Marco Minnemann

[K!lly]

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Marco_Minnemann.html

One of the "new" drummers.. mostly compared to Thomas Lang, he peformed a drum battle with T.Lang and J.Rabb ... drummer of Nina Hagen, the 19th WFD with 1005 strokes per minutes... a huge DW kit with a big gong-bass, and some wird pedals (a foot-snare) ..etc
I've seen this drummer at a drumclinic in paris, and believe me it was a plesur for my eyes and for ears. I'll keep forever in my memory his "stereo hihat lick".
A must seen


By the way, I've seen Thomas lang to in a clinic.. and for me, Marco rox him .. no joke :)

[captain pencil shooter]

marco is an awesome drummer, incredibly fast. don't care for the music he writes though, but nonetheless he's damn good.

[darkcherryfade]

Indeed, with his ego music aside, he is amazing. One of the best. And actually, I do like some of his self-written tracks.

[finnhiggins]

I liked his video where he solos over "Bite my shiny metal ass" from Futurama. That was one of the funnier clinic gimmicks I've ever encountered.

[spacebeat3117]

I liked his video where he solos over "Bite my shiny metal ass" from Futurama. That was one of the funnier clinic gimmicks I've ever encountered.

haha yea that was awesome . Marco is a real nice guy i met him after a clinic and he just does some real impressive fills with that dw gong drum .

[Raymond Bloom]

Aww, Marco is insane! I don't listen to him cuz his drumming is so complex that my head strats to hurt! :DD And, yeah, after that I usually think...eh, ok, maybe I need to play guitar instead of drums? But hey, Marco plays guitar pretty awsome too, so... :DDD
He is really pushing the boundries of drumming...a madman... all my respect to him!

[Wegadrummer]

Aww, Marco is insane! I don't listen to him cuz his drumming is so complex that my head strats to hurt! :DD And, yeah, after that I usually think...eh, ok, maybe I need to play guitar instead of drums? But hey, Marco plays guitar pretty awsome too, so... :DDD
He is really pushing the boundries of drumming...a madman... all my respect to him!


you took the words out of my mouth...

[InnateDrummer]

Aww, Marco is insane! I don't listen to him cuz his drumming is so complex that my head strats to hurt! :DD And, yeah, after that I usually think...eh, ok, maybe I need to play guitar instead of drums? But hey, Marco plays guitar pretty awsome too, so... :DDD
He is really pushing the boundries of drumming...a madman... all my respect to him!

If you wanna know the truth, it isn't THAT complicated, you just have to figure out which are the hands and whichc are the feets..lol, thats the hard part, everything else, such as odd time sig.'s and patterns and what not, are easy to figure out and to do, but no doubt, he's insane, i like his drumming because its so different from every other drummers, His hands and feet are independant and interdependant on each other, its wild, i love trying to figure out what comes next.

[PdoubleE]

I know this is a bold remark But Minnemann has brought somthing to the drumming community that noone else has. Incredible Innovation!!!! This guy is simply amazing
Actualy i lied in the Agren Thread I Think Minnemann may also be another fav !! Dang it too many Incredible drummers lol

[Thinshells]

Marco is a monster behind the kit. There is no other way to slice it. He is amazing.

[Scatman]

Other than Thomas Lang Marco has the best independence of any drummer

[toteman2]

Other than Thomas Lang Marco has the best independence of any drummer


That is a BOLD statement my friend...While I love Marco and Lang there are a number of drummers who have displayed more advanced independence than both of them...Marco has some of the most intense facial expressions when playing...I love it...

[and of five]

While I love Marco and Lang there are a number of drummers who have displayed more advanced independence than both of them

that's also a pretty bold statement. i made a huge post on here somewhere a while ago about the technical impossibility of asessing independance based on listening.

'there's no way anyone could possibly know that napoleon'

what can't be argued is that minneman made a huge stride in bringing true ostinato playing to the masses with 'extreme interdependance'

[toteman2]

i made a huge post on here somewhere a while ago about the technical impossibility of asessing independance based on listening.

Could you elaborate? That seems like a fun topic...

[AvengedDrummer]

He is one of my favorite drummers. His solos are really unique and when he plays with a band his playing really adds alot to the music.

