Jimmy Chamberlin NEWS

Yes, it's true.

We actually have some actual news

1: Chamberlin will playing some more shows with Frank Catalano, in support of their forthcoming album

2: We asked Tyson Meade for an update on his album (feat Jimmy) and he delivered.  Intriguingly, the most recent* addition to Belly Corgan's persona non grata list, Bongo-Master and 'studiodog' Kerry Brown, is producing the record;

From the Kickstarter update: "The good news is that I go to LA next week to finish mixing the record with my pal Kerry Brown who just worked on the upcoming Afghan Whigs record.  The release date is April 22nd. Jimmy Chamberlain contributed three drum tracks to the record. To say that I got emotional when i heard the tracks he contributed is an understatement. They are GODLIKE! Hail all to Jimmy..."

*no official word that the current hiatus of the Smashing Pumpkins represents the addition to the list we're all hoping for.  But here we remain eternally optimistic that it's indicative that Corgan has finally come to his senses and fired Byrne.   

New Track with Jimmy Chamberlin [Frank Catalano Project]

Check it out

Jimmy Chamberlin Wraps Recording on New Album

The album Jimmy Chamberlin has been working on with Frank Catalano and Percy Jones is in the bag. Since announcing on Friday the 15th of November that he was "Up early this morning to set up drums for a recording session with Jimmy Chamberlin... [who is] tracking a new album" drum tech extraordinaire Vic Salazar has been keeping us updated with a couple of photos here and there.  Today he reports that the recording session has wrapped;  "It's all done. Time to mix!". 

For those of you scratching your heads regarding the kit Chamberlin has been snapped playing, no he hasn't re-signed with Yamaha - he's just playing the studio's kit.  Interestingly, to me at least, in none of the photos that I've seen posted has [standard] close-miking been evident.  I'll speculate a little here - but judging by the musicians, coupled with the ambient miking - I'm getting the distinct impression that this is going to be quite an improvisational jazz record...  Unless they've been rehearsing for months of course and lest we forget Life Begins Again took what 40 odd days to write and record, with only 10 days in the studio proper...

Anyway, I'll keep you posted as we learn more.

Jimmy Chamberlin on New Album by LEILAMORDE

Apparently 'Jimmy Chamberlin drum samples' are on a number of tracks.

Check some of it out here... and here

More info about where these samples originated anon...

(I'd put money on JC drums being on "Qui non c'è gravità"...)

(Update: 12 May 2010) I got in touch with Dom and Marcello from Areasonica Records and this is what they had to say about the samples;

...when we chose the drumsets, we had various options, so we [used] the Jimmy cd-samples/loops* because they fit perfectly for some tracks...Chamberlin was not directly involved, but the jc-drums we used...influenced some tracks...

...yes the track "qui non c'è gravità" ("there's no gravity here") is fully jc. 

...At least five or six of the other tracks have double or triple drum-sets, where only bits and pieces of jc-drumset have been used... Basically, jc is in the first four tracks, track 8 and 10.

* I'm assuming they mean these...

Great to hear Jimmy Chamberlin's influence in another 'genre', other than the ones he's usually associated with...

Pumpkins Return to Their Patch...

With 'Teargarden by Kaleidyscope' a 44 Song album to be released for free, a song at a time - holding true to what Jimmy said back in March 2008: "I don't think we will make records again... The Pumpkins... will probably start releasing songs [rather than albums]." Chamberlin continued, "It's just in our best interest to release blocks of songs. And I think what we'll do...is to create the framework where we can release a number of songs and maybe create a title. We can gather three or four songs, but it will all flow up to a larger body of work."

"The music of 'Teargarden by Kaleidyscope' harkens back to the original psychedelic roots of The Smashing Pumpkins: atmospheric, melodic, heavy, and pretty. " Recording began on the 15th, in Pumpkinland 2.0. Lets keep our fingers crossed that they can pull it off without JC.

A band is only as good as its drummer...