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Mike Gruwell is an Atlanta-area drummer available for your drum tracking session. With more than 35 years behind the kit, Mike is well versed in a wide range of music including jazz, funk, rock, punk, world and percussion. Mike has a full home recording studio with a wide-range of drums, percussion and mics.

I am well versed in a wide range of music originally rooted in big band jazz and funk rock. I was previously based out of Seattle, and worked my way through original punk bands, jazz combos and churches in '80s. In the '90s I was a member of several original rock and funk bands until moving to Georgia in 1997. Since 2015, I have focused on recording out of my home studio, GTown Studio, as well as being the drummer for Red Hot Empty.

GTown Studio has 3 full kit setups along with additional snares and cymbals that can be swapped in/out as needed. The main kit used for most recordings is a DW Custom and the other kits are Rogers and Tama. Additional Percussion instruments include Djembe, Cajon, Mini-Darbuka and Rain Stick, along with other traditional percussion. Current mics are Earthworks, AKG, Beyerdynamic, Shure and Audix, which route through Carbon Avid & Arturia preamps into ProTools. Finished session includes up to 16 tracks of acoustic drums and/or percussion.

My focus is on making your song sound the best it can with the additional drum set supporting role. I will get the feel, style and sound you need from the drums to help finish your song! Most recently I've written, recorded and released my own album as well as tracking work is for the rock group Wanus, and my own band, Red Hot Empty. See more info on my past and current work on OneDrummerDrumming.com.

Would love to hear from you. Click the contact button above to get in touch.

Credits

Discogs verified credits for Mike Gruwell

Mike Gruwell
Black Moses (10)

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Interview with One Drummer Drumming

Q: How would you describe your style?
A: Groovy & energetic.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: Currently, the majority of the music I'm work with the most is rock, pop, funk and punk.
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I bring consistency, energy and originality. My wide musical tastes and history in original bands lends itself to being creative while supporting the song.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: My home studio features 3 complete drum kit setups, percussion and piano along with a variety of other instruments. Up to 16 tracks are recorded using AKG, Beyerdynamics, Earthworks, Audix and Shure mics through a Carbon Avid & Arturia Audiofuse into ProTools. Video is captured with a Canon EOSm50 and edited in Adobe Premier Pro.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: Jack Endino, Carter McLean
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: Currently, I'm mostly hired to provide live drum and percussion tracks to complete a wide variety of songs. I am also the drummer for an Atlanta punk band, Red Hot Empty. All of our recordings are completed in my studio.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: For recording live drums, I'll first load the provided tracks into ProTools to make sure everything matches up and plays correctly. If additional reference tracks are provided, I'll listen through those along with the song to be tracked. I'll then play through several times to records some initial ideas to listen back to and make decisions on a first take. A first take will then be tracked and sent to make sure it's the sound you want. If it is, or after any adjustments, a preliminary final take will be recorded and sent for approval. If approved, then the full folder of all the individual tracks will be sent.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: My strongest skill is writing drum parts that ultimately support the song.