[NUTHA JASON]

i got his extreme drumming DVD the other day (actually they delivered two by accident so i'm selling one on ebay at the moment).

my initial feelings are that he is comparableto virgil donatti in chops but he certainly grooves more, the man is a machine when it comes to speed and a great showman too. i'm keen to learn more about him.

j

[Stu_Strib]

that's also a pretty bold statement. i made a huge post on here somewhere a while ago about the technical impossibility of asessing independance based on listening.

'there's no way anyone could possibly know that napoleon'

what can't be argued is that minneman made a huge stride in bringing true ostinato playing to the masses with 'extreme interdependance'

Speaking of insane ostinatos and independence; Sanchez and Hernandez come to mind.

[Homegrown]

Lets not forget Bozzio as long as we are on the topic of independence. He was doing the same thing marco is doing 12 years ago. Although, marco imho is a little more fluid in that respect.

[t-bone]

i just recently got into marco's playing, through his work with paul gilbert....the dude is amazing....can't be a slouch when you are playing with dudes the calibre of mr.gilbert..........

[Stu_Strib]

I'm glad he switched to Zildjian too. I'm not sure what he was thinking with those old cymbals.

[baddrumming]

To Stu

Marco played meinl cymbals for so many years because they were kind enough to offer him his first sponsership deal hence he stayed loyal to them. Zildjian by the way had been after marco for a few years before marco eventually caved into the tempatation of a free set of K custom cymbals and a big fat sponsership deal.

[Tex12]

If I could come close to 985 Marco could do way more than 1005
What is this?

[Jeff Almeyda]

Even Bozzio admits that Marco reigns supreme with independence. Read Bozzio's recent interview in MD.

There are several drummers with high level independence but Marco is throwing it all together with polyrhythms, odd time sigs, odd note groupings, frequent meter changes etc.

Virgil is also doing crazy stuff at this level as well. (His "separating both sides of the body" technique)
I have to say, Virgil might be even badder than Marco

Marco really is a mutant, however. I mean, I saw him playing eighths with one limb, triplets with another, 16th's with the third and quintuplets with the fourth limb. AND he can assign any one pattern to any limb at any time. Who even plays music like that???

Check out the video Extreme Drumming. The solo at the end is awe-inspiring.

[secondXheartbeat]

I really enjoyed when he played along with sound-drops from different movies. It really showed how well-rounded of a drummer Marco is!

[AvengedDrummer]

I got his Extreme drumming DVD from netflix the other day and what impressed me was an accented roll he did between two hi-hats. Insane stuff

[Womble]

my initial feelings are that he is comparableto virgil donatti in chops but he certainly grooves more, the man is a machine when it comes to speed and a great showman too. i'm keen to learn more about him.

j

YAY!!! In other words, J, you can finally hear that Virgin's groove is flawed? :)

Marco's chops are more interesting, musically applicable, and fluid than the other pretenders'. Despite the ridiculous complexity of what he plays, he remains human. No one touches him for independence. And to top it all off, he's a cool, funny, down-to-earth guy, again unlike the others.

Marco kills Donati. Marco kills Lang.

Womble hath spake.

[Stu_Strib]

To Stu

Marco played meinl cymbals for so many years because they were kind enough to offer him his first sponsership deal hence he stayed loyal to them.

It seems like Meinl goes after the German Wunderkinds like Lang (ok, Austrian, close enough) and Minneman. What does that Benny Greb guy play?

I'm sure it has more to do with distribution and marketing than anything else. I've said it a million times on here, my favorite cymbal/drum company would be the one that would pay me to play their gear! But for now I guess I'll have to "settle" with Yamaha and Zildjian...oh darn.

[Stu_Strib]

Marco kills Donati. Marco kills Lang.

Womble hath spake.

I think what you meant to say was Marco Donati and Lang kill Womble and Stu_Strib.

[Womble]

I think what you meant to say was Marco Donati and Lang kill Womble and Stu_Strib.

Or possibly, Donati and Lang are about to kill Womble. LOL.

Please don't assume Thinshells' old job of pointing out that everyone's worse than the people they criticise, I've been enjoying my new-found freedom since he flipped!

[Breakaway Faction]

I just watched the extreme drumming DVD. And thanks to Marco I have a huge headache. OMG I can't even believe the stuff he is doing.......WOW!!!

[jonny]

Marco kills Donati. Marco kills Lang.

Even Bozzio admits that Marco reigns supreme with independence.

