As seen in our latest issue, here are the full interviews with eight of the most radical drummers in Australia (we could find, don’t be offended if you think you should be on this list, just email us, we’d love that). Interviews compiled by Rachel Thorne. More to come.
Carolyn Hawkins
Name: Carolyn Hawkins
Hometown: Melbourne, Australia
Where do you live now: Melbourne
Age: 20
Bands: Chook Race, other bands at school and jamming with friends.
What is the best/worst/funniest reaction you’ve had when you told someone you were a
drummer?
I think most people are a little shocked. I’m a fairly quiet and calm person, and so I guess
they can’t imagine me beating the shit out of something.
<a href=”http://chookrace.bandcamp.com/track/thinking-about-you” _mce_href=”http://chookrace.bandcamp.com/track/thinking-about-you”>Thinking about you by Chook Race</a>
Monika Fikerle
Full Name: Monika Fikerle
Nickname: I don’t have one! People call me Monika, or Mon.
Age: 36
Hometown: Hobart, Tasmania.
Current Location: Melbourne, Australia.
Current bands: Love of Diagrams (we just celebrated our 10 year anniversary), plus I’ve recently started drumming with John Tucker (ex Spider vomit) and Mai and Lei Gryffydd who play in an excellent Melbourne band called Hissey Miyake.
Past bands: Baseball and Sea Scouts (my first band, hailing from Hobart, Tasmania).
Have you ever used drum tabs/tablature?
I have never used drum tabs or tablature no, but I’ve always secretly wanted to! I am a self taught drummer (no lessons at all) but I learnt to read music in primary school when I started on piano, and although I’m a believer in being original and coming up with my own beats always, I have coveted the idea of geeking out over drum books, there’s so many different drumming styles out there like Latin percussion and jazz that I think I could learn things from, plus it would be fun to spend time playing to crazy tablatures when I am feeling geeky.
Mitch Marks
Full Name: Mitch Marks
Nickname: I guess Mitch is a nickname but I’ve been called it all my life
Age: 36
Hometown: lived in small towns in NZ all my childhood and moved every two or three years (parents ran pubs) then moved between Wellington and Auckland from age 17 onwards…
Current Location: Melbourne
Past bands: The Shallows (Auckland) and The Wrongdoings (Wellington)
Heard Any Good Jokes About Drummers?
When I was buying my tom from the Drum Palace guy he told me very seriously that he’d tell me the ‘trick’ to playing drums and singing at the same time…. “ok, so you think about what you’re going to say, and then… you say it. And keep doing that.” Only it took him about half an hour to tell me this. I was all, so… I should practice?
Katie Harrigan
Full name: Katie Harrigan
Nickname: Quen
Age: 24
Hometown: Coldstream, VIC
Current Location: Brunswick, VIC
Current bands: Deep Heat
Past bands: Gray Like Mondays
What is the one piece of gear that you can’t live without?
I can’t live without my 21″ Zildjian A Sweet Ride!
Ally Spazzy
Name: Ally Spazzy AKA Ally Oop
Hometown: Melbourne
Where do you live now: Box Hell
Born: Friday the 13th, January 1984
Bands: Ally Oop & The Hoopsters, Divorced, The Spazzys
What is the best/worst/funniest reaction you’ve had when you told someone you were a drummer?
You know that joke about the drummer that locked himself inside the car? Well that actually happened to the drummer from the Hard-Ons. He went to get something from the car just before they were going to play and he got locked inside. It was some new age space car without the little peg things on the door. I laughed about that for ages.
<a href=”http://allyoopandthehoopsters.bandcamp.com/track/ally-oop-whats-my-name” _mce_href=”http://allyoopandthehoopsters.bandcamp.com/track/ally-oop-whats-my-name”>(Ally Oop) whats my name? by Ally Oop and the Hoopsters</a>
Nisa Venerosa
Name: Nisa Venerosa
Current Location: Melbourne, Australia
Current Band: The Fabulous Diamonds
Have you ever used drum tabs/tablature?
I am self-taught and wouldn’t know the first thing about reading music. I wish I could, I
wish my parents had made me learn an instrument as a child, but unfortunately they didn’t.
I lost out on being techniically a good musician and a soccer player.
Download “Track 4” from Fabulous Diamonds II
Monique Wekrhoven
Name: Monique Werkhoven
Nickname: Mon
Hometown: NSW, Australia
Where I live now: Auckland, NZ for now
Current bands: Hissyfit, Baby Gutsy
Past Bands: Graffiti Girls
How big is your kit?
I like a stripped down kit – floor tom, snare, high hat and kick.