It's a conversation starter, on a forum. It's not a personal attack, and it's not an obsession, it's a rudimentary thesis statement.
Enjoy the commentary, participate if you have thoughts to share, or ignore it, and move on.
Consider that maybe people can begin more stimulating conversation than “is [obviously skilled musician in a sea of skilled musicians] the best?” Seeing as how there’s probably no less than 1,000 YouTube videos and shorts that have already posed this very question lmao.
If you play music and get to the point where you are familiar with a local metal scene it’s absolutely insane how much talent this genre attracts. I’ve seen so many good drummers over the years with vastly different styles it’s really hard to rank them
Nah Hoglan hits harder than them. He uses marching sticks too.
Morgan Rise from Sevendust also hits crazy hard. But he's the thing, there's an amateur drummer who hits harder than any of these guys.
That's because hitting the drum as hard as you can is bad technique and all the pros know this.
Is hitting harder main thing in drums?most of metal drummers (at least what i listen to) use triggers soo.how is the drummer best if he just hits harder than others
A lot of guys can play fast.
Not a lot of guys can play fast without sacrificing power , projection , velocity. A lot of guys use triggers to compensate for that.
Eloy is absolutely not one of those guys. This dude is fucking slamming and playing very quick and very clean. He may use triggers as part of a mix. But he's not relying on them. He's extremely impressive.
(There is no best , that's just silly)
Hellhammer and not because he hits hard but because he is the most interesting drummer I've ever listened to especially the elements of jazz he infuses. Watch the shit he starts doing right before the 1 minute mark onwards. [https://youtu.be/rY9ZiL8sy-4?si=msEZDUCVImY2nkVc](https://youtu.be/rY9ZiL8sy-4?si=msEZDUCVImY2nkVc)
In my opinion that would be Tomas Haake of Meshuggah, but there are so many amazing metal drummers that it's impossible to choose. You got Duplantier, Gene Hoglan, George Kollias, Zbigniew Robert Promiński, the list goes on.
He ffing brilliant but I prefer the term great. It seems pointless trying to put some "best" ranking on an artist.
This dude slaps harder than Will Smith though.
Best? No. He ranks up there though.
- Mario Duplantier, Gojira (in my opinion one of the absolute best drummers out there today)
- Tomas Haake, Meshuggah
- Chris Adler, Lamb of God
- Danny Carey, Tool (arguably not metal, bit still the GOAT)
Aric Improta is absolutely unbelievable. The insane skill he has plus the showmanship, there isn't a lot of people that would be able to do even one of the two at half the level. Severely underrated ill admit I only found out about him through Drumeo
Brann, yeah, he is an amazing drummer, plus he sings. As a singing drummer, he's a major inspiration! Also, that whole band are just hilarious in general.
It is pretty fun how great they are and how little they take themselves seriously. They care a lot about their music but I mean they have Brent in the band for crying out loud. He literally is a clown….. and shreds the guitar like it’s his bitch.
i agree. I've got 2 of Branns drumsticks and he's autographed one 3 different times and Billy Kelliher once. I made him add the years each time. so 07, 09, 11. I've seen them 11 times. i went to see them and brought the previous stick with me i was against the rail and showed him the stick and he tossed another one that got smacked down and lost between the railing and stage and just tossed another one that i grabbed the 2nd time.
How is this even a discussion? Matt is leaps and bounds better than Matt. Frankly, I flat out question the intelligence, and taste, of anyone that believes otherwise.
That’s a solid list - I’d add guys like Matt Garstka from Animals as Leaders, Jamie Saint Merat from Ulcerate, Brann Dailor from Mastodon, and Navene Koperweis from… well, everything.
I’m just a big fan of his drumming/work and his podcast lol. I wouldn’t have really been put on to all of the others without Craig’s podcast. I think his drumming is creative, solid, and very in the pocket which catches my attention. Out of all those, personally I think Chris Turner is my favorite right now though. His foot work is incredible
His drumming on his live streams is so cool. Watching him try parts over and over til he nails it. Its fun to watch as a new drummer. He is definitely a solid ass drummer.
WAY too far down, but I'm glad he's here. He is forever my GOAT just because his music speaks to my soul more than the rest. Entirely subjective though, and I don't see any value in a 'objective' GOAT. Music means too many different things to too many different people, and that's okay!
Glad you mentioned him. He’s an absolute monster. I see some dudes mentioned here and just think, “Yep, Blake Richardson would drum circles all around that dude. Yep he would smoke that dude, yep, him too.”
I’ve seen some nutso drummers (and many mentioned in this thread) , and he’s right there pretty much number one technically.
