114 – Angela Lese: Drumming for The Dead Deads, Cultivating a Strong Fan Base, From “Regular Job” to Touring Musician

Troy Luccketta entered his musical career at 17, and by the time he was 23 he was touring with The Eric Martin Band (lead singer for Mr. Big), and found himself on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand.” For more than 30 years, he has been the drummer for the multi-platinum rock band Tesla, with whom he still tours with to this day. Troy started working with Marc Bonilla in 1991, and after playing drums on Marc’s first two solo records, the two continued to collaborate. As a result, the two formed the band Saville Row, and released their first album in 2014. Their music has already been featured on television dramas like NBC’s “Las Vegas” and Lifetime’s “Monarch Cove.” Along with his wife, Troy has become passionately involved in the creation of a web-site and organization called “A Song For Wellness”. The goal is to simply provide all the information and resources you would need to live healthy and fight major diseases like cancer through the power of nutrition. Most recently, Troy was poised to tour with the great Keith Emerson before his untimely death earlier this year. Troy will be one of the power house drummers at Keith Emerson tribute concert at the El Ray Theater in LA, May 28th, 2016. Troy is endorsed by Tama Drums, Zildjiancymbals and Promark drumsticks. In this podcast, Troy talks about: A Song For Wellness – A nutrition guide website Hanging out with Steve Smith in 1983 Preparing for Keith Emerson tribute show The band Tesla Auditioning for John Mellencamp The challenge of promoting yourself

11 Touko 20161h 8min

Using ever-changing combinations of drumset and hand percussion, Colin Agnew has developed an earthy, organic signature sound that has made him indispensable to artists and producers of many stripes. He is the rare musician who can come up with creative ideas but use them judiciously in support of the music. Colin grew up in Savannah, GA, where he began studying classical percussion, piano and drumset in middle school. In high school and college, he got involved in several types of Latin music, performing as either drummer or percussionist, eventually developing ways to combine to two worlds. After graduating from Georgia State University, Colin stayed in the Atlanta area and has amassed a huge list of live and studio performance credits. In this podcast, Colin talks about: His recent first experience at South By Southwest with Cicada Rhythm Using complex coordination and independence to combine drumset and percussion in musical ways Studying drums and percussion with Kinah Boto How Latin music and musicians served as his bridge between college and the pro scene How playing and collaborating with singer/songwriter Adron has helped him expand his skill set Playing and touring with Blair Crimmins & The Hookers This episode is sponsored by Aquarian Drumheads

4 Touko 201655min

Ben Jackson is a Nashville based drummer/producer, primarily working in Nashville’s top studios, as well as touring with a wide variety of artists and songwriters in the country, pop and indie genres. A versatile musician, producer and engineer, Ben maintains a busy recording schedule, playing sessions in the studios of Music Row, as well as his own East End Studio. As a producer, Ben can be found working with singer/songwriters, indie artist, and up and coming country acts, as well as producing a wide variety of music for television/film sync placement. Ben has recorded/toured with many of Nashville’s top recording artists. Some of his past credits include: Sister Hazel, Joe Nichols, Frankie Ballard, Greg Bates, Aaron Tippon, Ty Herndon, Jana Kramer, Jimmy Wayne, Jon Pardi and Steve Azar In this podcast, Ben talks about: Knowing recording gear the way we know drum gear Taking the time to experiment with your recording gear Understanding touch and tone when recording drums Blogging, sharing information, building trust and community Using Ableton Live, creating backing tracks, building rigs for other drummers/artists Make genuine friends, don’t “network”

27 Huhti 20161h 9min

Dan Schnelle was born and raised in New York and came to LA to attend college at USC. While in school, he studied with an impressive succession of teachers; Ndugu Chancler, Aaron Serfaty, Peter Erskine and Terri Lyne Carrington, each of whom presented him with a boot camp of different concepts. After graduating, Dan stayed in LA where he has been one of the busiest drummers in town for over a decade. He has played with a host of world-renowned jazz artists, including Josh Nelson, Ambrose Akinmusire, Daniel Rosenboom, and Sara Gazarek. In this podcast, Dan talks about: Growing up on Long Island and being into everything but jazz as a teenager What each of his legendary college mentors brought out in his playing Learning the language of jazz through transcribing the great drummers, but also through transcribing solos by the great horn players and pianists and playing them on the drums Absorbing the more improvisational styles of drummers like Tony and Elvin, and the more groove-oriented jazz drummers like Al Foster and Billy Higgins. How the LA jazz scene compares to the New York jazz scene Playing instrumental jazz vs. vocal jazz His long-running musical partnership with pianist/composer Josh Nelson, and the unique recording process of Nelson’s last album His process of preparation for the wide array of gigs he plays

