Neil Cooper (drummer)

Neil Cooper is an English musician who is the drummer for Therapy?,^[1] a rock band from Northern Ireland, and formerly of The Beyond, a rock band from England.

Neil Cooper
Cooper performing with Therapy? in 2024
Background information
Born	Derby, England
Genres	Alternative metal, alternative rock
Occupation	Drummer
Years active	1988–present
Member of	Therapy?
Formerly of	The Beyond, Cable, Gorilla

Career

Cooper was a founding member of The Beyond in 1988.

The Beyond disbanded in 1993, after which Cooper joined Cable. The band signed to Infectious Records and Cooper appeared on their debut album Downlift the Uptrodden. He also played on both of their John Peel sessions and toured the UK and Europe.

In 1995, however, Cooper re-joined his old bandmates from The Beyond in a new group called Gorilla. In 1998, following the release of several EPs, the group disbanded.^[2]

Cooper, by now^[when?] operating freelance, had a stint with bigbeat combo Psychedeliasmith, and worked with Fatboy Slim. Cooper also gained his Certificate in Teaching from the Royal Schools of Music in 2001, the same year as he co-founded a Derby-based record label called Stressed Sumo Records.^[3]

Cooper joined Therapy? in 2002, following the departure of Graham Hopkins. His first live performance with Therapy? took place at the Carvicais Rock Festival in Portugal on 10 August that year. It followed one rehearsal in which he had to learn the full sixteen song set. Cooper has since played on the band's last eight studio albums – High Anxiety, Never Apologise Never Explain, One Cure Fits All, Crooked Timber, A Brief Crack of Light, Disquiet, Cleave, and “Hard Cold Fire”.

Cooper uses, and is endorsed by, Mapex drums, Paiste cymbals, and Vic Firth drumsticks.^[4]

Discography

The Beyond

• Manic Sound Panic (1990 EP)
• No Excuse (1990 EP)
• Crawl (1991 album)
• "One Step Too Far" (1991 single)
• "Empire" (1991 single)
• Raging (1991 EP)
• Chasm (1993 album)

Cable

• "Sale of the Century" (1994 single)
• "Seventy" (1995 single)
• "Blindman" (1995 single)
• "Seventy" (1996 single)
• Downlift the Uptrodden (1996 album)

Gorilla

• Extended Play (1995 EP)
• Shutdown (1995 EP)
• "Who Wants to Save the World Anyway?" (1997 single)
• "Outside" (1998 single)

Therapy?

Main article: Therapy? discography

• All releases from 2003 to present