Dave Grohl has sung the praises of Meg White, calling her one of his favorite drummers of all time.
He names The White Stripes drummer alongside Patrick Carnay of The Black Keys and Chris Tomson from Vampire Weekend, saying they deserve to be put in the drumming ranks alongside Keith Moon and John Bonham.
"The drummers that have changed the world have all had really definite personality, and that personality comes from all of their imperfections. You listen to John Bonham, and his feel was not metronomic, but it was legendary. Keith Moon played like he was on fire. He was a wild drummer. He was sloppy and he was f--kin' frenetic and manic, but that's The Who. Stewart Copeland, his tempo would f--kin' blast off like the space shuttle, but that's The Police," Grohl told Rolling Stone.
"Nowadays, I think it could be hard for a kid to find a favourite drummer, because a lot of that personality is being robbed from these musicians for the sake of perfection, and it's kind of a drag.
"It's nice to hear drummers like Meg White – one of my favorite f--king drummers of all time. Like, nobody f--king plays the drums like that. Or the guy from The Black Keys. Watch that guy play the drums – it's crazy. The dude from Vampire Weekend. Like, if any of those people went to the Berklee School of Music they'd never be accepted, because they're not considered technically proficient. But their music has totally changed the world."
Meanwhile, Dave's video he directed for Soundgarden has been revealed after a faulty video posted yesterday. Watch "By Crooked Steps" here:
Who is your favorite modern drummer? Do you agree that Meg White is one of the all-time great drummers? Let us know what you think in the comments.
And he said favorite not best. I can't agree with the Black Keyes thing though. To me, John Bonham is the only drummer mentioned that is any good, but that's just my opinion and I'm not a drummer (Thank the good Lord) , so ...
Ya, Dave Grohl's opinion on music is hilarious. He has an EXTREMELY valid point... Perfection is robbing emotion and individuality from playing any instrument. Imagine putting Hendrix in and saying... sorry you seemed a bit out of tune... redo that part. HAHAHAHAHAHA, like in live in Pompei when the producer stops Gilmour and says he's getting feed back and Gilmour mumbles "Ya, god forbid you had any feedback in Rock n' Roll" God I love that quote and everything it stands for.
i get what youre saying, but i feel like drummers should never be sloppy. i consider drummers to be the musical leader of the band. if a drummer ****s up and misses a beat, the whole band messes up. its extremely apparent when a drummer messes up and not as easy to cover up as a guitar/bass screw up, so i prefer technically proficient drummers over sloppy ones with emotion any day.
Is it really surprising that a garden variety basher like Dave Grohl likes other garden variety bashers? With drums, a certain degree of technical skill is absolutely essential, otherwise you just come across sounding like an idiot. And for the love of god, can we please drop the emotion crap? How does one play with emotion? I play with sticks (Pro-Mark 747s to be specific). Too often, "emotion" is an excuse used by lazy musicians who don't want to put in any kind of practice. Music is just organized sound, people... any "emotion" you hear in it is purely in your own mind.
music is far more than just organized sound. it is a language that crosses all boarders, it says what you feel where words fail. if you aren't feeling emotion then you aren't listening.
Ya... One of the best drummers alive just said so... DEAL WITH IT! bwahahaha! Watch Meg follow one of Jack's "tempo Bombs" as my drummer calls them, she follows him so closely live it's really outstanding... Wanna perfect metronome wank fest? Listen to something else. We could all dream to have a drummer as responsive as Meg, a lot of drummers I know get completely lost if you go off tempo as opposed to following you right in and out again.
I think too many people these days believe that playing faster is relative to playing better. I have a friend who's a drummer. He HATED playing White Stripes songs because they were "easy." What I could never get him to realize is that their songs aren't about speed or precision, they're about emotion, something I feel is strongly lacking in modern music.
It's funny how many people say that Meg is good because she 'serves the song' or something, but when it comes to Lars everyone says he's shit. I'm not a drummer but I can safely say Lars is better than Meg.
I agree but the point Dave was making was how if you get bogged down in technicalities you can lose something special. Lars' drumming has always held Metallica back, so in that case being technically better hasn't worked out.
Um...what? Lars' drumming has always suited their songs, while still being interesting. Yes, he needs to work on having his toms mixed better at times. But that's the only complaint.
I respectfully disagree. He's written some great drumbeats (One, for example) but a lot of the time I think there's something lacking that another drummer could have brought to the table. Just my opinion though.
Nah, Lars sounds right with Metallica, when Joey and Dave Lombardo played with them there was something missing even though those 2 are technically better.
People who make this argument show they have never listened to anything beyond "Enter Sandman." Lars has utilized ALOT of different drum beats and techniques. You can hate him as a person or criticize his sloppiness over the years but to say he is unoriginal is just plain stupid.