And Pete Zeldman kills all of them. End of thread ;-)

Sorry Womble. Zeldman was doing all of Marco's stuff way back. I think Marco is a fantastic drummer, and I really enjoy his musicality. As for independance and sheer technical facility, there are drummers who've been doing the Extreme Independance for a while now, but without the exposure that Marco gets. I view Marco as pretty much a newcomer to the independance scene.

[Stu_Strib]

Please don't assume Thinshells' old job of pointing out that everyone's worse than the people they criticise, I've been enjoying my new-found freedom since he flipped!


No worries from me! That's the last thing I waste my time on. I have probably included this line more than 50 times on Drummerworld:

"what does MY skill have to do with (insert criticized drummer's name here)"?

[and of five]

err well i guess this post is a few months belated.. but regardless

if you define independance as being to play a co-ordinated rhythm independant of another (ie left hand/right hand.. right foot/right hand) it's impossible to differentiate between actual improvisation (and real independance), and memorized rhythm.

so assume your playing a shuffle, and you displace the upbeat every few bars. while you are obviously doing this independant of the rest of the rhythm, which is consistant, it is likewise possible that you just memorized a few bars, with an upbeat that doesn't fall in the same place

of course it's a fair bet to say someone on marco's playing level can improvise pretty fluently, but you can't honestly say he has excellent independance without being him..

[Drumitup]

Well this is going to make everyone on drummerworld but I'm going to a drum clinic including Marco, Terry Bozzio ( ohhhh yeeeaaaah!) and Chad Wackerman it's on april 29th I can't wait.

I've seen some of Marco's movie and I was extremeley impressed with him.

[LimaBeans]

I love Marco's drumming. He is probaly my favorite drummer ever since I bought his Extreme Drumming DVD. I love listening to the music he plays with. It's just great to see someone who developed amazing interdependence, then apply it to make mind-boggling grooves that fit the music more than well. For anyone who has the DVD, my favorite song (and drumming) on it is the alternate take of "Motor" on Side B (especially when he starts using all of the different high hat/cymbal orchestrations (the one while the music is still playing)). I don't see why this one isn't on the site instead of one of the others.

[Womble]

And Pete Zeldman kills all of them. End of thread ;-)

I dutifully checked out Pete Zeldman's site, but there was only one brief audio clip, and to be honest it sounded like a rather unappealing mess. When I said no one touches Marco for independence I didn't really mean in terms of complexity but in musicality (just my opinion). But if there's someplace else I can check out more Zeldman, please let me know, I'd be interested.

[jonny]

Hey Womble,

I see what you're saying. Personally, out of all of the 'super' drummers, like Lang, Mangini, Donati etc, I'd say that Marco is the most musical as well. I remember the first time I saw his video, I was really blown away by it. I genuinely think it's really good music, whereas I can't always say the same thing about other drummers. With Lang or Mangini, I think it's good drumming, but I can't honestly say that I always enjoy the musicality side of it.

However, although not I'm not someone who likes to get caught up in "who's the best techinical drummer etc", I do think that when it comes to independance and four way co-ordination, technical ability is something to be admired. It's ridiculously hard to get to a decent level. Zeldman has taken it seriously far out. There is a video of him on the Drum Institute website, under his profile, which is ok. But neither the clip or the video I mentioned really showcase his talent properly. Personally, I'd rate him as the world's best drummer, and yes, that's putting above Vinnie and Weckl etc. Try and catch him live in clinic, and he'll change the way you think about drums! ;-)

[Jeff Almeyda]

Has anyone seen Marco recently? He seems to have fallen off the face of the earth in the last 6 months or so. He's not playing with any bands that I know of nor is he on a clinic tour.

Anyone know what's up?

[LimaBeans]

Has anyone seen Marco recently? He seems to have fallen off the face of the earth in the last 6 months or so. He's not playing with any bands that I know of nor is he on a clinic tour.

Anyone know what's up?

