Justin Kier -Otep
Biography from his favorite cymbals PAISTE CYMBALS
Justin Kier (born May 29, 1982 in San Jose, CA) is an American drummer, currently performing as a member of Victory Records’ nu metal band OTEP. After spending his formative years in a small town in Colorado, at the age of 16 he returned to the San Francisco Bay Area where his passion for drumming flourished.
As a youth, he was self-taught, but at age 18 Justin took a serious step toward taking his passion to the next level and studied with numerous drummers and instructors with expertise in various styles. This was done in an effort to become the best and most well-rounded drummer possible (i.e., Murray Gussak, Damien Garcia, Josh Risken, Ray Luzier, Virgil Donati, Donny Gruendler, Gary Garbantini, Chuck Silverman, Rob Carson and many more).
Upon turning 22 and realizing that opportunities for professional drummers were limited in the Bay Area, Justin moved to Southern California to further his professional drumming career in the music and entertainment industry. At the same time, he enrolled at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, CA and spent a significant amount of time absorbing everything he could from his fellow students and from the one-on-one time he was able to secure with the top teachers at MI.
Justin loves music and is an aficionado of many genres. As such, he has found himself on the performing and touring end of numerous bands, including (in alphabetical order):
Borderwars (thrash), Ginger Maker (dub reggae), Kara Britz (an up and coming country artist), Exordium- (black Metal)
Mr. Grey (hip hop), Necktie Social (rock & roll), Team Rock (rock & roll), Throw Away Heroes (rock & roll), Trio (jam band)
Triplex-Hip-Hop (reggae), Two kids on the Block (cover band)
With an impressive 500+ live shows, two national, one international and two West coast tours to his credit, Justin is one of the most sought after hard hitters in the music business today.
Justin’s studio projects include performing on an instructional DVD with Ken Styger from ‘Project Styger,’ on projects with bands and as a studio musician at:
Burnout Studios (Van Nuys, CA), Fire Station Studios (Burbank, CA), The Hatch (San Jose, CA), Hit Wall Studios (San Francisco, CA), Musicians Institute (Hollywood, CA), Sunset Studios (Los Angeles, CA)
2016 - GENERATION DOOM - OTEP # 4 Billboard Rockcharts
