Last Saturday night I went out to a concert. It was so great to be out listening to live music again... But I digress.
The concert was Primus on their
Tribute to Kings tour. They played Rush's Farewell to Kings in its entirety. I know, I know, I can hear the moaning out there already. But I tell ya, if there are any three guys in the planet gifted enough to cover Rush, it's the members of Primus. (Ok, I'll give ya that Les doesn't sound anything like Geddy!)
Through all my years of listening to music I've developed a slowly morphing list of favorite drummers. The other night Tim "Herb" Alexander of Primus got added to that list, and right up near the very top! There are few only the planet that can play Neil Peart's music, but I have to tell you Tim Alexander is without doubt among that select group. He played with complete accuracy and with real reverence to the original songs. He didn't change a thing or try to put his own mark on it. The music belongs to Neil and Neil alone, and Tim completely respected that.
I was truly blown away by just what positively amazing musicians Les Claypool, Larry LaLonde, and Tim "Herb" Alexander are. That statement is not only based on their covering of Rush's
Farewell to Kings, but also of their Primus songs. Yeah, they played a bunch of Primus stuff along with the aforementioned covers. Having never seen Primus before, I really didn't know what to expect, and I certainly didn't expect to be so taken aback by the band's live show! If you get the chance, do not miss this concert while it's on tour.
Now, my favorite other drummers, in no particular order:
Dale Crover - The Melvins. Nobody pours more of himself, or energy, into a drum kit than Dale.
Check out this live recording to see what I mean -
Love e'm or hate 'em you can't deny that the Melvins are hard as hell and Dale is the heartbeat.
Jaimoe Johanson and Butch Trucks - The Allman Brothers Band. Those two are one in my eyes. The percussion section in the original Allman lineup WAS both of them. Take one away and the band would would never have become what it did. They bounce off each other, they play around one another, and they seem to read each other's minds. They truly were one. Listen, really listen to the Filmore East album and you'll understand.
Mike Portnoy - Dream Theater, Winery Dogs, Liquid Tension Experiment, and others. Metronomes go see Mike when they need to be calibrated. Secondary to that, his style is so great. Hard, fast, and absolutely perfect.
Mike Mangini - Dream Theater. This Mike is the only person that would even have had a chance at replacing the other Mike when he left Dream Theater.
Danny Carey - Tool. You all know why. I don't have to go through the words.
Dave Perkins - Janes Addiction. He's so much better than the rest of the band! I love the stutter step rhythms that are the undertones of everything he plays.