29. October 2006, Birmingham, West Midlands, UK, Drumfest 2006

25. October 2006, Northampton, Northamtonshire, UK, Drumfest 2006

22. October 2006, Brentwood, Essex, UK, Drumfest 2006

20. - 24. June 2006, München, Germany, "Unterfahrt" www.unterfahrt.de, Wolfgang Schmid Special Kick

20. May 2006, Bordeaux, France, Drums Addict Festival 2006, http://www.medoquine.com/fr/visite.html

04. May 2006, B&B Music, Camden, DE, USA, BMW Clinic Tour

02. May 2006, Dynamic Percussion, Manchester, CT, USA, BMW Clinic Tour

01. May 2006, Drum Shop, Portland, ME, USA, BMW Clinic Tour

29. Apr. 2006, Steve's Music, Montreal, QC, Canada, BMW Clinic Tour

28. Apr. 2006, Steve's Music, Ottawa, ON, Canada, BMW Clinic Tour

26. Apr. 2006, Steve's Music,Toronto, ON, Canada, BMW Clinic Tour (Bozzio, Minnemann, Wackerman)

25. March 2006, Weinstadt, Wolfgang Schmid Special Kick Tour 2006, Jazztage, www.jak-weinstadt.de

24. March 2006, Habach, Germany, "Village" www.village-habach.de, Wolfgang Schmid Special Kick

[Jeff Almeyda]

And Pete Zeldman kills all of them. End of thread ;-)

Sorry Womble. Zeldman was doing all of Marco's stuff way back. .


I remember Zeldman doing this crazy independence stuff back in '89. He is truly an unsung giant of a drummer. Whatever happened to him? I'd heard some pretty bad things.

I'd love to see him playing alongside Marco now. That would be SCARY!!!

[stumprrp]

i just watched his dvd with a friend and i am speechless, he has everything that has to do with drumming, well, mastered.

[Tyr]

Didn't want to start a new thread but I wanted to read through and see what everyone has said about Marco.

He is hands down my favourite drummer. His groove, independence, and chops have a very unique feel to them.

He has a new DVD out now, called "The Marco Show" I ordered an autographed copy off of his website, I can't wait to get it!

[00Schneider]

I'm sure it has more to do with distribution and marketing than anything else.
Yeah, you're right. The main thing of his change was, that Marco wanted to get more possibilities in the US. He thougt Zildjian could more offer over there than Meinl. Had nothing really to do with the "sound".


Marco kills Donati. Marco kills Lang.
But Donati's technique is some steps higher. The benefits of Marco are timing and tightness, especially on his DVD "Extreme Drumming". I think the musicality in Marco's drumming arised first the last years, and is still developing. Even 4-5 years ago, it was not interesting for me in this direction.

Btw. as far as I know Marco and Virgil share a rehearsal room in LA.

[<<L3o Luk@?>>]

marco is an really awesome drummer....i bought his dvd "extreme drumming", too and after i watched it, i was down^^ he's incredible fast and very "interdependent"^^

[Womble]

Hmmm, I'm confused. In early 2004 I saw Marco do a clinic in LA and it blew me away, not just for the undeniable speed and independence, but because his 15-minute solo made a whole lot of musical sense. He worked through a number of modern styles like house and drum n' bass, and utilised his immense technique to play a whole series of awesome grooves that sounded like 3 guys grooving hard together. It made me want to dance, and at the end I leapt off my feet to give a standing ovation, something I do extremely rarely. When I got back to the UK and discovered Drummerworld I checked out the Marco clips here and was disappointed: I couldn't hear any of the magic that I remembered from that evening. And now with these latest clips, I'm disappointed further: no satisfying grooves, nothing that seems to mean anything. Marco's playing like so many of these other chops monsters these days - seemingly hitting drums in whichever way takes his fancy irrespective of whether it sounds good, playing fast doubles between hands and feet on different surfaces for no real purpose...

I look forward with nervous anticipation of this supposedly great and musical performance of Lang with Louis Conte that's coming our way soon. Please, please let it be true. Someone with these immense chops needs to show the others the right direction to take them in.

[DWDrummer]

I just started my first lesson with Marco today. A very DOWN TO EARTH GUY- nice guy all around. He is amazing.

[quadrant2012]

I remember Zeldman doing this crazy independence stuff back in '89. He is truly an unsung giant of a drummer. Whatever happened to him? I'd heard some pretty bad things.

I'd love to see him playing alongside Marco now. That would be SCARY!!!

Hi i am new to this site . I can say that Mr Zeldman is alive and kicking big time in London village U.K.
I have been studying with him for almost a year . The guy is phenomenal , his interdependence is in no way inferior to the above mentioned masters , his groove is HUGE should he be in funk mode . The stuff he has demonstrated in the practice room to me has not been witnessed by many , that you tube clip just does not do his playing any justice at all . I have to say the playing of Lang etc is awesome on one level but leaves me cold on another , Pete Zeldman however imbibes his playing with a massive dose of spirit , some thing undefinable . certainly not cold . I spent a long time considering my next teacher and he won . any way this whole argument about who is best or fastest is rubbish , what has that got to do with music and emotion...

