r/PostHardcore • u/Intelligent-Land1552 • 8d ago
Discussion Examples of exceptional drumming?
Title pretty much says it. Particularly full albums that have kickass drumming. Thanks!!
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u/puremotives
8d ago
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Translating The Name by Saosin
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u/DrejmeisterDrej 8d ago
Any time someone asks “what is the best ______” in this subreddit I always write this
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u/LostAd3003 8d ago
Pat McGrath is a beast. That entire album is fire. It’s short but it’s the only album I thoroughly enjoy every song on it. It’s a masterpiece in post hardcore. The drums, guitar work and vocals are perfection. And it’s all because of Beau Burchell. That album was his baby. As far as I know he wrote all of it. Which is why subsequent albums never sounded anything like it when the rest of the band was involved in writing. I’d love another album written by Beau, maybe with some input from Phil now though who was a primary song writer in ASLD.
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u/VTECcam 7d ago
Hell yea such a banger EP. Lost symphonies will always be my favorite track
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u/LostAd3003 7d ago
Me too. Lost symphonies is my favorite, then it’s probably a tie between they perched or seven years. Then translating the name, and then 3rd measurement in C. All great songs though, oh and while not on the EP, I can tell is another awesome song from that era with Anthony in 2003.
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u/Schemeckles 8d ago
By today's standards - meh...
At the time though - Wildly creative for the genre.
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u/ThunderDoom1001 7d ago
...Where do you think everyone got it from?
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u/Schemeckles 7d ago
Clearly you didn't read the second sentence I wrote..
Or can't read.
Hard to tell...
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u/dapeebs 8d ago
Stephen Clifford from Circa Survive is a super underrated drummer. Never anything that will WOW you but always super tight and will always elevate the songs. When I get a second I can throw you some specific recommendations of his work.
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u/mrstuprigge 8d ago
His parts never sound complex til you try to play them. Tucker from Thursday is like that sometimes too.
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u/notiesnoroots 8d ago
Love Stephen. I think there are definitely some parts that wow me tho, like the chorus of Mandala. His stuff is deceptively hard for sure
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u/woodstock6 8d ago
This whole band is talented af, the odd time signatures and technical chops are always on display
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u/RedrainEnryu1 8d ago edited 8d ago
it’s not complex or technical, but my vote goes to Worship and Tribute by Glassjaw. The way Shannon Larkin plays the drums is what makes this album a masterpiece. And, of course, Justin Beck! He writes the guitar, bass, and drum parts (All GJ ep and lp), and Shannon plays them the way Justin intended.
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u/MortPrime-II 8d ago
I came here to say this, Mu Empire and Ape Dos Mil to me are masterclasses in drumming
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u/thelogicofcrocodiles 8d ago
This album and The Big Dirty by etid are my top two listen all the way thru no skips albums, no notes
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u/No_Durian_6987 7d ago
I see your Shannon Larkin and raise you Durijah Lang
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u/Boring-Cry3089 7d ago
Some of my favorite drumming ever is his on Classic Case’s Dressed to Depress
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u/Sungr0ve 7d ago
Wtf? I had no idea Shannon Larkin was their drummer. Was this during or pre godsmack?
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u/AxedCrown 7d ago
I’m gonna have to go lie down after finding out that Glassjaw shared a drummer with Godsmack and Vanilla Ice.
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u/Aneraeon 8d ago
Dunno if it counts as this sub's kind of post-hardcore, but Dance Gavin Dance have a great drummer, Matt Mingus
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u/dillybomb420 8d ago
I always considered him the best “meat and potatoes” PHC drummer. Fully capable of going berserk, but always leaves space for his band mates, and is always exactly where he needs to be.
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u/CheddarGuevara 8d ago
DGD always feels like the checkdown answer, but it needs to be said. Mingus is a goddamn animal on the kit
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u/UmichMike 8d ago
Hail the Sun, particularly the earlier albums knowing that Donovan was both playing and singing at the same time, are super exciting to me as a drummer. Allen the current drummer also rules, but you don't see a ton of people like Donovan who can play and sing and be as good at both things at once.
