Thomas Armon Pridgen (born November 23, 1983) is an American drummer, best known for his role as the drummer of

The Mars Volta The Mars Volta is an American progressive rock band from El Paso, Texas, formed in 2001. The band's only constant members are Omar Rodríguez-López (guitar, producer, direction) and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (vocals, lyrics), whose partnership for ...

from October 2006 until October 2009. He is touring with rapper

Residente René Pérez Joglar (born February 23, 1978), known professionally as Residente (often stylized as Resīdɛntə), is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as one of the founders of the alternative rap band Calle 13. ...

and is the drummer for

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...

band

Trash Talk Trash talk is a form of insult usually found in sports events, although it is not exclusive to sports or similarly characterized events. It is often used to intimidate the opposition and/or make them less confident in their abilities as to win ...

, as well as his own project

The Memorials The Memorials is an American hard rock band from Berkeley, California that formed in December 2009. , the line-up consists of Thomas Pridgen, Viveca Hawkins, and Nick Brewer. History Founded in December 2009, The Memorials is a project spearhe ...

Biography

Pridgen won the

Guitar Center Guitar Center is an American Music store, musical instrument retailer chain. It is the largest company of its kind in the United States, with 294 locations. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California. Guitar Center oversees various sub ...

Drum-Off at age nine, and at age ten was the youngest recipient for a

Zildjian :''Zildjian leads here. For people with the surname, see Zildjian (disambiguation)'' The Avedis Zildjian Company, simply known as Zildjian (), is a musical instrument manufacturer specializing in cymbals and other percussion instruments. Founded ...

endorsement in the nearly 400-year history of the company. Pridgen is also naturally left-handed, but plays the drum kit as if he is a right-hander with his kit set-up right-handed. Pridgen has studied with David Garibaldi, Walfredo Reyes Sr., Troy Lucketta, and Curtis Nutall. He endorses

DW Drums Drum Workshop, Inc. (also known as DW Drums or DW) is an American drum kit and hardware manufacturing company based in Oxnard, California. Current products by DW include drum sets, snare drums, and hardware. History Drum Workshop was founde ...

, Zildjian Cymbals, Evans Drumheads, Audix Microphones, and

Drumsticks (as of 2017). Pridgen was also the recipient of a four-year scholarship to

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

in 1999 at the age of 15; he was the youngest musician to ever receive this scholarship. He has played in clinics with Walfredo Reyes Jr. and

Dennis Chambers Dennis Milton Chambers (born May 9, 1959) is an American drummer. He was inducted into the '' Modern Drummer'' Hall of Fame in 2001. Early life Chambers was born on May 9, 1959. He began drumming at the age of four years, and was gigging in Ba ...

. By his teenage years he had already done studio sessions with many Bay Area Gospel artists. Pridgen's first non-gospel touring experience was as the drummer for

The Coup The Coup is an American hip hop band from Oakland, California. Their music is an amalgamation of influences, including funk, punk, hip hop, and soul. Frontman Boots Riley's revolutionarily-charged lyrics rank The Coup as a renowned political ...

, who he worked with in 2001 and 2002. In 2006, Pridgen received a call from Omar Rodríguez-López of

: In 2007, Pridgen became the new permanent drummer for The Mars Volta. Pridgen's first appearance was at the March 12 show in New Zealand, where the band debuted the song "Idle Tooth" which was later renamed "

Wax Simulacra "Wax Simulacra" is a single from the album ''The Bedlam in Goliath'' by The Mars Volta. The single debuted on November 18, 2007, on San Francisco's Live 105 FM. It was previously played live by the band under the name "Idle Tooth". The B-side "Pul ...

" for the forthcoming album. After shows in New Zealand and Australia, The Mars Volta toured a few West Coast venues as the headliner, then entered the studio to record their fourth LP, '' The Bedlam in Goliath''. Pridgen's style on ''Bedlam in Goliath'' used "blistering 32nd-note full-set combinations, stunning single-stroke rolls, and blazing single bass drum patterns" along with creative and precise paradiddle technique. Pridgen has been voted as 'Best Up and Coming Drummer' by ''Modern Drummer'' magazine. Besides his work with The Mars Volta, he has also been involved with

Christian Scott Christian Scott (born March 31, 1983), known professionally as Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah (formerly Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah), is an American jazz trumpeter, multi instrumentalist, composer, and producer. He has been nominated for six Gramm ...

and

Wicked Wisdom Wicked Wisdom is an American nu metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed by Jada Pinkett Smith in 2002. History Jada Pinkett Smith formed the band in 2002. The band consists of Pinkett Smith performing lead vocals, Pocket Honore (guit ...

