Drew Shoals - The Official Drew Shoals Website

Bio

Drew Shoals strives to say something new with his drums. Building off the foundation of his rock and funk origins, this Portland, OR native is furthering the musical dialogue of modern-jazz drumming. Calling on the primal pulse of hip-hop and the tension and release of mix-metered fusion, Shoals incorporates his love for the eclectic into every beat. The Willamette Week wrote, “Drew Shoals is possibly the most talented young drummer in the Northwest.” Since earning a BA in African-American Studies from Whitman College and receiving the Outstanding Drum Soloist award at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in 2005, Shoals has been fully immersed in the broader Portland music scene. He was Jazz Society of Oregon’s Featured Musician in October 2006. Some of the artists and he has performed and/or recorded with include Pat Monahan (Train), Nu Shooz Orchestra, Tony Furtado, Curtis Salgado, Dan Balmer, Ohmega Watts, Stephanie Schniderman, John Nastos, Matt Sheehy, and Ben Darwish. He also composes for and leads the Drew Shoals Collective, which released their debut album “The Greatest Haven’t Been Born Yet” in December 2007 on Diatic Records.  In February 2008, Shoals received a Portland Music Award for Outstanding Achievement in Jazz, and Ohmega Watts’ album “Watts Happening”, which features a track with Shoals on drums, won the PMA for Album of the Year.