After a very long day and night of drumming , mingling with the fans and performers, and a BIG breakfast – it was time to do it all over again as day 2 commenced at the 2008 Modern Drummer Festival.

People we’re just as excited but seemed a bit more sluggish. This was probably the affects of the MD after party at the Hilton the night before.  While handing out raffles “Shaker Dude” admitted to being a bad dog last night, as his shades seemed darker than the usual shade of amber or crimson that we’re used to. Great guy to talk to and hang with, make sure you pick up his latest DVD “Voices in My Head”.

The program listed that Derek Roddy would be performing first but some last minute changes were made to allow a special guest to open up the show. Drum roll please…………………………..

It was the celebrated rocker Carmine Appice and his innovative percussion ensemble SLAMM!! Having performed in Bayshore, NY the night before, they packed up their gear to come over and rock the house for the opening of the festival.

The audience stood in amazement and participated with cheers while Carmine played to the crowd like the Maestro he is. As Carmine put it “It’s a theatrical rock spectacular based around drums.” It certainly was as the colorful cast played on drums, buckets, and just about everything else while on stage. At the conclusion the house roared when the lights flashed and confetti reigned down to usher in the next artist.

Former MD Fest Alumni Jason Bittner came up to honor and introduce the next performer and also his dear friend Derek Roddy.

“How other way can you put it… it’s definitely the Grammy of the drumming community.” -Derek Roddy

Derek came on stage and sat behind a beautiful Sonor kit which he played with amazing speed. Derek also emphasized on how his kit setup was changed to incorporate a “left hand kit” to better his independence.

The thing most respected about Derek is that he is an all-around musician and not just rooted in metal. A point he touched on while taking questions was how metal drummers are always picked on for their lack of musical diversity. Most metal drummers do listen to other types of music, but MOST types of musicians outside of the Rock N Roll scene don’t listen to metal. This was the challenge he presented to all musicians: Try listening to things you normally don’t, and listen to some music you might not necessarily care for. It will only help to make you a well rounded musician. If you’re a metal guy, listen to jazz, or Latin. If you’re a jazz cat go check out a metal or country band. There is so much great music out there to inspire us and we need to seek it out.

Afterwards Danfis Prieto brought his sextet on stage to perform songs from their latest album “Taking the Soul for a Walk.”

His arrival in the U.S. has been compared by to that of an asteroid hitting New York. Indeed, within a short period of time Dafnis Prieto's revolutionary drumming techniques had a powerful impact on both the Latin and jazz music scene, locally and internationally. Even with five other musicians onstage they all performed as one tightly knit unit moving with the music, all having their moment to shine in the spotlight. Prieto kept perfect posture as he moved around the kit with style and elegance, with each note intimately placed.

Even the saxophonist couldn’t help but pick up the shakers. After a few tunes Danfis addressed the crowd with a humorous statement about the new album. “We have our album out in the lobby for sale if some of you are interested in this type of music. And even if you’re not interested in this type of music….buy it anyway and give it to someone you don’t like.”  Afterwards the group had no trouble unloading their inventory.

There are over 6 billion people on this planet. Maybe half a dozen of them posses the advanced talents of current Styx drummer Todd Sucherman. Coming off the successful release of his new DVD – “Methods and Mechanics” Todd told the crowd how happy he was to attend his first ever MD Fest by opening with the tune “Tears of Joy”.

Once Todd finished the audience couldn’t help but ask question after question pertaining to life, gear, technique, equipment, etc. One gentleman asked “How do we take you, and put it into me? Or can we just take me and put me into you?”  Todd laughed while pointing to his head and replied “Trust me you don’t want to live in hear because it’s a strange place, and I have to do it every day."

As time went on Todd finished up with an encore of “One With Everything” once he conquered a few technical difficulties. I would spoil it for you but it was just one of those things you had to be there to see. Make sure you buy the DVD! Afterwards in an interview Todd had this to say about his debut at MD Fest. “It was a thrill to be here and everybody has been so amazing, so great. It’s been smooth, easy, breezy, and I hope my laptop works.”

Simon Phillips came up to introduce the next performer whom he has had the pleasure of knowing since he was a child. It was none other than the head-turning neo-progressive drumming machine Gavin Harrison.

This day marked a special day for Gavin for not only was this his first MD Festival, but his first solo drum performance in the United States. “If Modern Drummer invites you to come and play the MD Fest…who’s gonna say no?”

Gavin is an odd time maniac, it’s no wonder why he’s the recipient of The2008 MD reader’s Poll for Prog Drummer of the Year. You won’t hear much 4/4 from him as he breaks down complex time signatures such as 19/16, 16/8, and others that would make a mathematicians brain melt.

Gavin took questions in- between the performance of several Porcupine Tree songs and a few from an independent project he is currently working on. Remaining rather obscure behind the drums, Gavin admitted he feels more comfortable there and was a bit nervy about playing to drum savvy crowd. Fans can appreciate the fact that whether you’re a superstar musician or a hobbyist we all tend to get nervous from time to time, it just proves we’re human after all. Whether nervous or not it was hard to define as Gavin ripped across the drums with precise syncopation and meter. The only man to recently dethrone Mike Portnoy, Gavin has certainly made his mark in drumming and shows no sign of slowing down.

Afterwards it was the guru of jazz Bill Stewart to bring about the close of the Modern Drummer Festival. For two decades, Bill has been a widely imaginative go-to drummer for today’s most successful jazz artists. For Stewarts’s second appearance at MD Fest, he brought along his highly regarded Quartet.

For a moment Bill took us to a place unlike our surroundings as his Quartet played and painted a scene out of an elegant old jazz club. The relaxing aroma of jazz filled the atmosphere as Bill explored all of the different sounds of a kit that sounded much bigger than it really was.

Self-taught on drums, Stewart is also a capable pianist, the instrument on which he composes. Bills playing is so captivating that all of the previous artists cut their fan meet-and-greet short just to hear him play. Now that is what I call talent!

At the conclusion Bill Miller and Isabel Spagnardi came out to thank the crowd for attending. It was an emotional moment for all as this day mark five years since the passing of Founder Ron Spagnardi. Isabel and Bill expressed how proud Ron would have been to know that the festival goes on, and that we were a part of what they consider to be the best Modern Drummer Festival in its 19 year history.

Afterwards it was the usual Mass Exodus: people winding down as they called cabs to take them back to their regular lives as others prepared to fly back to theirs. You could see the lucky raffle winners trying to cram their prizes - some of which were complete kits into the vehicle of choice. And as always, the next generation of young drummers inspired for more as they can’t wait to come back again next year to once again take part in the greatest drumming festival in the world.

To see all the pics click here!

https://drummerconnection.com/v/Users/webadmin/MDFest/

Sources: Modern Drummer, Hudson Music, Drummer World