. Pridgen, for some time, was working with singer

Keyshia Cole Keyshia Myeshia Cole Johnson; born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Born and raised in Oakland, California, Cole began her career as a backing vocalist for MC Hammer. After signing with A&M Records ...

as her live and session drummer and being her music director. He also was featured alongside Tony Royster Jr., Eric Moore, and others in drumming DVD entitled "Shed Sessions", a Gospel Chops DVD. Pridgen was also featured on the Modern Drummer 2008 DVD with footage from his performance at the festival.

Departure from The Mars Volta (2009)

In October 2009, Pridgen left The Mars Volta. To this day, the band has made no official statement as to the reason for the departure. Dave Elitch subsequently filled in the drummer position for the remainder of the tour, who was then replaced by

Deantoni Parks Deantoni Parks (born November 2, 1977) is an American new wave/avant-garde/experimental musician. He is the co-founder, co-producer and drummer of the New York band KUDU along with artist Sylvia Black, and one half of the writing duo We Are Dar ...

. On October 14, 2013, Mars Volta bassist

Juan Alderete Juan Alderete de la Peña (born September 5, 1963) is an American musician, best known as the longtime bassist of Racer X, the Mars Volta and Marilyn Manson. Biography Alderete was born in Los Angeles, California the fourth of five children. ...

said on the podcast ''Let There Be Talk'', that "He's an amazing drummer, just not a mature dude. ��One night, he got super wasted, peed on the bus, started fighting with Cedric ��"

The Memorials (December 2009)

In December 2009, Pridgen formed another band called

with friends and former students from

- Viveca Hawkins (vocals) and Nick Brewer (guitars). The band's self-titled debut was released on January 18, 2011.

Elixir on Mute (2010)

By invitation of Elixir on Mute's headman Jordan Ferreira, Pridgen took part in the recording of the band's debut End of Sky (released September 1 2010). November 10, 2011, the band had decided upon a name, Giraffe Tongue Orchestra. By then the supergroup was working on writing songs. In January 2012, it was announced that fellow former The Mars Volta drummer

Jon Theodore Jon Philip Theodore (born December 30, 1973) is an American drummer. He is best known as a former member of the Mars Volta and as the current drummer for Queens of the Stone Age. After contributing to Bright Eyes' 2020 album, ''Down in the We ...

replaced Pridgen in Giraffe Tongue Orchestra, though by March 2015, Pridgen once again became the drummer of GTO.

The Memorials (Delirium), TEN (Eric McFadden), Vigilant (Jon Reshard), Thundercat (Stephen Bruner), Elixir On Mute (Jordan Ferreira), Wicked Evolution (Jada Pinkett Smith) (2012)

''The Memorials'' Still working on his personal project The Memorials. His second album, Delirium, released on June 5, 2012. The track "Fluorescent's Unforgiving" was released via Soundcloud in November 2011. ''TEN'' Spring of 2012, teamed up with guitarist, Eric McFadden (P-Funk, The Animals, Stockholm Syndrome), and Fishbone bassist, Norwood Fisher. phYne Entertainment produced five tracks for the new trio in a San Francisco studio. The project is called, TEN, as there is talk of a tour in the fall. ''Vigilant'' Recording album with Jon Reshard, Chloe Pappas, Jordan Ferreira. Work to be released in 2012. ''Thundercat'' Guest live drummer in support of Thundercat. Toured all over Europe in spring 2012. ''Wicked Evolution'' Took part in Wicked Evolution Jada Pinkett Smith's Live Recorded Sessions. ''European tour with The Memorials'' After completing 3 tours (Freedom Tour, Equinox Tour, Waterguns, B B Q, & Hot Chocolate Tour) over the United States with The Memorials, the band are preparing for a European tour to launch in October 2012. ''Pinnick Gales Pridgen'' On February 12, 2013, Magna Carta released the

Mike Varney Mike Varney is an American record producer and music publisher. He is the founder of the Shrapnel Label Group, which includes Shrapnel Records, Tone Center Records, and Blues Bureau International. He also has a 50% stake in Magna Carta Records ...

-produced "Pinnick Gales Pridgen", featuring

Eric Gales Eric Gales (born October 29, 1974), also known as Raw Dawg, is an American blues rock guitarist, originally hailed as a child prodigy. , Gales has recorded nineteen albums for major record labels and has done session and tribute work. He has a ...

on guitar and vocals, dUg Pinnick (of

King's X King's X is an American rock band that originated in 1979 in Springfield, Missouri. They were first called The Edge and later became Sneak Preview before settling on its current name in 1985. The band's current lineup has remained intact for ...

) on bass and vocals, and Pridgen on drums. The 13-track album features one cover song, "

Sunshine of Your Love "Sunshine of Your Love" is a 1967 song by the British rock band Cream. With elements of hard rock, psychedelia, and pop, it is one of Cream's best known and most popular songs. Cream bassist and vocalist Jack Bruce based it on a distinctive ...

