4.8 • 709 Ratings
🗓️ 25 October 2017
⏱️ 51 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Steven Drozd joined The Flaming Lips in 1991. His one of a kind drumming style fuses Bonhamesque bombast with a clever compositional sense reminiscent of Can’s Jaki Liebezeit; but his contributions to the band aren’t limited to drumming. Drozd plays most of the instruments on The Flaming Lips' recordings and co-writes their songs. He tells Joe about playing in his father’s band at age eleven; having his mind blown by The Jesus Lizard and The Melvins; his role in The Flaming Lips; creative confidence; and embracing joy in the wake of considerable tragedy. This is one of our favorite episodes.
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
0:00.0 | Hey, folks, we're really excited to share today's episode, but first a public service announcement to the people of Los Angeles. |
0:07.1 | On Saturday, November 4th, the third guest ever to appear on the trap set, Kid Millions, is coming to Los Angeles with his amazing band, Man Forever. |
0:17.0 | He's got an all-star lineup consisting of Matt Evans, Corey Fogle, Phil Manley, Leah Bowden, and I might even join in. |
0:25.5 | Kid is a big inspiration of mine and also of today's guest Stephen Drozd. |
0:29.8 | That's Saturday, November 4th at The Smell. |
0:46.3 | Yeah. This is Joe Wong. Welcome to the Trap Set, where each week we explore the lives of drummers. |
0:52.3 | I want to play something for you. You're hearing slow nerve action by the Flaming Lips, featuring my guest, Stephen Drozed on drums. |
1:34.3 | Born to a musical family in Texas, Stephen joined the Flaming Lips in 1991, marrying authentic Bonhame-esque bombast with a keen sense of composition reminiscent of Cairns Jackie Leibzite, |
1:48.2 | Stephen's drumming is at once familiar and remarkably unique, |
1:52.0 | but his contributions to the band aren't limited to drumming. |
1:55.4 | He plays most of the other instruments on the Flaming Lips recordings and co-writes the band's songs. Aside from his work with the Flaming Lips, Stephen has explored film composing and has also worked with artists such as Elliot Smith, J. Ferrar, Steve Burns, and Lips Offshoot Electric Worms. |
2:26.3 | I spoke to him at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles before a recent performance. |
2:45.0 | And now my conversation with Steven Droz. |
2:58.3 | Yeah, I was born in Houston, Texas, and then two years later when I was like two, |
3:04.9 | we moved to Richmond, Texas, which is just a small town, about 30 miles southwest of Houston. |
3:06.2 | And your father was a polka musician? |
3:08.8 | Yeah, he actually, my dad, he had, man, he has this whole history himself. |
3:13.5 | He started playing clarinet when he was like 14. |
3:17.3 | And then he joined the Joe Patech Orchestra, which was like a, like a Czech German waltz polka dance band then he picked up the saxophone he was 16 |
3:27.8 | discovered rock and roll was in the first all-white rock and roll band in texas called joey long |
3:33.7 | and the wild ones in nineteen fifty six and um so he moved from a really really small town |
3:39.6 | in texas to houston and that's how he started a family there but yeah And so he moved from a really, really small town in Texas to Houston, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Joe Wong, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Joe Wong and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.