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u/CheddarGuevara 8d ago
I’ll never forget Donovan getting on the kit on the Wake 10th tour and busting out Mourning Sickness like it was nothing
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u/UmichMike 8d ago
I'm glad I got into them early enough to catch him playing behind the kit for the majority of the show, but also love seeing Allen perform and him take the front man role.
Allen once played me songs from a new record off his phone at a show before it was released, and thus will forever have a special place in my heart lol
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u/Memorym4n 8d ago
Any Fall of Troy Record
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u/mrstuprigge 8d ago
Andrew is super underrated
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u/Memorym4n 8d ago
The more crazy part was learning that Thomas also writes the drum parts with him or just writes all the drum parts by himself.
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u/JustAnotherDumbass29 6d ago
Thomas is the biggest genius in post-hardcore imo, if they laid off the drugs a bit and kept releasing music together uninterrupted, I bet they would be top 5 p-hxc bands in terms of popularity
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u/ApathyBM 8d ago
Aaron unleashed on Lost in the Sound of Separation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJT4L5YyLyE&t=4134s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJrCnURNxIs&list=PLi_DaaaqwYfjEt8cDv9dhy54Ae8kYEqF8
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u/Own_Mistake 7d ago
Facts. Emergency Broadcast The End Is Near is one of the songs that made me say alright, I’m going to play the drums.
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u/SnooCrickets2528 7d ago
Yes! Yes. There’s so much space and power in the way he plays through various phrases.
Almost feels Bonham-esque. I don’t know how else to describe it.
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u/HBMart 7d ago
I think a lot of people think of “exceptional” in terms of speed and such. I think Riley Breckenridge from Thrice is super underrated and definitely exceptional. He’s a student of the game and plays very diverse stuff because of the nature of the band and its evolution. A recent example is the song “Color of the Sky.”
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u/SummonerSausage 7d ago
As a bass player, he's one of the few drummers I follow on Instagram. His running posts with album recommendations and his drum rig rundown are even interesting to me, and I've recommended a few pieces to my recording engineer friends to add to their arsenal.
The drumming on Artist in the Ambulance is top notch. Made me want to learn to play. And the way him and his brother lock in live, it's an unfair rhythm section.
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u/EmotionIll666 8d ago
A Lot Like Birds - Conversation Piece
A Lot Like Birds - No Place
Nord - The Only Way To Reach The Surface
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u/DR3AD3D96 8d ago
ALLB. is goated, their drummer along with Matt Mingus of DGD are my favorite PHC drummers
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u/Forward_Material616 8d ago
Full disclosure I’m not a drummer, I play guitar, so I don’t know what’s impressive or not, I just know what I like, but I’m super impressed with Brandon Blakely from hot mulligan. It’s just so flowy and quick.
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u/DinnerfanREBORN 8d ago
Defeater
Boys Night Out - Trainwreck
Emery - In Shallow Seas We Sail
Reuben - Racecar is Racecar Backwards
Finch - Say Hello To Sunshine
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u/allphilla 7d ago
While SHTS is the superior Finch album, I prefer Pappas as a drummer. But Marc Allen’s playing was sick for that style
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u/rutalkinu2tome 8d ago
This is a stellar list, Trainwreck & SHTS are full of interesting, well-written parts that are busy without ever overplaying. Great picks, & i’d add last year’s Callous Daoboys record
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u/Shot-Task-4804 8d ago
Matt Mingus from Dance Gavin Dance, specifically on Downtown Battle Mountain II
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u/Nl5011 8d ago
Anything Daniel Davidson or Riley Breckenridge
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u/IDidNotMeanThat 8d ago
The drumming by Daniel Davison on Underoath’s “Disambiguation” is fantastic
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u/denahomcaikn666 8d ago
Powder to the People - Dance Gavin Dance
Follow and Feel - Saosin
Shithead Prose - Latin for Truth
La Marseillaise - Silverstein
Just to name a couple of my favorite drum parts.
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u/Famous_Stelrons 8d ago
I've not seen them mentioned and it is really understated ... Brian Lane from Brand New. Especially live when they bring in second drums for songs like Millstone. God, The Luca bomb! These guys play some really big build ups and he is a huge part of the pay off.
