Things
are happening pretty quickly, so if you would like to follow along,
please join me at: www.twitter.com/themaddrummer.
I try to update as often as I can.
I
am thrilled to be endorsing Gibraltar Hardware. I feel they make the
best hardware in the world, no exceptions. Their drum racks are
beautiful to look at, built like a tank, and move for NOBODY.
As
a bonus, I'm really getting a kick from working with Brent Barnett
(artist rep). He's a fun dude, and he REALLY knows his product.
I
recently signed on with Kelly SHU. The Kelly SHU is a simple, yet very
effective way to mount a microphone in your bass drum. It's fast and
it's easy.
I
perform nearly 200 shows a year, so anything I can do to keep my gear consistent,
is a must. Once the mount is in place, it stays there! No more tweaking,
or trying to find the "sweat spot." Just take it out of the
case and plug it in.
I've
been very pleased with this set-up. There's really no limit to what you
can do with it.
Be
sure to look them up at www.kellyshu.com.
They even offer a 30-day money back guarantee. How cool is that???
Steve
Finally Meets Mike Portnoy!
For
years, I have idolized Mike Portnoy (drummer for Dream Theater). Before
the video went viral, Mike posted it on his Facebook. Just a few days
later, it had over 3 million hits.
Mike
was kind enough to send me an email, to tell me how much he enjoyed my
playing. We both agreed to find a time and place to meet. Schedules
lined up perfectly, as we were home for two days, and Mike was playing
in Pitt. PA.
July
14, 2010, is a date that will remain at the top of my list forever! It
does not signify a goal that was finally achieved or the end of
dream...instead, it signifies a beginning!
Mike
Portnoy is regarded as one of the finest players in the WORLD. He has
played with the best of the best. His achievements are nothing short of
ridiculous.
To gain the approval of a player like that, is the greatest thing I
could ever hope to achieve.
I've
said it before, but it deserves saying once more: "Too many times
your heroes disappoint you..." This is not the case with Mike
Portnoy. He has already done more for me than I can tell you!
Good
people deserve props...PERIOD!!!
It's
only getting better...
HansenFutz
- Practice Pedals
I've
signed on with HansenFutz. I have messed around with bass drum practice
pads for YEARS, and never been happy with any of them. Even if you're
lucky enough to find a pad that feels good, and stays in place, you
still have to lug it around WITH your bass drum pedals.
I
spend most of my time on a bus or in a hotel room. So HansenFutz are
perfect for me. I carry a small duffle bag with a snare pad, throne, two
HansenFutz Pedals, a metronome, and a pair of sticks. I take them out of the bag, drop
them on the floor and I'm ready to go!
Question:
How do you get fast?
Answer: You PRACTICE!
A
few years ago, two of my good friends (Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz,
and Steve Salter) turned me onto Evans Drumheads. I liked them right out
of the box, and have been using them ever since!
I'm
happy to announce, that I am now
officially endorsing Evans Drumheads. The folks at Evans have been great
to work with, and I'm thrilled to be aboard
You
really need to try these heads. I basically get them finger tight, then
go one full turn, and I'm done. I can then concentrate on something
important...like eating a Reese's Cup!
For
anyone that has been following along on this crazy adventure, you know
that one of my all time heroes is Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater). After
Mike watched my video, he immediately posted it on his Facebook Page,
then was generous enough to drop me an email. I honestly would have been
happy enough...with just that.
However,
he went a step further and put me in touch with the folks at Sabian.
Long story short: I signed the contract and faxed it to them today. I'm
very pleased to announce, that I am now a Sabian Artist!
How
do you thank someone for that? Honestly!!! How do you do that?
I've
told a few close friends, "It's not about getting free
cymbals...it's about Mike Portnoy respecting me." All my years of
struggle and hardship, are beginning to payoff. And it simply feels
FANTASTIC!
I
spent about 3 hours on the Sabian website last night, listening to
different samples. AMAZING sounds!!! And the artist rep (Chris Stankee),
really knows his product. He's going to be a blast to work with.
"When
I was told that Billy Amendola from Modern
Drummer was looking to get in touch with me and wanted to ask
about my thoughts on this phenomenon, I was floored. It’s not every
day that Modern Drummer sends
you an email inquiring about your playing. In the past week I
have..."
I
am very proud to announce Ludwig Drums featured me on their homepage
this month. I have visited this page many times over the years,
idolizing my heroes. To be interviewed by Ludwig was indeed a childhood
dream, and I thank you for that!
New
Pintech Ad: Featuring Steve Moore (July issue of DRUM
Magazine)
Feature
Story On Pro-Mark Website
Who’s
that drummer everyone’s been talking about?