Also, not for nothing, but Justin Brown who plays with Thundercat is the other best drummer I’ve seen. He completely turned my brain inside out.
But all this stuff is subjective anyway.
Blake does it all seemingly so easily too. He’s a machine. Makes the drums SOUND good too, his stroke is very toneful.
I’ll add Julia Geaman to the pile too; she’s a monster metal drummer whose kit sounds mixed, live in the room. Currently playing with Nott and Tribunal.
https://metalinjection.net/news/danny-carey-says-tool-isnt-a-metal-band. According to this article, even Tool members don’t consider themselves as a metal band.
I feel like a lot of musicians find it difficult to generally categorize their own music though given all of the different influences they have and the background of each musician. When you’re creating something that to you is unique, it’s difficult to just throw it into a broad generalized category. For instance one of my bands most people would just consider a punk band but we incorporate elements of punk, indie, pop, post-hardcore, even some jazz so we don’t like to just call ourselves a punk band.
You could call them alt/prog metal, but the emphasis is on the alt/prog and not metal. They're just not a very heavy band. That's not a criticism. I'm a huge fan, but when I feel like listening to metal, Tool isn't a band that comes to mind.
'Arguably' not metal. I love Tool, went to a concert of theirs a few days (Tons of Rock in Oslo) ago and it was out of this world. Mind-blowingly awesome. Top three concert easily.
Personally i consider them (prog) metal, but I'd understand if some would categorize them as pure prog, or even refuse to categorize them because their repertoire and style is so broad.
Chris Adler has got to be one of my favourites of all time, his ability to use the double bass and splashes to highlight others while sitting in the pocket is incredible. And those ride grooves he just pulls out casually aren't even fair
There are countless progressive metal drummers who are playing on a completely different level to Eloy. He’s great drummer but declaring him ‘the best’ is a disservice to all of these guys who work extremely hard:
Baard Kolstad (Leprous), Jay Postones (Tesseract), Ray Hearne (Haken), Marco Minneman (Aristocrats, Necrophagist), Aric Improta (Night Verses), Paul Seidel (The Ocean), Steve Judd (Karnivool), Blake Richardson (BTBAM), Martin Lopez (Soen, formerly Opeth).
And obligatory Mike Portnoy and Gavin Harrison.
Duplantier's work on [born in winter](https://youtu.be/suG-c_i2fBQ?si=9ChejM4ZaM4GPf1T) is absolute sex magic. So insanely creative and talented. Glad to see him on there. The rest of the crew checks out, too.
Great list
Edit: Art of Dying and Amazonia should have been included in my comment as well.
I can't think of a drummer in metal who plays as hard and as fast as him right now. He plays with so much groove while slamming the drums at a fast pace, he's really elevated Slipknot's performance to a new level. The dude just slays.
I didn't want to name specific drummers because it gets super subjective but if I was to name my two personal favourites, it would be John Longstreth and Yanic Bercier
Usually the response when I mention Yanic is "who?" haha
Dude goes against everything I've been told makes for "the right way to set up drums to play fast" (sits super low, has cymbals insanely high)... but it just works so well for him
Lucky you for getting to see them when you could (assuming you saw them live back then). I do slightly regret not taking the chance when I could see them all on the same stage, but that's hindsight for you I guess. No-ones better than the original Joey, but it seems like they've had deserving substitutes since his sad passing. New guy Eloy seems like he's got the intensity nailed at least.
Yeah I'm not gonna comment about Eloy because I stopped listening to Slipknot after All Hope is Gone +Paul Gray demise + Joey got kicked out of the band.
Nothing personal. I just stopped listening and focused on other genres.
But Slipknot was my favourite band when I was younger, and my passion for percussion was because of their unique sound that combine 3 drummers in one band!
I will give Eloy a try in a future!
Saying any musician is the "best" is stupid af. It's all performance art and it's all subjective. There is not way to measure the "best". It's not a sport with a clear winner and points leader.
I don’t like making “best” lists but Matt is highly respected in multiple spaces, not just metal. He has mastery over the instrument in all aspects including speed, dynamics, feel, and touch, which I find is lacking in most metal drummers. So, if I were to make a “best” list, he’d certainly be on it.
Fun story. I saw them on their Joy of Motion tour back in 2014. Not too many people knew who they were at the time and After the Burial was opening for them. The majority of the people were there for ATB. After they performed a 3rd of the crowd left. AAL opens up with Ka$cade. I look around and half the crowd is just standing there motionless with this bewildered look on their faces, in awe of what they were witnessing. It was fucking surreal haha. By the end of it, everyone was fully into it, but I have yet to go to another show where a band's technical ability shocked a crowd. Garstka also broke 2 chinas during their hour set 😂. Have seen them 4 times since then.
