Darren King -- Guitar Center Drum-Off 2012 (Part 1 of 4)

[@PatònCampos]

Darren is one of the most progressive drummers you will ever hear. MUTEMATH has a one of a kind live show. I call Darren the human drum machine b/c his beats and fills are so precise and technical I always feel that there is no way that there is a person playing. The taped headphones are all about performance & doing something different. This is the biggest kit I've ever seen him use. Do yourselves a favor and watch some more of Darren & MUTEMATH. You won't regret it.

[@alexymo89]

This is insane! It's like a timewarp to Hit Parade! Is anyone else just having nostalgia right now??

[@PhilipThrosselMusic]

Last month I had someone sit down next to me on an airplane and start working on music on his laptop... He told me his name was Darren, and he was in a band called mutemath.

[@henne2k]

Must be close to when he left the band. Wonder why he did it. :( Would have loved to be you!!!

[@JurgenPI]

I could listen to this a million times and still love it.

[@Steamfan85]

first time I saw these guys live.. he duct taped his head phones on his head... then they proceeded to put on an amazing show.. Mute Math fan for life!

[@jouxplan]

I just stumbled on this, and I love it. What an incredible, passionate, wonderful drummer. What a groove! I love his choice of accents and his hi hat work is a joy. Sublime. My new drum hero. Wow!

[@Pollutens]

13 hours later still adicted to this shit, I've listened to it over 25 times :D

[@DragonFlopp]

I want to hear a MuteMath album just full of jams.

[@swans184]

Their instrumental heavy tracks (Reset, Armistice, Quarantine) are always my favorites!

[@DragonFlopp]

Connor Swanson Obsolete is my favorite.

[@swans184]

Oh yeah, I forgot about that one! Stare at the Sun too; those are always good live.

[@DragonFlopp]

Connor Swanson You know, maybe I'm just not investing the time, but their self titled record is the only one I really got into. The other albums are good, but there's something about the self titled that just vibes with me.

[@deltabearlines9321]

+Taylor B The S/T is their best, I'd even consider it to be one of the best albums I've ever heard. Perfect pacing, and the overall sound is so unique and amazing. It's a shame that they haven't gone in that direction again.

[@mattvanyguitar]

PROOF that gear NEVER makes the musician. Pure excellence!

[@lcpold1293]

Bobby Sands who stole your work?

[@SkyLukewater]

You need a little of both. A playable instrument with someone who knows how to play it. Youll never get a decent tone out of a hello kitty squier and a bluetooth speaker.

[@TheMarlough]

@@SkyLukewater tell that to Jack White

[@SkyLukewater]

@@TheMarlough yeh but he's going for that rough round the edges sound. Also he's a really good sound engineer

[@ed8gal]

Could not imagine a better sound with just a 4 piece drumset, a hi-hat, and a ride cymbal. Completely stunning. This is clearly shows that there is no need for exagerating or the need of over number toms or cymbal. This guy ricks all the way.

[@YouDontWannaFightMe]

This guy is the best drummer ever. He proves that you can still drum like a boss, even with a stripped down kit like the the one he used on this particular set. MuteMath ftw!

[@robertthompson5568]

I started hearing other drummers talking about how good Darren King was, that's how I found him.

[@fligoudigou]

And now he's leaving the band... I understand and I respect his decision but I'll miss him for sure, he's one of the best drummers I've ever heard

[@hungrydrummerjoey3440]

Who came back here from Hit Parade?? 😃

[@duckduckgoose8049]

I'm still a new mutemath fan, and I stumbled onto this by accident...

[@devinpashby1104]

Yess!!

[@SSPspaz]

I knew I'd heard that jam before when I first heard the new album! I couldn't place it until I heard it again here.

[@matthewookami1537]

I do bro😍

[@MarcospauloMKS]

Yessssss browwwww!!!!

[@fastronaut909]

I can't believe they took this and turned it into Hit Parade years later! Such an amazing performance by the whole band.

[@duboseq1]

One of the best drummer out here. He is a human drum machine. His timing is flawless.

[@aaronhi50]

The fill at 2:07 was amazing. It made me smile.

[@jtgoins34]

I may've rewound and relistened 3-4 times for good measure. Dudes a beast

[@terraLiquidus]

I keep coming back to this series of videos. Would’ve been great to have been there

[@charlesjoneswomelsdorf840]

wow i have a style of drumming close to this i love the way it has a spiritual sound in this piece

[@LukeHolliday]

Didn't know Hit parade was a thing in 2013!!

[@sloanjackson8]

This is EXCELLENT. Would love to hear more of that Darren flare in Hit Parade 😎💘

[@wrongwayup.]

I had never heard of these guys before this.... but holy fucking shit, they're one of the best live bands I've ever heard/seen. Fantastic! Also watched their live rendition of 'Reset' and that blew me away too.