[Therma lobsterdore]

Ohhh is Zeldman taking in new pupils in london? Cause I'm in need of a new teacher at the moment.

Have any of you listened to Illogicist's new album 'The insight eye'? It has Marco on drums, it's a nice slice of technical death metal. Marco doesn't go completely crazy at any point though, but he does play very well throughout the whole album.

[Citizen Insane]

My favorite of the "technical" drummers, (Lang,Donati,Mangini) his drumming seems to fit his personality, very eccentric and fun. I've seen some of his extreme drumming dvd. Seems pretty cool, I enjoy instructional videos that encourage you to be creative, try new things. Rather than the average improve your speed, improve your technique fare. I really like him, hope to see more cool stuff from him in the future.

[photon]

So I'm watching this TV show about Miles Copeland putting together a Police cover band to tour and he's auditioning all these drummers who are average semi pro's at best and then this "guy from Germany" shows up and it's Marco and of course he absolutely blows everyone away and gets the gig...he is so obviously in another league altogether. So Miles books them in this 1000 seat hall for their first gig and like 70 people show up. I just couldn't comprehend why Marco was pursuing this gig..........it was so obviously a step down for him.

Anyone else see that..........?

[muzzdrums]

i just recently got into marco's playing, through his work with paul gilbert....the dude is amazing....can't be a slouch when you are playing with dudes the calibre of mr.gilbert..........

Agreed. Gilbert's "Burning Organ" is a fantastic record. Marco really shines in certain spots, and while we all know what he can do, he chooses to hold back and play for the song on most occasions. These are accessible pop/rock tunes with enough notes for the shredders to enjoy.

[tooldrums1000]

If you like metal, like I do and if you like Marco Minnemann, like I do then you will Love Necrophagist, like I do. Marco Minnemann's drumming is so amazing its almost inhuman how he plays a lot of his beats have odd time signatures but he makes it sound like a 10 year old can do it.AMAZING. So basically start listening to Necrophagist.

[Spence]

So I'm watching this TV show about Miles Copeland putting together a Police cover band to tour and he's auditioning all these drummers who are average semi pro's at best and then this "guy from Germany" shows up and it's Marco and of course he absolutely blows everyone away and gets the gig...he is so obviously in another league altogether. So Miles books them in this 1000 seat hall for their first gig and like 70 people show up. I just couldn't comprehend why Marco was pursuing this gig..........it was so obviously a step down for him.

Anyone else see that..........?

I didn't believe this at first, but he's on their website and everything. So is Taylor Hawkins. I don't get it. It really does seem like a step down.

[fatillac]

I just got home from the Marco Minneman / Johnny Rabb clinic here in Winnipeg and have a few words to say about.

1. The clinic was hilarious, a ton of laughter from the audience, a lot of it from the hilarious samples Marco and Johnny were using, not to mention the Life of Brian video segment that Marco was drumming along to.

2. The dynamics that these 2 gentleman displayed was outstanding

3. I have seen a fair share of drum clinics, but this was the first one I have attended where my jaw was locked in the open position, with drool puddles forming on my shirt.

Amazing presentation from these 2 guys and my brain is still trying to interpret the display of drumming I have just witnessed.

[Ekim]

Over a year with no Marco posts? Not cool.

I am loving the Paul Gilbert CD "Space Ship One". Marco is SLAMMING on that one. Now it's obvious I must go buy "Burning Organ" too. But I just did an Amazon.com order... what to do... what to do...

[paradiddler]

I'm thinking that Marco Minnemann needs a lot more attention.

I just attended a drum clinic put on by Marco in Duluth, GA on March 4th, and I could not believe what I saw. I don't know why he's not more well known (heck, even I hadn't heard about him that much), but he is very much a world-class drummer, no question.

Since there hasn't been much action in this thread, I thought Marco should be given his due. I wrote an article detailing the clinic that Marco put on. I think you'll enjoy the details, and make sure you don't miss him in case he comes near you either via a band or a clinic.

Drum Clinic - Marco Minnemann (http://theparadiddler.com/2010/03/07/drum-clinic-marco-minnemann/)

Marco is now on my short list of favorite drummers, and he's a great guy to boot!