Slipknot fans have always believed their drummers to be the best in the world and it's reflected in yearly polls, nothing wrong with loving their drummer. Jay has won a lot of awards and you might see Eloy win something this year if they release some music. The most popular drummer in metal would be more accurate
He’s one of the best at what he specifically does yeah. You can’t really say someone is the objective best drummer because everyone is different. For example Eloy would not be a good fit playing for animals as leaders and Matt Garstka would probably not be as good a fit for slipknot than eloy
Here's Eloy playing something more prog-rock with his side project, let me know what you think: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrVND8guVw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrVND8guVw)
Shorter solo: [https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2nZItovWCW/](https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2nZItovWCW/)
He is absolutely up there and there is no question about it, he is one of a few metal drummers that actually grooves, most of even top names don’t come close in my not humble opinion
I#d say he is one of the best, but there is just no way to determine who really is the best. My vote would probably be for Larnell Lewis but that's also highly debateable.
Also a drummer doesn't show everything he can do in every performance, because it's often not required.
The Eloy circljerk is getting really old. One of the biggest metal bands in the world got a new drummer, that drummer is solid, but far from *the best.* Y’all are just suffering from confirmation bias. Listen to more metal, holy shit.
Fuck no, he’s not the best. Not even close. Alan Cassidy and George Kollias would mop the floor with this guy, among others. But they’re all different, so hardly worth comparing.
"Best" threads on musical subjects are the "worst" threads imo
He's really great, i can see him being many peoples favorite drummer, but the metal scene is so stacked of monster players that it's impossible to claim someone is the "best"
Depends on your definition of "The best". If you mean technically, then no. There are so many metal drummers that are way more technical than Eloy. If you mean hits hard and is consistent then yes Eloy is amazing but even then not the greatest ever to everyone.
It all depends.
Now don't get me wrong, I think Eloy is a goddamn beast and few can do what he does as well as he does! But claiming anyone is the greatest drummer ever is an argument no one will ever win.
He is a great drummer. But being in a popular band he can attract more marketing than when he was in Sepultura. (I say this being a Brazilian metal fan)
I don't know if there is a "best" metal drummer. Off the top of my head, Eloy is great, Eugene Ryabchenko or Francesco Paoli (just an insane artist period) from Fleshgod Apocalypse are both incredible, Lord Marco is up there...
If anyone ever asks me who I think the "best drummer" is, my answer is always Thomas Lang because I think the guy can play anything imaginable in any genre at any tempo... Then do it starting off the left foot/hand. Lol
“Best” is subjective, probably some random some random 17 year old in some small town somewhere. He could definitely show up to the competition though.
He's a great drummer, but he's not "the best". Many people will certainly now think he is because he's in a popular mainstream band and it will expose him to lots of people who only listen to commercially available music, it's the Travis Barker effect.
There are few drummers out there that can play to his level of fluidity, complexity, all while pushing the most ABSURD power and stamina I’ve ever seen. He has background in Latin rhythms and he [first competed](https://youtu.be/PkmUSjkTJCg?si=FG5CEig0nJZm2wVR) in the Modern Drummer showcase when he was 14.
IMO pound for pound he no questions asked is a contender.
Bran is the best metal drummer in the world imo. His drumming is what drew me to Mastodon and made them my favorite metal band of all time.
Lamb and Gojiras drummers are my next picks.
Slightly unrelated,but I'd love to see estepario get into a legit known metal band to see what he is capable of outside of his youtube videos. He has some crazy talent with time signatures and is brutally fast. It would be fun to see him beagle to create with some other highly talented musicians.
Any time I think of best metal drummer I always end up coming back to Chris Turner. Every limb has a mind if it's own its fucking wild. He's like Doc Oc
Nobody has heard the best drummer in the world, that I guarantee. Even if such a person exists, you can't really measure ability in a metric sense.
Eloy can obviously play super fast and intense, but as a result may struggle to play slow and subdued. Having been a drummer for 20 years, I can confidently say that every experienced musician can do some "wow" things, and then every single one who is self aware will tell you they aren't even close to mastering their craft.
He’s amazing! But nobody’s really ‘the best’. I think as a drummer you just wanna be fans’ favorite. And let’s be honest, the ‘best metal drummer in the world’ probably works in the produce department at HyVee
Eloy is downright incredible, it’s just that many have only heard about or seen him through slipknot. There’s footage of him at like fourteen playing Brazilian polyrhythms/ ostinado pieces. The limb independence is staggering, the guy is truly gifted, especially outside of metal. This stuff is cake for him.
