A beat of his own
When it comes to music, we’re always searching for a sound that’s familiar. But what makes a song stand out or even go on to become a hit lies in its uniqueness. This is why bands such as Dream Theatre, Megadeth and Iron Maiden etc, are some of the biggest names in the industry. Being unique has always been a guiding principle that drummer Roshan Taraka Seneviratne has strived to follow. Today, he remains the only Sri Lankan drummer to receive two endorsements from world renowned bands, Dixon drums international and TRX cymbals America.
“Don’t ever try to be someone else, just be who you are,” he tells us as we meet up for a chat. Taraka’s journey began with Piano lessons, because it was his father’s dream that he become a pianist. But Tharaka never seemed to get far with it.
He always had that drumming spirit in him.
Tharaka recalls constantly getting in trouble at school, because he used to always tap on desks. In fact during our conversation, I catch him tapping on the table at every pause we took.
Since his father had a career in the music industry, he used to own a practice studio. And Taraka would visit this space just to play the drum kit. In 2002 his brother bought him his own set and this further enabled Tharaka to pursue his dream of becoming a drummer. Sooner he found himself performing in some of the country’s biggest heavy metal bands, ‘Tantrum’ and ‘Stigmata’.
Taraka always wanted to be the best he could be, but at the onset this proved to be a little hard since he was left handed. As he puts it, drummers would usually “play cross.” But he plays free handed and still does so. “People used to mock me when I played this way. But seeing left handed international drummers like Billy Cobham, made me realize I should continue this,” he says.
If you’ve been frequenting the local metal scene, you’d definitely be familiar with Taraka’s signature style of playing. Perhaps this