Bring Me the Horizon’s Matt Nichols Discusses the Evolution of His Drum Style

Matt Nichols, drummer for British metal band Bring Me the Horizon, talked with Music Radar recently about how his approach to drumming and his drumming style have evolved since the band’s formation in 2004.

The band released their fourth album, 'Sempiternal,' in April of this year, and Nichols, seen at the far left above, said he and the rest of the guys in the band have matured since their first album came out when they were still very young. "We were just kids when we started, but as the band got bigger and bigger we saw an opportunity to do something with ourselves,” said the drummer.

He added that when he started with the band, his desire to be metal got the better of him. “I was really frantic and trying to be as metal as possible; doing things I couldn't really do. I was pulling it off but I was scraping by,” said Nichols. He said that he’s learned a lot in the ten years since then. He feels that he’s become a more solid drummer, playing more to compliment the song than to be as fast and metal as possible.

As far as technique, Nichols said he’s been working on strengthening his left hand, which he always felt was somewhat stiff. Now he practices with a Korg Beatlab and said he’s seeing results. “It's got a lot of different stuff on there and I practice with it for ages and build my left hand up. I'll sit there and do single strokes to get my left hand used to playing like my right hand,” he explained. “It's definitely improved -- not perfect, but much better."

Nichols also talked about how his approach to his and the band’s music career has changed. When he first started playing shows at the tender age of 18, it was all about getting drunk and having fun. Now, instead of chugging beers in the tour van before playing, he warms up on a practice kit. “I feel like an actual drummer now, which is cool," he said.

Bring Me the Horizon are currently touring across the world. For a list of tour dates, check out their website.