Michael Bland: Soul Slammer
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BlandMichael SOUL SLAMMER By David Jarnstrom ashington Avenue is a Minneapolis thorough- fare that runs parallel to the Mississippi River. WFollow it northwest, past the city’s glassy skyline, and you’ll reach a socioeconomic cross- roads where the trendy ware- house district and the hardscrab- ble streets of North Minneapolis begin to blend. In this stretch of no-man’s land sits Bunker’s, a working-class dive bar that, twice a week, hosts one of the best OLLETTS drummers in the world. F Photograph: DRUMmagazine.com September 2012 DRUM! 23 D195_23_25_Vibe.indd 23 7/13/12 9:52 AM Michael Bland Transcription by Brad Schlueter “Gravity” It only takes about ten sec- onds of listening to realize Michael Bland is a powerhouse of a drummer. His playing is both slamming and creative. On “Gravity,” he begins with a tom-and-snare assault that accents dotted quarter-notes. For the verse, he leads with his bass drum and accents off beats on his crash cymbals, creating a part that fits the song perfectly. It’s a perfect mid-June evening, and Michael Bland — sporting his signature “SOME DRUMMERS BOUNCE AND overalls, thick-rimmed glasses, and spiked mohawk — is perched behind a fusion-sized set of black Yamahas that look like a toy kit GLANCE. I PLAY THROUGH. I GOT SIZE-16 relative to his mighty limbs. As he powers the ten-piece outfit known as Dr. Mambo’s Combo through Steely Dan’s “Black Cow,” FEET — I CAN’T TAP DANCE.” the wildly diverse, wall-to-wall Bunker’s crowd hypnotically slips into Bland’s crater- quarter century. The Minneapolis institution about ten minutes he looked over and asked, deep pocket. Well-dressed thirty-some- has been packing ’em in every Monday night ‘You looking for a job son?’ I was 19.” things and middle-aged couples crowd the since 1987 (Sundays since 2007), and Bland Not a bad start. Bland’s legacy is forever dance floor; hipsters and off-duty musicians has faithfully provided the pulse for most intertwined with His Purpleness, thanks to play the wall and bob their heads. every gig, barring any competing tour or his powerhouse performances on hits like Bland is content cloning Paul Hum- studio commitments. “Cream,” “Gett Off,” and “Diamonds And phrey’s tasty groove, but every so often he It may seem slightly odd that a dude Pearls,” but few reckon the immense scope unleashes a flurry of well-placed embel- boasting a mile-long resumé of A-list pop of Bland’s post-Prince output. “Michael lishments and cross-bar phrases that would stars and cred-heavy rockers still plays cov- and I have probably cut a thousand songs make even Dennis Chambers rubberneck. ers, but for Bland, Bunker’s is home — the together,” estimates John Fields, producer/ Smiles flash on stage, and as the band slowly humble venue in which he made his bones. bassist extraordinaire and Bland’s partner in segues into a down-tempo doo-wop num- Upon winning a “Best Drummer In The Twin crime on countless projects. “His encyclo- ber, the audience approves with uproarious Cities” contest at the tender age of 16, he pedic pop knowledge is unmatched by any applause. It’s a special night for the Combo; began sitting in with The Combo, ultimately drummer I’ve ever met. We use shorthand — their Bunker’s residency has reached a taking over the band’s much-coveted throne I can say, ‘Stewart ride, Bun E. beat, Henley while still in high school. Bland mastered tones,’ and he just goes.” countless styles thanks to The Combo’s Bland’s credits range from bubblegum- eclectic set lists, and he learned the ropes of mers Mandy Moore and the Jonas Broth- Current release Delayed Reaction stagecraft from the band’s top-notch per- ers, to legends David Crosby and Daryl Hall. (Soul Asylum) sonnel, many being upwards of 15 years his He’s freaked the funk with Chaka Khan. He’s senior. Word of the teenage prodigy’s prow- covered country with the Dixie Chicks. He’s age 43 ess spread quickly and Minneapolis royalty shuffled blues with Johnny Lang. And he’s BirthplaCe Minneapolis, Minnesota soon came knocking. bashed with Minneapolis alt-rock forebears influenCes Al Jackson Jr., John Robinson, “The first time I played with Prince was at Paul Westerberg and Soul Asylum, the latter Earl Palmer, John Bonham, Phil Rudd Bunker’s,” Bland recalls over sips of wild rice of which