Josh Freese drumming "1,000,000" and "Letting You" live with NIN

Here's the 4th and last of the drum perspective songs I shot with FLIP cams in December of 2008 with NIN. I forgot that I had this one and never posted it. This was the opening of the "Lights In The Sky Tour" for pretty much all of '08. It goes into "Letting You" which I know I already previously posted but I let it run right into it on the video anyway. Nothing fancy but some good old fashioned "beating the hell out of the drums." 1,000,000 is one of my favorite NIN songs (nice and angry) and was exciting to open the show with every night.

[@matthewfuture]

Holy shit, the speed of Josh on "Letting You" is amazing, he beat out the frame rate of the camera!

[@williamrodriguez296]

He is ripping. Tip my hat, that is a lot of wasted movement and energy, but man is he wailing away with precision. The opposite example. I went to see Bill Bruford play with Earthworks many years ago. The show starts with the lights off. We are all standing there in the dark and all we could hear was a low hiss. We thought they were testing the sound, or we were hearing feedback. It got louder and louder, and the lights turned on. Bill Bruford slipped in without us seeing him enter and was sitting at the drums hitting the high hat about 10 feet in front of us. He was so fast we could not see the sticks right in front of us, just his arms down to his wrist and a blur creating a hiss. Sitting nearly perfectly still playing probably about 2000 BPM like a cold mother f'er. The first song ended, and the entire room was filled with drummers specifically coming to see him just silent in awe for about 10 seconds before they clapped and cheered. Bruford looked nervous like he was playing the wrong gig or something then laughed when the pause ended, and the drummers went nuts cheering. Nearly everyone was commenting after the gig on how they had no idea he was capable of that kind of speed on top of so many time changes, and that they sure as hell were not.

[@rationalmuscle]

Josh Freese: making high hats and snares his BITCH since near-birth. Fuck me... he's hitting that snare as if he's settling an old score.

[@reasonhb]

+rationalmuscle this song is so angry it cost me 4 snares and a bass already ahahahahah.

[@HubbaBubba768]

I'm guessing Trent asked "Whose the best drummer on the planet?" and someone replied "Josh Freese"........"Get him"

[@codyparker6118]

Vandel

[@Redhotlugnut]

I've probably watched this video over 100 times. It's absolutely brilliant. For any drummers just starting out, this is how it's done.

[@markbennett2327]

drummers just starting out yeah? good luck

[@jamisbillson4872]

Mark Bennett I can play pretty much every NIN track...TR is pure super human. I cannot get near Letting You. I can play the hi hat parts it in spurts...but I need some crak to get it close I reckon. Super difficult.

[@jacoblomas3251]

Wow!! So much finesse and aggression. Josh Freese is an anomaly.

[@codyparker6118]

Redhotlugnut punk rock brother

[@VinylGrafX]

Drummers just starting out? Are u nuts? this is as advanced as it gets as far as industrial style drumming goes dumdum!! Lol

[@jasperjenkins7729]

Not only can Josh play with Anyone, i LOVE that he adjusts his kit & Cymbals to the Band/Gig that he's in. Insanely Versatile.

[@jessesmith5198]

Beast mode. I always love when drummers originally from punk bands are so tight. Josh with the Vandals and Suicidal Tendencies, Bill Stevenson from the Descendents and Black Flag. Freaking guys are not just punks, they can PLAY.

[@jamisbillson4872]

B Lidge you do realise that priests are usually nonces don’t you?

[@iain2080]

Jamis Ins the joke is that a nun has never been fucked. As we call them in Ireland, Mickey Dodgers

[@Charlie1821]

How are your arms not bigger? just watching letting you made me tired.

[@JohnnyChimpo84]

Oh no, that poor drum kit. It's being annihilated.

[@NvikIngsN]

This has become one of my favorite videos ever and I'm not a drummer.

[@sfincione2000]

my god, flawless... the guy's a machine!

[@sparknado]

Holy crap this looks exhausting

[@bluered1322]

Man I remember him starting the show with this song at the forum in LA maybe 13 ish years ago. The image of the lights coming on and sound of the drums will be forever burned in my memory.

[@ArtMiles1971]

"Letting You" - Like a boss.

[@danielezucca4993]

min. 2.16 Josh Freese become a war machine

[@downwardguy]

the best job in the world

[@ztiberiusd]

What gets me about these performances is the music is so heavy, it's exciting and the way Josh is playing is impassioned. Yet he doesn't speed up at ALL. His tempo is still absolutely perfect no matter the section of the song or how hard he's drumming or how great it sounds. Now that is impressive.

[@remylefevour]

Agreed. His pocket discipline has always been so impressive to me. Vastly different genres, but he reminds me a lot of the late, great Jeff Porcaro.

[@jojomojo3847]

@@remylefevour Same happened for me with Brooks Wackerman.

[@remylefevour]

@@jojomojo3847 absolutely. Both of them are in high demand for a reason; they’re patient artists that make every outfit better just sitting back there.

