Drum talk: your favourite Jimmy moments
 

I've been teaching myself drums for a few years so I've spent a lot of time listening very closely to Jimmy and picking apart what he's playing. Its really rewarding to be able to notice new details with each listen and understand how he creates his slick, mercurial style. What are some of your favourite Jimmy drum parts?

When I'm getting warmed up on the kit I really love playing the intros to Doomsday Clock and That's the Way. At first I disliked the disjointed feel of the DC intro and I couldn't really get the rhythm of it but once you learn a part you sometimes realize that it can feel more satisfying to play than to hear it on a record. Its the unexpectedness of every other hit that gives it its power. For example, you expect it to end with 8 snare hits but there are only six, so it catches you off guard when the beat comes in. And the TTW intro is just smooth and classy. For the longest time I didn't hear that the snare hits were actually rolls, but when you start noticing that last roll and how it pairs with the kick buildup, your realize how subtly it lifts into the beginning of the song. Coming up with a good beat is one thing, but its the hidden layer of detail that sets Jimmy apart from other drummers.

ESPECIALLY fucking 6:57 oh my GOD that snare snap is so cool

i also love the fuckin guitar maw of 7:26

hi-hat hit in Set the ray

jimmy's got skills.

If I had to choose one performance it would be this one >>>

YEAH!!!

^yeah man. that fuck you was straight-up satanic. love jimmy's little lol towards the camera.


i'm also pretty into the Solo HD video on youtube (i have the highest rated comment, heh) that one's interesting to me for the fact that its pretty much all tom work, but there's that one dirty hi hat slurp at 00:15 which i can't scrub out of my mind. its absolutely disgusting in the best possible way.

also, what is jimmy's most underrated drum track overall? in my opinion, it has to be Owed to Darryl, off the Complex album. the main beat is just genius and i've jammed that fucker for hours on my kit.

ugh, srsly. just watching that again is putting hairs on my chest.

how many godlike fills can you fit into one song?

Yeah, that's an awesome moment...0:24 is legendary.

3:32 >>> OMG!

yeah, that rocks my socks off every time. damn is that good. RIP SP.

tempted to start a new thread just for this video

i mean

5:41

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

FLAP

holy shit.

yeah, i don't know whats more amazing, the fill or the fact that he kept playing while repositioning the hi hat

WHY on earth can't they release this show on DVD/Blu-ray???

bet you any money that its finished but billy's still holding out for a reunion with the original lineup. we won't probably won't see the metro dvd until like 2030.

I wonder if they shot this show on film...I want it in 1080p.

RIP Jimmy

Another incredible performance >>>

Jimmy at 3:59...:)

stop fucking me up this early

best pumpkins related thing since machina

ugh a byrne solo was listed under related videos and it is so bad arrggghhh

that's not fair

i know this has already been said and done and then again, but

a) that fuck you is getting me riled every single time, i finish watching that and i feel like im ready to fucking cut somebody's throat! best performance ever, of any song, by any artist that i've seen. and i think sp were a shit live band in their day (for the most part).

b) jimmy is right up there with this generation's most brilliant drummers. his drumming is so technical and musically oriented, without him sp could never exist

c) its too weird to watch those videos and be reminded all the sudden how much i loved this band, and how my monumental respect for them crumbled in the last 10 years

and lastly, isle - check out Gavin Harrison from porcupine tree. for sure one of the top 5 drummers in rock. the music is awful, but check out how he takes an awful song and drums so tastefully to it:

^watching that made me realize something. maybe a drummer is only as good as the song he's playing on allows him to be. porcupine tree is a band i have yet to check out properly, but that was a world-class performance, to be sure. the man can obviously play anything and pays just as much attention to the song's requirements as jimmy does. but ultimately, you can't polish a turd. the tune he was drumming to was uninteresting, rhythmically and melodically, so there's only so much he could do to improve it. sp's music is 100% emotional and captivating, and jimmy's style was created largely out of necessity, to suit the songs. maybe he's only as good as we think he is because he was working with the best songwriters?

HOLY CRAP!!

That Big Beat video, not seen that! 4 - 4:40!

Tristessa from the CD at 50 seconds!

completely agree on the polish a turd thing.
you should check out porcupine tree's in absentia album. they're not one of those bands whose each album is perfect but that album is a colossal masterpiece.

i think jimmy's greatness is that he knew how to compliment the already great songs bill used to write, and you never ever got the impression he was looking for those small spots to wank... he's always 100% in context of the song. if the song requires a groove that's virtually solid throughout the entire song (sacred+profane), if it requires going full balls out to give it some power (geek, etc), or even those songs where he comes up with a part that's absolutely irreplaceable and perfect for the song - tonight tonight.
for fuck's sake isle, you're getting me to go all patrick bateman on your ass.
jimmy's the bomb, b0lly out :)

...man...there are some incredible moments during this epic 12 minute performance
of "Heavy Metal Machine" >>>

http://vimeo.com/10598923

...just 2 examples:
• listen to the dynamics of his roll from 2:47 - 2:53 ...incredible
• 4:33 - 4:41 >>> Jimmy is THE man

Ya I went to a Gavin Harrison drum clinic...easily one of the best drummers about!

i like when he pretends to play guitar in the lyric vid

everything from about 3:20 is jaw droppingly awesome, but specifically the fill starting at 3:55/56 just flattens me every time.

also I feel like the drumming in Everlasting Gaze never gets enough love. The groove with the open-closed hi-hats during the verses is excellent fun to play and gives the tune a bit of swagger. Then everything over the last riff where he switches over to the ride bell is great.

Geek USA is prolly my favourite tune of his to play, but I also have great fun with Porcelina, SIYL, I Am One, some of the live version of By Starlight etc.

That shit with Billy's guitar is mad haha

What a maniac he is growling LOL! WHat's he on..