Jon Theodore

Jon Theodore

Jon Theodore was the drummer of The Mars Volta. Best known for his bombastic, multi-textural and dynamic playing style, he has fast become recognized as one of the most talented and creative drummers in mainstream music. In addition to his percussive role, he worked on the arrangements in The Mars Volta's records. On July 30, 2006, it was announced that Jon Theodore would be replaced by Blake Fleming permanently. The reason for Jon Theodore's departure from the band is currently unknown.

History

Theodore first started playing drums at the age of 15. He was soon involved with his high school concert band and took lessons on a full kit shortly after. It was at this point that he studied percussion and learned how to map arrangements; dedicated practice had already become a daily habit. He also listened to a great variety of music, growing to love the likes of Billy Cobham, Elvin Jones and John Bonham.

Around the end of his time in high school, he joined the band Golden and recorded and toured with them for ten years. It was during this time that he met Cedric Bixler Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, who were performing their first gig with their experimental dub band DeFacto in El Paso, TX. They became friends and the former At The Drive-In duo would later invite Theodore to join their latin-tinged prog-rock band, The Mars Volta. Theodore was The Mars Volta's drummer from 2001 to 2006, when his permanent departure was announced on July 30. The reasons for his departure are as of yet unknown. He also played with Royal Trux for a year-and-a-half prior to joining The Mars Volta.

In his spare time Theodore surfs.

Influences

Theodore draws inspiration from many different forms of music but those most prevalent in his playing are jazz, fusion, and rock. He has also touched upon another factor which adds to his individual style - "Then there's a whole bunch of stuff from Haïti because my dad's Haïtian. My favorite Haïtian drummer is this guy called Azor... ...The Haïtian music that moves me has the drumming from the voodoo rituals. It moves me because the patterns are connected to different spirits; it's a spiritual thing that is interconnected with dancing, sacrifice and devotion. It's fully passionate. There is nothing contrived about it."

In interviews he regularly cites Billy Cobham of The Mahavishnu Orchestra as his main drumming influence: "My all-time favorite drummer is Billy Cobham. I love the way he plays... ...[his] playing is so natural, powerful and dynamic at the same time. I pattern a lot of stuff after him.". He has also been heavily inspired by John Bonham of Led Zeppelin: "He had one of the best feels in the history of rock... ...because [of him] I try and play with as much bombast as I possibly can."

He has also mentioned the following:

Elvin Jones (Independent, John Coltrane Quartet)
Keith Moon (The Who)
Phil Rudd (Independent, AC/DC)
Tony Williams (Independent)
Sebastian Thomson (Trans Am)
Tim Soete (The Fucking Champs)
Herbie Hancock (Herbie And The Headhunters)
Doug Scharin (June of '44)
Joseph "Zigaboo" Modeliste (The Meters)
Mitchell Feldstein (Lung Fish)
Damon Che (Don Caballero)
Dale Crover (The Melvins)
John McEntire (Tortoise)
Ryan Rapsys (Euphone)
Brann Dailor (Mastodon)

Equipment

At the time of writing (January 2006), Theodore's kit setup is as follows:

Drums:Fibes Crystalite (acrylic)
A. 6½ x 14 Ludwig Supraphonic Aluminium 402 snare (with tube lugs)
B. 10 x 14 tom
C. 16 x 16 floor tom
D. 16 x 18 floor tom
E. 14 x 24 bass drum


Cymbals: Zildjian
1. 13" hi-hats (Quick Beat top and a New Beat top for the bottom)
2. 19" A Custom Projection crash
3. 21" A ride with four rivets
4. a "stack of totally busted stuff on a cymbal stand." On the stand are two hi-hats cymbals with holes drilled through them; a splash cymbal with a cracked bell; a Zildjian FX Trashformer; and various, smaller shredder cymbals with metal washers.
5. 19" A medium-thin crash


Hardware: Pearl Eliminator kick pedal (with surf wax; he has been seen playing with bare feet), a DW 5000 Hi-hat stand, and DW cymbal stands.

Heads: Remo coated Ambassador on snare batter, CS black dots on tom and bass drum batters, clear Ambassadors on bottoms of toms and on front of bass drum.

Sticks: Vic Firth American Classic Extreme 5B model (hickory with wood tip).''

Recordings

Theodore has played on the following records:

Golden - Golden
Golden - Super Golden Original Movement
Golden - Golden Summer
Golden - Apollo Stars
The Mars Volta - Tremulant
The Mars Volta - De-Loused In The Comatorium
The Mars Volta - Live EP
The Mars Volta - Frances The Mute
The Mars Volta - Scabdates
The Mars Volta - Amputechture
Royal Trux - Veterans Of Disorder
HIM - New Features
HIM - Five & Six In Dub
Will Oldham - Ease Down the Road
Trans AM - Illegal Ass EP
SaberTooth Tiger - Death Valley b/w Love Money (GSL 12th Anniversary Single)
SaberTooth Tiger - Extinction Is Inevitable LP (GSL 2006)
Utada - Exodus