Ben Gillies
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| Ben Gillies | ||
|---|---|---|
 Ben Gillies at Webster Hall in New York City, February 13, 2007.
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Benjamin David Gillies | |
| Born | October 24, 1979 Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Occupation(s) | musician | |
| Instrument(s) | drums | |
| Years active | 1994 - current | |
| Associated acts |
Silverchair, Tambalane | |
| Notable instrument(s) | ||
| Ben Gillies Heartbeater | ||
Benjamin David Gillies (born 1979) is an Australian musician, best known as the drummer of successful rock band Silverchair. Silverchair is one of Australia’s most successful rock bands. The group has had more top twenty hits during the last decade than any other local artist and they have sold over six million albums worldwide.
He was born in Newcastle, New South Wales. His mother Annette Gillies worked in the cafeteria at Newcastle High School. His father, David Gillies works as a plumber. Gillies has an older sister named Kristie. The Gillies family is a part of the Surfrider Foundation, which promotes clean ocean water. Furthermore, Gillies is an excellent surfer, and cook. Gillies was a quad drummer in The Marching Koalas and he taught his friend Chris Joannou of Silverchair how to play bass in three months. Gillies also plays the guitar and bass.
In addition, Gillies was a member of an Australian rock band Tambalane which has now broken up due to Silverchair's return. In 2002, Silverchair was severely affected by the band’s inability to tour or do promotional appearances due to Daniel Johns' ill health. The singer/guitarist spent 2002 battling a severely debilitating case of reactive arthritis from which he is now recovering. In November of 2005, Ben Gillies Silverchair announced they were working on the music for their 5th studio album Young Modern, aiming for an early 2007 release.
Ben Gillies performed a song with Silverchair originally written by Midnight Oil at the 2006 ARIA Awards as part of Midnight Oil's induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame, during the end of the performance, lead singer Daniel Johns spray painted PG4PM (Peter Garret for Prime Minister) on a stage wall.
[edit] Equipment
The following are the Drumkits used by Ben Gillies during his musical career with Silverchair:
- Frogstomp era:
- Freak Show era:
- Same as in the Frogstomp era, but with a 10x12" Tom instead of a 12x14".
- Neon Ballroom era:
- Same as above, but with a 11x13" Tom and another 16x18" Floor tom on the left side of his kit.
- Diorama era:
- Le Soprano Drums and Sabian Cymbals:
- Le Soprano Drums - Prima Original Ben Gillies Signature
- 6.5x14" Snare
- 8x13" Tom
- 15x16" Floor Tom
- 15x18" Floor Tom
- 15x18" Floor Tom
- 16x24" Bass Drum
- 18" HH Dark Crash
- 21" HH Vintage Ride
- 20" Sabian Radia Crash
- 14" HH Dark Hi Hats
- Young Modern (2006-07) era:
- Le Soprano drums and Sabian cymbals
- Le Soprano Drums - Prima Original in Cherry Red
- 6.5x14" Snare
- 9x12" Tom
- 12x13" Tom
- 16x16" Floor Tom
- 16x18" Floor Tom
- 16x24" Bass Drum
- 18" HH Dark Crash
- 21" HH Vintage Ride
- 20" HH Radia Crash (discontinued)
- 14" HH Dark Hi Hats
- (Same as above, but with a 12x13" Tom next to his 9x12" Tom.)
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[edit] Personal Life
Ben Gillies is currently dating ex-ballet dancer Hayley A., also from NSW.