Impossible to say that anyone is the best. But, I don’t think there’s anyone who does what he does as well as he does it. There is so much LIFE in his playing, which is refreshing to hear in such heavy music.
Probably not.
No disrespect. He’s talented. But the best in the world… no.
I hate the obsession reddit has with things needing to be "the best."
It's a conversation starter, on a forum. It's not a personal attack, and it's not an obsession, it's a rudimentary thesis statement. Enjoy the commentary, participate if you have thoughts to share, or ignore it, and move on.
He did share his thoughts. I get what you’re saying but the irony
Consider that maybe people can begin more stimulating conversation than “is [obviously skilled musician in a sea of skilled musicians] the best?” Seeing as how there’s probably no less than 1,000 YouTube videos and shorts that have already posed this very question lmao.
Life for a musician is hard, but for drummers it's nearly impossible
I like and appreciate your mind. 🖤
If you play music and get to the point where you are familiar with a local metal scene it’s absolutely insane how much talent this genre attracts. I’ve seen so many good drummers over the years with vastly different styles it’s really hard to rank them
To be fair when you’re a 13-20 year old boy this is about normal for how you approach a subject. Ha
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There probably is though.
Fair enough lol I lost my crystal ball long ago
Sorry to hear about your balls.
Just had my first kid on Wednesday. Balls are in top form.
Congrats on the baby...just had my first vasectomy yesterday because I have 4 kids. Balls are now sterile.
How many vasectomies you plan on getting?
Hopefully just this one. But hey, you never know...
Aaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy!!! Congratulations, my dude!!!
Thanks man 🙏
I'm gonna need a picture to validate that. To be clear I mean your balls not your kid. Congratulations though.
Check DMs
Can confirm, top form. Points for size, symmetry, shape and texture.
Him and Duplantier sit in a category of their own.
Nah Hoglan hits harder than them. He uses marching sticks too. Morgan Rise from Sevendust also hits crazy hard. But he's the thing, there's an amateur drummer who hits harder than any of these guys. That's because hitting the drum as hard as you can is bad technique and all the pros know this.
Hitting hard is not a technique. HOW you achieve hard hits is about technique. These guys understand it.
With that fucking mask on as well. Must be hard as shit.
The average drummer on this sub given a couple of posts...
*Zach Hill*
Is hitting harder main thing in drums?most of metal drummers (at least what i listen to) use triggers soo.how is the drummer best if he just hits harder than others
A lot of guys can play fast. Not a lot of guys can play fast without sacrificing power , projection , velocity. A lot of guys use triggers to compensate for that. Eloy is absolutely not one of those guys. This dude is fucking slamming and playing very quick and very clean. He may use triggers as part of a mix. But he's not relying on them. He's extremely impressive. (There is no best , that's just silly)
I mean I never said he was better because he hits harder. Just acknowledging how hard he hits while still being technical.
Mike Smith
There definitely are, and that's not always a good thing
Obviously not, because Lars Ulrich is the best /j
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Not saying you’re wrong, but just out of curiosity who do you think is the best contemporary metal drummer?
Hellhammer and not because he hits hard but because he is the most interesting drummer I've ever listened to especially the elements of jazz he infuses. Watch the shit he starts doing right before the 1 minute mark onwards. [https://youtu.be/rY9ZiL8sy-4?si=msEZDUCVImY2nkVc](https://youtu.be/rY9ZiL8sy-4?si=msEZDUCVImY2nkVc)
In my opinion that would be Tomas Haake of Meshuggah, but there are so many amazing metal drummers that it's impossible to choose. You got Duplantier, Gene Hoglan, George Kollias, Zbigniew Robert Promiński, the list goes on.
He ffing brilliant but I prefer the term great. It seems pointless trying to put some "best" ranking on an artist. This dude slaps harder than Will Smith though.
Best? No. He ranks up there though. - Mario Duplantier, Gojira (in my opinion one of the absolute best drummers out there today) - Tomas Haake, Meshuggah - Chris Adler, Lamb of God - Danny Carey, Tool (arguably not metal, bit still the GOAT)
Brand Dailor?
Love me some Mastodon. Matt Mcdonugh should be in the conversation as well.
