Matt Starr Public Clinics at Rascals Live -- November 9.
Student Clinic: Thursday, November 9, 5 p.m.
Public Clinic: Thursday, November 9, 8 p.m.
Rascals Live, 1414 15th Street, Moline IL
Well-known for collaborating with hard-rock and heavy-metal acts and artists such as KISS' Ace Frehley, Joe Lynn Turner, Love/Hate, Kevin DuBrow, and Mr. Big, the revered concert and studio drummer Matt Starr makes a rare trip to the Quad Cities to participate in two November 9 drumming clinics at Moline's Rascals Live – one for students of the QC Rock Academy at 4 p.m., and one for the general public at 9 p.m.
Among his many credits over the years, Starr, in late 2004, Starr formed the band Hookers & Blow with Guns N' Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed and Quiet Riot guitarist Alex Grossi. The band toured the U.S., and one year later, Starr co-wrote and recorded the Beautiful Creatures sophomore release Deuce, also touring with that band throughout 2005r. The song "Freedom" was used in the 2009 Sandra Bullock film The Proposal, while "Anyone," also from Deuce, was used in the FX series Sons of Anarchy. In 2007, the musician momentarily stepped away from drumming and formed The Automatic Music Explosion as a singer, spending the next two years recording with producer Mike Chapman. Due to a lack of label support, the record never saw a proper release, yet several of the tracks were licensed to various cable television shows and movies, including SpongeBob SquarePants.
In the summer of 2012, Starr, together with Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke, co-produced The Return to Psycho California, the debut release by hard-rock band Hotel Diablo. That same year, Starr joined guitarist Ace Frehley's band, playing drums on the former MISS musician's 2014 release Space Invader. Starr is the only drummer aside from Late Night with David Letterman's Anton Fig to play on the entirety of one of Frehley's records, and the drummer also played on several tracks from Frehley's subsequent releases, Origins, Vol. 1; Spaceman and Origins Vol. 2.
While remaining with Frehley in 2013, Starr began playing with Burning Rain, a band formed by Whitesnake guitarist Doug Aldrich, Montrose vocalist Keith St John, and Dokken bassist Sean McNabb. He performed on their 2013 album Epic Obsession, while the following year, Starr began filling in for Mr. Big drummer Pat Torpey, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He sat in on the band's "...The Stories We Could Tell" world tour, also playing on several tracks from their 2017 album Defying Gravity, and Starr went on to tour with Mr. Big once more as they promoted their latest release.
Matt Starr conducts his QC Rock Academy Student Clinic (free for QCRA students) at 5 p.m. on November 9, with his Public Clinic ($10/per person) taking place at 8 p.m. Both clinics will take place at Rascals Live in Moline, and more information and registration is available by visiting the event's Facebook page.
