Matt Nicholls

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For the Canadian football player, see Matt Nichols.
Matt Nicholls
Nicholls in 2016
Nicholls in 2016
Background information
Birth nameMatthew Stephen Nicholls[1]
Also known asMat Nicholls[2]
Born (1986-03-22) 22 March 1986 (age 38)[3]
Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England
OriginRotherham, South Yorkshire, England
Genres
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)
  • Drums
  • percussion
Years active2000–present
Member ofBring Me the Horizon

Matthew Stephen "Matt" Nicholls (born 22 March 1986) is a British musician. He is best known as the drummer of the British rock band Bring Me the Horizon. Nicholls is featured on all six of the band's studio releases.

Early life[edit]

Nicholls was born and raised in Rotherham, South Yorkshire on 22 March 1986.[4] His parents divorced and his father gained custody of him and bought him a drum kit.[5] Nicholls is a self-taught drummer.[2] As he was learning how to play drums, Nicholls stated that he was never "influenced by drummers" rather, he listened to CDs and followed along with what they played.[5] He also never had plans to be a drummer and never took drums seriously until he was 18 when Bring Me the Horizon started.[6] His mother also wanted him to get a day-job instead of pursing music, however Nicholls wasn't so keen to the idea.[7] When he lived in his apartment block, he was never able to play drums because he was surrounded by other people complaining, so he could only play drums when he was playing at shows.[5] Nicholls played in the mock hip-hop group Womb 2 Da Tomb with fellow Bring Me the Horizon member Oliver Sykes and Sykes' brother Tom.[8]

Career[edit]

Bring Me the Horizon formed in March 2004, and the band released their debut EP, This Is What the Edge of Your Seat Was Made For, that same year.[9] Their debut studio album, Count Your Blessings was released on 30 October 2006.[10] The album peaked at number 93 on the UK Albums Chart.[11] Their second studio album, Suicide Season was released on 29 September 2008.[12] The album reached number 47 on the UK Albums Chart.[11] Their third studio album, There Is a Hell Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven Let's Keep It a Secret was released on 4 October 2010,[13] and debuted at number 13 on the UK Albums Chart.[11] The group toured in the UK in support of the album, however, Nicholls broke his hand and was unable to continue for the remainder of the tour and Dan Searle of Architects filled in for him.[14] He returned to the group later that year in September and joined them on their headlining American tour.[15] Their fourth studio album, Sempiternal was released on 1 April 2013,[16] peaking at number three on the UK Albums Chart.[11] The group's fifth studio album, That's the Spirit was released on 11 September 2015.[17] The album peaked at number two on the UK Albums Chart,[11] as well as number two on the Billboard 200, making it the band's first top ten in the US.[18] Their sixth studio album, Amo was released on 25 January 2019.[19] The album peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart.[20]

In 2019, Music Radar named Nicholls as the tenth best rock drummer.[21] In October 2021, Nicholls made an appearance on BBC Breakfast, giving drumming advice for a 24-hour drumathon program for Children in Need.[22]

Equipment[edit]

Nicholls performing at Warped Tour in 2010.

Nicholls owned a Pearl Export drum kit, which he used for recording on their first album Count Your Blessings. Following the release of that album, he bought a Tama Starclassic, which he used for recording on the group's next four albums.[23] While performing live, Nicholls uses a SJC drum set, which he has been playing since 2008. His double pedal kit consists of a Joey Jordison Signature Export kit and the Speed Cobra brand.[2] Nicholls owns a Roland drum kit that he uses to play and learn stuff on at home. He also had a gong drum which SJC made for him. Nicholls owns a variety of snares, including his main Vinnie Paul snare, a Pearl snare and an SJC snare.[23] He also has a 14" Black Brass and a 13" G Maple.[2]

Nicholls has a 16" and 18" floor toms, as well as a 22"x16" kick drum to fit the "faster metal stuff" the band plays. He has a pair of closed hats that is a part of his set up on the right side of his kit.[2] He perfers to mix his cymbals set up while he plays. He used to own a China cymbal when the band was playing heavier music, but has since gotten rid of it. On That's the Spirit, Nicholls uses an 18" A Custom EFX cymbal and an A Custom Rezo crash cymbal. He also uses his Zildjian Gen16 cymbals.[23] As of 2019, Nicholls uses an 18" EFX and the 21" Special Dry Trash Crash. Nicholls plays with Vic Firth sticks.[2] Nicholls' set up was inspired by Abe Cunningham from Deftones. Since the band added electronics into their music, Nicholls plays to a click using his SPD-S.[23]

