Hiram Sevilla, The Man Behind The Drums
Very often we go to a concert and we think that the band really rocked, there was something about the energy and drive that was felt during the performance, but just as often, the person responsible for all the energy and drive is overlooked as they sit in the back banging away on their drum set.
One of those drummers is Hiram Sevilla, who is best known for his work with legendary alternative L.A. based band, Pastilla and who has also worked with three-time Grammy award winner guitarist Cesar “Vampiro” Lopez, former guitarist for legendary Mexican rock bands Jaguares and Maná and last year Hiram was invited to become the official drummer for the alternative Minneapolis, MN band, Howler.
Born in Sonora, Mexico, in 1986, Hiram began playing drums at the age of 6. While still in Sonora, Hiram started his first band, Insofacto. At the age of 16, Hiram moved to Baja California to be part of a bigger rock scene. He played drums for multiple locally known bands like Foam, Radiocalifornia and Kandy Dekay.
In 2009 the band Kandy Dekay was offered a record deal by Zepeda Bros in Mexico City. After moving to Mexico City with Dekay, the band did an extensive tour sponsored by The Coca Cola Company all around the country.
In 2014, Hiram moved to Los Angeles to study music at The Musicians Institute of Hollywood where he graduated on March 20, 2016.
While at a local show, Hiram was introduced to Pastilla guitarist Jesus “Chuy” Michel, who later invited him for an audition for Pastilla. With a successful audition he began to work with the band and started touring around the US and Mexico. Hiram also recorded the drums that were missing for their 6th studio album Sentidos Saturados. In 2015 the single “Particula H” reached “Best of the week” list on itunes.
While living in L.A. Hiram has surrounded himself with other musicians with a proven record which has helped him grow as an artist as is the case with drummer Jeff Freidl (Perfect Circle, Devo, Puscifer, Eagles of Death Metal) who has been Hiram’s drum mentor since 2014 and has helped Hiram perfect his drumming technique.
In 2015, through bassist Eduardo “Yayo” Trujillo, (Pastilla), Hiram met singer Jordan Gatesmith from the band Howler and they were both invited by Jordan to be official members of Howler after filling in on drums and bass for a Howler tour in the US.
In May 7, 2016 Pastilla celebrated their twentieth anniversary with a sold out show at the Lunario Del Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City. The show made the press and fans remember their success in the Latin Alternative Rock scene. The success of this show, catapulted Pastilla to one of the headlining spots at the massive festival Semana de las Juventudes on August 20, 2016, the festival is put on by the Mexican government called in support of youth education. The concert took place at the Zocalo (The Heart of Mexico) with a crowd of 180,000.
In August 5, 2016, Hiram played a showcase with Cesar “Vampiro” Lopez and Pastilla founder Víctor Monroy’s side project Monoplasma at the Gibson showroom in Beverly Hills for the release of the album titled S.O.S.
Besides his drumming career, Hiram is also an artist and entrepreneur. In 2014 Hiram created his own line of custom hand painted drumsticks which are available on his online art gallery called “Paint on Heads” © and in 2015, Hiram also created his own clothing brand called Hagik. The clothes are 100% Handcrafted.
To keep track of Hiram’s gigs and to purchase his merchandise you can visit his website at www.hiramsevilla.com