Session Drummer

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Generally the only things I need are a version of the track without drums, a version of just the guide drums only (if there are any), both cut from the same starting point, and then just let me know what the speed of the track is. Other then that if there's any specific reference songs or any other info you as a buyer are wanting me to know, then I should be ready to rock and good to go.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: My Ludwig drum kit, Bosphorus cymbals, Audient interface, Audix kick mic and Neumann overhead mic. There's ya desert island studio right there.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I started playing drums age 7, progressing through numerous projects, artists and bands, until eventually working full time as a musician through a combination of recording, working in functions and a small bit of teaching. For a good few years though, recording remote sessions has been my main source of income.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: A complete fusion of funk, soul, rock and jazz, with elements of indie and world music genres. I'm a groove orientated drummer, but I never underestimate the power of a well placed fill, played at the right time and with the right orchestration.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: I would love to of played with artists including Steely Dan, Led Zep and King Crimson as well as current artists like Tom Misch, Lianne La Havas and Nubyia Garcia.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Workflow is key. After spending so much time in my DAW of choice (Reaper), I've come to realise that refining a workflow and creating your own process for doing things in an efficient manor, is the most important thing when working day in, day out in audio production.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My ability to listen to the music that is in front of me, supporting the music in every way I can. If there's a guide midi drum track to work off of for example, I will spend the time to getting to grips with the subtlties of what has been presented and what people have put effort into creating. I really do have a lot of respect for songwriters and the amount of time that has to go into creating any sort of work.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Once I recieve the guide track I'm recording too, I mark out the various sections of the track in my DAW, labelling what section is what. After experimenting with some ideas and sounds, as well as getting the tuning of the kit right, I start working through the project in small 8-16 bar sections, really exploring all the options for fills and grooves. This process also makes dropping in and redoing any sections super easy to do, even months after the initial recording.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a two room setup with a small and seperate mix room as well as a live room. I run Audient Pre Amps which are high quality and clean sounding, as well as mics from AKG, Neumann, Shure, Audix and Cascade.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Over the past few years online, remote recording has been my main source of work, recording over 1000 songs since the start of 2020 alone. I have genuinley recorded music in all genres, styles and to all sorts of different needs and requirments.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: I have spent a lot of time working in weddings and funtion bands, typically playing all the soul, motown and disco standards. I grew up playing rock music, for the last 5 years I've been playing in an afro-funk project as well as reggae music projects in the past, but as previously mentioned jazz fusion has been a big influence on me. Singer songwriter music seems to of become my speciality for recording but truthfully I am comfortable in all styles.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That at points people tend to believe that like a seller on Amazon, drums can just be churned out and without much thought, when in fact, getting the percussion to fully realise what is required for a song can and does require time and effort.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: I love the work of bands as varied as Rage Against The Machine and Queens of the Stone Age, artists such as Kendrick Lamar and Anderson Paak as well as projects like Steely Dan, Snarky Puppy and Hiatus Kaiyote. I am also directly inspired by drummers such as Richard Spaven, Yussef Dayes, Vinnie Colaiuta and Nate Smith.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I aim to accompany and support the music. Playing the song is the most important thing to me, not overplaying and not pulling attention away from everything else that is happening within the track. I also like to add layers of percussion, whether that be shakers and tambourine, cymbal washes or subtle mallet style tom sounds that can help really add some rythmic ambience on top of the core drum part.