", originally by

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

, one short instrumental based on

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's "

Für Elise Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor ( WoO59, Bia515) for solo piano, commonly known as "Für Elise" (, ), is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions. It was not published during his lifetime, only being discovered (by Ludwig Nohl) 40 ye ...

", and the remaining songs written by some combination of Pinnick, Gales, Pridgen and Varney.

Suicidal Tendencies, Chiodos, Trash Talk (2014)

On March 11, 2014, Pridgen confirmed on his Instagram and Facebook page that he has joined

Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Mike Muir. Muir is the only remaining original member of the band. Along with D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, and Stor ...

. On September 3, Pridgen along with Joseph Troy have joined

Chiodos Chiodos (, ) was an American post-hardcore band from Davison, Michigan. Formed in 2001, the group was originally known as “The Light-hearted Carpet Knights” before changing their name to "The Chiodos Bros," the band's name was a tribute to fi ...

after members Derrick Frost and Matt Goddard left the band. During this time period, Pridgen also recorded the drums for the album "No Peace", by

, which was released April 22, 2014.

Giraffe Tongue Orchestra (2011, 2015–2017)

In mid-2011, it was announced that Pridgen was working on a new group with

Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of the ...

vocalist and guitarist

Brent Hinds William Brent Hinds (born January 16, 1974) is an American musician best known as a member of the Atlanta, Georgia metal band Mastodon, in which he shares guitar duties with Bill Kelliher and vocal duties with Troy Sanders and Brann Dailor. Hi ...

the Dillinger Escape Plan The Dillinger Escape Plan was an American metalcore band. The band was formed in 1997 in Morris Plains, New Jersey by guitarist Ben Weinman, bassist Adam Doll, vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, and drummer Chris Pennie. The band's use of odd time si ...

guitarist

Ben Weinman Benjamin A. Weinman (born August 8, 1975) is an American musician, film composer, and music manager, most notable for being the lead guitarist and primary songwriter of the metalcore band The Dillinger Escape Plan. He was the founder and sole con ...

, and former

Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1985. The band consists of vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins and bassist Eric Avery. Jane's Addiction was one of the first bands fr ...

bassist

Eric Avery Eric Adam Avery (born April 25, 1965) is an American musician. He is best known as the founding bass guitarist and co-songwriter of the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded two studio albums. He is also currently the ...

Giraffe Tongue Orchestra Giraffe Tongue Orchestra is an American rock supergroup. It consists of Alice in Chains vocalist William DuVall, guitarist Brent Hinds of Mastodon, lead guitarist Ben Weinman of the Dillinger Escape Plan, drummer Thomas Pridgen of the Mars Volta ...

was founded in 2012. The band's debut album '' Broken Lines'' was released September 23, 2016 with the main line-up featuring Hinds, Pridgen and Weinman, who were joined by

William DuVall William Bradley DuVall (born September 6, 1967) is an American musician best known as the current co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Alice in Chains. He joined Alice in Chains in 2006, replacing the band's original lead s ...

from

Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...

and Pete Griffin from

Dethklok Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled '' The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at n ...

Residente and rejoining Trash Talk (2017–present)

On March 31, 2017, rapper

released his debut solo album self-titled Residente. Pridgen was announced later as part of the touring members of the Residente band. In May 2020, Pridgen announced he has rejoined Trash Talk to record their new EP, Squalor, which is due to be released June 6.

Equipment

With The Mars Volta

Bedlam Tour Kit (2007 - 2008)

* DW Collector's Series &

Cymbals: *Drums - Clear Acrylic **12x8" Tom **13x10" Tom **15x13" Floor Tom **16x14" Floor Tom **18x16" Floor Tom **24x20" Bass Drum **14x6.5" DW Copper Snare *Cymbals -

**18" 2A Crashes used as Hi-Hats **24" A Medium Ride **20" A Armand Ride **20" A Custom Crash **20" Oriental Crash Of Doom **18" A Custom EFX Crash, 9" Oriental Splash, 16" Oriental China (x2) (cymbals stacked) **19" K Custom Hybrid China

Octahedron Tour Kit (2009)

* DW Jazz Series &

Cymbals: *Drums - Maple & Gum **12x12" Tom **13x13" Tom **15x13" Floor Tom **16x14" Floor Tom **18x16" Floor Tom **24x20" Bass Drum **14x7 Red Maple Snare *Cymbals -

**18" A Crashes 2used as Hi-Hats **24" A Medium Ride **24" K Custom Ride 2**18" A Custom EFX Crash, 9" Oriental Splash, 16" Oriental China (x2) (cymbals stacked) **20" A Custom China **20" Crash of Doom

