Artist Profile: Blake Fleming

Blake Fleming is a man who knows drums, and the rhythm and style it takes to create a new voice in drumming. His drum interest began at the young age of eight, leading him to several years of performance within orchestras, bagpipe bands and other experiences that led him straight into the world of experimental music. Known today as the drummer of Future by Now a New York-based experimental band that also features Andris Balins, Fleming is a prominent name in progressive, post-punk, math and experimental rock today and can be found teaching at State University of New York.

Perhaps Fleming’s best known work is as the original drummer for The Mars Volta, a Grammy Award-winning band from El Paso, Texas. His off-and-on five-year tenure with TMV led Fleming to a freelance drumming career, as well as a college-level teaching gig that inspires students and gives them a unique look into the world of drumming, rhythm and percussion.

When it comes to a truly unique sound that can keep up with the rigors of experimental rock and other alternative genres of music, cymbals play a vital role in the overall tone and experience of drumming, for both the drummer and audience. Fleming’s drum kit relays this same feeling though its Meinl cymbals that include the Byzance Dark Hi-Hat, Byzance Traditional Medium Thin Crash, Byzance Dark Spectrum Ride, Generation X Electro Stacks Effect and Byzance Jazz Extra Thin Ride.