About Jamie Eads
Jamie Eads is a drummer and music producer from Georgetown, KY. He is a founding member of Funnel, a guitar-driven, power rock band that has been active since 1997. He has recorded and toured with other artists such as Wheelhorse, The Eric Cummins Band, No Fences, John McHugh, Tyler Booth, and many others. He is a voting member of The Recording Academy and The Americana Music Association. He is also the founder, host and producer of The Drum Shuffle podcast that seeks to interview the greatest drummers alive and share the knowledge and incredible fellowship of drumming, worldwide.
Jamie's Career
Jamie Eads has been a drummer since 1989. A native of Central Kentucky, Jamie caught the music bug at an early age. Growing up in a home with a mammoth vinyl collection, having a brother thirteen years his senior (who just happened to be a college disc jockey,) and being rebellious by nature, Jamie couldn't escape rock 'n roll. When he discovered Motley Crue in 1985, the writing was on the wall. Once he witnessed Tommy Lee flying upside down while playing the drums, it was only a matter of time. Drumming took center-stage for Jamie in 1989 and he has never looked back.
Jamie moved to Memphis at age 19 and immersed himself into the city's eclectic music scene playing in every heavy metal to old-school Delta Blues band he could find. This was a time to "pay dues," so to speak. Subbing on Beale Street for many legendary drummers over the course of a year, Jamie's "street" education pushed him on to new chapters in his musical journey.
When he returned home to Kentucky in 1997, he co-founded Funnel. After winning 100.1 WKQQ’s prestigious Decent Exposure contest, Funnel released their debut album, Wide Open, in May 1998 to widespread national radio airplay. Funnel garnered major-label attention with the release of Wide Open. In the following years, Funnel shared the stage with dozens of national acts including, Peter Frampton, Goo Goo Dolls, Candlebox, Drivin’ N’ Cryin’, Third Eye Blind and Dokken. Funnel played hundreds of shows throughout the region before going on hiatus in 2001.
After Funnel, Jamie spent several years in the critically-acclaimed Wheelhorse in support of their album Victrola For Sale. One of the only unsigned bands to ever be reviewed by RollingStone.com to this day, Wheelhorse narrowly missed the explosion of the now ubiquitous Americana movement.
In the mid 2000s, Jamie joined one of Central Kentucky's busiest and well-known Americana bands, The Eric Cummins Band. After two successful albums, Mountain and Brand New Heartache, and the support cycles for those albums over the following eight years, Jamie is one of the most recognized drummers in Kentucky.
Jamie still plays regular shows with Funnel and stays very busy in the studio, doing session work on a regular basis for a wide range of artists. In 2018, Jamie founded the weekly drum podcast, The Drum Shuffle. As producer and host of the show, he interviews the some of the most well-known drummers each week for thousands of listeners worldwide.
As each successive chapter continues to unfold for Jamie, he remains dedicated to his passion for drumming and great music. A self-described “meat and potatoes, groove-oriented” drummer, Jamie is capable of playing any style of music with comfort and grace. His sole interest is to play his chosen instrument as often as possible.
Jamie is a District Advocate and voting member of The Recording Academy (Grammys), The Americana Music Association, and The Percussive Arts Society. He resides in Georgetown, Kentucky with his wife and daughter.
"Quite simply, I searched for well over a decade to find cymbals that sounded the way I imagined them sounding in my head. When I discovered Dream Cymbals, I finally found THAT sound. I have used almost every line that Dream offers and I have yet to be let down by a Dream cymbal. The 'Dream' cymbal sound is the one I imagined for years and they have created exactly what I had always searched for. Powerful, yet not harsh, expressive, yet not delicate. Whether in a live setting or in the recording studio, these cymbals have every sound palette that I could ever need, covered. From the lightest tap to the strongest slap, these cymbals speak with a beautiful and unique voice that inspires me to play better."
Jamie's Dream Setup
Meet Our Artists
Michael Cavanagh
Michael “Cavs” Cavanagh is an Australian drummer best known for his work with the psychedelic rock band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. Cavs has been a pivotal member of the band since their formation in 2010. His dynamic drumming style encompasses an array of genres, including psychedelic rock, progressive rock, jazz, and thrash metal.
Cavanagh’s versatility and energy have significantly contributed to the band’s innovative, genre-bending sounds.
Paul Wertico
Paul Wertico, a seven-time Grammy-winning drummer best known for his work with the Pat Metheny Group, has performed with artists like David Bowie and Kurt Elling and released several acclaimed solo albums. Also a dedicated educator, he’s in his 22nd year as Associate Professor of Jazz at Roosevelt University and continues to conduct drum clinics worldwide.
Ben Satterlee
Ben Satterlee has been connected to the drums for as long as he can remember. Raised in Oklahoma, he came up through concert band in middle school and jazz band in high school, earning spots in the Tulsa All-City Band during both his junior and senior years. He credits his early mentors, Mr. Baird (Nimitz Middle School) and Mr. Kirk (Booker T. Washington High School), for fostering his passion and setting him on the path he still follows today.
Though accepted to Berklee College of Music after graduation, Ben chose to continue the momentum he had already built—having played club gigs since the age of 13 and touring regionally by 19. In 2012, he and his wife relocated to Nashville, where his career expanded into touring, recording, and developing his own teaching approach rooted in simplicity, musicality, and real-world application.
Ben is currently in his third year as the touring drummer for Grammy Award–winning Larkin Poe. When he’s not on the road, he’s at home in Nashville spending time with his wife and their four boys.
