Kris Myers

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Kris Myers (born April 5, 1977) is an American musician. He is currently the drummer for Chicago-based progressive rock band Umphrey's McGee.

Music career[]

Receiving his first drum kit at the age of 8, Myers took an early interest in jazz, rock and punk music. During high school Myers co-started his first musical outfit, a ska/punk band called the Skalawags. Although the group received a decent amount of success, they denied an offer to tour Japan and instead chose to pursue college degrees.

Myers attended Elmhurst College where he was a music major and the drummer in the Elmhurst College Jazz Band. Under director Doug Beach, the Elmhurst College Jazz Band played gigs both in the U.S. and Internationally at events such as the Umbria Jazz Festival, Jakarta Jazz Festival and the Montreaux Jazz Festival.

In 2001 Myers enrolled in DePaul University where he earned his master's degree in jazz drumming and was a member of the Rob Parton Orchestra. In addition to his involvement in school bands, Myers was playing in festivals with a variety of jazz artists such as Nicholas Payton, Diane Schuur, Randy Brecker, Dennis DiBlasio as well as local musicians Mark Colby and John McLean. He was also a member of Chicago jazz fusion band Kick the Cat.

Myers began playing drums for progressive-rock band Umphrey’s McGee in 2003 following the departure of original drummer Mike Mirro. His first show as a member of the band was on January 23, 2003. With Myers at the helm, Umphrey's has released ten albums and maintains a rigorous touring schedule of over 100 live shows per year. Umphrey's has performed at legendary festivals and venues such as Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Fuji Rock Festival, South by Southwest, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Ryman Auditorium, The Beacon Theatre and many more.

He has shared the stage with a variety of artists over the years: Buddy Guy, Dave Matthews, Huey Lewis, Mavis Staples, Koko Taylor, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mike Gordon, Warren Haynes, Ivan Neville, Les Claypool, Stephen Perkins, Mike Keneally, Jimmy Herring, John Oates, Gene Ween, Adrian Belew, Joshua Redman, Taj Mahal, Bela Fleck, Victor Wooten, Jeff Coffin, Jen Hartswick, Keller Williams, Stanley Jordan, Chris Poland, Rob Pagliari, Jeff Austin, Buckethead, Cody & Luther Dickinson, Mark Colby, Jon McLean, Rob Cornelius, Paris Delayne, Andrew Tosh, Jeremy Piven (actor).

In 2011, Kris Myers was honored with the title of best Jam Band drummer by DRUM Magazine, beating out jamband stalwarts such as Butch Trucks (Allman Brothers) and Jon Fishman (Phish).

Myers endorses Pearl Drums,^[1] Vic Firth,^[2] Evans Drumheads^[3] and Zildjian^[4] cymbals.

Other groups[]

Since 2003, Myers has been a member in several bands with fellow [Umphrey’s McGee] band mates, and an array of new and old musical artists and friends:

Kick The Cat (1998 - 2003) - Fusion jazz trio

Drop Q (2006 – 2008): Transfusion jazz/drum and bass trio (with former members of Kick the Cat)

Kris Myers Jazz Quartet (2006 – present): Modern jazz, with John McLean, Bryan Doherty, and Vijay Telisnayak.

Brain Damaged Eggmen (2006 – 2008): Pink Floyd/Beatles cover band with band mates and Marc Brownstien and Aron Magner from Disco Biscuits

North Indiana Allstars (2007 – present): Jazz/rock fusion with Stephen Perkins from Jane’s Addiction and band mates

Digital Tape Machine (2009 – 2014): Electronic dance music for live setting

OHMphrey (2010 – present): Hard rock/fusion with Chris Poland of Megadeth, Rob Pagliari and band mates Jake Cinninger and Joel Cummins

Dextrous Roy (2010 – 2014): Electronic(House, Drum 'n' Bass, Hip Hop) duo; drums and DJ My Boy Elroy

Huey Lewis & the rUMors (2012 – present): Teamed up with 80’s pop legend Huey Lewis and fellow band mates for covers and originals from both and Huey Lewis & the News

Goodnight Nurse Publishing LLC (2015–present): Music licensing project for TV, film, and video games, managing partners Brian Abraham, and Dylan Jones

Discography[]

• Local Band Does OKlahoma (2003, recorded live) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Anchor Drops (2004) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Safety In Numbers (2006) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• The Bottom Half (2007) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Live at the Murat (2007, recorded live) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Jimmy Stewart 2007 (2008, recorded live) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Mantis (2009) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Death By Stereo (2011) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Similar Skin (2014) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• The London Session (2015) (Bayliss/Cinninger/Cummins/Stasik/Myers/Farag)
• Scambot2! (2016) (Keneally/Thomas/J.Keneally/Griffin/Myers/Beller/Travers/Lunn/Bendian/Francis Minnemann/Mussallam)

DVD releases[]

• Live from the Lake Coast (2002)
• Wrapped Around Chicago - New Year's Eve at The Riviera (2005)
• Soundstage: Umphrey's McGee - Live (2009)
• Live at Summer Camp 2011 (2011)
• Live from The Pageant: NYE Weekend 2011 (2012)
• Live at Red Rocks (2012)

References[]

External links[]

• Myers, Kris (January 24, 2016). "Kris Myers of Umphrey's McGee". Interviewed by Trav Turner. As The Story Grows. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
• Modern Drummer (2017). "Kris Myers and Mike Mirro" Interview with Michael Parillo. Modern Drummer Magazine. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
• Drummer's Resource Podcast (2017). "Kris Myers: From Jazz Man to Jam Band"