Here is Polish extreme drumming master Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski in an interview for the drummers' website [ Ссылка ]. Shot during the international Drum Fest 2017 festival in Opole, Poland. [ Ссылка ]

"My impressions from the Young Drum Hero 2017 contest are very positive, although it was very stressful for me. I’m not new to drum workshops but I’m always stressed out much more than before a gig. However, it’s the first time I’ve judged at a contest like this and I was freaking out about the fact that I had to pick that one player. The level was very high this year. I didn’t realize that ‘cause, for some time, I haven’t really been following what young drummers are doing. Sometimes, I will watch a drummer from a young support band at a gig. The contest was tough. There were two age categories: below 16 and below 23. I’m especially impressed by the younger group. Some of them were so good it was hard to pick anybody. They are all winners. I tried to tell them they are winners just for having come here and performed on stage. That will translate not only into musical experience for them but they’re also gonna be more self-confident in life. Also, they were performing for fellow drummers. And they were judged by masters so the caliber of the performance was twice or maybe three times bigger. That’s why I get so stressed out doing drum workshops and clinics. There’s drummers there, too. Young players have to understand that it’s not only about playing skills, but also about progressing and gaining more self-confidence through experiences such as this one.

To this day, technique is important to me, so I take a lot of time at my clinics to discuss extreme drumming, i. e. double bass, blast beats, fills, arrangement in metal songs, etc. However, I also pay more attention to the issue of managing one’s own career ‘cause I see a great deal of great players in Poland, and I’m stunned after this contest. I’m 37 but I don’t feel the breath of young drummers on my back. Many bands that want to record an album call me. I always ask: ‘Isn’t there a young drummer who could do it with you guys or become a permanent member?’. Turns out there isn’t.

Some people laugh at me and say Dimmu Borgir hired me because a Polish worker is cheaper. I’ve seen such comments. I don’t know what it is. Sour grapes? I think it’s easier with drums in heavy metal because they are brought forward in the mix and on stage. Those are always huge kits, which are visible. The drummer is supposed to be visible as well, he’s put on a big raiser. Drummers in pop, though they are great players, have to play simple and can’t show off. Their place is behind the star of the show. In metal, the drummer is a star as well. There is a place for a drum solo. Plus, drum parts in songs are already very much like drum solos. The stuff I play with Dimmu Borgir is practically one big drum solo. There’s only a few more laid back moments. You see a drummer keeping it simple and it’s OK, but you see someone like me in action and you think: ‘Wow! Great!’. That’s illusive ‘cause those drummers that play simple stuff, for example with Adele, are the true masters.

This fall, we’re kicking off a tour of Poland with Hunter. There’s some clinics coming up, but nothing’s final yet. A new Dimmu Borgir album’s coming out, probably in February of 2018. I recorded the drums for it in February this year and the mixing/mastering process was finished in March. So far, we’ve only confirmed a headlining gig at Wacken. We are supposed to do Hellfest as well. I’m also working on the second album with my band Proces. There is a new project with the singer from Antigama and the former Obscure Sphinx and Rootwater guitarist. We are supposed to record two songs in December. We’ll see what comes out of that."

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