If you go to local shows in Las Vegas, odds are good that you’ve seen Micah Malcolm drumming. The man is extremely prolific, from brief stints in Banana Riot and Curl Up and Die to more recent recent gigs with Illicitor and New Cold War. But Malcolm is probably best known for his work with The Quitters, a band he’s been a part of since high school. With all that experience under his belt, Malcolm has decided to branch out into the world of teaching, following in the footsteps of great educators like Mr. Feeny and Michelle Pfeiffer’s character from Dangerous Minds, except with a focus on the drums. With all this going on, Malcolm still found time to sit down with us for 5 questions.
It’s not at all uncommon to see drummers in multiple bands, but you’re currently pulling triple duty with Quitters/Illicitor/New Cold War. Can you tell us a little about how you ended up in each band and how you alter your approach for each band?
I’ve been with The Quitters since high school; Marc, Tom, Randy, and I were all band geeks. In jazz band, I was on the drum kit, Marc was on the standup bass, Tom on trumpet, and Randy on trombone. Tom won a guitar at a silent auction during the annual Jazz Band Spaghetti Dinner and we started covering MxPx, Offspring and Green Day outside of school. We organized this event called the Milk Gallon Challenge (as in seeing who could finish and keep down a gallon of milk within an hour – not many as it turns out) and The Quitters were the entertainment. From there we began writing our own tunes and have been playing anywhere that will have us since. All of The Quitters want to make original yet familiar music, and my personal approach is to bring something to a song that I haven’t yet played in a tune already, or attempt something I don’t yet know how to do, so that I’m constantly challenging myself. It keeps me sharp and from being complacent with playing.
Illicitor was just a case of perfect timing. Holding On To Sound was my favorite local band, period. After the bummer of their break-up, I was totally stoked when I heard that Zabi, Bob, and Vanessa were getting back at it with Illicitor. The Quitters played their debut show at the Armory and it was amazing! Maybe a week or two later I got a call from Zabi saying that Vanessa unfortunately was leaving the band and asked if I would be interested in being their new drummer. I didn’t even have to think about it; my answer was immediately yes. It was a huge honor to be considered for the position by musicians that I really admired and respected. I started out just learning all of the songs they had written with Vanessa, who’s a phenomenal drummer, and began to implant my style into them. Now that Bob, Zabi, and I are writing tunes together, the territory is getting crazy in the best possible way.
New Cold War came about from jamming at Camel Hump Studios. I found myself there a lot the last few years and was having sessions with a bunch of guys from established bands. John Brown (Battle Born, Camel Hump co-owner/engineer) was playing back some tunes he recorded with Cody and Louie from People’s Whiskey and Andy who had just left Surrounded By Thieves. They were solid, straight forward, punk rock bangers and they sounded great. John brought up the idea of having Louie and I tag team the drums, and the thought of splitting duties with my favorite drummer in town was such an interesting concept to me, I couldn’t say no. My approach with NCW is simple: play as fast as I can.
We were way stoked a few years back to hear that you’d be drumming on a Curl Up and Die reunion tour. Sadly, that tour never came to be. Can you talk a little bit about how you got hooked up with those guys, and can you give us any insight as to why that tour fell apart?
Originally, Jay Losey, the amazing drummer from Happy Campers, was going to be the man behind the kit for the CUAD reunion. Unfortunately he had some scheduling conflicts and realized it wasn’t going to happen. Jay contacted me and asked if I was interested in auditioning and I said Hell Yes!! Not only were these guys legendary in the Vegas scene and beyond, but long ago in my first high school band, Mayfield Place, I got to open up for them at Balcony Lights; this was a rare chance at a full circle moment for me. I listened to CUAD’s incredibly intricate setlist that Jay passed to me on loop and practiced my ass off. Curl Up And Die songs are not easy by any stretch and I really had to step my game up to get my chops to their level. When I met the guys, they couldn’t have been more gracious and professional. They seemed to like me too because they brought me on as their new drummer.
As far as the reunion tour not happening, it’s hard to say why it never came to fruition; I was just the hired gun entering into an already established history. What I can say is that distance seemed to be the main factor in the demise of the reunion, seeing as Mike Minnick, the lead singer, was now living in Chicago. I’ve got no bad blood with anyone involved, and I hope that if the opportunity arises for a reunion in the future they’ll get in contact with me.
Having been involved in the local scene for so long, what have been your favorite venues to play at and/or see other bands at? Do you prefer all-ages or 21+ gigs?
I’ve got a ton of miles logged with the Double Down Saloon. That place is like the CBGB of Las Vegas; it will always have a special place in my heart. I love playing at Backstage Bar & Billiards. It’s a venue that’s consistently had awesome, larger acts and are really good to the local bands for the most part. The refurbished Bunkhouse is great too, the stage set up is significantly improved. My favorite venue at the moment has got to be the Artistic Armory. It’s all ages and you can feel the community in that place, not just with music, but with other art as well.
With all that being said, I really, really, really love playing house shows more than anything!! The shows I’ve had the pleasure of playing at House of Wonk and Zarfest are unparalleled. These days, houses are getting respect and the hosts take pride in running a tight show; and underage bands like Narrowed and Alaska just blow my mind with how talented they are. It’s awesome to see the community create something for itself when Vegas has always had trouble maintaining anything all ages friendly.
If you suddenly became unstuck from time and could drum for any band past or present, who would it be?
Hopefully it’s understood that I can’t just narrow it down to one band, so I’ll go forward with an abridged list:
John Coltrane, Refused, Bad Religion, MinuteMen, Queens of the Stone Age, Gorillaz, Beck, The Clash, Elvis Costello, The Vandals and any project with Mike Patton.
You’re offering drum lessons now. What made you want to teach?
I’ve been playing percussion for about 20 years now. It’s what brings me the most joy in my life and I have so much fun creating music. I figured that with my experience, I could share that fondness with people who are willing to put in the hard work of learning how to play drums. It’s extremely fulfilling to teach someone and see it click with them. Also, talking shop with other experienced players that want to refine a technique from my perspective is a blast too. I’m always looking for new clients too, so hit me up if you’re interested.
Thanks Micah! If you’re interested in Micah’s drum lessons, you can reach him at:
https://www.facebook.com/drumlessonsbymicah
You can also find his bands on Facebook at the following links:
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