Meg White

Actually Jack wrote that stuff about the drummers, not Meg. He says in the Interview Magazine interview (July or August of 2007) that he misses instrumental virtuosos and the swing feel in music. He says there are not enough players in popluar music today that are known for playing an instrument and he mentions those masters of swing in the liner notes b/c of this.

Meg didn't talk much in the interview.

Personally, I like Meg's drumming, and I love the White Stripes.

Yeah, well I got the feeling that Gene Krupa wasn't a huge influence on Meg. She doesn't ever seem to talk much either...
 
Re: Meg White.....wonder drummer??

it's not that there is a single proper way to set up drums but there is certainly improper ways. imagine a kit with the snare drum set up in front of the bass and the hi tom beneath the floor tom. this is an extreme idea but it illustrates the point. while meg's tom is playable it is not ergonomic, will disallow certain good techniques and will lead to increased wear on the head. do like her cymbal choices tho
megwhite4.jpg

as to your first point i do agree with it actually. in a weird way meg gives all drummers hope. how so?
read here:
http://jasonhorsler.tripod.com/id35.html

j

i think meg is a good drummer and easy on the eyes too
 
If I could trade styles with Meg.....I wouldn't. However, Meg plays exactly what the White Stripes need. It's perfect for them.
 
The White Stripes are pretty much the coolest band in the world at the moment though i reckon. And Meg, gets my vote by default cos she's 50% of the band ;)
the coolness is purely non-drumming related though.
 
I like what Meg does, and the songs wouldn't sound nearly as cool if everything was 'just right'.
She plays a lot with what the guitar is doing, and I think it's cool. If the kit was set up 'right' it wouldn't have the same feel at all.

Their stuff is a refreshing change to what has happened to rock music in that last 5-10 years.

Half the time you don't know who the band is on the radio because they all have the same guitar tones, and the droning singer, the same production, same lame flat drum tones...blah!

I don't really listen to corporate owned radio these days....
 
Perhaps I'm not supposed to drudge up these old threads, but I had kind of a funny observation. With all this talk about rack tom placement I can't even rightly remember a White Stripes song where I've heard her play it. So maybe that's why it's all jacked up? Just there for show?

Haha, take this post with a grain of salt. Also, I've only heard a few of the WS hits.
 
i think meg is a pretty good drummer.. easy on the eyes too

yes! ha. i think of the white stripes more as a band than i do as two artists IN a band. their music has a very relatable feel to it, in the fact that it doesn't (or isn't) sound hard to play. it has very much the sound of "the band next door that plays and records in the basement on a 4-track" it's this very, homegrown honest feel to me. there's nothing flashy about it. it's simple, fun, and original. if meg isn't the best drummer then what does it matter? i don't think she's trying to be in any way, nor do i think she wants to be any sort of drum pioneer. she's just doing what she wants and is having fun with it.
 
I often wonder what the White Stripes would sound like if Meg tuned the drums herself.

(although maybe she does! could that be where her genius lies?)

That's my favourite thing about her drumming, really. Except that crash. Or ride, or whatever it is. But how much of that is down to producers and recording engineers?

That's the trouble with music nowadays, it's so hard to tell what comes from the musicians themselves, and what's just clever editing and beat detective.
 
Think she is more of a time keeper than anything, not really much technical or interestin stuff goin on, just keepin it all steady, like a live metronome. But i still think the producing and the drum sound she has is what makes her sound better. If she played on a dodgy old maxwin kit with a few binlid cymbals i reckon you would see that she isn't anything hugely special a lot more...
 
Jack White once compared Meg's playing to Robert Johnson tapping his foot on a wood floor. She was able to provide the exact sound he was looking for. Simple as that.
 
There are other girl drummers that place their tom(s) at such an extreme angle, such as Torry Castellano of The Donnas. I am pretty sure they do that because it makes getting around the drums on fills less demanding for them, and allows them to keep their hands close in without reaching out too much. Women are built differently than we are and the drums are a very demanding instrument. Whatever they can do to make it less strenuous for them on the road is their goal. Not that this matters, but I talked to Torry at this years NAMM show, and my goodness she is hot in person.

And yes.... Jack White does write the drum parts for Meg and he is a very good drummer himself. She plays the parts he writes for her exactly, so that in itself makes her a talented drummer. Who knows how good she is just sitting down and playing for fun? Charlie Watts, Stan Lynch (ex- Tom Petty) and Phil Rudd (AC/DC) are all very simplistic drummers on recordings, but all of them can really impress with their chops outside of their band restraints. Same goes for Neil Schon, the guitarist for Journey. He is very restrained and follows the melody of what is written -- but outside of Journey the guy has world-class chops and can flat out shred ala Yngwie Malmsteen. My point is that it is unfair to judge someone in the context of what they play in their "famous" band gig, and to say someone is not a great musician based solely on that is ludicrous at best.
 
Perhaps I'm not supposed to drudge up these old threads, but I had kind of a funny observation. With all this talk about rack tom placement I can't even rightly remember a White Stripes song where I've heard her play it. So maybe that's why it's all jacked up? Just there for show?

Haha, take this post with a grain of salt. Also, I've only heard a few of the WS hits.

She plays it in EVERY song. In fact she usually starts with a steady beat on it, or the floor tom or bass (one of the three). She sounds like a click with tone.
 
My friend once asked me who I thought the most underappreciated drummer ever was, my answer was close between Meg White and whoever the current drummer for Marilyn Manson is.

One thing I really appreciate about Meg is she really goes against the commin grain of drummers. She has a very distinct style, and it fits with their music.

Example; I've noticed she often plays her crash and bass drum at the same time. This is usually only done by beginners who havn't developed limp independance yet, but she somehow makes it sound cool.

Example II; This is a two person band, and even though she keeps it simple, she still manages to fill out the songs. Take an amazing drummer for example and try and imagine them writing for White Stripes. It just doesn't work. I think that combo is one of the few where you can take simple drumming, simple guitar, and put them together in a sweet and interesting way.

I think she's a very mediocre drummer, but an AMAZING White Stripe. Sense? Probably not.
 
Wow. That was an interesting read.

I can understand people thinking that we're all on the same path to perfect ergonomic drumming and technical perfection, but we're not.
So long as music is an artform, some folks will paint with the fine brush and some folks will flick the paint from across the room.
Does it matter? Is it relevant? Does it feel good? Sometimes you might wanna listen to Vinnie Colaiuta finesse those notes, and smile knowingly at the brilliance..
-And sometimes you might find yourself in a position where you just want to shake some ass.
 
Seems like a lot of jealousy here.

She is a perfect example of the old adage that goes:

"It's not what you know but who you know."

Davo
 
with all respect to all the drum teachers,

I consider myself a sloppy drummer and I refuse to play by rules.
My playing may be boring and sloppy to many but there are folks who said my drumming is different. I am not saying that I am an extra ordinary drummer but I like to be different from all the drummers around me who all plays alike.
I never took lessons and I play along the records in a different way, the way That I like with more tom tom rolls.

Drummers like Neil Peart etc.. are awesome but after watching them a while I get bored because they all play by the rules and they play perfect as well.
To me...Charley Watts is the most boring drummer in the Rock history but makes millions by playing a steady beat.. which amazes me.

Go Meg White!
 
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