Aric Improta from Night Verses is a beast
Aric Improta is absolutely unbelievable. The insane skill he has plus the showmanship, there isn't a lot of people that would be able to do even one of the two at half the level. Severely underrated ill admit I only found out about him through Drumeo
And previously Fever 333
I came in to say him, damn hes sharp
Brann, yeah, he is an amazing drummer, plus he sings. As a singing drummer, he's a major inspiration! Also, that whole band are just hilarious in general.
hilarious? hilarious how? like they're clowns, do they amuse you, do they make you laugh? throwing in some goodfellas but I love Mastodon.
It is pretty fun how great they are and how little they take themselves seriously. They care a lot about their music but I mean they have Brent in the band for crying out loud. He literally is a clown….. and shreds the guitar like it’s his bitch.
i agree. I've got 2 of Branns drumsticks and he's autographed one 3 different times and Billy Kelliher once. I made him add the years each time. so 07, 09, 11. I've seen them 11 times. i went to see them and brought the previous stick with me i was against the rail and showed him the stick and he tossed another one that got smacked down and lost between the railing and stage and just tossed another one that i grabbed the 2nd time.
Matt Greiner is a monster as well.
Honorable mention to Adam Gray too
the goat
I got an in person drum lesson from MG last year and can confirm, that dude is an absolute machine. The practice he does seems legit impossible lmao
Matt Halpern, Matt Garstka
I think Matt is way better than Matt though
No fucking way, it’s straight up insulting to Matt to even put him in the same *league* as Matt
How is this even a discussion? Matt is leaps and bounds better than Matt. Frankly, I flat out question the intelligence, and taste, of anyone that believes otherwise.
Yep. Gartska can’t be touched.
I actually think the Matt that played drums in Animals as leaders is better.
George Kollias is amazing as well, the guy can play any thing at any speed
That’s a solid list - I’d add guys like Matt Garstka from Animals as Leaders, Jamie Saint Merat from Ulcerate, Brann Dailor from Mastodon, and Navene Koperweis from… well, everything.
Matt Garstka, Chris Turner, Alex Rudinger, Mario Duplantier, and Craig Reynolds my top 5 in no particular order. Big Downbeat fan
Craig is an absolute legend and a brilliant drummer but he’s not on the same level as the others you mentioned
I’m just a big fan of his drumming/work and his podcast lol. I wouldn’t have really been put on to all of the others without Craig’s podcast. I think his drumming is creative, solid, and very in the pocket which catches my attention. Out of all those, personally I think Chris Turner is my favorite right now though. His foot work is incredible
<3
His drumming on his live streams is so cool. Watching him try parts over and over til he nails it. Its fun to watch as a new drummer. He is definitely a solid ass drummer.
Craig rips
100%
<3
Gah how could I forget Alex rudinger. Solid list.
Jamie is GODLY. So smooth, relaxed, and insane.
Unfortunately Chris is no longer with LOG. Its a shame, he has been my personal favorite for awhile.
Gene hoglan?
WAY too far down, but I'm glad he's here. He is forever my GOAT just because his music speaks to my soul more than the rest. Entirely subjective though, and I don't see any value in a 'objective' GOAT. Music means too many different things to too many different people, and that's okay!
The man is literally nicknamed "The Atomic Clock". Hard to beat an Atomic clock
Maciej kowalski, darkside of mgla and kriegsmaschine The sheer speed and technicality are insane
Darkside is an incredible drummer, probably my favourite of all time
Darkside is always left out of these conversations but he's my pick for my favorite modern metal drummer
I like this list. I'd also add Blake Richardson, personally.
Glad you mentioned him. He’s an absolute monster. I see some dudes mentioned here and just think, “Yep, Blake Richardson would drum circles all around that dude. Yep he would smoke that dude, yep, him too.” I’ve seen some nutso drummers (and many mentioned in this thread) , and he’s right there pretty much number one technically. Also, not for nothing, but Justin Brown who plays with Thundercat is the other best drummer I’ve seen. He completely turned my brain inside out. But all this stuff is subjective anyway.
Blake does it all seemingly so easily too. He’s a machine. Makes the drums SOUND good too, his stroke is very toneful. I’ll add Julia Geaman to the pile too; she’s a monster metal drummer whose kit sounds mixed, live in the room. Currently playing with Nott and Tribunal.
Genuinely interested in why you said Tool isn’t really metal?
https://metalinjection.net/news/danny-carey-says-tool-isnt-a-metal-band. According to this article, even Tool members don’t consider themselves as a metal band.
I feel like a lot of musicians find it difficult to generally categorize their own music though given all of the different influences they have and the background of each musician. When you’re creating something that to you is unique, it’s difficult to just throw it into a broad generalized category. For instance one of my bands most people would just consider a punk band but we incorporate elements of punk, indie, pop, post-hardcore, even some jazz so we don’t like to just call ourselves a punk band.