Steve
Moore hit it big online these past couple of weeks when a video of his
drumming on ZZ Top’s “Sharp Dressed Man” went viral, but who is
this guy? Well, for one, he’s a Pro-Mark artist!
Posted
Mon Jun 7, 2010 2:34pm PDT by Lyndsey Parker
in Video Ga Ga
There's
an old saying: Behind every wedding band is a frustrated rock 'n' roll
drummer with deferred dreams of Tommy Lee/Keith Moon-style stardom. Or
something like that. That certainly seems to be the case with gold-tuxedo'd
cover-band vets Rick K. & The Allnighters. Their clip of a
performance of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man," shot two years
ago at Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsyvania, has suddenly
become a viral video sensation, thanks to beat-keeper Steve Moore's
stadium-style, drumstrick-twirling, headbanging, face-pulling antics. As
of this writing, the hilariously entertaining video (titled
"Drummer Is At Wrong Gig") has received almost 2 million views
on YouTube.
By
Kiko Martinez San Antonio Current contributing writer
Drummer
Steve Moore had no idea a show he performed at an amusement park in
Elysburg, PA would resurface online two years later making him a viral
video sensation. Since it was first posted on June 1, 2010, the video
titled “This
Drummer is at the Wrong Gig” has received nearly 1.6 million views
(as of June 6).
Moore,
who calls himself the Mad Drummer (www.maddrummerinc.com),
is featured on the video with his band Rick K and the Allnighters
covering the ZZ Top song “Sharp Dressed Man.” Dressed themselves in
glittery, mustard-colored tuxedos, the group doesn’t look much
different than any other variety show band you would see performing in a
bowling alley lounge or at a wedding in the 80s. Even for the first few
seconds of the song, the Allnighters sound like a typical cover
band channeling Billy Gibbons and his crew. Then something happens:
Moore simply goes mad.
Flailing
his drumsticks around like a windmill on acid, Moore slams on his drum
set without missing a beat. All attention is quickly diverted past his
more traditional band mates and onto Moore who admits that long ago he
“decided against the cookie cutter approach and tried to be as over
the top as possible.”
During
an interview with me, Moore, who has been playing with Rick K and the
Allnighters since 1997, talked about his style of playing, where he
pulls all the energy for his performances, and what he thinks about the
online consensus that says he should find another band that matches
his skill level.
Exclusive
Interview: Steve Moore A.K.A. The “Drummer At The Wrong Gig” Guy
By
now, you’re probably one of the millions around the globe who’ve
watched the above video, featuring one of the more entertaining drummers
we’ve ever seen (if not, drop everything and watch it now!). The band
tackling ZZ Top’s “Sharp-Dressed Man” is the perennially touring
covers act Rick K. and the Allnighters (”America’s Most Exciting
Show Band”), and the drummer — who’s become an Internet sensation
this week thanks to the power of YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter — is
Steve Moore. Since the video (which was shot nearly two years ago at
Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, PA — about two hours NW of
Philly) went viral last weekend, Moore’s been getting thousands of
e-mails and Facebook friend requests a day. But this morning — on
virtually no sleep — he got on the phone with us from the Menominee
Casino in Wisconsin, where the Allnighters played last night, for his
first official interview since becoming an online phenom:
Recently,
the Del
Mar race track announced the acts performing at this year's
Del Mar Summer Concert Series. In addition to Weezer, Matisyahu,
and B-52's,
closing this year's line-up, Saturday, September 4th, blues / rock
legends, ZZ-top.
Formed in 1969, the Houston trio featuring Billy Gibbons
(vocals/guitar), Dusty Hill (vocals/bass), and Frank
Beard (drums) is one of longest running rock bands to hold the same
members. That being said, ZZ-Top's Frank Beard should be afraid,
very afraid, of Steve
Moore, the mad drummer of Rick
K. and the Allnighters.
Dubbed
the "ADHD drummer" on YouTube, Moore is quickly becoming a
viral video sensation with his mad skills and octopus-style of drumming.
After one viewing of Rick K. and the Allnighters performing ZZ-Top's
"Sharp Dressed Man", his animalistic drum work had me in tears
-- a la the wedding scene in Old School. When he's not slaying
audiences in West Virginia, Steve
Moore is an endorsed musician, professional teacher, and recording
session artist.
Source: The Mad
Drummer | NBC San Diego
Houston
Press
Sure,
there are great theatrical drummers in the world. The late, great Keith
Moon for one. Budgie from Siouxsie and the Banshees or Adrian Young from
No Doubt are certainly up there in terms of stage presence and
watchability. But THE man, the king of all that is awesome in
percussion, is a guy named Steve Moore from a West Virginia cover band
called Rick
K and the Allnighters.
