My Name is Dan Whitesides and I play drums in THE USED. 

When I was a little kid probably around 8 or 9 I would sit in my moms kitchen for hours and beat on pots and pans with wooden spoons. I'd always ask my dad to get me drums for my birthday or christmas so when I was about 14 I went to his house for christmas, he told me to go downstairs and get him his guitar so I went down and there  was a black drum set just chillin there. I didn't think it was mine because my dad was in bands that practiced down there all the time. So I went upstairs and said who's drums are those and he said they're yours and ever since that day I have played drums.

When I was in 8th grade I met Paul and Levi who to this day are still great friends of mine. We started a band and without thinking about it or talking to anyone we'd just meet up at Paul's house every day and jam all day and night. Besides skateboarding that's all we did. I played with Paul until I was about 19 and up until a few years ago I played in numerous bands with Levi. 

 From about the age of 15-19 I would play with a picture of Dave Grohl right in the middle of my kit he was and is a HUGE influence on me. I love his playing and in my opinion his playing on QOTSA "Songs For The Deaf" and Killing Jokes second self titled is some of the best by anyone on any album.

I've been in country bands, poppy punk bands, straight edge hardcore bands, indie bands, classic rock and roll bands, weird chaotic screamy bands and everything in between. There was a time right before I started playing in THE USED where I was in 4 bands at once, playing about 8 to 10 hours a day and loving every minute of it. I think that keeping an open mind to all types of music and playing with different people made me a better player.

When I started to really take playing seriously and learning new things was when I started listening the more chaotic and heavier indy bands that would use different rhythms/timings and here the drummer really shined, played odd beats and sort of stray from the norm a bit.

 Later on I got in to insane guys like Tony Williams, Buddy Rich, and Dave Weckl those guys are beyond good. I would listen too or watch them jam then I would go to my practice space and try to emmulate what they did. Guys like that are geniuses behind the drums so I never wanted to be or could be as good as them but they inspire me to play better and to explore the drums in different ways.

Some of the bands I love and people that have influenced me over the years are REFUSED, Nirvana, Fugazi, Rage Against The Machine, Led Zeppelin, Earth Crisis, Snapcase, NOFX, Jawbox, Braid, Burning Airlines, System Of A Down, Deadguy, Tony Williams Lifetime, Buddy Rich, Dave Weckl, Mudhoney, Dillinger Escape Plan, Motley Crue, Texas Is The Reason, Sunny Day Real Estate, Sheilbound, Unbroken, Ink And Dagger,  Queens Of The Stone Age, The Locust,  In Flames, Botch,  Steve Miller Band and about a hundred more.

I started playing with THE USED mid 2006 and haven't looked back since. These guys are the most talented people I have ever played with and this band means more to me then anything. Our Album "ARTWORK" is out now,  we all love it and are very proud of it. 

Thanks  for everything you guys. I've always used REMO and I always will, Dan