I have watched Nimes and I am utterly confident that the double bass drumming is doctored in that video. He never plays it that good, he didn't do it on that tour or the tours before and after it. And he didn't sound like he was doing very well in fan footage of that concert. The bass drumming is "faked" in. Especially Dyers Eve - that was just silly.
Cool concert though. I should be clear, I'm not just some blind Lars "hater". I just don't appreciate a multi millionaire drummer...not practicing
Don't be so quick to assume. Lars got me into drumming. I think he's a fantastic person. AJFA is one of my top albums for drumming. Unfortunately I stand by what I said. A lot of his playing nowadays is just that one beat, maybe attempt some double bass if he's feeling it. And a snare drum fill.
His finer points, like on AJFA, I found very original and creative. But lately? No originality at all for me, sorry
People who put down on Lars so much likely haven't had much exposure to thrash metal outside of the big 4. For the most part, thrash metal is fast, loud, and sloppy. There are plenty of guys out there that are/were far worse than Lars. Hell, people heap praise on Igor Cavelara, but his performance on the first 3 Sepultura albums is downright painful to listen to.
Meg's a very limited drummer, but it worked for the white stripes sound. Lars Ulrich is limited because he's shit and cant keep time, not to mention being about as creative as a black hole.
Just to say, this title is COMPLETELY misleading. He never uttered those words according to the article. He said FAVOURITE which is a lot different to BEST. Gotta agree with what he said regardless, she brought it back to bare-ass basics.
It all comes down to what one likes. I like imperfections. I like sloppiness as well. It's the same for guitar the way I see it, all these technical virtuoso guys sound the same to me but someone with a little bit of distinctive sloppiness? Just my cup of tea.
Sheep Shagger posted
I'd bet that if Dave didn't say anything about Meg's drumming, most of you claiming that she is a great drummer -- wouldn't be saying that.
"Give Meg White's raw sound over Dream Theater drum machine-like sound or any of those generic metal bands." So...basically, you're being an idiot and comparing the polyrhythms and rhythm changes that Portnoy made on most songs (and now that Mangini makes) to Meg's basic 4/4 drumming? Wow, ok then...
Also, generic? I'm not sure what you mean, unless you're saying you dislike most Metalcore drummers.
I think his point is that feel is more important than technicality. That said, I still don't like Meg's drumming, but I'd take someone like Dave Grohl over Portnoy any day.
It's called an opinion - if Meg is his favorite drummer, then that's just it. You can't be unsure about an opinion, since it is not based on something factual, but you are able to disagree.
And now if you'll excuse me, there are other people in dire need of me telling them definitions of concepts they probably allready new! CAPTION OBVIOUS JETPACK, ACTIVATE!
You get my upvote. To be honest, I have always disliked Avenged Sevenfold's music, but his drumming was the only aspect of their music I actually really enjoyed.
Can somebody please tell me when drummers became so relevant...and Dave needs to take some time off too.. his drumming is too loud and overbearing and for all his other fans he is nothing but an overrated "rhythm guitarist"...
Drummers are just as much musicians and just as relevant as any other member of any band. They may not write the harmonies, the pretty guitar lines, but face it if there wasn't any drummers you'd have a hard time playing much of anything in time and to a consistent rhythm. They contribute an important but often unappreciated part in nearly all genres of music. And if you think drummers with powerful playing are 'loud and overbearing' stfu, what do you want them to do? Whisper their way through a song? Can you imagine something like 'Back In Black' with a nice gentle laid back beat? No, me neither.
I don't think Grohl claimed she was "one of the best" drummers at all, but instead a virtuoso in the other sense: signature feel. I read somewhere that a true virtuoso on any instrument should be recognizable even if you were played just a couple measures of the their music. Meg's playing is definitely more personal, and more rock n' roll than most drummers can even imagine, let alone accomplish. The fact that her playing became punchline shows the sad state of rock music and it's community today
At no point in the article does Grohl say that White is one of the best drummers ever. Maybe if the person who wrote this article could speak the truth, then we wouldn't have ill words being spewed at Master Dave Grohl.
I'll never understand people saying she's a bad drummer... I mean, she plays really simple stuff, but it's not like she's out of time or anything. In fact, from live videos it seems The White Stripes were a really tight band.
I respect the fact that they are his favorites but I laughed pretty hard when he said they deserve to be in the same ranks as Moon and Bonham. It's just soooo untrue, especially that forgettable hack patrick carney.
Yup. And I see that the ARTICLE says that, but if you check Dave's quotes you will see that HE never did. So without having the full interview available, I am questioning UG's reporting
I enjoy Ballbag's sense of humor tbh, he was always telling people to insert rusty objects down their genitals... I wonder if he was the one who got the idea for that Cattle Decapitation video?
Finally. Someone on here who doesn't suck Dave Grohl's ****. His music isn't very good. I like that he promotes good bands like Zeppelin in interviews but his own music is pretty awful.
