Music has always been an important part of my life. As a child, we had a full analog recording studio in our house in Sacramento, CA and bands would come through and cut their records while my mom read me bedtime stories. Some of my earliest memories are hanging out in the studio, bashing on my dad’s drums and piano. We sold the house and studio and moved onto a boat when I was ten and I signed up to play drums in the school band. In 1988 my family set sail for Bainbridge Island, WA where became a stereotypical band geek.

I attended Edmonds Community College and became the drummer for their internationally recognized vocal jazz ensemble Soundsation. One of the most important influences on my playing was backing up vocal jazz groups—I learned so much about listening, complimenting, phrasing, texture, and subtlety by backing choirs. I’ve never had much interest in flashy technique and have since based my approach behind the drums on what is best for the song and what just feels good.

In 1995, I set sail with my parents and brother, Jherek Bischoff, for a two-year sailing adventure through Mexico and Central America. During this time, my brother (a bassist) and I jammed together almost daily and really cemented our brotherly musical bond. Upon anchoring in a port, we’d hop in the dinghy with our gear and land in front of the nearest beachfront restaurant. Within an hour we had a music residency set up for a few nights, often with local musicians, to entertain locals and other sailors—all for a free meal.

Upon returning to the Pacific Northwest, I studied music at the UW and started teaching drums privately. I began playing in an organ jazz trio, a roots-rock band, and a two-man band with my brother called The Dips. As those projects ended, my brother and I, along with friend Sam Mickens, formed The Dead Science. We released several CDs and LPs, played at CMJ Music Marathon in NYC, at SxSW in Austin, TX, and toured the U.S. We recorded with Xiu Xiu and made many connections that still inform our circles today. Throughout the years I’ve continued to make music with my brother. With him, I’ve had opportunities to perform or record with amazing talent and musical heroes like David Byrne, Amanda Palmer, and so many more.

After a break from gigging to raise two kids, I re-entered the music scene in a genre that worked perfectly for a parent of two small boys—as a drummer in the family music genre, first with Johnny Bregar & The Country Dogs and then since 2012 with Recess Monkey. 

Recess Monkey is a children’s music band that is acclaimed across the country for singable, danceable songs that parents enjoy as much as their kids. Praised by People, Time, The Seattle Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The New York Times, and NPR for a pitch-perfect understanding of what gets kids excited, Recess Monkey is known for prolific album output and our high-energy live shows. At our busiest, we were playing about 125 shows per year, and in 2017, our Amazon Original album Novelties was nominated for a GRAMMY Award for Best Children’s Album.

In 2020, like the rest of the world who was thrust into a global pandemic, I found myself at home—gig-less and with nowhere to go. Fortunately, a couple months prior, my wife got me a set of drum mics as I’d always wanted to try recording music at home (little did she know that she was creating a monster and opening a gear can of worms). Within the first week of the shutdown, I was collaborating with my brother and my fellow Monkey, Drew Holloway. That group of filesharing projects turned into two unique bands. First out was The Phantom Years which included Drew, Jherek, and my oldest son Calder. An experiment in art pop, electronics, and an opportunity to practice on new tools. We released our album, Thanks For Asking, on digital and vinyl in 2022. In 2024, the second group of more alt-country leaning songs was released by Drew and myself under the name Western Arrow. 

In the meantime, I have continued to collaborate with a number of talented musicians from throughout the region, from jazz to a dynamic funk band, and recording projects that keep me busier than I need to be while holding down a job as Deputy Director at Bainbridge Island Museum of Art. 

• Korum Bischoff's Instagram Link