# Tomas Haake vs Blake Richardson — Q&A Comparison | MetalForge

> Structured Q&A: Tomas Haake (Meshuggah) vs Blake Richardson (Between the Buried and Me). Polymetric grid vs progressive chaos: the two most complex rhythm architects in modern metal.

**Category:** Progressive / Technical Metal · **URL:** https://metalforge.io/vs/tomas-haake-vs-blake-richardson

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**Q: Who is Tomas Haake?**
A: Tomas Haake is the Swedish drummer for Meshuggah, widely regarded as the architect of djent drumming. His polyrhythmic approach on albums like *Chaosphere* (1998), *Nothing* (2002), and *obZen* (2008) redefined what rhythmic complexity could mean in a metal context, spawning an entire sub-genre and influencing bands such as Periphery, Animals as Leaders, and Vildhjarta.

**Q: Who is Blake Richardson?**
A: Blake Richardson is the American drummer for Between the Buried and Me (BTBAM), which he joined in 2005. Known for his work on landmark albums like *Colors* (2007), *The Great Misdirect* (2009), and *The Parallax II: Future Sequence* (2012), Richardson is widely regarded as one of the most technically proficient and musically versatile drummers in progressive metal. His ability to seamlessly blend death metal blast beats, jazz sophistication, and experimental textures within single compositions makes him a defining voice in modern progressive metal.

**Q: What is the main stylistic difference between Tomas Haake and Blake Richardson?**
A: Tomas Haake specializes in mathematical polyrhythmic precision — building kick, snare, and cymbal patterns that cycle across extended odd time signatures independent of the guitar riff, creating Meshuggah's hypnotic rhythmic tension. Blake Richardson specializes in genre-spanning organic complexity — navigating BTBAM's rapid transitions between death metal, jazz, progressive rock, and experimental textures within single songs, serving each compositional moment with jazz-influenced musicality. Haake's machine is calibrated for mathematical regularity; Richardson's machine is calibrated for adaptive chaos.

**Q: What drums does Tomas Haake play?**
A: Tomas Haake plays a Sonor SQ2 Heavy Beech kit configured for maximum low-frequency authority, with a 24"×18" kick drum and an extended tom range to support Meshuggah's dense, down-tuned sound.

**Q: What drums does Blake Richardson play?**
A: Blake Richardson plays a Tama Starclassic Bubinga kit with a custom finish, chosen for its warm, resonant attack and sustain that supports BTBAM's genre-diverse sound requirements.

**Q: What cymbals do Tomas Haake and Blake Richardson use?**
A: Tomas Haake uses Sabian HHX & AAX Series cymbals (14" HHX Compression Hi-Hats, 15" Artisan Hi-Hats, 19"/20"/21" HHX Stage Crashes, 22" Legacy Ride, 19" AAXtreme China) — delivering warmer, more complex overtones suited to polyrhythmic texture. Blake Richardson uses Meinl Byzance Series cymbals (Dark, Extra Dry, and Traditional models) — darker and musically complex, providing the tonal depth and harmonic richness that BTBAM's diverse compositional demands require.

**Q: What bass drum pedals do Tomas Haake and Blake Richardson use?**
A: Tomas Haake uses two individual Tama Speed Cobra single pedals, playing each foot independently. This unconventional choice gives each foot different mechanical feedback and requires extraordinary control to achieve the polyrhythmic independence Meshuggah demands. Blake Richardson uses a Pearl Demon Drive double pedal, a conventional direct-drive setup optimized for the responsive, fluid double bass work BTBAM's diverse compositions require.

**Q: Why does Tomas Haake use two single pedals instead of a double pedal?**
A: Tomas Haake prefers the independent mechanical response of two separate single pedals over a shared beam, giving him distinct feel and foot independence that suits Meshuggah's complex polyrhythmic patterns. This self-imposed constraint forces a different physical relationship with the kick drum and is a defining technical signature of his style.

**Q: What is Blake Richardson best known for?**
A: Blake Richardson is best known for his drumming on *Colors* (2007), BTBAM's most celebrated album, and *The Great Misdirect* (2009), which features the 19-minute epic "Swim to the Moon." Both records showcase his ability to navigate extreme stylistic range within single compositions — moving from brutal death metal to clean jazz passages to orchestral sections without losing musical identity.

**Q: Who is more influential — Tomas Haake or Blake Richardson?**
A: Both have had significant and distinct influence. Tomas Haake's work with Meshuggah created the djent sub-genre and spawned a generation of progressive metal bands throughout the 2010s — virtually every modern metal band citing polyrhythmic influence traces that DNA back to Haake. Blake Richardson influenced a generation of progressive metal drummers to treat odd time signatures and genre fusion as natural vocabulary rather than technical showcase — his influence runs deepest in metalcore, prog-death, and technical metal communities. Haake's influence is broader in terms of spawning an entire sub-genre; Richardson's is deeper in terms of compositional sophistication within a single band.

**Q: What techniques does Blake Richardson use?**
A: Blake Richardson employs jazz-influenced ghost notes and hi-hat work, seamless blast beat transitions, complex odd time signatures executed naturally, and the use of space and restraint within extreme metal contexts. His jazz background gives his playing a musicality and dynamic sensitivity that distinguishes him from pure technical-speed drummers.

**Q: What makes Tomas Haake's drumming unique?**
A: Tomas Haake's drumming is unique for its ability to maintain multiple simultaneous rhythmic layers with machine-like consistency — playing kick patterns that cycle over longer periods while the snare and cymbals follow different rhythmic groupings. His use of two single pedals and his role as Meshuggah's primary rhythmic architect set him apart from virtually all other metal drummers.

**Q: What is the verdict — Tomas Haake vs Blake Richardson?**
A: Tomas Haake and Blake Richardson represent two philosophical poles of rhythmic complexity in modern metal. Haake is the architect of mathematical regularity — his polyrhythmic grids are the most complex locked-in patterns in metal, and they created an entire sub-genre. Richardson is the architect of adaptive chaos — his ability to serve every compositional moment in BTBAM's genre-defying songs with appropriate technique and musicality is unmatched. Both are irreplaceable. The comparison is not about who is more complex, but which kind of complexity you prefer: Haake's mathematical machine or Richardson's organic fluidity.

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*Full comparison: [metalforge.io/vs/tomas-haake-vs-blake-richardson](https://metalforge.io/vs/tomas-haake-vs-blake-richardson)*

*[Tomas Haake drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/tomas-haake)*
*[Blake Richardson drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/blake-richardson)*

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*Last updated: 2026-06-27 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*