To be fair, i wouldnt say she is the greatest but you could definitely compare her skill to Ringo Starr and he is one of the most influential of all time.
I gotta agree, mostly because besides the killer riffs, the one thing that really made me latch on to songs "Seven nation army", "My doorbell", "Ball and buscuit", was that Megs drumming made them stand out in peticular way that made any White Stripe song instantly recognizable, even without the riffs, or Jack's voice. In a way, my view on her drumming is the same way I view Phil Selways - Just like Phil Selways drumming almost always fits perfectly in the music of Radiohead, Megs drumming always fits perfectly in with Jack's riffs.
I agree with the choice of Patrick from the Black Keys. Remember, their early records were just a duo, Dan and Patrick, so much of what we hear was a Carney contribution.
Despite being a dick, Pat is a great drummer.I saw The Black Keys last year and the drumming sounded amazing (especially on Little Black Submarines). He was great for the same reason I like Meg, the drumming worked so well with the style of song and sounded good in its own right
Her drumming suits the White Stripes, but personally I don't rate her at all. Far, farrr more impressive and exciting drummers out there, and not just based on how technical they are.
She's not the best drummer ever by any means but her style suited The White Stripes perfectly. And that was part of the beauty of that band, it was very minimalist but sounded amazing.
HAHAHAHA. This made my day. Neither Dave or Meg are great drummers. Dave is lucky he met Kurt. Meg? Well anyone can sound good with 1kick 1snar 1high hate 1tom
My 3 year old son sounds as good on his drum set which is that size.
I also disagree... If you played any Nirvana song without the bass vocals or guitars.... Ypu can tell which song it is... Because Dave is a damn good drummer...
Totally. What he lacks in technicality (which really isn't that much if you've seen him with TCV), he makes up for in compositional skills, creativity, and just sheer ****ing POWER. It's rare to find drummers with that much sheer force.
Now as one of the biggest White Stripes fans ever, I'm agreeing with Dave. I think the best part of their music is the groove that Meg makes on the drums. It's so simple but so perfect. My two favorite examples would have to be "Ball and Biscuit" and "Denial Twist."
Now as one of the biggest White Stripes fans ever, I'm agreeing with Dave. I think the best part of their music is the groove that Meg makes on the drums. It's so simple but so perfect. My two favorite examples would have to be "Ball and Biscuit" and "Denial Twist."
I know Dave is know for being nice, but this is ridiculous. NO DRUMMER deserves to be put along side Bohnam. Sure, there are better drummers technically, but no other like him.
i guess she's good in a more simplistic way, kinda like Philp Glass.
On the subject of female drummers, Cee Lo Green had a fantastic drummer at Coachella either last year or the year before, really drove everything.
so hes saying coz shes a terrible drummer that makes her one of the greatest? so if i decided to sit on my ass all day that would make me one of the greatest marathon runners in the world? pfft dave grohl, stop smoking crack
he didnt even say "one of the best" he said "one of his faves"... and in terms of loosing your own style for the sake of perfection, he's totally right. i enjoy meg's drumming.
Now, I don't care if somebody's favorite drummer or musician of any sort isn't that technically profficient, but the idea that somebody, especially a drummer, is better because they suck at keeping tempo (or because they don't use a metronome live) is just full potato.
WARNING: Dave Grohl will hype anyone or anything, do not approach closer than a distance of one Grohl, he is considered doubly-armed and desparate for publicity since his former gang were making it difficult for him to spend enough time up Lemmy's arse.
Brian Downey, one of the most savagely neglected drummers when it comes to lists of greats, never seems to get a mention, but if you check out thin lizzy's live and dangerous album... whoa...
To compare Meg White, and him out of Black Keys to being on the same level as Bonham, Moon et al is pure idiocy. I expected better from Dave Grohl, i really did. That said, I am a drummer myself and the way i see it, there is playing 'the old way', which is like he said like Moon, Copeland, Baker, Mitchell, Ward, Bonham et al, and there is the 'new' way which while technically excellent, it so so badly lacks groove and feel. I dont have a drum teacher. I've never had a drum lesson. Ever. I dont need a metronome because i can keep time on my own. Does that make me an amazing drummer? No. Neither does it make me a bad drummer, it just means im an old style drummer cause i just rock out and as long as i stay in the pocket, no problems.
So while I believe what he is saying makes sense, it doesn't make it correct.
I think she's at least ok for how she contributed to the band, but I'd never consider a really good drummer. I know feeling and emotion are always argued against but I think there should be at least some level of technical skill to judge.
On the topic of favorite drummers, I always thought Brian Chippendale was underrated.
HAHAHAHAHA ROFL! Either the smartest post or the dumbest but either way it's comedic gold! Linkin Park! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Linkin Park is a rolla coasta!
