I’ve seen Megan’s name several times on the Newretrowave YouTube channel, but didn’t know she was also a game soundtrack composer. Her latest release, Hostile Takeover, sounds like it could be right out of a Deus Ex game! It’s very laid back and chill, a nice break from hectic and gritty synth work that seems to dominate today. I highly recommend listening to it, and at just $6 it’s a bargain!
Several years ago I posted my favorite guitarists. Now, it’s time to list drummers.
I first found Emmanuelle’s Youtube channel way back when I was searching for jazz drumming videos. During the first video of hers I watched, I was just astounded at how relaxed and fun her playing looked! You could tell she had put in the hard work on fundamentals, timing, etc. but didn’t look so serious when playing, and also not showing off. I’m not a huge jazz person, but for inspiration in that style I am a fan of Emmanuelle.
Brace yourselves, but I’m not the biggest Tool fan in the world (gasp, clutch those pearls!). However, the incredible poly-rhythms that Danny Carey employs in his playing is unbelievable. For the one track of Tool’s I’d pick to appreciate his playing, I’d have to go with The Pot.
As the drummer for many of Ozzy Osbourne’s albums – The Ultimate Sin, No Rest for the Wicked, and No More Tears – Randy Castillo‘s playing has had a huge influence on my life; in fact, far more and longer than I really knew for such a long time. Those albums, along with Ozzy’s earlier solo albums, where almost literally all I listened to for the teenage years of my life. While I may have focused more on the guitar playing back then, it was the drumming that I came to appreciate, and on those prime Ozzy albums Randy’s playing is big, thunderous, and larger than life. If there’s one track I’d recommend to best show this, I’d have to go with The Ultimate Sin.
As a huge fan of The Police, I have come to admire the reggae-styled chops of Stewart Copeland. As a true supporting player and solid foundation of a band, especially a trio, Stewart always plays what’s needed for the song first, and then adding a sprinkling of style and flash on top of it. If I could choose anyone’s ability and style, it might just have to be Stewart’s.
Widely known as “The Atomic Clock”, I don’t think you can find any more impeccable, fast, and downright tight drumming than from Gene Hoglan. Starting with Dark Angel, I know him best as the drummer for Dethklok (do you folks like coffee?), and for that alone he’s on this list. He has played for Death, Fear Factory (check out Powershifter!) and Testament among numerous other bands, and he has ably fit into each of those bands and helped pushed each to their playing limits. For a true consulate gentleman and professional drummer, you can’t do much if any better than Gene Hoglan.
As a co-founding member of Slayer, Dave Lombardo brings speed, impeccable timing, and Cuban-inspired rhythm to one of the greatest thrash metal bands. While no longer a member, his work will always exemplify the best of what both talent and hard work can showcase when it comes to drumming. I personally don’t think anyone besides Gene Hoglan can even come close to Dave’s speed and double-bass drumming (seriously, check out when he played Raining Blood at a clinic; he had to stop the playback because it was too slow!).
One of the greatest rock trios with some of the most talented musicians, this list HAD to have Rush’s Neil Peart on it! While they’ve released albums for several decades now, I’m more familiar with Rush’s earlier works. My favorite Rush track that also really highlights Neil’s playing is Subdivisions.
I first found Kristina’s Youtube channel while searching for drum cover videos. My initial finds listed her covers for Paramore, but the more I looked into her channel over time she has added a nice variety of covers. My current favorites are her covers of Your Betrayal and What’s Wrong.
When I finished the second episode of Life is Strange 2, I wanted to check for an updated soundtrack playlist on YouTube (I sure hope they release a soundtrack like they’ve done for Life is Strange and Before the Storm!), and my favorite song so far is the last song of the episode, First Aid Kit’s I Found a Way. Searching around I found a page for them on Bandcamp, where their first 2 albums are available, including the one with I Found a Way, The Lion’s Roar. While I’m not exactly a fan of country music, I do like the older/traditional music, which ties into and overlaps folk music, which is how most would categorize First Aid Kit. If you’re looking for something that’s a nice change of pace from the hectic modern world I highly recommend you give them a listen!
One of my favorite sites to visit is uses this, which twice a week interviews someone regarding the hard- and software they use for their work. Subjects come from a wide range of fields, including writing, programming, music, and more. The current one is for Party Nails, a musician from LA. Going to her Bandcamp page, I was instantly taken in by the vocals and bass playing. It’s a nice poppy and laid-back vibe, perfect for what I’ve been wanting to listen to lately!
From Empire of Imagination author Michael Witwer, joined by Kyle Newman, Playing at the World‘s Jon Peterson, and Michael’s brother Sam, Art & Arcana is a very comprehensive look at the visual history of Dungeons and Dragons. Starting from the beginnings of the original game and going up through the current 5th edition, this book is absolutely crammed full of artwork! The accompanying text is not too bad a read, though the text size was a tad small for me. Also, I did appreciate the slight ribbing at the 3rd, 3.5, and 4th edition rules and the exaggerated artwork that came along with it (seriously, I CANNOT stand Wayne Reynold’s artwork!), but glad it wasn’t too overbearing. I bet there’s plenty of artwork you’ve never seen before, and it was nice to re-visit some of my favorite pieces from David Trampier, Erol Otus, and Jeff Easley!
