327 - Blake Fleming: Quality Over Quantity, The Book of Rhythm, Speaking Honestly About the State of Music and Drumming

Blake Fleming is a percussionist known for his involvement with several influential experimental bands and has recently written his first book, The Book of Rhythm, an unprecedented collection of 5,096 meticulously organized rhythms for all instruments. His drumming has been written about in such major publications as The New York Times, NPR.com, Spin, Rolling Stone, MOJO, Modern Drummer, DRUM!, Dangerous Minds, and Pitchfork. He was included in SPIN’s 100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music and has recorded and toured extensively, working with luminaries in the jazz, rock and avant-garde worlds. Alongside a variety of studio work, he also enjoys teaching students worldwide with live online lessons and is an adjunct professor at The State University of New York at Oneonta.
In this episode, Blake talks about:

Quality over quantity 

A homogenization of music and drumming 

Early experimental bands

His book: The Book of Rhythm

Asking yourself “Why?” And being self aware