You could call them alt/prog metal, but the emphasis is on the alt/prog and not metal. They're just not a very heavy band. That's not a criticism. I'm a huge fan, but when I feel like listening to metal, Tool isn't a band that comes to mind.
Calling Tool a metal band is like calling Mario Andretti a licensed motorist
As a metal fan, I’d call them metal-adjacent but more progressive hard rock
'Arguably' not metal. I love Tool, went to a concert of theirs a few days (Tons of Rock in Oslo) ago and it was out of this world. Mind-blowingly awesome. Top three concert easily. Personally i consider them (prog) metal, but I'd understand if some would categorize them as pure prog, or even refuse to categorize them because their repertoire and style is so broad.
Flo Mounter, Cryptopsy
It’s a shame Chris Adler is working at Home Depot instead of making music. He’s a fantastic drummer.
Chris Adler has got to be one of my favourites of all time, his ability to use the double bass and splashes to highlight others while sitting in the pocket is incredible. And those ride grooves he just pulls out casually aren't even fair
Adding to this great list, Kai Hahto (Wintersun, Nightwish)
Duplantier an absolute beast
I would add Dave Lombardo to that list
There are countless progressive metal drummers who are playing on a completely different level to Eloy. He’s great drummer but declaring him ‘the best’ is a disservice to all of these guys who work extremely hard: Baard Kolstad (Leprous), Jay Postones (Tesseract), Ray Hearne (Haken), Marco Minneman (Aristocrats, Necrophagist), Aric Improta (Night Verses), Paul Seidel (The Ocean), Steve Judd (Karnivool), Blake Richardson (BTBAM), Martin Lopez (Soen, formerly Opeth). And obligatory Mike Portnoy and Gavin Harrison.
Thank you for reminding me that Karnivool exist. Currently listening to Sound Awake for the first time in years. Still great.
Love that album, the drums on it are brilliant, especially Caudal Lure and Change.
I bet you never heard of Elliot Hoffman, otherwise he'd be on your list.
Checking out. Thanks!
Duplantier's work on [born in winter](https://youtu.be/suG-c_i2fBQ?si=9ChejM4ZaM4GPf1T) is absolute sex magic. So insanely creative and talented. Glad to see him on there. The rest of the crew checks out, too. Great list Edit: Art of Dying and Amazonia should have been included in my comment as well.
Art of Dying is a masterpiece, and not only for drums
I can't think of a drummer in metal who plays as hard and as fast as him right now. He plays with so much groove while slamming the drums at a fast pace, he's really elevated Slipknot's performance to a new level. The dude just slays.
As fast? I like Eloy but there's tons of drummers who play way faster
Navene Koperweis is better in my opinion. But they play very different styles so it's sort of a mute point.
*moot
I didn't want to name specific drummers because it gets super subjective but if I was to name my two personal favourites, it would be John Longstreth and Yanic Bercier
Two absolute beasts.
Usually the response when I mention Yanic is "who?" haha Dude goes against everything I've been told makes for "the right way to set up drums to play fast" (sits super low, has cymbals insanely high)... but it just works so well for him
this name needs to be mentioned more in the future. navene is also not the best but damn is he good and fun to watch.
As hard AND fast, I'm assuming they mean both simultaneously.
Nils Fjellström tho
Ever seen nils fjellstrom play?
> and as fast as him right now. Someone hasn't heard of extreme metal, where pretty much every drummer plays faster than this.
He's definitely the best metal drummer in Slipknot right now.
Holy shit, I just googled Joy Jordison, didnt know he passed away. I'm glad that I watched the band when he and Paul Gray were alive.
Lucky you for getting to see them when you could (assuming you saw them live back then). I do slightly regret not taking the chance when I could see them all on the same stage, but that's hindsight for you I guess. No-ones better than the original Joey, but it seems like they've had deserving substitutes since his sad passing. New guy Eloy seems like he's got the intensity nailed at least.
Yeah I'm not gonna comment about Eloy because I stopped listening to Slipknot after All Hope is Gone +Paul Gray demise + Joey got kicked out of the band. Nothing personal. I just stopped listening and focused on other genres. But Slipknot was my favourite band when I was younger, and my passion for percussion was because of their unique sound that combine 3 drummers in one band! I will give Eloy a try in a future!
Saying any musician is the "best" is stupid af. It's all performance art and it's all subjective. There is not way to measure the "best". It's not a sport with a clear winner and points leader.
