Tony Laureano was born in Puerto Rico, but movedto Florida in the U.S. at age ten. It was there where he discovered metal through early day MTV videos. Laureano:

"My father was born in New York, and both my parents were bilingual, so I spoke both English and Spanish at a very early age."

Tony Laureano is a drummer who has always pushed the boundaries of endurance and creativity within the metal genre. Since childhood, he always had an affinity for various creative arts, but it wasn't until he hit his early teens while living in the U.S. that he fell in love with heavy metal, the type of music that would one day inspire him to take up the drums. By the time he got his first drumkit at the late age of 18, the more aggresive drumming of thrash and death metal had attracted his attention. Entranced by the percussive attack of this music, he immideately worked on playing this style, improving quickly and joining his first band within 6 months of picking up the drums.



Gene Hoglan and Dave Lombardo are at the top of the list of Laureano's favorite drummers. Other guys he loves are Pete Sandoval, Sean Reinert, Bill Ward, Nicko McBrain, Scott Travis. Tony:

"And I like super drummers like Marco Minneman, Thomas Lang, and Virgil Donati. There's plenty others, as well, Steve Asheim, Nicke Andersson, Steve Flynn, Perry Strickland, etc."

Asked for his recipe to achieve such great speed and stamina, Laureano reveils:

"I used to practice individually like a madman in my early years of drumming, and then for a long time, I didn't have a place where I could play drums, so I would only play when rehearsing with a band. Currently, I am practicing more because I can now play at home, and because I have a lot of stuff to work on as well. I would say that touring has been a big help in that I can always try to do better the next night. Of course, that theory doesn't always work, as I have bad days like anyone else, but I do pay attention to what I'm doing wrong or not as good as I should be, and I try to better it. And touring with great drummers always helps because it pushes me to do better."

Realizing the limited resources in Orlando, Florida, he moved to nearby Tampa, where a much bigger music scene was thriving, and for the next few years, he played in various bands, all the while honing his skill. In the fall of 1995, he was hired by Malevolent Creation to tour Europe, and after returning home, he worked on a few more recordings (with Aurora Borealis and Acheron), and later on, he did several more tours with Malevolent Creation.



In early 1998, he joined one of his favorite bands, Kansas City based Angelcorpse, and proceeded to cut a touring swath across the U.S. and Europe throughout the next 11 months. This was quickly followed by the recording of the 3rd Angelcorpse album, "The Inexorable." After the album's release, more touring followed, but various events took their toll on the bandmembers, and Angelcorpse disbanded in May 2000.



However, Tony Laureano had little time to contemplate his next move, as a mere two days later he was contacted by South Carolina death metal band Nile to fill their drummer slot. He toured with Nile for a year and a half, while slipping in some session recordings during the band's down time (with God Dethroned, and Internecine) before entering the studio in early 2002 to record Nile's third official record, "In Their Darkened Shrines". This was followed by more relentless touring which included three U.S. runs, two European runs, Japan, and various European festival appearances, as well as filming two promotional videos in California. In between all of this, he managed to squeeze in a 40 date European run, as well as a 10 day brazilian tour with old friends Malevolent Creation.



He decided to leave Nile in the summer of 2004. Since leaving Nile, Tony Laureano has toned down his drum set quite a bit. He dropped two rack toms, so now he only use a 10" and a 12" with two floor toms as well. Depending on a project, he may add a few more toms, and other effects, but this is what Tony generally plays on, along with two 22" bass drums. He only plays Sabian cymbals. For the pedals, he has been using Axis for about eight years. Laureano:

"First I used the originals, and now the Longboards. I like both, but I have been thinking of going back to the originals. I also sometimes use Iron Cobras to play with a different feel. They are much heavier, and have the traditional pull of a pedal as opposed to the touch feel of the Axis."

In July 2004 Laureano was contacted by Norwegian black metal band Dimmu Borgir, who needed a drummer for their impending appearance on the 2004 edition of the premiere American metal tour, the Ozzfest. With only a few days notice, and two rehearsals, he did 38 shows in the next 50 days with the Norwegian band. Upon the completion of the tour, and after nearly 9 years of constant touring, he took an extended break from music.



Recharged in 2005, he has recorded a new album with Aurora Borealis, as well as continued a stint as a live session drummer for Dimmu Borgir. He is also working on some new projects that will continue to push the boundaries of his playing.



Factoid: Laureano once made a guest appearanc as a session drummer, filling in for his friend Paul Mazurkiewicz of Cannibal Corpse, whom he used to work for. Mazurkiewicz was traveling separately from the band one day, and he arrived late for a festival, and Laureano had to play the set with next to no notice.



Using the alias of Angelito, Tony Laureano also plays drums in Brujeria. He joined the band in January 2006, replacing Nick Barker (who had been using the moniker of Hongo Jr.)



Formed in 1989, Brujeria released four full-length albums through the Roadrunner label and boasted a revolving lineup of high-profile musicians, including former Faith No More bassist Billy Gould and Fear Factory drummer Raymond Herrera.