Yes,
he's dressed in what looks like one of The Beautiful Creatures' old
Columbia jackets, and yes, he's in a classic-rock cover band. Even
with those handicaps Moore stands head and shoulders above all other
pretenders to the throne. Check out this video of the band playing our
own ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man."
At
first, it's nothing special, but just give it a few seconds and we DARE
you not to experience the joy and wonder of Steve Moore.
On
7/14/08, someone videotaped a Rick K performance at Knoebels Grove, a
amusement park in PA, performing the ZZ Top Classic "Sharp Dressed
Man." Nearly two years later, someone posted it on YouTube, under
the title "This Drummer Is At The Wrong Gig." For some strange
reason, the video suddenly went viral. In just 4 days, it had received
over 1 million hits. This began a chain of events...
08/03/10,
Fireman's Carnival, Clear Spring, MD
08/05/10, Boone Co. Fair, Danville, WV
08/06/10, Blackberry Festival, Nutterfort, WV
08/07/10, Gallia Co. Fair, Gallipolis, OH
08/13/10, White Oak Casino, Deer River, MN
08/14/10, White Oak Casino, Deer River, MN
08/15/10, Muskingum Co. Fair,Zanesville, OH
08/20/10, Private, Huntington, WV
08/21/10, Summerfest, South Charleston, WV
08/23/10, Knoebels, Elysburg, PA
08/24/10, Knoebels, Elysburg, PA
08/25/10, Knoebels, Elysburg, PA
08/26/10, Knoebels, Elysburg, PA
08/27/10, Knoebels, Elysburg, PA
08/28/10, State Park, Pipestem, WV
09/03/10, Private, Glendale, WV
09/04/10, Labor Day Festival, Saltville, VA
09/10/10, Highland Co. Fair, Hillsboro, OH
09/11/10, Sternwheel Festival, Marietta, OH
09/13/10, Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, CT
09/18/10, 104.9 Car Show, Columbus, IN
09/22/10, Beaver Springs, PA
09/23/10, Sunfest, Ocean City, MD
09/24/10, Sunfest, Ocean City, MD
09/29/10, Bloomsburg Fair, Bloomsburg, PA
I
recently signed on with Kelly SHU. The Kelly SHU is a simple, yet very
effective way to mount a microphone in your bass drum. It's fast and
it's easy.
For
years, I have idolized Mike Portnoy (drummer for Dream Theater). Before
the video went viral, Mike posted it on his Facebook. Just a few days
later, it had over 3 million hits.
I've
signed on with HansenFutz. I have messed around with bass drum practice
pads for YEARS, and never been happy with any of them. Even if you're
lucky enough to find a pad that feels good, and stays in place, you
still have to lug it around WITH your bass drum pedals.
A
few years ago, two of my good friends (Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz,
and Steve Salter) turned me onto Evans Drumheads. I liked them right out
of the box, and have been using them ever since!
For
anyone that has been following along on this crazy adventure, you know
that one of my all time heroes is Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater). After
Mike watched my video, he immediately posted it on his Facebook Page,
then was generous enough to drop me an email. I honestly would have been
happy enough...with just that.
There's
an old saying: Behind every wedding band is a frustrated rock 'n' roll
drummer with deferred dreams of Tommy Lee/Keith Moon-style stardom. Or
something like that. That certainly seems to be the case with gold-tuxedo'd
cover-band vets Rick K. & The Allnighters. Their clip of a
performance of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man," shot two years
ago at Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsyvania, has suddenly
become a viral video sensation, thanks to beat-keeper Steve Moore's
stadium-style, drumstrick-twirling, headbanging, face-pulling antics. As
of this writing, the hilariously entertaining video (titled
"Drummer Is At Wrong Gig") has received almost 2 million views
on YouTube.
By
now, you’re probably one of the millions around the globe who’ve
watched the above video, featuring one of the more entertaining drummers
we’ve ever seen (if not, drop everything and watch it now!). The band
tackling ZZ Top’s “Sharp-Dressed Man” is the perennially touring
covers act Rick K. and the Allnighters (”America’s Most Exciting
Show Band”), and the drummer — who’s become an Internet sensation
this week thanks to the power of YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter — is
Steve Moore. Since the video (which was shot nearly two years ago at
Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, PA — about two hours NW of
Philly) went viral last weekend, Moore’s been getting thousands of
e-mails and Facebook friend requests a day. But this morning — on
virtually no sleep — he got on the phone with us from the Menominee
Casino in Wisconsin, where the Allnighters played last night, for his
first official interview since becoming an online phenom:
A
friend of mine (Matt Woolsey) sent me an email to inform me that Mike
Portnoy has just Twitted and posted me on his Facebook.
