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| FEATURED
ARTIST: |
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| This
time we caught up
with Shine drummer
Ben Hulse of the
band Retrograde
out of Vancouver.
Ben is not only a
super solid
touring drummer,
but he has a long
list of amazing
achievements and
has shared the
stage with greats
like Nickelback
and Default. Be
sure to check out
Ben and his band Retrograde
soon to be on tour
with 30 Seconds to
Mars. |
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| Artist
Bio: |
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 After spending part of his childhood in England and part in Canada, Ben started playing drums at age 12. He took a few lessons, joined the school band, and filled in the gaps listening to Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Nirvana. By 16 Ben was playing in the local club scene with his brother Toby on guitar. After a few member and sound changes, the Hulse brothers were joined by Brendan Stoneman (guitar) and Mark Lazeski (bass/vocals) and have been playing as retrograde ever since. Over the last few years the band has toured relentlessly, burning through two engines and a transmission while clocking nearly 100,000 miles. Through this group, Ben has performed at some of Canada’s biggest festivals and toured with some of the nation’s biggest rock bands (Nickelback, Default, Theory Of A Dead Man, and many more). Ben’s playing continues to be heard on radio stations across Canada and on TV shows around the world (America’s Next Top Model, numberous MTV & ESPN shows). Ben now lives in Vancouver, Canada where he continues to support and network within the local and national music scene, play on the occasional session, and write, record, and tour with retrograde.
How long have you been playing drums?
I’ve been playing for nearly 14 years now.
What was your first drum kit and how old were you when you got it?
Ah, the old 4-piece Westbury. $150 from the local music store. I was 12 years old – but started asking my parents for a drum kit 4 years earlier.
How long has your band been together and how did it start?
The core of the group, my brother and I, have been playing together for over a decade. The line-up and sound that we have now has been developed over the last 5 years.
Are you signed to a label? If so who and what has that experience been like?
We have been in and out of a couple indie label deals and we currently have distribution through an indie/major. The indie deals we had were great to help fund videos and radio promo, etc. – but none have been business savvy enough to survive.
Who are your main influences as a drummer?
My biggest influence as a beginner was definitely Jimmy Chamberlain of the Smashing Pumpkins. I was also a huge fan of Chad Smith, Dave Grohl, and Christian Simpson from a band called Glueleg (now disbanded but well worth looking up). A bit later, I got into Brad Wilk of Rage Against The Machine (for his well-crafted simplicity) and Danny Carey of Tool (for his well-crafted complexity).
What other notable bands have you been on tour with or played shows with that you really liked or respected?
We’ve played with quite a lot of cool bands. Some of the more well known ones are Nickelback, Default, Tea Party, Big Wreck & Theory of a Deadman. Being a big fan of Forrest Williams, it was a great experience to open for Big Wreck, meet the guys, and check out the show from side-stage.
What does the future hold tour wise for you over the next year?
We’re currently on a five-week coast to coast national Canadian tour. Then we’re home for a week, and back out on the road doing a string of Western Canadian dates with 30 Seconds To Mars. After this, we will probably do a bit of writing, some recording, and another national tour. We also anticipate touring the US West Coast sometime this year but nothing is concrete yet.
Tell us about your new Shine custom kit…sizes, colors, experience, staff etc.
Designing this kit from the ground up with Shine was an awesome experience. After playing maple shells for most of my career, I felt it was time to mix things up a bit.
 We started by talking about different shell options and I eventually settled on acrylic for its unique sound and durability (we do a ton of touring).
For sizes, I wanted some bigger sounds. I went for a 20x24 inch kick; 8x10, 10x12, 13x15, 16x18 toms; and 7x14 snare. I decided to go with the 15 inch floor after trying out a reissue acrylic Jon Bohnam kit with 16 & 18 inch floors. I loved the sound and the feel of 2 floors with the 18 at the bottom of the scale, but found there wasn’t enough contrast between the two for my taste. The 15 & 18 sound great together, and it also ended up giving me even intervals between the last 3 toms – 3 inch intervals on diameter and depth.
For colors, I wanted to take advantage of the transparent possibilities with acrylic -- but didn’t want anything too bright or gimmicky. I went with the semi-transparent smoke black shell which comes off looking like classic high gloss black under normal lighting, but appears almost completely transparent with back or side lighting. We tour with our own lighting, so I have control over this effect. For hardware, I wanted to go for the high contrast of white on black. The result is very sharp and they always get lots of attention as soon as I pull them out of their cases. |
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| Thanks
Ben for taking the time
to drop in and answer a
few questions. If you
would like more
information about
Retrograde and Ben,
please feel free to
check out their website
at Retrograde.ca.
Be sure you don't miss
Ben and his band
Retrograde out on tour
with 30 Seconds to Mars! |
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