Fountain of Youth? Playing Drums

All of Liquidrummr's influences are approaching 70 and still rockin' out, and he plans to follow their lead.

I started playing drums as a young teen, sitting in with my Dad’s jazz/rock bands. Made the move to hard rock in high school, and worked with a number of bands in northern California over the years. Got about as far as I could get but never quite became a household name. I did make money and best of all, had a lot of fun.

In the mid 80’s, I got married and started a family, and put music on the back burner for too long. Got divorced in the mid 90’s and shortly after landed a job in a friend’s band called “Always Down,” which at the time was one of the more popular club acts around northern California.

So at 46, I was playing 3 or 4 nights a week, mostly around Sacramento and Lake Tahoe, but did shows in the Bay Area as well. That lasted a few years and was a LOT of fun. For the last few years I’ve been drumming for my brother’s band “Under Fire,” a heavy rock Christian band and recently started another band with an old and very dear friend-guitar player from a band I was in back in the 80’s.

I occasionally help my brother run light and sound setups for popular Christian bands when they are touring on the west coast. I’m also drumming and singing in a classic rock band with some other friends, mostly just a fun project but we like to get out and play a club or two now and then. If that’s not enough to keep me busy, I’ve also been the drummer of the worship band at my church for the last 6 years. Sometimes I get called upon to do studio projects for friends and when I can find the time, I teach drum and guitar lessons.

I love playing the drums: they are my Fountain of Youth. Every time I sit down to play, it’s like I’m 20 all over again. I draw my inspiration from all the fogeys out there who were big when I was a kid: Rush, The Stones, The Who, Ringo and Paul, Ozzy, Alice Cooper, etc. These guys are pushing 70 and still rockin’ the house down. Gives me somethin’ to shoot for!

Mario (aka Liquidrummr)
Sacramento, California