Adrian Aguilar grew up in Covina, California. He began playing drums at age 3 due to his upbringing being heavily involved in music. His brothers played saxophone and other instruments, and his father played guitar. His father, being a huge music lover, exposed Adrian to many genres of music, ranging from blues to classical music. Santana was the family favorite and was played religiously throughout the house, which caught Adrian’s ear and inspired him to pick up the drums.
While his father would practice guitar to Santana by the stereo, Adrian would set up pots and pans next to him and jam away using chopsticks for drumsticks. He received his first drum set at age 5 and has mainly been self-taught. He would go on to be involved in middle and high school music programs such as jazz, concert, and marching bands. Bio Continued below…
Quote About “Oathbreaker” Drums:
“Oathbreaker” is one of my favorite tracks to play off of our new album “Necrophony.” It’s a very straightforward, mid-tempo, short, and sweet type of song, and because of that, I wanted to give it a simple power groove that keeps the energy up.
I tried not to go for anything too flashy and really focused on writing parts that complimented the guitars rather than stepping all over them. To me, it really has all the major elements that contain the Exmortus sound, and I wanted to emphasize that in the drum composition.
Exmortus Album Details:
Album Title: Necrophony
Album Release Date: August 25, 2023
Record Label: Nuclear Blast
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
For Fans of Hatchet, Warbringer, Havok, Toxic Holocaust, Bonded By Blood, Skeletonwitch, HeXen
Album Purchase/Stream Link: https://exmortus.bfan.link/necrophony.a01
Bio continued… After his uncle and cousin showed him classic metal and took him to his first Iron Maiden concert in 2003, he became heavily influenced by the genre, with Iron Maiden being his favorite band to this day. During his teenage years, Adrian played with his cousins and brothers for family parties, covering his favorite rock and heavy metal bands.
Adrian has always maintained a high level of energy in his playing, believing that every note is as important as the last. His love and passion for playing drums are easily seen through his live performances, making you feel like every song is the night’s final.
After many years of forming and joining bands in the local Los Angeles club scene, he then joined Exmortus in 2018 as their full-time drummer, making his debut release on the “Legions of the Undead” EP in 2019 on (M-Theory Audio Records) and more recently their 6th full-length album “Necrophony” on (Nuclear Blast Records). He has also become the new drummer for Vio-lence as of February 2023.
Adrian Aguilar Drum Set Up:
Custom Tama Starclassic (Bubinga)
Bass drums: 22×18, 22×18
Rack Toms: 13×10, 14×11
Floor Toms: 16×16, 18×16
Snare: Tama SLP 14×6.5 (black nickel over brass)
Zildjian A Custom Cymbals
Projection crashes: 18”, 18”, 20”
Ultra-hammered China 19”
Mega bell ride 21”
Iron Cobra 900 power glide double pedals
