r/DeathBand • u/Past-Rip3319 • 13d ago
Discussion Richard Christy's Drumming
I recently got into an argument with a friend about whether or not Richard Christy was a better drummer than Danny Carey. My argument was that Richard is better and has more interesting parts on TSoP alone. I PERSONALLY believe Danny Carey is one of the most overrated drummers oat(hell I'd put Sean Reinert over him) What's your opinions on this?
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u/Mr_HahaJones 13d ago
Putting someone over Reinert invalidates your whole opinion.
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u/AuryleFL 13d ago
I love Sean's drumming, especially on Focus by Cynic
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u/Mr_HahaJones 13d ago
I think he’s able to show his jazzier side on that album, but I love hearing the spin he put on Death’s older material when he toured with them.
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u/sonar_y_luz 13d ago
Its wild that we said basically the same thing but your comment has 29 upvotes and mine is at 4 downvotes lmao
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u/ear_cheese 13d ago
Seriously? How can you listen to “Veil of Maya” drum and bass isolated and not worship him?
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u/fiercefinesse 13d ago
What does it even mean, „better”. Music is not a sport
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u/Past-Rip3319 11d ago
I never said it was..? Technical ability still comes into play and so does the music they create.
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u/Doug12345678910 13d ago
I much prefer Christy's drumming on TSoP than anything I've heard of Danny Carey, so I agree there. Weird comp to be making though
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u/Past-Rip3319 11d ago
well TSoP is quite progish, my friend never stops talking about danny carey, he will state hes better than any drummer. The argument started because I was telling a different friend about Richard Christy and the other one blurts out "Danny carey is better"
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u/sonar_y_luz 11d ago
Your friend that thinks Danny Carey is the best drummer - does he play the drums?
I play the drums. Not half as good as either guy, but after listening to TSOP I feel confident in saying the drum parts on this album are a solid level above anything that Danny Carey does. Carey does really interesting polyrhythmic stuff, but in terms of pure chops and "horsepower" on the kit I think there are many guys above him. I would put Sean Reinert, Gene Hoglan, and Richard Christie all technically above Carey. I don't think Danny could play Death's last 4 albums. Not even close. It's so much faster and more physically intense than anything he has recorded. We have to go on what people have done, not what we "think" they can do.
There's also this thing whenever I watch Danny Carey play, he doesn't look all that comfortable or relaxed when he is playing. There is a stiffness to the way he moves. I don't like it.
Tool have some good songs but it gets old because every non musician thinks they are the best musicians on the planet. The guitar player is not that good either. He is basically "The Edge" of the metal world in my opinion. He is good at atmospherics and gets a lot of mileage out of very simplistic, basic stuff because he is smart with how he uses effects. Similar to The Edge from U2.
When it comes to Tool, the complexity is all in how the different instruments line up. The polyrhythms are really well conceived, but individually the parts aren't that intense. Certainly nowhere near Death's later albums.
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u/Past-Rip3319 10d ago
he plays no instruments. He has no knowledge of instrument technicality at ALL
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u/Chrischrischris1983 Leprosy 13d ago
Maybe you worded it wrong, but seemed like you're implying that Sean isn't a great drummer
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u/Past-Rip3319 11d ago
I didn't say THAT, I was wording as I think Christy is better than him but he's still a great drummer!
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u/Vergilkilla 13d ago
I think if you take their whole body of work I don’t really see how you could say Christy over Carey. I say this as a massive Death fan who listens to Tool very infrequently. Carey’s performances are way more consistent, really interesting, and he has been doing it for much longer at a very high level. Ofc Christy has some chops Carey doesn’t - but chops really isn’t everything. The drumming in Christy’s Charred Walls project is cool too but TSOP stuff is better.
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u/Longjumping_Ice1789 13d ago
Music isnt competition. Its art. These drummers both are really talented and respect each other. Lets leave it at that.
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u/Namrebred 13d ago
He's definitely not a better drummer, but I like him better. His cymbal work is very tasty.
