Will Calhoun

Yeah.....I'm a fan. Living Colour did it for me. Between Will and Vernon Reid, they gave me plenty to listen to.

I'm with you....can't believe there isn't a thread already!!
 
"This video contains content from Sony Music Entertainment, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds."

That's a bummer. I always really like his playing, too.
 
I'd like to do a Wil Calhoun brain scan...I dont think there's anybody who can play SO many styles, SO well.

...
 
Glad I'm not the only one here who's impressed with his playing.

His feel and approach reminds me of Keith Carlock and Benny Greb (at least in rock). Super clean, super snappy, incredibly sexy feel - lots of ornamentation that adds rather than detracts.

These guys get so inside the songs it's ... it's ... it's the kind of thing I'd like to do when playing mainstream if I had the talent.
 
I'm a fan of Will since Vivid (1988) !

"Cult Of Personality" is an absolute Classic and any music amateur who respect themself should at least have this album or this song in his collection.

I followed the band evolution over the years with their studio album then bang after their third album - no more Living Colour. I desesperately waited for their reunion and I entousiastly bought their last studio album "Chair In The Doorway" and damn that album is good - No ! - Excellent - A classic that bring all the band members to Living Colour roots.

Chair In The Doorway is my 2009 album of the year. I like the fact that Will did some electronics exploration experiments too.
 
My "main influence" as I was lured into the dark side of e-kit/acoustic hybrid drumming. Will's work with Jungle Funk (Doug Wimbish, Vinx, and Will), crazy, off-the hook stuff.​
Also, an extremely nice cat.​
 
Man, I always forget about Will Calhoun, but he is really excellent. Has a Bruford-esque ear for putting fills in really odd places. "Information Overload" is one of my favorite displays of his drumming.
 
Same here! I've loved that guy and the band since they debuted with Cult of Personality. Bought every record, EP and import too. It's because of him I tried having two bottoms as hi-hats! Some of the grooves he lays down with Wimbish on the WImbish instructional bass dvd are very cool. Thanks for bringing him up, Pol!
 
I just took delivery of a set of his signature Sabian "Mad Hats". Very cool. Somehow, they're dark and loud. They sound great hit medium to hard, not so sure about softer playing though. I have to put them into the kit to really hear them.

But the top is heavy enough to do ride patterns on and still have it sound clear and pretty good. If I can get to playing the bell of the hats down, it should sound awesome for that pattern.

Now do I get his "Alien Disc" to complete the set?
 
Pretty sure there used to be a thread on Wil...

Solid drummer...one of the few rock drummers that I've seen live do solos besides early Neil that completely blew me away at that time.

The first two LC albums were classic.

My other drum idol in my early days of influence refused to do solos...probably wasn't good at it, but made up a bunch silly excuses.
 
Last edited:
I think Will is an underrated gem of a drummer. His playing is always so fluid and he makes it seem effortless to play complex things.
 
I just took delivery of a set of his signature Sabian "Mad Hats". Very cool. Somehow, they're dark and loud. They sound great hit medium to hard, not so sure about softer playing though. I have to put them into the kit to really hear them.

But the top is heavy enough to do ride patterns on and still have it sound clear and pretty good. If I can get to playing the bell of the hats down, it should sound awesome for that pattern.

Now do I get his "Alien Disc" to complete the set?

Sorry to dig this old thread back up, but I had some Mad Hats and they were so heavy. The bottom seemed like it was twice the weight of a typical bottom hat. I wish I had them now though, I'd find a use for them. Anyone ever play one of his two ride models?

He was my first huge drumming influence. I started playing drums in the 5th grade, the year that Cult of Personality was on constant rotation on the radio and MTV. I remember buying Biscuits and just being blown away by his grooves, energy, and especially the way he crammed 6lbs of fills into a 3lb spot! He's the reason I first did HH accents while riding on the ride cymbal, and the first dude I heard mixing 16ths and triplets within the same fill for extra funkiness.
 
I remember when I first heard LC Vivid for the first time - it was the final "sign" that made me ditch the all the prog stuff, and sell 3/4 of my monster Peart inspired kit. Th first and second signs were hearing Tony Thompson and Fishbone.

What an amazing player. I saw LC in NY last year at a benefit concert, they tore shit down! Will tastefully destroyed the drums - 5 pc kit and 3 cymbals (big ride, big crash and an Ozone) and Sugar Hill Gang joined them onstage for the encore.
 
Sorry to dig this old thread back up..... . Anyone ever play one of his two ride models?

I have the Luna and the Ambient rides, plus the Mad Hats and the Alien Disc. They're all great cymbals.

The Luna is what I call my "Musical Anvil". It's thick, heavy and musical. Great for its cutting bell and bow. A very HEAVY METAL ride for cutting applications.

The Ambient is lighter and dryer. A little "gong-y" and trashy. Probably best suited for jazzy or fusion applications. There are a few YouTube videos out there.

I would really like to play on a Desert Ride as well, but it's a special order cymbal from Sabian so... finding it is probably very unlikely.
 
Anybody else here a fan of Will Calhoun and Living Colour? I think he's a very underrated drummer. He's always experimenting with new interesting sounds, hardware, and electronics. I feel that the merging of electronics/sampling/looping with acoustic drums is really where modern innovation on the drums is going.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgULh8oeqrc

P.S. Living Colour's first album in 8 years, "Shade" is finally out and features some really kickass music from Mr. Calhoun and company.
 
Back
Top