Richard Hoak

Keep up with Richard here:

www.myspace.com/totalfuckingdestruction
www.myspace.com/brutalfuckingtruth
www.myspace.com/peaceisthevictory

I started playing music in marching, concert and jazz bands in high school, but playing brass or woodwinds. The school I went to was pretty small, so in marching band I was occasionally drafted to play bass drum and that was the first time I ever got my hands on a drum to play in any serious situation. I was more interested in making it with the yakabowski sisters on the back of the band bus, so getting technical with the drums or any instrument wasnot a priority for me.

After high school, I started playing in punk bands, but playing bass or guitar, as I had yet to figure out how to play a drum set. One day, as I was watching a friend’s band rehearse, it came to me all at once how to play a drumset. You could not just hit with your feet and hands all at one time, but you had to mix up the hits of sticks and feet to make the rhythms. From then on I sorta just “knew” how to play the drums and it was just a matter of practicing to get good at it(which of course I did not do!). In 1986 I was in a car accident and burned pretty badly: all of the callouses on my hands and fingers for playing guitars were burnt off and after I recovered i decided that it would be easier and more fun to just play drums than to re-learn to play guitars and from then on I was strictly a drummer.

I played drums in art/punk/psychedelic bands that shall remain unnamed in the late 80’s and toured almost constantly in the DIY style through the USA and Europe. Ninefinger was the first heavy band I played in, a band I started with mike dean of COC famein Philadelphia about 1990. We played black Sabbath meets black flag, super loud and super heavy and I used the biggest sticks and drums I could find. We played a lot of gigs and tours with bands like eyehategod and buzzoven. At the last ninefinger gig (mike had rejoined COC), kirk from buzzoven introduced me to the guys from brutal truth, who were looking for a drummer. I was more interested to continue touring and partying than I was in playing a particular type of music and the BT guys told me about the tours they had coming up of Europe, japan, usa and more and it sounded pretty cool. They told me that brutal truth (whom I had never heard of before) played a kind of music called “grind” (which I had never heard of before). They gave me a tape of the extreme Conditions album and I learned the songs off of that and went to 3 auditions before I was asked to join the band in december of 1993. The first 3 months of 1994 I lived in the bt rehearsal space and learned how to play grind and helped write the Need to Control cd. We recorded need to control and then we left on tour. BT toured constantly, playing 250 or more gigs a year up until we broke up in 1998. Right after that I started total fucking destruction, stripped my kit down to just a kick and snare, no toms, and since I was writing the music and lyrics to get the band started, became lead vocalist as well. BT reformed last year, so right now I am playing in tfd, bt and also in a solo project called peacemaker. Peacemaker is an improv jazz/noise project, so what I play in this band depends on the situation, usually I am playing free form improv drums with peacemaker: it just depends on the musicians who are sitting in at the time.

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* Links to many more video clips at bottom of page…

Richard Hoak Interview:

SD.com: How old were you when you started playing?

Rich: Hmmmm, I played some air drums to the kiss album rock and roll over at about the age of 12. In 1979 when I started high school I started to play brass and woodwinds, saxophone and tuba mostly. In 1986 I was 21 and started to play the drumset in bands.

SD.com: Did you play in a school band or any drum corps?

Rich: Yeah, but not drums. Like I say, It was high school, so I was in it mostly for the girls.

SD.com: Ever take any lessons?

Rich: Yes, just one, from some hippy fuckwad. He scammed 20$ bucks off of me and told me to try playing with my feet flat on the pedals. That fucked me up and took me some time to unlearn, so I fucked off taking lessons. I just play songs the way that makes them sound like they rock to me. The hippy told me to buy buddy rich’s drum rudiments book, which I did. I did not learn much from the book about playing drums, but it did turn me on to buddy rich’s style and attitude, which I took to heart and has served me well ever since.

SD.com: Who are your top 5 influences?

Rich: I am influenced by beer, girls, vodka, weed, methamphetamine and crazy fucked up daily life in the modern day
military/entertainment/technology complex.

SD.com: Assuming that influences doesn’t mean favorites, who are your favorites?

Rich: I like drummers with style and intensity: buddy rich, max roach, mitch Mitchell, bill ward, keith moon (hell yeah!!), that guy
from the melvins. Technicality is sometimes interesting, but gets old and boring fast if there’s no style with it.