No, Matt Garstka is.
I don’t like making “best” lists but Matt is highly respected in multiple spaces, not just metal. He has mastery over the instrument in all aspects including speed, dynamics, feel, and touch, which I find is lacking in most metal drummers. So, if I were to make a “best” list, he’d certainly be on it.
This. There are a LOT of drummers better than Eloy, not that Eloy isn’t great. Garstka is probably at the top of that list.
Matt is on another level. Every time I watch him I can’t believe how good he is.
Fun story. I saw them on their Joy of Motion tour back in 2014. Not too many people knew who they were at the time and After the Burial was opening for them. The majority of the people were there for ATB. After they performed a 3rd of the crowd left. AAL opens up with Ka$cade. I look around and half the crowd is just standing there motionless with this bewildered look on their faces, in awe of what they were witnessing. It was fucking surreal haha. By the end of it, everyone was fully into it, but I have yet to go to another show where a band's technical ability shocked a crowd. Garstka also broke 2 chinas during their hour set 😂. Have seen them 4 times since then.
Hes deffinetly amazing , but to claim hes better than So many others , an unprovable metric lol...
What’s with the Eloy knob slobbering on this sub? He’s a great drummer. He’s absolutely not the best.
Slipknot fans have always believed their drummers to be the best in the world and it's reflected in yearly polls, nothing wrong with loving their drummer. Jay has won a lot of awards and you might see Eloy win something this year if they release some music. The most popular drummer in metal would be more accurate
Tbf a lot of the pro metal drummers have been saying Eloy is one of the best metal drummers way before he was in slipknot.
How do they record these videos with the drum sounds so isolated? Do they get audio from the mics and edit the video?
Eloy is recording audio with a Yamaha EAD10 Drum Module
I was going to say, it sounds more like an EAD10 than close mics. Still sounds amazing.
I believe so. His channel has quite a few isolated drum tracks from his shows with Sepultura. Probably in his contract.
Yeah. At that kind of level literally everything will be recorded from the console for potential future use in other media and promotion, videos etc.
He’s one of the best at what he specifically does yeah. You can’t really say someone is the objective best drummer because everyone is different. For example Eloy would not be a good fit playing for animals as leaders and Matt Garstka would probably not be as good a fit for slipknot than eloy
Here's Eloy playing something more prog-rock with his side project, let me know what you think: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrVND8guVw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrVND8guVw) Shorter solo: [https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2nZItovWCW/](https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2nZItovWCW/)
Definitely not. There's an entire world of metal out there that you probably aren't experiencing if slipknot is your favourite band.
He is absolutely up there and there is no question about it, he is one of a few metal drummers that actually grooves, most of even top names don’t come close in my not humble opinion
Gene Hoglan says hold my beer
Nice question to maximize comments lol
I#d say he is one of the best, but there is just no way to determine who really is the best. My vote would probably be for Larnell Lewis but that's also highly debateable. Also a drummer doesn't show everything he can do in every performance, because it's often not required.
Eugene Ryabchenko is pretty gosh darn good
Good Punk Rock Drummer
Blake Richardson, Danny Walker, Tommy Buckley, Alex Rudinger
I'm here just looking for some Blake Richardson love. That whole band is on another level technically and creatively.
The Eloy circljerk is getting really old. One of the biggest metal bands in the world got a new drummer, that drummer is solid, but far from *the best.* Y’all are just suffering from confirmation bias. Listen to more metal, holy shit.
What do you mean? Isn't Slipknot the best? Only big? /s
Slipknot is the best band in the world and Eloy is the best drummer in the world. No other answers are acceptable!
Nope. Hard to say who the best is currently but my current favorite metal drummer is Evgeny Novikov. That dude isn't human.
Fuck no, he’s not the best. Not even close. Alan Cassidy and George Kollias would mop the floor with this guy, among others. But they’re all different, so hardly worth comparing.
Why is the drum community so obsessed with who’s “best”
Still beneath Lars Ulrich
He is 1000% the best drummer for Slipknot amongst active metal drummers.
No
"Best" threads on musical subjects are the "worst" threads imo He's really great, i can see him being many peoples favorite drummer, but the metal scene is so stacked of monster players that it's impossible to claim someone is the "best"
lol, absolutely not.
Eloy is incredible but let's try to limit the brainrot that is already running r/drums
I'd say my vote would go for him, I didn't need him joining Slipknot to be aware. Such strength, precision and speed is not common
Depends on your definition of "The best". If you mean technically, then no. There are so many metal drummers that are way more technical than Eloy. If you mean hits hard and is consistent then yes Eloy is amazing but even then not the greatest ever to everyone. It all depends. Now don't get me wrong, I think Eloy is a goddamn beast and few can do what he does as well as he does! But claiming anyone is the greatest drummer ever is an argument no one will ever win.