With The Memorials

* DW Collector's Series &

Cymbals: *Drums - Clear Acrylic **12x7" Tom **13x8" Tom **16x14" Floor Tom **18x16" Floor Tom **24x16" Bass Drum **14x6.5" DW Stainless steel snare *Cymbals -

**19" 2Z3 Custom Crashes used as Hi-Hats **24" A Medium Ride **20" A Custom Crash **20" Z3 Crash **18" A Custom EFX Crash, 9" Oriental Splash, 16" Oriental China (x2) (cymbals stacked) **20" A Custom China **Wind Chimes *Drum Heads -

Evans Evans may refer to: People *Evans (surname) * List of people with surname Evans Places United States *Evans Island, an island of Alaska * Evans, Colorado *Evans, Georgia *Evans County, Georgia *Evans, New York *Evans Mills, New York *Evans Cit ...

**Toms: (12", 13", 15", 16") Clear G2s (top), Clear Resonants (bottom) **Bass Drum: (24") Clear EQ3 (batter), Clear EQ3 (with small hole) (resonant) **Snares : (14") Clear G2 (top), 300 Hazy (bottom) *Thomas also used DW 9000 Series Hardware and Pedals, Pro-Mark TX510 Thomas Pridgen Autograph drumsticks, &

Shure Shure Incorporated is an American audio products corporation. It was founded by Sidney N. Shure in Chicago, Illinois, in 1925 as a supplier of radio parts kits. The company became a consumer and professional audio-electronics manufacturer of mi ...

Microphones. *Thomas has recently been seen using a kit made from resin by a company based out of Ventura, CA Thump Drums.

Discography

For a more complete discography, se
Thomas Pridgen's entry on Album Credits

With Zenith Patrol

* ''VU'' (2005)

With Christian Scott

*'' Rewind That'' (2006)

With Eric Gales

*''Crystal Vision'' - (2006) *''Psychedelic Underground (Eric Gales album)'' - (2007)

With dUg Pinnick and Eric Gales

*"Pinnick Gales Pridgen" - (2013) *"PGP 2" - (2014)

With The Mars Volta

* '' The Bedlam in Goliath'' (2008) * ''

Octahedron In geometry, an octahedron (plural: octahedra, octahedrons) is a polyhedron with eight faces. The term is most commonly used to refer to the regular octahedron, a Platonic solid composed of eight equilateral triangles, four of which meet at ea ...

'' (2009)

With Omar Rodríguez-López

*''

Calibration (Is Pushing Luck and Key Too Far) ''Calibration (Is Pushing Luck and Key Too Far)'' is the fifth studio album by Omar Rodríguez-López, and the fourth released in the "Amsterdam series". The album was released in Japan on December 15, 2007 with a following U.S. release later on ...

'' (2007) - "Mexico", "Sidewalk Fins", "Las Lagrimas de Arakuine" *'' Los Sueños de un Hígado'' (2009) *''

Xenophanes Xenophanes of Colophon (; grc, Ξενοφάνης ὁ Κολοφώνιος ; c. 570 – c. 478 BC) was a Greek philosopher, theologian, poet, and critic of Homer from Ionia who travelled throughout the Greek-speaking world in early Classica ...

'' (2009) *''

Equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...

'' (2013) - "Sueños Salvajes" & "Popolon" *''¿Sólo Extraño?'' (2013) - "Common Condescend" *'' Nom de Guerre Cabal'' (2016) - "Nom de Guerre" *'' Some Need It Lonely'' (2016) - "Sanity a Dream", "Back to the Same", "Zero Worth"/"Barachiel Is At It Again" *'' Gorilla Preacher Cartel'' (2017) - "Lección en Ignoracia" *'' Solid State Mercenaries'' (2017) - "Five Star" & "Try On Little Man"

With Juliette Lewis

* ''

Terra Incognita ''Terra incognita'' or ''terra ignota'' (Latin "unknown land"; ''incognita'' is stressed on its second syllable in Latin, but with variation in pronunciation in English) is a term used in cartography for regions that have not been mapped or do ...

'' (2009)

With Elixir on Mute

*''End of Sky'' (2010)

With Foxy Shazam

*'' Foxy Shazam'' (2010)

With Jada Pinkett Smith

*''Live Recording Sessions'' (2012)

With The Memorials

*''

'' (2011) *''Delirium'' (2012)

With Trash Talk

*" No Peace" (2014) *"Squalor" (2020)

With Spiritworld

*''Pagan Rhythms'' (2020) *''DEATHWESTERN'' (TBD)

References

External links

*
Thomas Pridgen's on Album CreditsDrum Channel , Thomas Pridgen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pridgen, Thomas 1983 births Living people People from Alameda County, California African-American drummers African-American rock musicians Berkeley High School (Berkeley, California) alumni Berklee College of Music alumni Grammy Award winners Progressive rock drummers 21st-century American drummers 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people