Judas Priest Drummer Scott Travis Explains Why He Holds His Drumsticks Upside Down

Have you ever wondered why long-time Judas Priest drummer Scott Travis holds his drumsticks upside down? Well, probably not, unless you’re a drummer yourself, and even then you’d probably have to be watching fairly closely to notice. Still, it’s an odd quirk that some have noticed and have wanted answers for. Well, now you have those answers.

Yesterday, Judas Priest posted a video on their official Instagram (as transcribed by Blabbermouth) where they asked Travis about his unique drumstick technique, and the answer is intriguing to say the least:

“It is wrong, isn’t it? Well, that’s a good question. So, many, many years ago, two of my favorite drummers, Neil Peart of RUSH and Tommy Aldridge, who’s played Ozzy [Osbourne] and a bunch of other bands, WHITESNAKE, I noticed they were always playing — so they would have the butt end on the left hand, which is normally the snare, and then they would play the tip on the ride cymbal for clarity. So I kind of stole that idea, and then I just figured that if it works on this hand, it’s good enough on this hand, and when you have to buy your own drumsticks, which I used to do, they last longer, because, obviously, that’s thicker than that. That’s what she said. And so that’s where it got started, really.”

Scott, while I appreciate the “That’s what she said” joke, could you let me make the jokes in my own article? I don’t come on stage and drum for you, do I?

Okay, all joking aside, that’s an interesting answer, and it does make sense that it would make the sticks last longer. Whatever he’s doing, it seems to be working, because he’s been playing drums for one of the most iconic metal bands in history since 1989.

If you want to hear Travis’ unique drumming style in person, you can catch Judas Preist on the second leg of their tour for their latest album Invincible Shield where they’ll be touring North America with Sebaton, followed by a small handful of dates in Japan.

JUDAS PRIEST: INVINCIBLE SHIELD LEG 2 TOUR DATES:

Fri Sep 13 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre 
Sat Sep 14 – Niagara Falls, ON – Fallsview Casino Resort*
Tue Sep 17 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill 
Thu Sep 19 – Milwaukee, WI – Miller High Life Theatre 
Sat Sep 21 – Cedar Rapids, IA – Alliant Energy PowerHouse 
Sun Sep 22 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford Premier Center*
Tue Sep 24 – Rochester, MN – Mayo Civic Center Arena*
Wed Sep 25 – Omaha, NE – Baxter Arena 
Fri Sep 27 – Rockford, IL – BMO Center 
Sun Sep 29 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life – Festival^ 
Tue Oct 1 – Independence, MO – Cable Dahmer Arena 
Thu Oct 3 – Billings, MT – First Interstate Arena at MetraPark 
Sat Oct 5 – Idaho Falls, ID – Mountain America Center 
Sun Oct 6 – Spokane, WA – Spokane Arena 
Wed Oct 9 – Everett, WA – Angel of the Winds Arena 
Thu Oct 10 – Portland, OR – Alaska Airlines’ Theater of the Clouds 
Sat Oct 12 – Sacramento, CA – After Shock Festival^ 
Sun Oct 13 – Reno, NV – Grand Sierra Resort and Casino*
Tue Oct 15 – Los Angeles, CA – YouTube Theater 
Wed Oct 16 – Las Vegas, NV – Bakkt Theater at Planet Hollywood 
Fri Oct 18 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Financial Theatre 
Sun Oct 20 – Loveland, CO – Blue Arena 
Tue Oct 22 – Houston, TX – Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land 
Thu Oct 24 – Austin, TX – Germania Insurance Amphitheater 
Sat Oct 26 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
Thurs Dec 5 – Nagoya, Japan – Aichi Prefectural Art Theater
Fri Dec 6 – Amagasaki Japan – Amashin Archaic Hall
Mon Dec 9 – Okayama, Japan – Okayama Performing Aarts Theatre
Thurs Dec 12 – Yokahama Japan – Pia Arena MM