20 Huhti 20161h 19min

John defines what it means to be a working drummer in Nashville Tennessee. Since his move to Nashville in 1993 from Connecticut, John has covered it all from international touring to studio work to maintaining a steady stream of work in Nashville’s lower broadway district. John’s early influences include Neil Smith, Nigel Ollsen, Jim Keltner, Hal Blaine, Billy Cobham, Bill Bruford and all the Motown drummers. Shortly after high school, John worked with a ten-piece band that played international dance music that covered every imaginable style and shared a bill with “Sun Ra and his Omniverse Arkestra”. Within the first week of moving to Nashville in 1993, John got the gig as the Grand Ole Gospel Time staff drummer, which continued for three years of weekly Friday night live radio gigs at the Grand Ole Opry House. In the proceeding years, John’s experienced a range of international touring with artists that include Becky Hobbs, The Forrester Sisters, Rhonda Vincent and Hank Williams III, Highway 101, and Tammy Cochran. These tours at times coincided with national gigs with the Dukes of Hazard Reunion Tour, backing up Tom Wopat and John Schneider. John’s studio work has covered many styles including Christian, Country, Gospel, Bluegrass, Rock and Peruvian Pan Flute. Many of John’s live gigs are on “Lower Broadway” (the heart and soul of Nashville’s live music scene), which bring in an estimated 100,000 patrons monthly. John pulls from his years of experience in creating full time work for himself as well as defining success on his own terms. In this podcast, John talks about: Diversifying your work load Having a “conversation” in the studio Playing on lower Broadway in Nashville Getting paid as a tech in maintaining kits in 8 different clubs Overcoming classic pitfalls Getting used to house kits in the studio Keeping your commitments – “sub-etiquette” Understanding styles Meeting Steve Gadd in a Mapco John endorses Sonor drums, Paiste cymbals, Regal Tip sticks and Montineri drums

13 Huhti 20161h 19min

“My father’s side was musicians, my mother’s side was singers and preachers.” This sums up Charles LaMont Garner’s musical pedigree. The Charleston, SC native lives in Atlanta where he works as a drummer and producer when he’s not on tour with India Arie. Gospel music was his gateway to drums, and presented him with his first opportunity to play professionally at age 15. Since then, he has played with a wide swath of bands and artists, picking up life lessons from each colleague and experience along the way. In this podcast, Charles talks about: Growing up and playing in church in Charleston, SC His mentor, Quentin Baxter, and the many lessons Charles learned from him, musical and otherwise. A trip to Switzerland at age 16 which cemented his desire to be a pro musician How he learned different styles by playing each one exclusively, one at a time His mixed feelings about gospel chops His stint with a corporate band in Ethiopia (yes, Ethiopia). How good character creates good relationships, and good relationships create a good career The life he almost had as a singer in an R&B group, and how losing it was the best thing that could have happened. Charles Lamont Garner endorses Pearl Drums, Vater Sticks and TRX Cymbals.

6 Huhti 20161h 14min

Based in Columbus Ohio, drummer Reggie Jackson built a reputation from an early age as a powerful drummer who could cover many styles such as be-bop, latin, big band, fusion, pop and gospel. Over the last two decades Reggie expanded his reach beyond the Columbus scene through world wide tours with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dr John as well as the Grammy Award winner Diane Schuur. Throughout these tours, Reggie has performed in many legendary jazz clubs such as The Blue Note and can be heard on Diane Schuur’s CD “Live in London” which was recorded at the famous Ronnie Scott’s jazz club. Reggie continues to stay busy in Columbus balancing work in music and family. In Columbus alone, Reggie can be found working with many great players like Bobby Floyd and Derek DeCenzo. His work covers a wide variety of situations such as educational workshops, church gigs and weekly jazz jam sessions. In this podcast, Reggie talks about: Drumming is like being a “relationship counselor” in the band Picking your battles in the studio Playing and recording at legendary venues like Ronnie Scott’s and The Blue Note Transmitting joy to the audience when performing Working with a legend like Dr John Supporting the music and fellow musicians on stage

30 Maalis 20161h 3min

As a freshman in high school, Kassandra Kocoshis was studying classical percussion in a collegiate program, and went on to DePaul University in Chicago to study with members of the Chicago Lyric Opera and Chicago Symphony. But while there, she got turned on to Chicago’s Flamenco scene, and became obsessed with hand percussion and world music. She pursued them further in graduate school at The California Arts Institute, and made a quick and smooth transition into a busy schedule of live and studio work in and around Los Angeles. Her performance credits range from guitarist Vahagni, who fuses Flamenco music with Armenian folk music, to L.A.-based soul band Beat Mosaic, to pop acts like Young the Giant and Kanye West. In this podcast, Kassandra talks about: The universal musical concepts she learned as a high school student studying classical percussion How Flamenco was her gateway to other types of world music Studying percussion traditions from around the world at Cal Arts Her connection with hand percussion vs. sticks or mallets Making connections in LA through school The relationship between the drummer and the percussionist The pros and cons of living and working in LA Seeking out the music and musicians that inspire you, and letting that passion guide your career path. This episode is sponsored by OnlineDrummer.com Kassandra Kocoshis endorses Latin Percussion and Amplified Timber.

23 Maalis 201641min