DRUMMER // SOUND GUY // GEAR NERD

This is not the barn loft kit, but similar in vibe

My cousin eventually lost interest in those drums (a mismatched Japanese stencil kit that I would pay hefty amounts of cash to get back). My dad, a musician himself, bought the drums from him — and I had just about the best Christmas morning a kid could imagine.

From there, I played whatever I could. I played music with dad, and eventually my brother and I formed a high school band. There were school concert bands and stage bands, community bands, swing bands, rock bands, jam bands — any opportunity to play was a good one. Growing up in a small town, music sometimes seemed like the only thing to do. I’m forever thankful for that.

From the Loft to the Stage

I went to university to study music, but after a year I decided to pursue a formal education in audio. That took me to Ottawa, where I spent four years going to school and playing in my first proper paying cover bands.

Eventually, I moved back to Halifax and began working in film and television, editing and mixing shows and films. I continued playing with a few local cover bands, although at one point the drums were put away for a few years.

Around 2004, I got back into playing with a bang. I’ve been behind the kit with my band, Donair Supply, here in Halifax ever since.

Over the years, I’ve played clubs throughout Halifax and gigs across the Maritimes, along with trips to places like Lake Louise, Montreal, and Ottawa. Corporate events, weddings, festivals, street parties—there have been plenty of reasons to load up the drums and go play.

A particular highlight brought my playing, gear obsession, and audio work together: supplying all the drum backline for Halifax’s TD Jazz Festival, as well as doing sound for some of the events. Getting the right instruments ready for other drummers was a rewarding way to be involved.

Still plenty to learn

I took drum lessons when I was about eleven to fifteen, and again at university. Since then, most of my learning has come through playing, listening, and working with other musicians.

One thing I’m looking forward to over the next few years is getting back into lessons and spending more deliberate time studying the instrument. After all these years, there’s still plenty I want to explore.

That curiosity is a big part of DrumRunners: an interest in the instruments, the sounds, the people, and everything that goes into making music with a drum kit.

It’s the same curiosity that had me climbing into a barn loft and putting on a record. It has kept me interested ever since.

Behind the Sound

My interest in recording started in high school. There weren’t any recording studios in my small town—perhaps the occasional reel-to-reel tape machine, but nowhere to really experience how records were made. I eventually joined the four-track cassette revolution, experimenting with multitrack recording and getting a taste of what was possible.

Then a school band exchange near Montreal opened up a whole other world.

During that trip, I had the opportunity to sit in on a session at a mix theatre where the animated film All Dogs Go to Heaven was being dubbed and remixed in French. I was floored. Here was sound on a completely different scale: dialogue, music, sound effects, and an enormous Neve film console with room for three operators.

Until then, I’d mostly thought about audio in terms of recording music. Seeing that session made me realize how much more there was to explore. Even then, film and television felt like a direction I could build a career around—and I could keep playing music alongside it.

From Recording to Storytelling

After studying audio in Ottawa, I returned to Halifax and went straight to work at Salter Street Films. I started in sound editing and sound design, eventually moving into mixing. Over the years, my work included CODCO, the first fourteen seasons of This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Lexx, Made In Canada, Trailer Park Boys, and many other productions.

I eventually went out on my own, freelancing on projects for clients in Canada and around the world. There was some music recording along the way, and a little composing too—being a guitar player as well as a drummer came in handy—but film and television remained the main focus.

Working with sound for picture taught me to listen beyond the individual elements. A voice, a background sound, a piece of music, or a moment of silence all contribute to how a story feels. The technology makes the work possible, but listening is what guides it.

Going Live

Live sound has also been part of my life for decades, through my own bands and work in venues, on gigs both large and small. Over the past ten years, that has expanded into live broadcast audio, primarily covering soccer, hockey, football, and lacrosse.

I love the teamwork and immediacy of broadcasting. Everyone has a role, the action keeps moving, and problems need solutions right now. There’s a particular satisfaction in getting through a challenging broadcast together—and when it’s finished, it’s finished. There isn’t another round of revisions waiting tomorrow.

I continue to do that work alongside DrumRunners. It keeps me listening, thinking on my feet, and working with people who care about getting it right.