This post is part of our ongoing coverage for Millvale Music Fest 2026. Follow the page to stay in the loop and consider supporting us on Patreon (<you can click that) via our digital-only ($1) or hard copy ($3) tiers to get things directly in your inbox or mailbox.
We hustled to talk to every single drummer holding down, pushing the pace, and setting the groove for the 350 bands at this year’s Millvale Music Fest. After countless miles, numerous games of phone tag, and some good old-fashioned journalism, here are some highlights from all seven of them.
“I play every song with the same groove and at the same tempo, and if somebody tries to call me out on it, I just blame it all on the bassist. Works 100% of the time.”
-Lucien Franks, on preparation
“You got a snare I could borrow?”
-Sam Broten, on kit preferences
“I’m a huge Keanu Reeves fan, so I’ve rigged myself to explode if I ever start playing under 110 bpm.”
-Marq Taylor, on endurance
“Alcohol gets into your bloodstream faster if you boof it.”
-Jim ‘Wafflestomp’ Walkauskas, on hydration
“Now I am become Death, punker of horns.”
-Dom Palomino, on playing ska
“If I know we’re about to have a rehearsal I’m not looking forward to, I’ll vandalize a famous band’s Wiki page ahead of time to put my name prominently in the ‘Past Members’ section. That way, if things go sour, I can yell something like, ‘Lemmy would’ve never let this shit slide!’ and we’ll spend the rest of the time talking about what it’s like to tour with Motörhead.”
-Sam Broten, on putting in the work
“Drum pads are the tried-and-true classic, sure, but almost anything works: the arm of a sofa, the top of some junk office desk—hell, even a random slab of concrete.”
-Jim ‘Wafflestomp’ Walkauskas, on where he sleeps
“Bop It, mainly.”
-Sarah Wishart, on classical training
“Neil Peart, John Bonham, Keith Moon…”
-Dom Palomino, on people he’s fairly certain are dead
“Revolutionary. It’s changed everything about how I approach the instrument and even how I understand music as a whole. I’ve gone back to some of my favorites with a refreshed ear, and it’s helped the music resonate with me on a deeply personal level.”
-Kat Carlsson, on repeating 1-2-3-4 instead of counting from one up to whatever number she’s on when the set is over
“Harry Richard and the Dicks, Piss Jug, Stephen Walker and the Ambassadors of Funk, Louisville Butt-Chugger, Fickschnitzel—I could keep going on and on.”
-Lucien Franks, on what he would’ve called the George Foreman Grill instead
Editor’s Note:
This article has been updated to include a photo of local canine Travis the Barker, who the publication recently learned will fill in on the drums for one set during the 2026 event. Pittsburgh Unfiltered apologizes for this oversight.
