Alan Myers (drummer)
| Alan Myers | |
|---|---|
Myers, 2006
|
|
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Human Metronome |
| Born | 1955 Akron, Ohio, United States |
| Died | June 24, 2013 (aged 58) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instruments |
|
| Years active | 1976–2013 |
| Associated acts |
|
| Notable instruments | |
Alan Myers (1955 – June 24, 2013) was an American rock drummer whose music career spanned more than 30 years. He came to prominence in the late 1970s as the third and most prominent drummer of the new wave band Devo, replacing Jim Mothersbaugh. Myers was known for the precision of his drumming, especially on the complex and often bizarre rhythms Devo used on their albums. He was often referred to as the Human Metronome.
Alan Myers was born in 1955, in Akron, Ohio, and came from a jazz background. He graduated from Firestone High School in 1973. In 1976, he met Bob Mothersbaugh in a café in West Akron and went to the house Bob and Gerald Casale were renting for an audition. Alan was Jewish and had been playing percussion since at least junior high school.
In early 1970, Bob Lewis and Gerald Casale formed the idea of the "devolution" of the human race after Casale's friend Jeffrey Miller was killed by Ohio National Guardsmen firing on a student demonstration. Myers joined Devo in 1976, replacing Jim Mothersbaugh following his departure and played on a conventional, acoustic drum kit. After the band underwent a few line-up changes, Myers became part of the most popular five-piece incarnation, which included the Casale brothers: Gerald and Bob ("Bob 2") and the Mothersbaugh brothers: Mark and Bob ("Bob 1") and played on Devo's first six studio albums. In 1981, Myers with Devo served as Toni Basil's backing band on Word of Mouth, her debut album, which included versions of three Devo songs, recorded with Basil singing lead.
Some of the tracks on the album New Traditionalists featured drum machines for the first time on a Devo album, and most of the music on their next album Oh, No! It's Devo was created by electronic means, while Shout was made almost entirely using the Fairlight CMI digital sampling synthesizer.
...
Wikipedia