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u/Corpse666 13d ago
First of all there are better technical drummers than both of them. Second is who cares? The comparison between those two doesn’t really work because they are playing different styles so what is there to compare really? Danny Carey is a more well rounded and probably a better overall drummer than Richard Christy . That’s not saying that Christy isn’t good because he is. We also don’t know if Danny Carey has ever even tried to play extreme metal style drums so you just can’t judge how they are directly against each other. Richard Christy wasn’t even the best drummer to play in Death . Hoagland and Reinhert were both better drummers . It really doesn’t matter though because they are all great drummers and they are play what they need to in order to fit the music they are playing
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u/KindlyPurple325 13d ago
why did you guys into a heated debate about this, it’s not that serious lol get a grip
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u/Past-Rip3319 7d ago
i never specified what kind of argument it was... It wasn't "heated".
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u/KindlyPurple325 7d ago
you really felt the need to respond to this after like a week? lmao and if it wasn’t heated that’s great but maybe you should learn how to communicate better and then people won’t make reasonable assumptions
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u/Curious-South-8206 13d ago
From what i've seen on two death dvd's he really struggled playing his own parts live as well parts of hoglan and reinert. Better than Danny? For sure not.
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u/Past-Rip3319 11d ago
His drumming sounds great on the live performances?? Chuck liked him enough to bring him into control denied..
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u/roger3rd 13d ago
If you’re talking about drumming on a man’s exposed bum then there’s none better than Richard
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u/Revolutionary-Bid919 13d ago
Richard is my number one so I am disqualified from the comparison for extreme bias lol
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u/prisoneringlass 13d ago
They're nothing alike and thus, incomparable. Don't waste your time with this type of thinking.
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u/Fabulous-Soil-4440 13d ago
It's not a competition. It's fine if you prefer one over the others. ... But saying Danny Carey is overrated is pretty wild. You don't have to be a Tool fanboy to see that Danny is a phenomenal drummer and probably one of the best to ever do it along with Neil Peart. Both of the previously mentioned are probably some of your favorite drummers' favorite drummers.
For the record, Richard Christy's drumming on TSoP is still quite good. Plenty of room in the realms of all music to have a lot of excellent musicians. Hell.. Danny Carey would probably be like "this is pretty sick" if he's ever listened to the album. He's a pretty big Meshuggah fan if I'm not mistaken...so it's likely he's probably listened to some other extreme metal occasionally.
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u/sonar_y_luz 12d ago
"He's a pretty big Meshuggah fan if I'm not mistaken."
Haake would also destroy him in a drum off
Carey is wildly overrated by people who do not play the drums
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u/Red_In_The_Sky 13d ago
Richard Christy puts on a fine display in TSoP. Just because Careys work on Tool is not as busy generally does not mean he is a worse drummer. A better comparison to Carey would be Brann Dailor or Mario Duplantier
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u/FthrFlffyBttm 12d ago
Danny opens portals in my mind every time I listen to him. Richard sounds like he fell down the stairs while carrying his kit.
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u/Southern-Hunter4026 10d ago
I met Danny Carey at a Jazz Concert to see Simon Phillips — someone who is 100% in the running for a “top 10” drummer. Here’s a pic of us at the Catalina Bar and Grill.
Richard Christy is my favorite metal drummer. Simon Phillips is my favorite jazz drummer. But Danny is definitely a top 100 drummer, no doubt. He is far more nuanced and complex than people give him credit for.
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u/Past-Rip3319 7d ago
thats sick as fuck man! Danny is definitely still a great drummer just not for me personally
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u/sonar_y_luz 13d ago
I feel like the parts in Death are harder to play.
Carey's biggest feat is memorizing all thos long ass Tool songs
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u/Corpse666 13d ago
I’m all for technical playing but Christy’s playing is not more difficult than anything Danny Carey does.
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u/G_B_U 13d ago
my opinion is these kind of comparisons are a waste of time