Ronnie Vannucci Jr. | |
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 Vannucci in 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ronald Vannucci Jr. |
| Born | February 15, 1976 Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) |
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| Years active | 2002–present |
| Member of | |
| Formerly of |
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| Website | thekillersmusic |
Ronald Vannucci Jr. (born February 15, 1976) is an American musician, best known for being the drummer for the rock band the Killers. He is also involved in a side project called Big Talk and became the drummer of the Rentals in 2018.
Vannucci was born in Las Vegas to an American couple with Italian, French, and German ancestry. He began drumming at the age of six. [1] He was a part of his junior high school's jazz ensemble and later attended both Clark and Western High Schools. Vannucci played in various local bands. His first band was Purple Dirt. [2]
Vannucci drummed for several local bands, including ska-punk group Attaboy Skip, who enjoyed regional success in the mid-1990s and featured Branden Campbell (of Neon Trees); [3] Free Food, a cover band who played at prisons and homeless shelters in the Las Vegas area; and Expert On October, a band that also included Ted Sablay and Taylor Milne (of Big Talk). [2]
Vannucci studied classical percussion at UNLV, while also working as a photographer at Chapel of the Flowers, a wedding chapel on Las Vegas Boulevard. He was performing with a local group, Romance Fantasy, when he met Brandon Flowers and Dave Keuning, who had recently begun performing as the Killers. He joined the Killers in August 2002. The band would practice at Vannucci's garage, and he would also sneak the band into the Alta Ham Fine Arts Building at UNLV at night to practice. He later completed his bachelor's degree at UNLV on May 14, 2011, while the Killers were on hiatus. [4] The Killers have released six consecutive No. 1 albums in the United Kingdom, sold over 22 million records worldwide, and have been nominated for seven Grammy Awards and seven BRIT Awards.
Vannucci recorded a side project album during 2010–2011 and titled it Big Talk , aiming with tongue-in-cheek at the abundance of music being put out by labels before it is being fully prepared. [5] NME named the eponymous album #24 on its Best Albums of 2011 list. Big Talk was mixed by Alan Moulder and recorded at Battle Born Studios with Joe Chiccarelli as producer. Matt Sharp (of Weezer and the Rentals) and long time friend Taylor Milne were enlisted to help record the album. [6] Little Oil / Epitaph Records released the album on July 12, 2011. Big Talk was preceded by a single, "Getaways", on May 10, 2011. Vannucci was listed at #49 on NME's Cool List of 2011.
In 2015, Big Talk released their second album, Straight In No Kissin' .
Vannucci has also contributed to Mt. Desolation, a side project of Keane members Tim Rice-Oxley and Jessie Quin, on acoustic guitar and percussion, and has also contributed to fellow Killers member Brandon Flowers.
Vannucci mainly plays with his kit set up using a jazz technique with a high stool and hitched-up snare stand. He attributes this to his 6 ft 1 frame, a former teacher who whipped him, and the examples of great drummers including Mitch Mitchell and many jazz performers. [7]
Vannucci is known for crashing his hi-hats, skillful sixteenth notes, and a fluid playing style. Drummer Magazine labels them a "few distinctive hallmarks [that] help characterize Ronnie's style". [7]
Vannucci and his bandmate, bass guitarist Mark Stoermer, have what they consider a rewarding relationship musically. Of Stoermer, Vannucci has said, "He almost intuitively knows what I am going to play and his parts are so rhythmic it's a joy to dance around him I really enjoy thinking up parts with him. . . it works very well for us." [7]
Vannucci was featured on the cover of Rhythm Magazine in October 2006, (where he was dubbed "pop's dynamic showman") and again in November 2008 and October 2012. [8] [9] He was also featured on Drummer Magazine in June 2009 [7] and Modern Drummer Magazine in 2013. [10] He was featured in Modern Drummer Magazine in March 2009 [1] and in Drumhead Magazine, September 2008 and again in October 2008. [11] [12]
Vannucci cites influences such as jazz legend Papa Jo Jones, Mitch Mitchell of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Keith Moon of the Who, and John Bonham of Led Zeppelin. [7] He also lists as influences the Cure, U2, Depeche Mode and more modern drummers including Charley Drayton, Steve Jordan, and Ahmir Thompson. [11] [13]
Vannucci currently uses Craviotto drums, DW pedals and hardware, Remo heads and Istanbul Agop cymbals. Vannuci previously endorsed and used Zildjian cymbals. While with Zildjian, he also had signature model drumsticks that have since been discontinued. After leaving Zildjian, he switched to Innovative Percussion drumsticks, debuting a brand new signature model along with a signature model bass drum beater. [14] His current set-up is as follows:
Vannucci married Lisa Ann Yoakum on May 2, 2003. They had one pet dog, a boxer named Archie. Archie gained notoriety during the recording of Big Talk due to Vannucci's frequently tweeted pictures of him in the studio. He also enjoys ranching in his free time. [15] Vannucci and Yoakum divorced in 2016. [16]
Vannucci married Olivia Peloubet on October 7, 2017. They live in Pebble Beach, California.