[@ricardovera116]

This guy is a seriously talented drummer. So much taste. I love it!!

[@briandrum1]

I had heard of these guys for a good amount of time. I finally checked them out about 8-9 months ago and now they're my 'go-to' band on my iPhone. Very-very cool stuff!!!

[@angelicacorona1817]

I’m here because you’re going to be drumming at Alejandro Aranda ‘s concert. You’re fabulous. Love ❤️ it.

[@thejeannelson]

I knew Darren for years. He is and always been a fantastic drummer

[@JacobAmes]

What a champ. I love mutemath.

[@PlasticPlanetsBand]

huge fans!

[@AtwellFamilyAdventures]

Hit parade! I knew when I heard there new single, that it sounded familiar.

[@oak9789]

"Ah man....I was number one in the Hit Parade."

[@spud1300]

Love you guys!! Still easily my most favourite group of all time.

[@bswinn97]

Just came here after hearing this beat in their new song!!

[@LouSassles]

FINALLY! He gets the recognition he deserves!

[@Pollutens]

Wow man, so much feeling and criteria with his playing. Awesome song also :D

[@linkdext]

Darren King loves tape and now so do I.

[@jonmarkragsdale]

man those three guys are freakin gold man

[@linkdext]

Pre-album "Hit Parade" in 2012? They were sitting on this for a while.

[@itskennyjohnson]

Yeah they were. I think they considered using it way back on Odd Soul? I could be wrong, but it sounds a lot like that album.

[@siriusrainbow]

It does sound like Odd Soul but a bit of Vitals too

[@Neivlak]

oh my god you couldn't speak further from the truth. Ive been a long time fan of them and let me tell you. If there is one thing Darren SHINES at it is caring deeply for what he plays and contributing exactly what he needs to for the music. YES he LOVES performing. He has talked about how performing on stage gives him ridiculous amounts of energy and as a professional performer he always wants to put on a show.

[@spartanworria]

Nice Job. l played it twice and he did catch the cymble'it Jumped with the force of the hit. its Live music that is the difference between live&Recorded. l loved it!

[@rg7122]

He is heckin incredible

[@simoncaissie8404]

Give the king his crown !!! Fuck that guy can drum.... That's a minimalistic drum set but sounds tight as hell !!!

[@kyleadamsdrums]

Oh this song is from the new album which came out 5 years later than this video. Nice.

[@butterch1cken]

I went to MUTEMATH's concert in Sydney a couple of days ago and they played a new song based on the riff at 0:54. It was so mother-flipping amazing. Can''t wait for their next album!!

[@wcvalvestem]

GuitarCenterTV is really one of th more enjoyable one's to wit I subscribe to...KEEP IT UP!

[@juliewalehwa4602]

Best live show. Ever. Every time.

[@jayxmenendez]

Super clean! awesome!

[@aceengler1125]

Hit Parade

[@Imwesleycardoso]

This song called Hit Parade, release in 2017 :)

[@mattlesner8310]

This guy is the man

[@generalkenobi6869]

Well I had a good life. I wore a hat and I smoked a pipe. Man, I was #1 in the hit parade...

[@Sean-yd4mi]

anyone notice Hit Parade? This song is out now!

[@sinlokemp]

wow! so much emotion!! Just love it (y)

[@Stumbler98]

It's gaffer tape :) And yeah, they're amazing! I'm dying to see them live.

[@volpe_sol]

highly underrated drummer, highly underrated band

[@wsdamico]

There are people that play drums... This man owns them.

[@rayjmartinez]

This is freaking "Hit Parade" off of "Play Dead". Kinda wish it sounded more like this, with more of the drums and guitar. Kinda wish the newest album was a little more like this.

[@josephharvey1762]

It's Hit Parade!!

[@DannyDyson]

Mutemath are such a good band.. so inspirational.. hoping to do some covers of their songs this month (if I can do them justice).

[@stallout]

Hit Parade, y'all!!

[@johnmullan7454]

That was so sick,what a powerhouse,i want him in my band!

[@user-xm5le5ok2r]

Love it!

[@rob8779]

So sad that Darren left the band, the man is a true legend, together they were better than vultron.

[@liamcrittenden]

ITS HIT PARADE

[@Neivlak]

Sorry for the rant. I just love and respect these guys so much and Darren is one of my heros. Don't let this one video of a small mishap tarnish his image for you please. He also usually catches his huge crash rides like a boss. Ok Im done. Carry on and have a wonderful spring break!

[@pkjho]

Hit Parade!

[@ACforever227]

badass. mutemath has some serious craft.

[@lukassuarez1490]

HIT PARADE

[@ibanezman04]

This is what i hope the new album will sound like.. a mix between their debut and odd soul!!