recently unveiled its return-to-form WeB site soulasylum.com soup at a cozy St. Paul diner. “He’d just come tenth album, Delayed Reaction (produced, off the Lovesexy tour in 1988 and he sat in with naturally, by Fields). The barnburner of a The Combo. It took a minute for me to realize record proves the perfect vehicle for Bland’s I was being courted. I looked up and he was brute muscle — a characteristic with which Drums Yamaha just staring at my hands.” Shortly thereafter, he’s seldom associated due to his R&B rep. CymBals Zildjian Bland’s presence was requested at Prince’s “Growing up black in Minneapolis, you harDWare Yamaha palatial estate, Paisley Park. “He was throw- got a healthy dose of rock,” Bland explains. ing a party for Bon Jovi, and Living Colour was “That’s why Prince’s music is so diverse. heaDs Remo playing. Then the Combo got up, with Prince on That’s why I’m so versatile as a player. stiCks Vic Firth keys. There were probably only about 40 people My first drum set when I was nine was a in this huge room and we’re just jamming. After Gretsch; 24" kick, 14" rack, 18" floor. So 24 DRUM! September 2012 DRUMmagazine.com D195_23_25_Vibe.indd 24 7/13/12 9:52 AM I came up driving a big car. That’s the made you want to do this in the first place!’” director as well). He’s also been “tap danc- sound I got in my bloodstream. I wanted The high-octane tunes translate into brutal ing back and forth” with Prince regarding to sound like John Bonham — I wanted live sets, made even harder by Bland’s Soul renewed collaboration. And then there are that depth. Some drummers bounce and Asylum–specific tuning. “I tune everything The Combo’s weekly gigs at good ol’ Bunker’s, glance. I play through. I got size-16 feet — down so it sounds like ‘Back In Black.’ Then I where the consummate pro stretches out a I can’t tap dance” just suffer with the snare being like a card- bit, but not too much. “My playing has always When discussing Soul Asylum’s board box — no rebound. If it’s a few gigs in a been aimed at the lowest common denomi- down-and-dirty writing process, Bland row, I can acclimate. But the first few songs, nator,” Bland humbly states when discussing employs words like “hashfest” and my arms are on fire.” his all-about-the-music approach. “I’m not “bloodbath.” Most of Delayed Reaction Beyond Soul Asylum, Bland stays plenty trying to intrigue or impress or confuse any was penned in the band’s sweaty prac- busy collaborating with scores of artists in drummers in the house. I’m just trying to tice space and tracked close to home at varying capacities (he’s a producer and music keep the dance floor full.” Flowers studio in Minneapolis. A yet-to- be-released collection of “gnarly punk classics” was concurrently rehearsed and recorded at Bland’s urging, in hopes that it would help shake Soul Asylum out of its mid-tempo malaise. Prior to 1992’s breakthrough, Grave Dancer’s Union, the band’s sound was predicated on volume, speed, and power. “[Delayed Reaction] is much more en- ergetic than the last few records,” Bland asserts, “in large part because I told [front man Dave] Pirner, ‘You dudes are a punk band — you need to get back to what Soul Asylum Delayed Reaction 429 records After years of skulking about, Soul Asylum is back to what they do best — kicking out the freaking jams. Every stroke of monster drummer Michael Bland’s contribution to Delayed Reac- tion screams conviction, or “certitude,” as the man himself would say. The feel is classic power pop — think Bun E. Carlos on just a pinch of crack. A pile- driver flam commences the up-tempo “Gravity” — the record’s opener and a strong contender for feel-good hit of the summer. Quarter-note kicks give way to violent snare/cymbal stabs, and blistering single-stroke snare rolls propel the band throughout. “Into The Light” is a strutter with a simple kick/ snare pattern that paves the way for Tommy Stinson’s walking bass line. “The Streets,” is pure jangle pop candy, with Bland dishing out monster fills come song’s end. Not all the tunes are set to stun — “By The Way” ambles along to a simple but tasty grace-note– enhanced groove, while “Cruel Inten- tions” is straight lounge. Regardless of assignment, Bland delivers with taste, authority, and enthusiasm. David Jarnstrom DRUMmagazine.com September 2012 DRUM! 25 D195_23_25_Vibe.indd 25 7/13/12 9:52 AM.