Fluffy
Addicted to Fun and Learning
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Here's a topic I rarely see discussed – favorite drummers. Drums are my favorite instrument (I used to play… poorly…), and every artist/band I listen to needs to first pass the drumming test if there is any chance I would continue listening to them. The test is very simple – do I want to air drum to this?? If yes, there is a chance I'll like it 
.
Obviously, that means there are plenty of drummers who are my idols. I'm sure there are other drumming fans here, and I would love us to share our favorites. I'm mostly a fan of prog, metal, and occasionally jazz, so most of my favorite drummers come from those genres. Here is my list, in no particular order:
Mike Portnoy (formerly of Dream theater, Liquid Tension Experiment, and many many more) – my absolute idol. He is one of the reasons I picked up playing in the first place. I consider him the best prog-rock drummer ever. Power, technique, originality, speed, he got it all. He does not, however, have any swing.
Ian Paice (Deep Purple) – The ultimate hard rock drummer. His jazz-inspired playing always amazes me.
Tomas Haake (Meshuggah) – The father of Djent and generally the closest a drummer has ever gotten to being a machine. His playing breaks my brain in the best of ways.
Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) – This guy is the essence of heavy metal. Nuff said.
Buddy Rich – Only the best jazz drummer who ever lived. Nobody else even comes close to this day.
Gavin Harrison (Porcupine Tree, King Crimson) – This guy has a talent for laying down deceptively simple grooves that take all the music around them to a higher level.
Chris Adler (Lamb of God) – He specializes in tight groovy double-bass playing, and no one does this better than him.
Brann Dailor (Mastodon) – He plays at 100% all the time, with incredibly fast hands and very raw grooves and fills. And he also sings pretty well!
Danny Carey (Tool) – You can't talk about prog drummers without mentioning him. Creativity and technique to the highest degree.
Johan Langell (formerly of Pain salvation) – lesser known, but this guy had some chops. He came out with some pretty intricate beats for this very demanding band.
Thomen Stauch (formerly of Blind Guardian) – Another lesser known, but very appreciated drummer in power metal. He was fast and always played like there was no tomorrow.
Jojo Mayer – Back to jazz. This guy is insane, and his unique technique of playing drum'n'bass rhythms on an acoustic set is astonishing. So much groove.
Martin Lopez (formerly of Opeth, Soen) – Another very respected prog metal drummer. When he left Opeth I pretty much stopped listening to them because it just wasn't the same.
Dave Weckl – Another jazz legend. I am less familiar with him than I am with other drummers on this list, but his sheer prowess blows my mind anytime I hear him.
John Macaluso (Ark and many more) – Pretty niche I guess. As I understand it he is mostly a session musician, but I loved his work in Ark so much that I had to put him here. He got a very unique style with an intense prog-fusion feel.
.Obviously, that means there are plenty of drummers who are my idols. I'm sure there are other drumming fans here, and I would love us to share our favorites. I'm mostly a fan of prog, metal, and occasionally jazz, so most of my favorite drummers come from those genres. Here is my list, in no particular order:
Mike Portnoy (formerly of Dream theater, Liquid Tension Experiment, and many many more) – my absolute idol. He is one of the reasons I picked up playing in the first place. I consider him the best prog-rock drummer ever. Power, technique, originality, speed, he got it all. He does not, however, have any swing.
Ian Paice (Deep Purple) – The ultimate hard rock drummer. His jazz-inspired playing always amazes me.
Tomas Haake (Meshuggah) – The father of Djent and generally the closest a drummer has ever gotten to being a machine. His playing breaks my brain in the best of ways.
Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) – This guy is the essence of heavy metal. Nuff said.
Buddy Rich – Only the best jazz drummer who ever lived. Nobody else even comes close to this day.
Gavin Harrison (Porcupine Tree, King Crimson) – This guy has a talent for laying down deceptively simple grooves that take all the music around them to a higher level.
Chris Adler (Lamb of God) – He specializes in tight groovy double-bass playing, and no one does this better than him.
Brann Dailor (Mastodon) – He plays at 100% all the time, with incredibly fast hands and very raw grooves and fills. And he also sings pretty well!
Danny Carey (Tool) – You can't talk about prog drummers without mentioning him. Creativity and technique to the highest degree.
Johan Langell (formerly of Pain salvation) – lesser known, but this guy had some chops. He came out with some pretty intricate beats for this very demanding band.
Thomen Stauch (formerly of Blind Guardian) – Another lesser known, but very appreciated drummer in power metal. He was fast and always played like there was no tomorrow.
Jojo Mayer – Back to jazz. This guy is insane, and his unique technique of playing drum'n'bass rhythms on an acoustic set is astonishing. So much groove.
Martin Lopez (formerly of Opeth, Soen) – Another very respected prog metal drummer. When he left Opeth I pretty much stopped listening to them because it just wasn't the same.
Dave Weckl – Another jazz legend. I am less familiar with him than I am with other drummers on this list, but his sheer prowess blows my mind anytime I hear him.
John Macaluso (Ark and many more) – Pretty niche I guess. As I understand it he is mostly a session musician, but I loved his work in Ark so much that I had to put him here. He got a very unique style with an intense prog-fusion feel.
