Drummer/Singer/Songwriter Jordan West joined us to talk about her musical journey so far, what got her into playing drums, her jazz background, playing rock/soul with Grace Potter, her upcoming clinic at PASIC 2021 and so much more.
Jordan uses the Vater Classics 5A model.
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Vater Drumsticks Artist Will Hunt has loads of stories, knowledge and advice to share from his many years as a professional drummer. He's been on the kit for Black Label Society, Motley Crue, Methods of Mayhem, Staind, Static-X, Device, Slaughter, Vince Neil, Bloodsimple, and Vasco Rossi to name a few. Will has also been with Evanescence since 2007!
We got into how he got into drumming and the path he took to make music his profession, the ups and downs of the music business,, how he's received phone calls countless times to jump in on hours notice to fill in on a massive tour and how he prepares for those situations, the tour he has coming up with fellow Vater Artists Arejay Hale [Halestorm} and Brooke Colucci [Plush} and so much more! Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Will uses the Vater Virgil Donati's Assault model.
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Vater Drumstick Artist Brooke C joined us live to talk about how she got into drumming at 6 years old, her influences, how she grew her huge social media fan base and how that lead to her meeting and sitting in live with bands that she did drum covers of. We also dug into what she has going on with her band, PLUSH, from landing on the Billboard charts to playing major festivals and how she has a tour coming up with fellow Vater Drumstick Artist Arejay Hale [Halestorm] and Will Hunt [Evanescence].
Brooke uses the Vater Universal Drumstick model
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Vater Drumsticks Artist John Fred Young of Black Stone Cherry joined us from Kentucky to talk about his musical family, growing up on the family farm, forming Black Stone Cherry when he was 16, the endless hard work of being in a band, his influences and so much more. Hosted by Dom Famularo.
John Fred Young uses the Vater 55AA drumstick model.
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A living blues legend, shuffle king, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer - Chris Layton joined us to catch up and chat about his lengthy career working with Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, Arc Angels, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Experience Hendrix and more.
We heard from Chris about how hearing Chubby Checker changed his life, quiting a steady paying gig to play with SRV without having any plan or safety net, changes in the music industry, discovering Vater sticks before the Vater Drumsticks brand was launched in 1989 while preparing for the SRV “In Step” album and lots more.
Chris uses the Vater Josh Freese H-220 Drumstick model.
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Matt Starr joined us to talk about how to navigate the music industry as a "hired gun", how to be fully prepared for a gig.session/tour, how to negotiate your pay, importance of doing good business in the music business, being a young KISS fan to finding himself working with KISS members, his upcoming tour, songwriting, producing, being a career coach and so much more! Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Matt uses the Vater Power 5B Drumstick model.
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Hayley Brownell is a great drummer, singer, guitarist and songwriter that is currently on tour with rising star Olivia Rodrigo, including a recent stop at Saturday Night Live. Hayley is also very involved with the Hit Like a Girl contest, so this chat is loaded with lots of inspiring stuff! Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Hayley uses the Vater Keg 5A Drumstick model.
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Tony Hajjar defines grit, sacrifice, determination, perseverance and passion. Tony is best known for his work with At The Drive In, but trust us…there’s a lot more to Tony that we got into in this powerfully inspiring conversation about living life as well as music!
Tony uses the Vater Power 5B Acorn drumstick model.
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Ashlyn Shanafelt is a superb musician, independent drummer and educator out of Austin Texas. Ashlyn is always a focused, dedicated and a hard-working student herself, constantly pushing herself to the next level. She keeps busy with session and live work so we will get her insight into being an independent drummer in the unique Austin music scene. She spoke about being a left handed player on a right handed kit, her knowing that she wanted to be a musician at a very young age, influences, what motivates her and much more. Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Ashylyn uses the Vater Drumsticks Matrix model.
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Shuffles, Memphis, Brush work, touring with Albert King and the advice Jim Keltner gave him is just some of what Vater Drumsticks artist George Sluppick spoke to Dom Famularo about. George has played with Albert King, JJ Grey & Mofro, The Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Morgan James, Sha Na Na, Macy Gray, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh and many more.