[@normaleehi]

he makes sure every note counts

[@moderskeppets]

And....clicktrack?

[@WretchedTora]

You are the MOST entertaining drummer to watch at a show. I swear, I spent almost half of every NIN show I went to watching you go nuts.

[@CubanViking79]

there are a handful of drummers out there thats timing is flawless. and Josh your one of them. keep kickin ass.

[@ScienceofShadows]

fuckin bad ass tight as fuck drummer

[@ScienceofShadows]

he is so badass also did great drumming with APC as well

[@mickbrown815]

🤘🏽🤘🏽🤘🏽 i’ll be practicing these moves. That’s a cool fucking drum pattern. Get away🤘🏽

[@kindnugz420]

hardest workin man in rock and roll lol

[@stevemccart9109]

Just in case you read these Josh...its The punk rock plumber. Haven't seen you and yours in some time (motor cycle misshap) hope all is well. Been out of touch with everyone and don't do face book ,so.

[@AlchemistTongueDrums]

He's seriously gonna bust that fucking snare. Fucking hell man he's defending his family against that snare shit

[@kbrown649]

Jesus fucking Christ.

[@michaelstem8703]

i cant see APC without you on the skins man. just not even close to the same band without you.

[@deeznuts-ef4gn]

i'm realizing more and more that his drumming is the real reason i liked the mer de noms album

[@Turk_2023]

God they`re not even the same band anymore.... Fuck the elephant or whatever was awful.

[@kirankhan5525]

Facts

[@jameswallace5235]

@@Turk_2023 Eat the Elephant was fantastic, just not heavy or anything like Mer der Noms or Thirteenth Step, which is why people like you moan about it.

[@thxo776]

Hey Josh. What happened to the NIN backstage video where you and Aaron were about to crash before Trent broke it up. The audio was cool.

[@drewm1808]

Madman! 5:10 wow

[@modestbrent]

Still one of my favorite drummers to watch. Keep it up freese

[@xXxVivianaxXx3]

I was mesmerized watching him

[@gracjanrotke]

Human drum machine! Incredible!

[@desilusor]

Fucking hell.

[@gregrohsful]

The monster

[@matthewjames206]

One of my all-time favorite drummers is now the drummer for one of my all-time favorite drummers. Congratulations! You've trained your whole life for this. I revisit this video often. The people need to know what we've known all along 🤘🤘🍻

[@StickyInADarkBlueCut]

I feel a million miles away I don't feel anything at all

[@Holly_Michelle]

Fucking machine

[@buickmonte]

Saw Josh jam with DEVO,his kit was positioned on the left side of stage facing the other band members,i was front stage by his kit.....holy shit!!!!!

[@iridiumvalkyrie9017]

SO MUCH BETTR THAN ILAN RUBIN

[@aenima3174]

Great drumming and a beautiful ending fill to that song Josh Fu#$#%ing Freese!!!!

[@andarchy1386]

Josh Freese seen him 3 times with nails and twice with apc and every performance was flawless man is a legend!!!

[@keeptheboxes2797]

The man plays a 3 min song perfectly then proceeds to play an even harder song for 4 minutes with no fucking break! ABSOLUTE GOD!

[@alexmatthews]

How do you not get distracted with all of that craziness going on, lights and tons of samples going off? Josh is amazing, he makes it look easy the whole time.

[@drewliedtke2377]

Goddamn Donkey Kong over here, Jesus!

[@NoEasyFeet]

those cymbals are taking a beating. love this guy

[@TheQRNews]

I just had a drumgasm!

[@BongLeach]

this track is all aboutDRUMS! NOT HUM DRUM EITHER!

[@NytronX]

Wrong, powerful drummers like Freese and Grohl are savages, they hit hard. Hard hitting drum style is necessary for some songs.

[@oidesmannirena3691]

One of the best drummers largest freese

[@jeffreygodspeed]

Glad you finally cut your sleeves. Always trying to pull them up in DEVO! LOL

[@ndanieltx]

He's off the chain awesome...

[@MrHelsy]

Damn you've got so much stamina ! My arms are dying when I'm trying to cover Letting You !

[@alvarop1984]

What a perfect drummer for NIN!!

[@kezz55]

holy shit!!!!!!!!!!!!How does he keep that up for 2 hours! that is fucking amazing i would like to know how many BPM he's doing, Josh Freese you fucking rock! i don't think TR could have made a better choice when he picked you:):)

[@starboy2013]

Like seriously how fit is this guy?...puts in....

[@mikestein1024]

Check out some of my low budget covers back in the day I opened for STP and a bunch of others

[@gabrielezecchetto2401]

I absolutely love the video rehearsal of the slips and with teeh.they’re very good to improve drumming.do u have more videos from your tour with nin?

[@Ferklaus]

Great!! do you have some from the Suicidal Tendencies era????

[@luisote2005]

JOSH FREESE for president.