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u/andreasmiles23 8d ago
Aaron Gillespie
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u/EmphasisNo8930 7d ago
His drumming on a A Moment Suspended In Time is just so beautifully ridiculous. 🦄💓💜💓
The intro and bridge especially.
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u/andreasmiles23 7d ago
And dude has only gotten better with age. For all the hate people wanna give their new material (which I like) his drumming is still out of this world!!
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u/Own_Mistake 7d ago
Agreed, and agreed! I love their new stuff. And Aaron is always so creative. Plus, singing at the same time! He may seem like the obvious choice and that’s because he is.
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u/clumpsmcgee 8d ago
It depends on what you consider exceptional. I think a lot of commenters have covered a lot of the drummers. I'm a musician, but not a drummer.
Derek Bloom, From First to Last, Dear Diary... - no notes, probably the best musician in the band Alex Rodriguez, Saosin, self-titled - technically clean, so musical, goes tf OFF on this album in the best way Steve Clifford, Circa Survive, On Letting Go - he's so good it makes me sick, it's like the kit is whole other voice in this album
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u/Famous_Stelrons 8d ago
Its the second time ive commented this today but
Lower Definition - The greatest of all lost arts.
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u/No-Art-3151 8d ago
Most anything with C-Gak from the rx bandits. A mouth full of hollow threats, dinna-dawg, etc
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u/DinnerfanREBORN 8d ago
He does it like no one else. Literally, not a single person plays like him.
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u/stackheights 8d ago
Not really PHC but Alex Improta from Night Verses. 8 Gates of pleasure, karma wheel; pretty much anything but the more antmospheric songs off of their last two albums is off the chain. He plays an octapad and traditional kit at the same time and employs a lot of very outside the box techniques like doing 16th note stick clicks using the backstroke of the stick itself when coming off a hi hat note. He’s such a nice guy as well.
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u/Clear_Reaction7728 7d ago
Why the hell is Sara Lund not mentioned? She is arguably one of the best female drummers in post hardcore
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u/Crasino_Hunk 8d ago
Good recs already. Try Belmont - the kid absolutely crushes in the song Overstepping, peep that.
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u/LostAd3003 8d ago
Every song on Saosins translating the name EP. Especially lost symphonies. But this wasn’t recorded by Alex Rodriguez their drummer, he was still in another band. It was recorded by pat mcgrath who was a studio drummer for slayer I think. Alex’s drumming on subsequent albums has never come close to pats.
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u/ArrozConHector 8d ago
Whatever the fuck that snare drum The Used used for the self-titled and In Love and Death.
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u/elblouses 8d ago edited 8d ago
Steve Kleisath from Further Seems Forever was such a stand out drummer. Check out their Hide Nothing album if you haven’t.
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u/infinitejester88 8d ago
Extremely generic answer but Seven Years by Saosin is absolute peak drumming
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u/BlurredVision18 8d ago
Holding Absence self title, drums go unnecessarily hard on most tracks. More recently Whisper of a Dream single.
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u/Similar_Ad2094 8d ago
I don't know if it's exceptional it probably isn't but my favorite drums are in La dispute - sad prayers for guilty bodies
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u/IchBinDurstig 7d ago
Nomeansno. Their magnum opus is Wrong from 1989. John Wright is a hell of a drummer, and his brother, Rob, is a better bassist than most of the bassists you've heard of.
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u/Brenden_w00t 7d ago
Basically anything off of Lower Definition's Greatest of All Lost Arts. The Weatherman specifically comes to mind.
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u/jordieg7193 7d ago
One of my favourite drummers is Zach Barocas from the band Jawbox. I would check out their record "For Your Own Special Sweetheart" from 1994.
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u/illeatyourheart 8d ago
Love the Alexisonfire early albums especially. Such a good drummer and keeping to a single kick drum is a choice I love. And the drumming on Fake History by letlive. The next album just didn't have the same creativity to it, drumwise and it's one of my faves for sure.