The music in Nevada is often associated with the Rat Pack and lounge singers like Wayne Newton playing in Las Vegas, Reno, and Carson City. However, Nevada has launched many other notable artists and bands from a variety of genres.
The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers and Dave Keuning. After going through a number of short-term bass players and drummers in their early days, both Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. joined the band in 2002. The band's name is derived from a logo on the bass drum of a fictitious band portrayed in the music video for the New Order song "Crystal".
Brandon Richard Flowers is an American musician. He serves as the co-founder, lead vocalist, primary songwriter, keyboardist, and occasional bassist of the Las Vegas-based rock band the Killers, which he formed with Dave Keuning in 2001.
Brooks Wackerman is an American musician. He is the current drummer of heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold, which he joined in 2015. His first album with Avenged Sevenfold was The Stage (2016). He is most known as the former and longest-standing drummer of punk rock band Bad Religion. Wackerman has also performed, either as a member or a session or touring member, with Blink-182, Bad4Good, Infectious Grooves, Glenn Tipton, Mass Mental, Suicidal Tendencies, The Vandals, Avril Lavigne, Korn, Kidneys, Fear and the Nervous System, Tenacious D, Farmikos, Tom Delonge, and Big Talk. His brothers, Chad Wackerman, and John Wackerman, are also drummers.
Jason McGerr is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie.
Dennis Milton Chambers is an American jazz fusion and funk drummer. He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2001.
Phillip W. Ehart is the drummer in the progressive rock band Kansas. He and Rich Williams are the only two members who have appeared on every Kansas album. Though his songwriting contributions to the group were few, he co-wrote two of their biggest hits, "Point of Know Return" and "Play the Game Tonight". He has also taken on the band's management responsibilities in recent years.
Theodore Sablay is an American musician, musical director and songwriter. He has been a touring guitarist and keyboardist for The Killers since 2006 and musical director for the band's live concerts since 2022.
Thomas Armon Pridgen is an American drummer, best known for his role as the drummer of The Mars Volta from 2006 until 2009. He is touring with rapper Residente and is the drummer for hardcore punk band Trash Talk, as well as his own project The Memorials. In 2023 he joined Fever 333.
Mark August Stoermer is an American musician. He is best known as the bassist for the rock band the Killers, with whom he has recorded six studio albums.
Flamingo is the debut solo studio album by American singer-songwriter and The Killers lead singer Brandon Flowers. It was released on September 3, 2010, by Island Records. It was recorded at Battle Born Studios in Winchester, Nevada, and Henson Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart.
Big Talk is an American rock band formed by The Killers' drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. and longtime friend Taylor Milne in 2011. As of 2015, John Spiker, John Konesky and Brooks Wackerman are also members of the band. The band have released an eponymous debut album Big Talk (2011), with follow-up Straight In No Kissin' released in 2015.
Big Talk is eponymously titled debut album by the American indie rock band Big Talk. It was produced by Joe Chiccarelli and Ronnie Vannucci, Jr. and released on July 19, 2011, through Epitaph Records.
Direct Hits is a greatest hits album by American rock band the Killers. It was released on November 11, 2013, by Island Records. The album includes tracks from the band's first four studio albums and features two new tracks—"Shot at the Night" and "Just Another Girl", produced by Anthony Gonzalez of M83 and Stuart Price, respectively.
John "Willie" Wilcox is an American drummer, vocalist, producer, recording engineer, sound designer, composer, and senior audio director. He is best known for being a member of the band Utopia. He also has been the senior audio director for Bally Technologies and Scientific Games in Las Vegas, Nevada from 2010 to 2020.
"Run for Cover" is a song by American rock band the Killers from their fifth studio album, Wonderful Wonderful (2017). Originally released as a promotional single on July 28, 2017, the song was sent to alternative radio in the United States on November 14, 2017, serving as the album's second single.
"The Man" is a song by American rock band the Killers from their fifth studio album, Wonderful Wonderful (2017). It was released on June 14, 2017, as the lead single from the album.
"Some Kind of Love" is a song by American rock band the Killers for their fifth studio album Wonderful Wonderful (2017). It was released on September 15, 2017 as the album's second promotional single. The song is dedicated to Brandon Flowers' wife and features additional vocals by the Flowers' three sons.
"Wonderful Wonderful" is a song by American rock band The Killers for their fifth studio album Wonderful Wonderful (2017). It was released on August 24, 2017 as the first promotional single from the album. Nearly a year later on August 23, 2018, the band released a music video for the title track.
"My Own Soul's Warning" is a song by American rock band the Killers from their sixth studio album, Imploding the Mirage (2020). It was released on June 17, 2020, as the third single from the album.
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