Can you talk about the structure of the shows and the material you’re performing on the current Oz Noy tour?
Gigs with Oz, are always fun. This tour is a bit tough schedule-wise, and we’re not carrying a sound man, so it’s a bit more work for me, as I help out with getting the PA (and US!) sounding the way we want. We’re playing music from Oz’s recordings, present and past. His music is a lot of fun, fairly groove oriented, but quirky and interesting to play. Darryl Jones (Miles Davis, Sting, Rolling Stones) is playing bass; so that’s fun too as it’s our first time really playing together.
You’ve always been passionate about sound and music production – can you talk about Dave Weckl Production Services? How is that side of your business/career progressing and what’s the future/plans for this business as you see it?
I love the ‘sound’ aspect and enjoy continually learning, experimenting and working on getting better at capturing and producing it. My production services, at this point, mostly consist of ‘drum tracks’ and ‘mixing’. I haven’t had time to get into long-term production projects, but hope to do more of that in the future. The ‘drum tracks’, overdubbing tracks, keeps me the busiest these days. I have clients from many parts of the world that I work for, and lots of random work as well. It’s all done via the Internet and works very well for all involved. I’m also hired to mix recordings from time to time, which I also enjoy. At this point there are no real solid plans to do much more than I am currently doing with the service, as my touring schedule just doesn’t allow it. I would like to eventually try and do more production work and less road work, but that probably won’t happen in the near future.
You’ve never been one to rest on your laurels. What do you focus on these days when it comes to analysing your own playing and the path of consistent growth?
At this stage, just maintaining the level I try and perform at is enough to keep me off my laurels! [Laughs] These days I’m playing with many different bands on the road, so for self-analysation I like to record the gigs to see where things are sitting, feel-wise, and how I’m supporting the music. If it doesn’t turn me on, it’s not going to turn on anyone else either. So that’s really the focus – to try and play at a very high, musical level in all situations. Beyond that, staying healthy and physically fit enough to play like I want is also a focus, and becoming the most challenging as the years keep piling on! But, so far so good.
You have a huge fan base in Australia and a long history. What will your approach be to this year’s event – Drumscene Live as well as the Drummers Weekend 20th Anniversary?
I’m always happy to come back to Australia, with my friend and organiser Frank Corniola, and share and play for the fans there. It’s been a few years now, so I’m looking forward to it. With my schedule, I usually don’t think too much about an event until I’m close to it, because I’m involved and present with what I’m doing at any given moment. So, we’ll see what presents itself when the time comes.
BY RAY DEEGAN