Playing style and technique[edit]

At first, Nicholls didn't learn "the proper way to drum," such as playing chops or grooves.[24][2] When the band recorded Count Your Blessings, he considered himself to be "really frantic and trying to be as metal as possible," doing things he couldn't pull off at the time. His style consisted of fast playing, influenced by Swedish metal.[25] Throughout the years, Nicholls developed a more solid technique, playing "more controlled, more chilled, more complimenting of the music," giving a complex and diverse style.[25] Speaking more about his technique, he considers his right hand to be good but his left hand a bit stiff. He bought a Korg Beatlab to build on his left hand, practicing single strokes to get used to playing like his right hand. Nicholls also uses an Ez drummer software to work on fills and other drum parts. In the early years he would play over a lick and add a beat and fill over it.[25] Nicholls "hated" playing to a click at first as he couldn't figure out how to play along with it, but decided to give it another chance on the band's third studio album, There Is a Hell Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven Let's Keep It a Secret. He credits the click on him playing better on drums.[24] On the band's 2019 album Amo, his style focused on more grooves and more hi-hat work.[2]

Personal life[edit]

Nicholls revealed that he was diagnosed with ADD.[6] He is a football fan and supports EFL Championship club Rotherham United.[4]

Discography[edit]

Bring Me the Horizon[edit]

Main article: Bring Me the Horizon discography

Accolades[edit]

Publication Accolade Year Rank Ref.
MusicRadar Best Rock Drummer 2019 10 [21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Artist: Matt Nicholls". SecondHandSongs. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Rich Chamberlain (18 December 2018). "Bring Me The Horizon's Mat Nicholls: 'We're not scared of being a mainstream band'". Music Radar. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  3. ^ Tony Banh (25 March 2023). "Bring Me The Horizon Brochure". Issuu. p. 12-13. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Premier League predictions: Lawro v rock band Bring Me The Horizon". BBC. 2 November 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Andrew Lentz (October 2010). "Matt Nicholls of Bring Me the Horizon". DRUM!. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  6. ^ a b "SJC Artist Profile - Mat Nicholls - Bring Me The Horizon". YouTube. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  7. ^ Shahlin Graves (22 June 2009). "Interview: Caution! Bring Me The Horizon". Coup de Main. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  8. ^ Sebastian Kessler (19 March 2009). "Bring Me The Horizon Interview". Metal Hammer. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  9. ^ Patashnik, Ben (October 2012). Patashnik, B. (ed.). "We Were So Clueless". Rock Sound (166). London, United Kingdom: Freeway Press. ISSN 1465-0185.
  10. ^ Welch, Ben (6 April 2016). Bring Me the Horizon: Heavy Sounds from the Steel City. John Blake Publishing. ISBN 978-1784189860.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Bring Me the Horizon - Official Charts Company". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  12. ^ "Bring Me The Horizon Signs With Epitaph". Epitaph Records. 11 September 2008. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  13. ^ "Bring Me the Horizon: New Album Details Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. 12 August 2010. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  14. ^ "Bring Me The Horizon drummer breaks hand". Alternative Press. 28 April 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  15. ^ Chris Epting (7 September 2011). "Bring Me the Horizon's Matt Nicholls on Returning to Tour After Breaking His Arm". Noisecreep. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  16. ^ Martin Kielty (1 March 2013). "Hear The Whole New Bring Me The Horizon Album Sempiternal". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on 6 March 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Bring Me the Horizon To Release 'That's The Spirit' Album In September". Blabbermouth.net. 21 July 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  18. ^ Keith Caulfield (20 September 2015). "The Weeknd Earns Third Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  19. ^ Connick, Tom (22 August 2018). "Bring Me The Horizon's new album – release date, tour dates and everything we know so far". NME. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  20. ^ "Bring Me The Horizon score first No. 1 album with 'amo'". Alternative Press. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  21. ^ a b David West (28 December 2019). "The 10 best rock drummers in the world right now". MusicRadar. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  22. ^ Damian Jones (22 October 2021). "Bring Me The Horizon's Mat Nicholls makes surprise appearance on BBC Breakfast". NME. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  23. ^ a b c d Chris Barnes (15 February 2016). "Bring Me The Horizon drummer Matt Nicholls on confidence, computer composition, clicks and more". Music Radar. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  24. ^ a b "Why You Should Play Drums to a Click". My Drum Lesson. 19 February 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  25. ^ a b c "Matt Nicholls (Bring Me The Horizon) interview". Music Radar. Drum Expo. 31 July 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
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