Mike Porter – Capital Region Timekeepers

Mike Porter – Capital Region Timekeepers – by OP Callaghan.

Hello music fans, I have a confession to make.  A close friend of mine recently implied that I would soon run out of local drummers to interview for this column, and it got me thinking.  I know several folks who use online tools such as ChatGPT to answer questions and provide insightful answers.  So, I confess.  I went and googled “Best Drummer In Albany”.  I was not disappointed.

AI overview immediately pulled up the name Mike Porter.  But who was Mike Porter?  I was not familiar with the man, but you bet your ass I am now!  Mike has been a session and live drummer in the area for decades.  He’s a great player, and a wonderful guy (according to ME, not AI), so please welcome Mike Porter!

RRX: Welcome, Mike, great to have you with us. Tell me how you got started playing drums.

Mike Porter: Thanks for having me, OP!

There were drums in my house as far back as I can remember. My older brother played a bit in high school, and had a drum set in his room when I was very little. I don’t remember playing it, but there are pictures of me as a baby sitting at the kit with sticks in hand!

RRX: Tell me about your first kit

MP: For Christmas, I believe in 7th grade, my parents surprised me with a Cannon 5-piece kit in a candy red wrap. I played that kit every single day after school for hours. I wish I still had it! Sadly, I traded it for a DW Pacific kit when I started playing shows. Sometimes I wonder where my first kit is today …

RRX: I will be on the lookout for a 5-piece cannon!  Do you come from a musical family? Do you play any other instruments?

MP: My dad and uncles also played drums and percussion in high school. I remember always hearing music in the house growing up, and finding my parents’ stash of old cassettes and LPs. I was fascinated with them, and I would pull out the artwork and read the liner notes while listening to the Human League, Bob Seger, Fleetwood Mac, stuff like that. A lot of great ‘70s and ‘80s stuff.

Besides the drum kit, I play the cajon and other hand percussion and electronic percussion instruments. Lately, I’ve been playing around with an old acoustic guitar along with my daughter, who is 8. It’s fun to be a beginner at something again!

RRX: The next generation!  Have you taken lessons or self-taught? Matched grip, or traditional?

MP: I was self-taught as a beginner, for better or worse. I’m a lefty who plays a right-handed kit setup, kind of like Ringo. I play open-handed, with a matched grip. I would mirror what I saw other right-handed players do, except that I lead with my left hand. Since I never had lessons, no one ever told me it was “wrong,” which was probably a blessing!

As an adult in my twenties, I realized I needed to go back and sort of start from scratch. I called up my friend Mike Bruce (another great area drummer), who I’ve known since I was in high school, and asked him for some private lessons. Best decision I could have made!

RRX: Tell me about your first gig.

MP: My first gig was with a band called “Dewpoint Blank.” I was about 17, the summer before my senior year of high school. We were a pop-punk band who wrote our own music. Our bass player had booked a tour of the East Coast, and this was our warm-up show. I had just joined the band, maybe two or three weeks before. The gig was at a friend’s house, in the garage. There must have been 50 other kids there, all piled into this little garage. Sweat was pouring off the ceiling. I remember a mosh pit and someone climbing up the loft and almost collapsing the whole thing on us while we played. Awesome show. Needless to say, I was hooked after that!

RRX: Occupational hazard!  What are you playing for a kit now? Are you a collector?

MP: I’m not much of a collector. I have a few different kits and a few snare drums that each serve a different purpose. I have a beautiful PDP 4-piece maple kit with a big 24″ kick that I absolutely love. I also have a 5-piece Ludwig Made in the USA Birch kit in a blue sparkle finish that is, in my opinion, the most beautiful finish you could ever want on a kit. Those are the two kits I play most often.

RRX: Love a blue sparkle Luddy kit! Who are you playing with now?

MP: Most recently, I was playing with the Vinny Michaels Band (a country rock band). I also sub in with the Doc Orloff Blues Elixir band. I love those guys.

From 2021 to 2024, I played in Yacht Masters NY, which was my pet project. We were a ‘70s & ‘80s yacht rock tribute act. Sadly, we lost our frontman, Todd Sardella, to pancreatic cancer just over a year ago. He was one of the best musicians I’ve ever played with and an all-around great guy.

Prior to that, during the Covid lockdown, I was in two studio bands at the same time: one called Shadowlight and one called Red Light Rivals with my friend Steve Morehouse. Before that was a cover band called the Shakedown. Before that was a band called Saving Atlantis that wrote original music and played covers, and also a jazz/rock band called the Grand Design. Then, before that was a band called East Avenue. And that brings us back to the beginning. All of those bands featured a few core members who I’ve been playing with on and off for 20 years.