George uses the Vater Drumsticks: Jazz Ride, Vintage Bomber Beater and Wood Handle Wire Brushes
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Brent Fitz of Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators/TOQUE checked in with us to share some career history, advice and stories from his personal professional experience. Brent has been on the kit for Alice Cooper, Vince Neil, Gene Simmons, Ronnie Montrose, Brad Whitford of Aerosmith and so many more. On top of drums, he also has played bass with rock legends, The Guess Who. Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Brent Fitz uses the Vater MV10 drumstick model with Vater Grip Tape
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This episode is loaded with amazing stories and lots of laughs! John Cowsill of the legendary Beach Boys has spent his entire life in the music industry. We got into his becoming a child star with his family band, The Cowsills, playing on Ed Sullivan, Johnny Carson, The Johnny Cash Show, joining the Beach Boys as a piano player then moving to drums, singing, Hal Blaine, his project called Action Skulls and just so much more!
John Cowsill uses:
Vater Nude Series Manhattan 7A
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We caught up with Vater Drumsticks artist Anthony Michelli to talk about music education, producing, tips on sight reading gigs and sessions, the importance of having an open and versatile ear and much more. Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Anthony uses his signature Anthony Michelli AM 595 model
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What’s it like to be a drum tech and drum/guitar builder/designer/customizer/painter for some of music’s biggest names like Bon Jovi, Guns N Roses, Van Halen, Aerosmith, ZZ Top, and Mana to name a few? What’s it like to have your artwork on display at Hard Rock Cafe and art galleries around the world? What’s it like to fill in w/ ZZ Top and Slash on a few hours notice and then have it happen again with Aerosmith for what turned into 30+ shows? We got into all this and much more with the great John Douglas!
John uses the Vater MV10 drumstick model.
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Stacy Jones has been the musical director and drummer for Miley Cyrus since 2006. He’s also been on drums for Matchbox Twenty, Letters to Cleo, Veruca Salt, Madonna, Everclear, The Chainsmokers and has worked as musical director, writer and musician for artists such as Joan Jett, Avril Lavigne, Ariana Grande, Billy Ray Cyrus and countless others. He has also fronted his own successful band, American Hi-Fi and has performed on every TV show imaginable, attended Berklee College of Music and so on. Stacy gave us lots of amazing insight and stories from his varying perspectives and experiences in the music industry. Hosted by Dom Famularo
Stacy uses:
Vater Drumsticks Josh Freese H-220
Vater Drumsticks Sugar Maple 5B
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We caught up with Jared Falk of Drumeo to talk all things drums, education, what makes a great student, what makes a great teacher, how Drumeo came to be, why Drumeo partnered with Vater, the Vater Drumsticks Drumeo 5A, the 10,000 Rim Shot Challenge and so much more! Hosted by Dom Famularo
Buy your pair of Drumeo 5A Drumsticks HERE or go to Drumeo.com to find out how to get a FREE pair!
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Hayley Cramer of Pop Evil joined us from the UK to catch up on the many things she has going on. She spoke about teaching, special workshops she is hosting, the new Pop Evil album, the importance of finding inspiration from things going on all around you, having a positive attitude, giving it your all on stage every single night and so much more. Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Hayley Cramer uses the Vater Xtreme Design 5B Drumstick Model.
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Special guest Sean McLaughlin joined us for Vater Drumsticks On The Mic. Sean filled us in on his background as a musician and getting into the studio scene, working in the studio with Rush, Maroon 5, Matchbox Twenty, Queensryche, how he approaches working with a wide variety of artists and bands at his own studio, 37' Productions. Sean also spoke about gear and mic selection, tuning, recording to a click track, how any musician can be best prepared for the studio, various mic techniques and so much more!
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Joe Travers filled us in about his background, hitting Los Angeles to get on the gig hustle in the late 80's, scoring an audtion 6 months later that ultimately has shaped his professional career. Joe got into his duties as "Vaultmeister" for the Zappa Family Trust and the current Zappa projects. Joe has performed with Dweezil & Ahmet Zappa's group "Z", Duran Duran, Lisa Loeb, Rich Robinson (The Black Crowes), Billy Idol, Zappa Plays Zappa, Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani, The Wilsons, The Motels and much more! Hosted by Dom Famularo.
Joe Travers uses:
Vater Josh Freese H-220
Vater Los Angeles 5A
Vater Jazz Ride
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Chad Sexton has inspired countless drummers over the years with his incredible playing and distinct sound and 311 continue to deliver the goods at a high level with no signs of slowing down! We caught up with Chad to talk about drums, what it takes to survive in a band and the music industry for over 30 years, the 311 Live Stream series, influences and more. See Chad Sexton's Signature Vater Drumsticks
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