Bad Religion/Tenacious D Drummer Brooks Wackerman Steps Up to the Mic With Kidneys

The Heart of Kidneys
Bad Religion/Tenacious D drummer Brooks Wackerman steps up to the mic with Kidneys—but donNt call it a side project

WhatNs the last thing a drummer says before heNs fired? “Hey, why donNt we play one of my songs?”

An oldie but goodie, to be sure—but lately, the joke has lost some punch. Think Dave Grohl—or, closer to home, think native son Brooks Wackerman, who drums for Bad Religion and Tenacious D. Wackerman further erodes the joke with Kidneys, his one-man-in-the-studio-but-real-thing-live band. KidneysN first release is due next month, and the band are filling their dance card accordingly. As an in-demand rock drummer, Wackerman doesnNt need an outlet such as Kidneys to stay busy. At the time of this interview, heNd been back only one day from a tour of Australia with Bad Religion.

The definition of “working musician,” Wackerman got his start early. “When I started walking, they threw drum sticks in my hands. I started playing in bands around age 9,” says Wackerman. “My dadNs a high-school music teacher and a drummer. My brothers are drummers, except for one bass player—the black sheep.”

Sounds like the basis for a sitcom. “We had our run-ins with our neighbors growing up,” says Wackerman. “We had some religious fanatics who moved in next door. The first day they moved in, I was practicing, and the cops were at our porch within 10 minutes. After that incident, my parents said, ‘WeNll give up our garage and soundproof it.N”

Within three years of joining his first band, Wackerman was on a major label. “The very first band I played in was called Bad4Good,” says Wackerman. “We were signed to Interscope Records. It was kind of like a child-prodigy band: our guitarist was 9, I was 12.”

While WackermanNs high-school years were way cooler than yours—he drummed for Infectious Grooves, Suicidal Tendencies and the Vandals—he also lived some kidsN nightmare: His dad was his Los Alamitos High School jazz-band teacher.

“It wasnNt difficult with him being my teacher, but it was difficult walking together on campus. I was embarrassed,” Wackerman says with a laugh. “It just wasnNt cool to do that back then, but INve apologized to him a thousand times over about that. I kind of owe everything to my mom and dad.”

Wackerman graduated high school and eventually found himself in a college of sorts: sitting onstage while hitting things with wordy punks Bad Religion. “Every record we release now, there are words I have to look up to find out what the hell they mean,” he says.

Finding his way behind Tenacious D, Wackerman plays at the opposite end of the scale from Bad ReligionNs political punk. ““ItNs cool to play serious political punk rock and also comedy theatrical rock,” he says.

But being in a million bands means touring. “There is a lot of being away from the wife and loved ones,” says Wackerman. “YouNre on video chats every day, talking to your kids or your wife. I would say the distance is the hardest, but there are other jobs that are a lot harder than what we do.”

Touring also leaves Wackerman with a lot of time on his hands. “Unless you are an alcoholic or a drug addict, time can go very slow,” he says. “So I try to keep myself occupied by reading, walking around in new towns, or writing in GarageBand.” Hence, Kidneys.

Wackerman describes his songs as halfway between Descendents proto-pop punk and Elvis Costello power pop. (Proto-power-pop punk?) While Bad Religion fans may have a natural interest in Kidneys, Wackerman doesnNt want to emulate his other, other band.

“The fact that it doesnNt sound like BR is a good thing,” he says. “I think if I did write like Brett [Gurewitz] and Greg [Graffin, principal Bad Religion songwriters], people would say, ‘Those guys do it better than anyone else anyway.N”

While Wackerman will likely be thought of as a drummer first and foremost, Kidneys isnNt just a side project or hobby band. “ItNs a challenge to strap on that guitar and become a front man,” he says, “I write a lot, so I constantly have a batch of songs that I am working on, and for me, thatNs refreshing. When I come back to the drums after Kidneys shows, I become a better musician in Bad Religion or whatever project INm working on. ItNs good to mix it up.”

Kidneys with Mojave Mystic Cheese, Aurico and Blue Powda Monkeys at DiPiazzaNs, 5205 E. Pacific Coast Hwy., Long Beach, (562) 498-2461; www.dipiazzas.com. Fri., 9 p.m. Call for cover. Kidneys can be found at myspace.com/kidneys.