[@lazyjain]

I bet Illan feels like he got to step into gods shoes

[@henryantrim88]

Amazing doesn't cover it. Wow!

[@ИльяМарценюк-щ3ч]

it's just incredible. I can't say anything more

[@Jimbengoz]

This video really made me understand the huge difference between 360p and 480p resolution!

[@NaptownClassic]

Josh Freese cannot fucking be human. Letting You is a song that I don't hate but just don't listen to as often as other NiN songs. But.. seeing him play here.. fuck man. I could watch this all day.

[@jamisbillson4872]

Fred Davis exactly that mate. Worst NIN song (or up there) but “Letting you”...seriously tough to play. Saying this as a drummer.

[@gonzaveja]

sexys moves Joshie Josh!

[@marriedinmichigan]

Josh Freeze = GOAT!

[@Rinnyprettyblood191]

teach me the correct way to play drums

[@smam2104]

Hes a very entertaining drummer to watch

[@StickyInADarkBlueCut]

Love playing the 16th note part on my hi hat in "letting you" Fun beat to play around with

[@RealMNeutral31]

This is why Josh is one of my favorite drummers. He is straight nastier than mounds of doo-doo on those drums.

[@LeondP]

The last video?! pity. I'd love to see the drumming performance to "The Big Come Down" and a couple of other songs...

[@KajiRider1997]

He must have been so proud to be the drummer of NIN! Great videos thank you.

[@humanrich]

Josh's accuracy with how animated he is always astounded me.

[@collaborator541]

I just watched Whiplash and this Letting you performance is on the same level as the ending performance. So fast!

[@collaborator541]

Here I am 5 years later still in awe!

[@vinirissuto]

Josh is a Monster

[@rg6093]

doesn't push the track or Trent. Hired.

[@真一-t5u]

I wanna be the drum kit Josh plays

[@christaylor6220]

Klopp....Josh and his Brother are the Best

[@erased84]

He’s beating that kit like it owes him money.

[@RealMNeutral31]

Man you are one of my favorite drummers...You are awesome.

[@Unleashed2k]

FEED THIS MAN SOME PFCHANGS!

[@juggernaughtish]

Holy shit! Your timing is perfect on that second song

[@NytronX]

He's at least as good as Grohl. Perfect drumming style for NIN.

[@stevemccart9109]

Way better

[@stevemccart9109]

Way better than Grohl

[@deal5245]

Grohl himself would never say he's as good as Freese i think That being said i love Grohl a ton too

[@bmour1979]

THE session drummer!!! U rule!

[@crossraiyne]

i didnt want that to end :(

[@Slunqmusic]

Also from Bob Leith and more fun, search youtube: Cardiacs - As Cold As Can Be In An English Sea Direct links not allowed any more. Flip cameras are good then :) Thanks for sharing, Josh.

[@bonesnv]

It’s like he’s dancing with his drumkit in the second song, very underrated among the “popular crowd”, those with common sense can see and hear his timing and basically a perfectionist piece of drumming, even with his odd time with Devo; he can play it all equally to a level I only hope to ever achieve.

[@jarrahdrum]

A fantastic musician indeed. Of many genres

[@kevinkibbe2679]

Who's here in 2024?

[@DysmerGomez]

Yo vi esta gira en Caracas, el mejor concierto que ha habido en toooda la historia de Venezuela. Gracias Maestro Josh Freese por tanto

[@andersdo2925]

I was almost asleep and came upon Josh Freese beating the shit out of everything in front of him! Love these videos!

[@matthewholsclaw8178]

Get in! The best of the best.

[@serantes1375]

the HH of Letting You.....omfg, he`s a machine gun and a clock.....all in one.

[@pmarquis]

Love these songs, love this drumming, love that this viewpoint was made available for us to see!

[@TrajanGregory]

Amazing, Josh ... I've been watching the 2008 rehearsal clips of these songs for a couple of years, but just finding these .... I remember seeing you at the Coach House when you just started with Devo in the mid 90's .... Fucking killing it for 20 years now ... Great work .... Hey ... Did you know Steve 'Spanky' Barrios from the Cadillac Tramps ? ... He was a good friend of mine ... Keep it coming, Josh

[@Slunqmusic]

search this on youtube: gibber and twitch Cardiacs For some fun with drummer Bob Leith.

[@FrizzEVdrums]

Fucking sick dude, my hero! You should do this for some APC videos, would've loved to see you play to Orestes.

[@Californyuhh]

I always pictured the drum verse on "Letting You" to be visually aggressive, but Josh looks like he's drumming in his sleep... but the chorus clearly shows otherwise. LOL awesome video. I wish I could relive this performance again and again.

[@Bangheadda]

Respect to Josh! You rule!

[@paqman78]

@fallingskyz - Agreed. You know someone's good at their art/trade/job when they make it look so easy and simple.

[@charliewilson3234]

One of my Fav Drummers!

[@austinbennett]

Badass