[@Worshipbyruben]

I love u Darren!!!!!

[@med-3000]

Damn! 🔥 complex and heavy...

[@hughuugohug]

everything Mutemath does is amazing! How they do that!?

[@eatingtrees9077]

Super interesting how this is like an early version of Hit Parade. This is like 4 years before Play Dead even came out.

[@simplycheese603]

That rocks too much! awesome ;-)

[@FreeTimeFeats]

i have dreams about jams like this

[@Sidddify]

This guy knows his moves. The King of Tape.

[@taylorheinzen228]

:55 hits so freaking hard I think I just busted my jaw.

[@miguelfranca3620]

What is this ride cymbal??? sounds just pure!

[@bplatz829]

groove grooving grooves groover.

[@runninfortheboder]

he tapes them on to keep them from falling off. He did an interview with MD two years ago. He does it so when he goes nuts he doesn't lose his monitor.

[@danielroik7574]

You know what else,is awesome about this,is he is yousing duck tape to get that Awesome sound and tone which only a true master drummer knows of.

[@Tylerss24]

They weren't competing, just opening for the show.

[@Water_meter_enthusiast]

The dryness of that kit is a wet dream.

[@jacoblancia6927]

I’ve always wanted to ask why he uses the deeper Tom as a rack and the shallower as his floor.

[@Splitter992]

wow!

[@PEOCTAT]

nice sound

[@KentuckyMan30]

I believe that's the point.

[@drummessiah88]

Hit Parade :)

[@kevinflores2145]

I beg to differ. I saw him live last year and the kit itself sounded pretty sweet.

[@BERGAMOTTO.]

🤯

[@ImWithZenon]

I'd love him or someone that knew him, explains why that set up. I think it's really interesting, but have some questions about it.

[@MBblink182]

Where´s the john blackwell performance?, can´t find it....

[@indieHindleyMusic]

Fuckin amazing!!

[@RockBoBsteRMusic]

i thought you werent allowed music in the drum off? i was told we couldnt even use music to play along with.

[@klick2destruct]

I'm waiting for a tuning tutorial of him!

[@nicholasgraber994]

He made sure those headphones would never fall off.

[@butterch1cken]

They played 2 other new songs but i can't really remember them that much since it was so long ago. One of the songs was based on the riff/drum beat part at 1:57 in the second one of these drum off videos where it's loud/powerful then drops back. That song was also really good but not as good as this one. The third song they played wasn't that great in my opinion but they were all a work in progress when i heard them. Sorry for the late comment. Didn't realise someone responded to my post haha.

[@DavidAMarin]

Does anybody know what drumkit Darren plays? Or what's his actual set-up?

[@theboldshadow]

I can't believe he even taped his headphones to his head

[@andythibees]

Does anyone know how to get your toms sounding that good? I tried taking the bottom skin off and dampening the top skin but it sounds awful, yet his sounds brilliant. Also that snare as well, how?! Obviously the mics will make a big difference but still, if i could even get close to this.

[@cdoconn]

Andrew Turnbull try to message Darren on twitter. He may respond!

[@thadgan]

Andrew Turnbull Tune the drum properly. Use some tape to take away some rings or some part of the sound you dont want. You can use paddings in the barrel to make it sound not too bright or to muffle it up. And of course the mics and eq and some compression. But make sure the tuning is even throughout the pegs. Try using different tapes. You can also try taping the skin to the rim to play around with the tone you want.

[@Jackofhearts214]

+Thaddeus Gan What would you think would work for paddings inside the drums?

[@thadgan]

Jack Lloyd Floor toms? Kick? Or snare. You shouldn't put anything in the snare thou but it's totally up to experimentation. Just like jojo mayer, he experiments with sounds and textures of sound. So don't be afraid of putting splashes on top of the skins, putting a fabric tape on the striking area. to mute the initial tap sound. Putting a stuffed toy or multiple stuffed toys inside of kicks Go ahead. As long as you get the results you desire. For padding inside drums, You'ld need to decide beforehand what you want characteristics you want to enhance or deaden. For example if I know the fundamental frequency of the tom is lets say 700Hz, and I want a more sharp pronounced ring to it, so you can add a resonator at 1/4 lamdar of 700hz (1 wavelength of 700hz is 0.48m ish) so try to affix some sort of plate resonator at 12cm from the drum skin. For deadening, loose think blankets do well but might muffle the sound abit and might make the sound abit too muddy.

[@JulezNDrumz]

He's playing a Ludwig Supra but his drums are just all mic, at least in this clip. As long as you keep the bottom heads on the drum and tighten them real high you can just tape them up and still have a good sound and not a totally dead shitty sound he has going on here. har.

[@klick2destruct]

exactly :D