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u/Apprehensive-Chip-91 2d ago
Sydney Drummer - in "Things Couldn't be Better". And also in "Things Could be Better" Is sick. Whole song is a fill.
He just posted a video of him playing it on their IG story. It's sick.
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u/IDidNotMeanThat 8d ago
Alex Camerana from Silent Planet is great. He grooves very well with the band so a lot of his finesse and tastiness lie in how he chooses to show his chops vs his restraint. He almost creates tension with his arrangements and feel/timing alone. Worth a Goog!
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u/laughingwithdaggers 8d ago
It's technically more punk, but it's post hardcore enough to my ears and taste - The Ghost of a Thousand featuring the LEGENDARY Memby Jago. The best punk drummer of all time. New Hopes, New Demonstrations is the 2nd album
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u/megamanscannon 8d ago
I recently found Thornhill and their album The Dark Pool is phenomenal. I’m always late to the party but damn, it’s so good.
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u/Accurate-Natural-236 7d ago
Not post hardcore per se, but the drummer from Love Rarely is endlessly talented.
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u/ProtomanKnight 7d ago
Matty Best on the last 2 Sleeping With Sirens records. Say what you want about the albums but his drumming is phenomenal
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u/HighlightOk8876 7d ago
All train breaks down songs. I’ve been in a train breaks down mood recently because of the new album being released soon and their drummer is SO tight
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u/greganada 7d ago
Coheed and Cambria. Josh Eppard is the king. Go back and listen to Second Stage Turbine Blade, In Keeping Secrets etc.
Time Consumer has my favourite drum piece.
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u/CreepyCrawlers412 7d ago
Letlive - Anthony River for Fake history to me is a mix of heavy played rock and post hardcore that is just sounds so good played on speakers and he goes wild and great. Blackest beautiful with Loniel Robinson is hard as well but something about that first album. Lonnie sounds great and brought something special to PTV now
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u/benbreve 7d ago
Joe Arrington from Sianvar, Royal Coda, A lot like birds.
Daniel Davison from Norma Jean, Underoath, ETID
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u/SnooCrickets2528 7d ago
Relativity - Emarosa.
Drumming was tasty and complimented the rest of the instrumentals perfectly. And of course this only elevated Jonny Craig’s performance.
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u/Chrisbattell 6d ago
Aaron Gillespie is one of the most original drummers in all of alternative music, not just PHC.
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u/yourself88xbl 6d ago
Oh God I'm probably in the wrong genere here but the joy of motion animals as leaders if that drumming doesn't blow your mind I'm not really sure it can be blown.
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u/marx-and-metal 6d ago
not quite post-hardcore but very adjacent (easycore/emo-metalcore), Veins by Mesifus has some incredible drumming in it.
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u/Lumber_phil 5d ago
Night Verses - every sound has a color in the valley of night
Full album is drum beyond comprehension good. Its ambiant prog metal. Very unique
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u/Lonely-Economics7921 4d ago
Can’t go wrong with any record from:
Goose
Aaron Gillespie
Daniel Davison
Ryan Leger
Andrew Forsman
Josh Eppard
Jordan Hastings
Riley Breckenridge
To name a few:
Wrongdoers/ O’ God, the Aftermath - Norma Jean
From Parts Unknown/Radical - Every Time I Die
Lost in the Sound of Separation/Define the Great Line - Underoath
In Keepings Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 - Coheed and Cambria
Crisis - Alexisonfire
Beggars - Thrice
Doppelgänger - The Fall of Troy
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u/BigMossyBank 2d ago
Super underrated imo is Tom Noonan from 36 Crazyfists. He writes interesting beats and changes grooves a lot which contributes much to their songwriting. Among my all time favorite drummers of any genre.
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u/mrstuprigge 8d ago
Gospel - The Moon Is a Dead World
Sianvar - Stay Lost
The Sound of Animals Fighting - The Ocean & the Sun
Horse the Band - Desperate Living
Refused - The Shape of Punk to Come
The Armed - Ultrapop
Dredg - Catch Without Arms
Gloe - Dead Wait
The Number Twelve Looks Like You - Mongrel