Brian Craig

Since the age of 4 Brian has been behind the drum kit and has ever since pursued his dream. He was born on June 1 st, 1976 in Montreal, Canada taking after two of his three older brothers, cousin, and uncle who were drummers. Also, with a pianist/vocalist Dad, a violinist Mom, and an aunt who was a professional opera singer, Brian was not lacking any inspiration or influence in the world of music.

Although he had already jammed with experienced musicians as a child, his first band was not until the age of 12. It was not until age 15 with speed/ death metal band Eulogy that he would get to play his first real show in front of a crowd even though he needed his mother’s permission to play since it was an over 18 establishment. From there with Eulogy he got to open up for international acts such as Sacrifice, Nuclear Assault, and Malhavoc, as well as being the supporting act for England’s Carcass and Pitch Shifter on their 1994 Canadian tour.

After Eulogy’s break up in 1995 he then joined a groove metal project called Resisting Arrest which made an impact on the local Montreal scene but disbanded a short time after. In 1996, he was approached by a German based groove metal band named Slyce who had just signed a major record deal with S+F Entertainment in Germany.

With Slyce he moved to Germany and toured Europe for nearly a year. It was then that he had the fortunate opportunity to perform at the ‘Dynamo Open Air Festival 97’ in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. This festival was the equivalent to the “ Woodstock” of metal music which attracted more than 100,000 spectators from around the world. There he shared the stage with such acts as Marilyn Manson, Korn, Limp Bizkit, and Testament to name a few. That experience was a dream come true for a kid only 20 years of age.

When Slyce disbanded in late1997, he took a break from music for nearly a year. The news that he would become a father to a little boy was enough to do so. But later on in 1998 he was hired by a female Pop-rock artist named Brigitte Pace whose song “Save your Soul” was at the top of the charts in Canada at that time. Again, it was an excellent opportunity to grow as a drummer and get to play yet another style of music.

That same year he was approached by Ghoulunatics, a Groove/stoner rock/metal band outfit which he still is a part of to this day.

Since joining Ghoulunatics in1998, Brian has shared much success with his band mates such as winning a MIMI award (Montreal International Music Initiative) in 2002 for ‘Metal band of the year’, and being nominated for ‘Metal album of the year’ at the ‘Canadian Independent Music Awards’ in Toronto for their album ‘King of the Undead’.

Also since then, including the releases of their albums ‘Sabacthany’ and most recent ‘Cryogenie’ the band has received much attention such as topping some Canadian and international radio charts, numerous magazine and television appearances, great album reviews, and a few tours over seas.

Now, ….only time will tell what happens next.

Brian Craig’s Mapex story :

“Before joining the family, I had a previous relationship with one of the competitors of Mapex. Although I was relatively happy with my kit, I found that it was such a chore to tune it and to keep it tuned. I’m a hard hitter…..so that didn’t help the situation either. But,… one day.. I was invited to a Mapex presentation. It didn’t take very long for me to fall completely in love with that signature Saturn series oommph!!!! The walnut bass tones coming out of each individual drum literally gave me goose bumps. I then had the opportunity to help assemble a Saturn series kit straight from its brand new boxes. Without any exaggeration, it took me no more than 7 minutes to tune the whole 6 piece kit after the skins were just put on (when it took sometimes more than an hour to tune my old kit close to the way I wanted it). I could not believe my ears. After that brief experience,……… it wasn’t hard to make the choice that I had made.”

Brian Craig’s musical influences :

Drummers : My brothers Andrew and David, my cousin Scott, and of course…Neil Peart, Nick Menza, Stewart Copeland, Buddy Rich, Gene Kruppa, and Steve Smith.

Bands : Rush, Tool, Jamiroquai, Police, Iron Maiden, Kyuss, Obituary, U2, Beck, K-os, Corduroy, Kreator, any Big Band, Motown, or pretty much anything with some feeling, imagination and groove.