GODSMACK's SHANNON LARKIN Offers Advice To Young Drummers: 'Wear Earplugs'

May 6, 2019

In a brand new interview with The London Free Press, GODSMACK drummer Shannon Larkin was asked what advice he would give to young drummers. He responded: "It might not sound very sexy, but wear earplugs. When I was in my mid-30s, my wife and I would take turns getting up at night to feed my daughter and change her diaper, but I couldn't even hear my daughter crying even in the same room. The truth is, you'll thank me for that."

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, research suggests that 30 to 50 percent of musicians have hearing problems. To better protect their hearing, many musicians wear earplugs that are specially designed for people who play music. Musicians' earplugs let a person hear all of the music, but at a lower sound level.

Musicians can do other things to protect their hearing. Sound travels in a straight line, so the sound is louder when someone stands directly in front of, or behind a speaker. Professional musicians know to stand to the side of a speaker, or to angle the speakers away from them. Musicians also take breaks between sets of music or while practicing to give their ears a rest.

Dr. Anthony Kovacs, an audiologist, told KUNC that he isn't surprised that hearing protection hasn't been a big priority for many musicians.

"With hearing protection, it can be challenging to communicate on stage and to hear your instrument with as much clarity as you need to," he said.

"Musicians, sound engineers, even bouncers at a loud music venue who are just exposed night after night to really loud music, eventually that very well can take a toll on your hearing," he added. "When you rely on your ears for your livelihood, you really need to protect them."

GODSMACK is continuing to tour in support of its latest album, "When Legends Rise", which was released in April 2018. The disc follows up 2014's "1000hp" and is the band's first release through BMG after splitting with its longtime home, Republic/Universal.

Find more on Godsmack

Prev More News Next

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).