I’ve been able to play all around the Capital Region and up and down the East Coast. I’m very blessed.

RRX: Who are some of your early influences? Who influences you now?

MP: My earliest influence was Carter Beauford. Not long after, my high school music teacher and mentor, John Savage, turned me on to Dave Weckl and Dennis Chambers. He actually took me to see Dave Weckl play at the Van Dyck when I was about 16 or 17, which was mind-blowing at that point in my life. One of my earliest bandmates was a big Police fan, and he hipped me to Stewart Copeland, who remains one of my biggest influences. Then, of course, I discovered John Bonham, Neil Peart, and Phil Collins. I was also very much into the early 2000s emo/pop punk scene, and there were (and still are) a lot of cool drummers from that era.

These days, my influences change all the time. I find myself going back to the legendary session cats like Steve Gadd, Jeff Porcaro, Vinnie Colaiuta, and Jim Keltner for inspiration. Anyone who drummed on a Steely Dan record (Bernard Purdie, Jim Gordon, Keith Carlock, etc.) is a reference point. Ringo, of course, is on the list, as are Mick Fleetwood and Steve Smith. I’m still a big fan of Dave Weckl. Some contemporary guys like Nate Smith and Shannon Forrest blow my mind. Jimmy Chamberlin is incredible. Ash Soan, Griffin Goldsmith, and Aaron Sterling are all incredible. Benny Greb. Danny Carey from Tool. I’m excited to see Anika Nilles play with Rush. Questlove and the Roots made a record with Elvis Costello several years back, which has some incredible grooves all over that thing.

It goes on and on. And don’t even get me started on all the great Nashville drummers …

Most importantly, we have a ton of GREAT drummers in the Capital Region who inspire me probably as much, if not more than, the “big name” cats.

RRX:  You are correct!  There are a ton of great drummers in the Capital Region. Any gig horror stories?

MP: I’ve been pretty lucky to avoid most of the horror story cliches you hear about!

RRX: Tell me about a performance or recording that you are most proud of, thus far in your career.

MP: Live gigs:

The first would be opening for Ty Herndon last year at the Wood Theater in Glens Falls. It was an acoustic show. That is a beautiful theater, and playing in that setting is definitely something different and special.

Next would be playing one of the main stages at LarkFest in Albany way back in 2008. I met Tom Morello for like 10 seconds – ha!

Recordings:

I’m really proud of the majority of recordings I’ve been a part of, especially the original songs. Recordings are like a diary of where you are as a musician at that moment in time. We always worked really hard in the studio to get what we were after.

These four songs are from different records by different bands, all original songs, which I recorded either at Tim Lynch’s studio (The Recording Company) or in my home studio. I feel they represent my style and approach as a drummer pretty well. There’s other recordings I’m proud of too, but unfortunately, that stuff isn’t online!

1. The Grand Design – “The Kansas City Shuffle” | The Grand Design https://share.google/C1H4ZDrf4T0jGnhjW
2. Shadowlight – “Misery” – https://open.spotify.com/track/0Sfh2lhHajulsS8lEXfqdl?si=HbNMyQmMT7awNzOlg4leFQ
3. Doc Orloff – “Johnny’s Mourning” – https://youtu.be/bunozDwxpkc?si=a1mHkO3XbNotj1aN
4. Red Light Rivals – “There Ain’t Enough Time” – https://youtu.be/Ed9YBDNP04s?si=O-jLkPEOGg3VDNuu

Lastly, from 2013 to 2024, I helped produce an annual music festival in Gloversville, NY called “The Eddie.” The festival was held in memory of a local musician and friend named Ed Lakata. A “who’s who” of local acts played every year – sometimes as many as 20 acts across 2 stages. I’m really proud of being a part of this event and getting to play with some great musicians every year. The Eddie meant a lot to the community.

RRX: Anything else? Where can we see you play next?

MP: I’m taking some time off from gigging for a bit to spend more time with my family. My two girls are growing up fast, and it’s been a pleasure watching them find their own things that bring them joy! They definitely love music and enjoy watching their old man hit the drums, which makes me smile. They’re my inspiration for sure.

It’s kind of exciting to not know exactly what I’ll be doing next, but I know I’ll be back out playing again at some point soon. In the meantime I hope to do some more recording in my home studio.

Overall, I’m just very grateful to have been able to play music with my friends for over 20 years now. My advice to the people out there playing a ton of gigs would be: ttay humble, be kind, never stop learning. And, slow down and take it all in from time to time. Like Ferris Bueller said: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

Thank you, Mike!  And thank you, Ferris.

 

 

More from OP Callaghan…