Dante Foley
Dante Foley (They/Them) is a drummer and video creator from Cleveland, Ohio. Coming from the Cleveland open mic and DIY scene of the 2010s they sat in with many local projects before joining and touring with Cleveland collective Mourning [A] BLKstar. The collective went on to win the Cleveland Arts prize, compose and perform music for Company Christoph Winkler in Berlin, Germany, as well as tour the U.S. and the E.U.
Foley has also traveled the U.S. and E.U. as a guest percussionist in the band Algiers and freestyle percussionist for the Lonnie Holley quartet.
Lia Braswell
Setting out on one’s own is a daunting thing. Whether it’s leaving home, changing careers, or in Lia Braswell’s case, pursuing her first solo musical endeavor, the process is nearly always as fraught as it is illuminating. But on her debut full length, Repetition, Revisions, Temptation, Decisions, she executes the feat with astounding grace.
If Braswell’s name rings a bell, that’s because it should. Having done time as the touring drummer for A Place To Bury Strangers, TR/ST, Le Butcherettes, Sextile, and many others, Braswell has performed on nearly every continent and played internationally renowned festivals such as Coachella and Cruel World. As such, it should come as no surprise that her impressive resumé shines through in the expertly crafted, ethereal dream pop of Repetition, Revisions, Temptations, Decisions. Simultaneously evoking the airy, atmospheric sensibilities of Cocteau Twins, the pop-forward experimentation of Kate Bush, and the hyper-danceable, retro synthwave of contemporary artists like Riki and Nuovo Testamento, Braswell’s self-assured presence as both a songwriter and vocalist results in an effort that bears none of the awkward growing pains one might expect from a new project. Equally arresting is Braswell’s lyrical finesse, with profoundly evocative and delicately personal narratives elevating the already deeply affecting music to heights that border on the sublime.
Moving from the relative anonymity of a drumkit to the revealing illumination of center stage comes with its own unique set of anxiety-inducing challenges, but if Braswell is experiencing any trepidation, it certainly doesn’t show in the quality of her music. Then again, when you’ve already toured with Iggy and the Stooges by age 20, maybe embarking on a solo career seems quaint in comparison. What’s beyond debate is that Braswell has a remarkable knack for songwriting and performance that is self-evident on her stunning debut. Accomplished a career as it already is, Repetition, Revisions, Temptations, Decisions feels like just one more step forward in an ever-growing body of work that is much greater than the sum of its parts.
Escape Ten
Escape Ten is a percussion duo formed by Dr. Annie Stevens and Dr.
Andrea Venet. Escape Ten is passionate about exploring all genres, and expressing it creatively through the colorful world of percussion. The duo performs a varied and exciting spectrum of music- including contemporary, pop, jazz, and classical selections. Repertoire includes their own innovative arrangements, as well as arrangements and compositions written exclusively for the duo.
Escape Ten actively performs around the country and has their own publication series of new percussion duos through Keyboard Percussion Publications (KPP). Recent activity includes a showcase concert at the 2016 PASIC Convention of new keyboard duo works, and Escape Ten's world premiere of their commission, 2300 Degrees by Ivan Trevino in Atlanta’s Spivey Hall.
Escape Ten has been featured artists at the Barnes Foundation, the 35th and 36th Annual Leigh Howard Stevens Marimba Seminars, the Rhea Miller Concert Series, the McCormick Marimba Festival, Minnesota Percussion Association Day of Percussion, University of Central Arkansas, University of North Carolina, Southeast Missouri State, Virginia Tech, the International Trombone Festival, Christopher Newport University, the Virginia Music Educators Association Conference and at the Virginia Humanities Conference at Roanoke College.
Decorated as accomplished soloists, Escape Ten members Annie Stevens and Andrea Venet have both performed and competed throughout the world. Both hold a doctorate in Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music. Dr. Stevens is Assistant Professor of Percussion at Virginia Tech Dr. Venet is Assistant Professor of Percussion at the University of North Florida.
Andrea and Annie are both Malletech performing artists, endorse Remo and Dream Cymbals, and are active members of the Percussive Arts Society.
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(Andrea Venet)
Dr. Andrea Venet is the Assistant Professor of Percussion at the University of North Florida where she directs the UNF percussion ensemble, teaches applied lessons, pedagogy, methods and percussion literature. As a passionate educator, Dr. Venet’s research involves pedagogy, with focus on college percussion education at various levels, classical improvisation and historically informed Baroque performance practice techniques for Bach on marimba. Her arrangements and compositions can be found through KPP.
As an international soloist, Dr. Venet has performed at the 5th Annual Marimba Competition in Stuttgart, Perkumania Paris International Marimba Competition, as well as taking 2nd prize at the 2013 PAS KoSA Solo Marimba Competition at New York University. Additionally, Dr. Venet has been a featured soloist with the Eastman Percussion Ensemble, a member of the award winning Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps, and performed with Grammy winning alternative band TOOL.
(Annie Stevens)
Dr. Annie Stevens is the Assistant Professor of Percussion at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia where she teaches studio percussion and directs the Virginia Tech Percussion Ensemble. As an active soloist and chamber musician throughout the U.S. and internationally, Annie has been featured in recent performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, International Trombone Festival, the International Trumpet Guild, the International Computer Music Conference, and Eastman’s China Connection Ensemble. She has performed with the festival orchestras of the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, the National Orchestral Institute in College Park, Maryland, and the Aspen Music Festival. She can be heard on albums, Blue Earth County with the Kelly Rossum Quartet, and Escape Ten’s, Colours of a Groove.