Derek Shawn O'Brien is an American punk rock

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western music ensemble, bands that play Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, or Contemporary R&B, R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeepi ...

and producer. He is currently the drummer for the band Ultra Bomb.

Early life

O'Brien started playing at Fullerton High School playing with the school Jazz Band, Marching Band and Orchestras and played in cover bands by night with guitarists Stan De Witt and Frank Agnew. He joined local punk rock band

Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. It consists of Mike Ness (vocals, guitar), Jonny Wickersham (guitar), Brent Harding (bass), David Hidalgo Jr. (drums), and David Kalish (keyboards). Emerg ...

(1981–84). His recordings with the band include the first EP "1945", Single ("Playpen"), BYO Compilation song "(Mass Hysteria)", and first full-length album '' Mommy's Little Monster''. He featured in the documentary ''Another State Of Mind''.

Career

O'Brien was involved in D.I. (which featured many former members of Social Distortion and the

Adolescents Adolescence () is a transitional stage of human physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with ...

). He played on their 1983 EP '' D.I.'', which was later re-released as '' Team Goon'' on Triple X Records. Derek performed as the drummer for D.I. in the film ''

Suburbia A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

'', and is part of D.I.'s 1983 self-promotional video ''Suburbia Sessions''. He also played with Social Distortion from 1981-1983 and played on the LP, 'Mommy's Little Monster' as well as the '1945' single both on the 13th Floor Records label. He also drummed on the song 'Mass Hysteria' which was included on the 1982 compilation, 'Someone's Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In' released on BYO records. In 1984 O'Brien joined the final incarnation of the Long Beach-based art-rock band Outer Circle. Subsequent to Outer Circle's dissolution, O'Brien and fellow Outer Circle alumni Cole Coonce and Steve "Spit" Spingola formed the Fontanelles with ex- Saccharine Trust bassist Mark Hodson. Bassist Brent Liles and O'Brien reunited from 1989 until 1992 with

Agent Orange Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide and defoliant, one of the tactical uses of Rainbow Herbicides. It was used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1962 to 1971. T ...

Touring North America and recording ''Real Live Sound - Agent Orange Live at the Roxy''. In 1992 Brian Grillo (ex-singer of Lockup) enlisted O'Brien to play with Extra Fancy, including guitarist Michael Hately and bassist David Foster. In 1995, Extra Fancy produced '' Sinnerman'' and an independent EP ''No Mercy'' which has songs featured in movie soundtracks. Extra Fancy continued until 1997. 1996 - 2015, O'Brien and other founding members Greg Hetson (

Bad Religion Bad Religion is an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilities and ...

Circle Jerks Circle Jerks (stylized as Ciʀcle JƎʀᴋs) are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California. The group was founded by former Black Flag (band), Black Flag vocalist Keith Morris and Redd Kross guitarist Greg Hetso ...

) and Eric Melvin (

NOFX NOFX () was an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983. Bassist/lead vocalist Fat Mike, rhythm guitarist Eric Melvin and drummer Erik Sandin were original founding and longest-serving members of the band, who have appeared on every ...

) formed Punk Rock Karaoke. Their first show featured Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh (

Devo Devo is an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs ( Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a No. 14 ...

) and others. O'Brien toured and played local shows as their full time drummer until 2015. Many members and "special guests" performed with the group over the years including: Mike Watt (

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...

), Mike Ness, Jonny 2 Bags (Social Distortion), Matt Skiba (

Alkaline Trio Alkaline Trio is an American punk rock band from Chicago. The band's current members are Matt Skiba (guitar, vocals), Dan Andriano (bass, vocals), and Atom Willard (drums). Founded in late 1996 by Skiba, bassist Rob Doran, and drummer Glenn Por ...

Blink 182 Blink-182 is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Poway, California, in 1992. Its current and best-known line-up consists of bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. Though its so ...

), Noodles (The Offspring), Randy Bradbury (Pennywise),

Fat Mike Michael John Burkett (born January 16, 1967), known professionally as Fat Mike, is an American musician and producer. He was the bassist and lead vocalist for the punk rock band NOFX and the cofounder and bassist of the punk rock supergroup cov ...

(NOFX), several Ramones, members of Descendents, and Dave King (Flogging Molly)! 1998, 1999 saw O'Brien working with a female fronted synth rock / pop band called Ripe featuring Pete Thorn on guitar, also on guitar was Andrew Browning (who Derek later played drums for and produced 3 albums for Browning and the Nine Pound Hammers). Another female fronted band during this time was Drag Beat featuring Rick Ballard and PJ Wolfe (founders of Acetate Records). O'Brien studied at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

, earning a degree in Audio Engineering and in 2001 founded D.O'B. Sound Recording Studios in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

. In 2009 he relocated the studio to

Santa Fe Springs, California Santa Fe Springs (''Santa Fe'', Spanish for "Holy Faith") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. The population was 19,219 at the 2020 census, up from 16,22 ...

and now offers recording, mixing, mastering, rehearsals, a course in audio engineering and private drum lessons. O'Brien still performs on short international tours, local gigs, and recordings.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Derek American punk rock drummers American male drummers Drummers from California Living people Musicians from Fullerton, California UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture alumni Adolescents (band) members Social Distortion members Agent Orange (band) members Year of birth missing (living people) Punk Rock Karaoke members

Early life

Career

See also

References