How much better would he be if he didn’t have to wear that corny ass mask?
He is a great drummer. But being in a popular band he can attract more marketing than when he was in Sepultura. (I say this being a Brazilian metal fan)
No
Chris Turner exists, therefore no other drummer will be "the best metal drummer" besides him.
Really good. Far from better than most tech death drummers
I don't know if there is a "best" metal drummer. Off the top of my head, Eloy is great, Eugene Ryabchenko or Francesco Paoli (just an insane artist period) from Fleshgod Apocalypse are both incredible, Lord Marco is up there... If anyone ever asks me who I think the "best drummer" is, my answer is always Thomas Lang because I think the guy can play anything imaginable in any genre at any tempo... Then do it starting off the left foot/hand. Lol
Thank you Reddit bot, please stop reposting
Matt Garstka entered the chat
No
That's a lot of snare.
Why the circlejerk around this guy?
James St Merat of Ulcerate would give him a run for his money
Good, but he’s no Lars
You mean he’s not a narcoleptic alcoholic
While Eloy is a beast and undeniably amazing, I can't help but feel that he has a swing to his playing that is not 100% befitting of the music.
“Best” is subjective, probably some random some random 17 year old in some small town somewhere. He could definitely show up to the competition though.
Man is working his balls off while homie twists nobs in the background
He's a great drummer, but he's not "the best". Many people will certainly now think he is because he's in a popular mainstream band and it will expose him to lots of people who only listen to commercially available music, it's the Travis Barker effect.
His kit sounds insanely good.
Yeah but he’s got that saint anger snare
Dudes built like a taekwondo champion. With a mix of miniature grizzly bear.
There are few drummers out there that can play to his level of fluidity, complexity, all while pushing the most ABSURD power and stamina I’ve ever seen. He has background in Latin rhythms and he [first competed](https://youtu.be/PkmUSjkTJCg?si=FG5CEig0nJZm2wVR) in the Modern Drummer showcase when he was 14. IMO pound for pound he no questions asked is a contender.
Bran is the best metal drummer in the world imo. His drumming is what drew me to Mastodon and made them my favorite metal band of all time. Lamb and Gojiras drummers are my next picks.
Yeah he's got that Alex Van Halen thing going on pretty good You know it's not something I really do but I certainly respect it
Gene Hoglan :(
is this guy better than mike portnoy?
One of the best sure (in metal) but not the best. No disrespect.
One of the greats, yes. Asking who's "the best" as you see devolves the convo into a predictable stream of pedantic shit-fuckery.
I’d like to hear him play some sepultura
Slightly unrelated,but I'd love to see estepario get into a legit known metal band to see what he is capable of outside of his youtube videos. He has some crazy talent with time signatures and is brutally fast. It would be fun to see him beagle to create with some other highly talented musicians.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P\_PC-53GCbI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_PC-53GCbI)
Any time I think of best metal drummer I always end up coming back to Chris Turner. Every limb has a mind if it's own its fucking wild. He's like Doc Oc
Nobody has heard the best drummer in the world, that I guarantee. Even if such a person exists, you can't really measure ability in a metric sense. Eloy can obviously play super fast and intense, but as a result may struggle to play slow and subdued. Having been a drummer for 20 years, I can confidently say that every experienced musician can do some "wow" things, and then every single one who is self aware will tell you they aren't even close to mastering their craft.
“Best” is subjective. Is he absolutely crushing a gig few drummers could do? Absolutely.
Darkside from Mgła? Dominator Fjellstrom? Half the black metal drummers out there?
He’s amazing! But nobody’s really ‘the best’. I think as a drummer you just wanna be fans’ favorite. And let’s be honest, the ‘best metal drummer in the world’ probably works in the produce department at HyVee
I‘d like to throw in Tatsuya Amano.
Eloy is downright incredible, it’s just that many have only heard about or seen him through slipknot. There’s footage of him at like fourteen playing Brazilian polyrhythms/ ostinado pieces. The limb independence is staggering, the guy is truly gifted, especially outside of metal. This stuff is cake for him.
He's awesome, best is just a dumb thing to try to argue for anyone though.
Impossible to say that anyone is the best. But, I don’t think there’s anyone who does what he does as well as he does it. There is so much LIFE in his playing, which is refreshing to hear in such heavy music.