SD.com: Let us know 5 CD’s that are in your current rotation

Rich: I hate music!!! I like to play shows and go to shows and party, but I don’t rally have much time or headspace to sit around and listen to music. I rather play than listen.

SD.com: Do you practice any specific rudiments or combo’s regularly?

Rich: fuck no!!! boring!!!!

SD.com: What is your favorite part of your drum kit?

Rich: My trick drums pedals. I recently got these pedals and they are light and fast, I totally dig them and recommend them to anyone who wants to play fast. I have a piccolo snare that I bought in 1994 at a music store in hamburg germany while on tour with brutal truth. I don’t like the thin metallic sound of most piccolo’s. this one is a “cask” drum, made of wood that is very thick, so, although it plays like nice tight piccolo, it does not have that pinging metallic sound. it is much thicker and doesn’t ring. Otherwise, I don’t give a fuck what kind or quality of drums I use, which works out really well: much of the touring I do involves having to play on rented or borrow gear. I travel with my own kick pedals and snare drum and with them I can make use of any drums that come my way. Like buddy rich sez “it’s the drummer, not the drums”. I think that’s awesome advice and I have
made a point of trying to live that. Buddy rich also said that drums should be “tensioned, not tuned”. I’ve found this advice works really well for me also.

SD.com: Do you have any pre-show rituals?

Rich: I smoke weed. Maybe do some yoga. Sometimes I barf.

SD.com: How many days per week, do you practice with Brutal Truth? on your own?

Rich: BT practices once a month for 3 12 hours days in a row. Tfd practices about twice a week. If neither band is practicing enough for me, I will run through the sets on my own twice a week (bt plays a 70 minute set when headlining, tfd 35 mins). Usually I am touring so much with one band or the other that I don’t need to do much practicing. I reach peak playing by touring and playing days and days in a row.

SD.com: If you could give one piece of advice to young drummers, it would be…

Rich: Hit the fucking drums like you mean it!!!! Even if you play like crap, develop your own style. I’ve seen drummers who were
technically great, but totally fucking boring and uninspiring as musicians and live performers. I’ve seen drummers who could barely play, but played with such emotion and style that they blew me away, ya know!

SD.com: How do you prepare for a tour? (as far as your family/and as far as playing).

Rich: For family stuff I just tie up loose ends as much as possible and make sure there is some way to contact me when I am out on the road. As far as playing, I just rehearse with the band as much as possible, playing the set over and over until we can’t stand it anymore. If that’s not possible then I just play thru the set by myself as much as I can.

SD.com: Who gave the best live performance you’ve ever seen?

Rich: I dunno, maybe that dave Lombardo guy who plays for slayer? I drank a lot of jaeger that night!!!!

SD.com: Tell us about your drum set and what equipment you are using.

Rich: I use trick drums pedals and the wooden “cask” style piccolo snare as described above. Promark 5a hickory wood tip sticks. Rented or borrowed drums. I have a crappy no name set that I bought in 1988, all the hardware has fell apart, but I have the kick drum rigged for awesome sound and the toms are extra deep power toms so they can be made to sound good in the studio and are adequate for live stuff.

SD.com: If you had to stop drumming, what else would you want to do with your life?

Rich: I’d put my law degree to use of course, make a shit ton of money and live a lavish lifestyle!

More Video From Richard Hoak:

Brutal Truth live video from Maryland Deathfest:

Dementia/K.A.P./Vision
http://www.youtube.com/v/ZklwwLmZ5oc

Godplayer / Turnface / Choice of a New Generation
http://www.youtube.com/v/GNXyVVqN5Kk

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD ONE, FILMED FROM BEHIND THE DRUMSET:
Let’s Go to War(backstage view!)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=avK16-dwNTM

Blind Leading the Blind / Pass Some Down / Let’s Go to War
http://www.youtube.com/v/2TJdWx1tX28

Birth of Ignorance
http://www.youtube.com/v/oHZLkjV5538

MORE BT VIDS:

TFD VIDS:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9_iyNI68Z4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZfb8VIcSoc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xwprr909fzE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3GahC8OHbY

the video single from new cd, zen and the art of total fucking destruction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxEpHVg7Q5s

tfd as the soundtrack for the short film “Toast!”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDuZ9KMAwPo

tfd at last year’s maryland deathfest:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C68vFfBEXNM

tfd on cameraphone in london:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOp2PpgiNuY

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