (Rush), Chad Sexton (311), Stewart Copeland (The Police), Vinnie Colaiuta (Sting), Jimmy Chamberlin (The Smashing Pumpkins), and plenty of others. I started adding splashes, bells, a China, smaller toms, roto toms, blocks, cowbells, chimes, you name it. More options. I was obsessed for a while. I still love cool gear and having options, though these days, I am more into bringing the best setups to suit each situation. Like Batman setting up for each mission in his Batcave. I blame this methodology on Josh Freese (whom is one of the cats that I have taken inspiration from in the independent / gun for hire circles).
In 1999 I began playing in multiple bands. I joined a classic rock cover band with my bass player from The P.E.A.R.L. Project (with him playing guitar). By 2000, I had recorded music with both bands and also began playing in churches infrequently. I had begun my journey as a “hired gun.” By 2001, I had also joined a gospel quartet (Soldiers For Christ) and really started cementing myself as an independent drummer. I also left the classic rock cover band and joined a corporate/dance cover band (Alias) with my friend Scott Shirk. Not long after joining Scott’s band, I had my first hardware failure on a snare drum (a lesson not to over-crank your lugs). I ended up replacing my 14×5.5 Pearl Steel snare with a Mapex 13×6.5 Pro Steel.
The Mapex snare made a believer out of me, so I began reading up on the company and trying out gear in the local Mars Music. I was hooked on Mapex, and I sold my Pearl Export kit and bought a brand new Mapex Pro M kit in transparent Cherry Red (pictured left). I even bought Toca mini-timbales as a holdover while I waited for my special order 8″ Tom to arrive. I also transitioned from primarily Sabian cymbals to Zildjian cymbals. New Rack, new Treeworks chimes, the whole nine. I did however stick with the tried and true Pearl Eliminator Double Pedals and the trusty Pearl ICON Rack, and continue to use them to this day. From that point, it has been a whirlwind of working day jobs, gigging on weekend, successes and failures in life, gear changes more times than I can count, and more and more music.
To date, I have played with quite a few bands. Music is my passion and is the true constant in my life, and what I have decided to do with my time on this Earth. To keep me from being too one dimensional though, I also enjoy Martial Arts, Movies, Film Making, Acting, Writing, Philosophy, Art (to a general degree), Photography, Sound Reinforcement, and good conversation. I also dabble in web design and project studio/session recording. Plenty of other less significant things. Thanks for reading this novel! If you really want to know anything else about me, send me a message or e-mail!
– Chris