Dave Williams is one of Australia’s most accomplished musicians and in-demand drummers. As a founding member of Melbourne five-piece, Augie March, Williams has established himself as a critically acclaimed musician, as well as a nationally-renowned drummer, singer, instrumentalist for hire and educator. With a wealth of skill and experience, Williams proudly endorses Gretsch Drums Zildjian cymbals, Vic Firth drum sticks and Remo drum heads. 

Forming in 1996, Augie March emerged from Melbourne’s bookish art-rock scene to become one of Australia’s most beloved acts. With a reputation for skilled arrangements, unique musicianship, erudite lyrics and stirring performances, the band have released six albums and toured extensively around Australia and the world, sharing stages with the likes of Leonard Cohen, John Cale, Wilco, Crowded House, Yo La Tengo, Gomez and more. Williams’ skill as an instrumentalist is core to the Augie March dynamic – as well as being the band’s drummer, percussionist and backing vocalist, Williams also brings keyboards, live sampling, ukulele, melodica, acoustic guitar, and some occasional lead vocals to his role.

Augie March’s third album, Moo, You Bloody Choir (2006) brought the band commercial success. Led by revered first single, ‘One Crowded Hour’ - now voted one of Australia’s all-time greatest songs by APRA – the album went platinum. It saw Augie March take home the prestigious Australian Music Prize in addition to garnering six ARIA nominations. ‘One Crowded Hour’ also topped the country’s biggest music poll, coming in at #1 on national radio station triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2006, as voted by 650,000 listeners. In December 2021, Augie March released their seventh album, Bloodsport and Porn.

Williams has also established himself as a revered session musician. He’s recorded and performed with a raft of iconic Australian acts, including Chris Cheney, Laura Jean, Luluc, Josh Pyke, Dan Kelly, Jen Cloher, Liz Stringer, Bob Evans, Paul Dempsey and Australian rock royalty Deborah Conway and Paul Kelly.

More recently, his skills as a producer and collaborator has seen him parlay his expertise into engineering remote drum and percussion recordings out of his own SoBell Studios. As well as Augie March, clients include Jen Cloher, Liz Stringer and Guy Blackman, along with producers Greg Oshea, John Lee, James Cecil, Anika Ostendorf (Hachiku) and Steve Lane.

With a Bachelor of Music from Victoria University and a member of the Victorian Music Teachers Association (VMTA), Williams has over 20 years experience conducting individual and group drum and percussion lessons.

In 2022, Dave toured with Augie March, Jen Cloher, Luluc, Liz Stringer and Mia Dyson’s Parking Lots 15-year anniversary tour. Dave also joined The Living End’s Chris Cheney in July for his Australian tour to promote Chris’ debut solo album, The Storm Before The Calm.

In 2023, Dave performed with Augie March at the AFL Anzac Day pre-game telecast, performing the Redgum classic “ I Was Only 19’ live to air and watched by over half a million viewers. Dave toured across Australia in February and March with Liz Stringer and William Crighton and joined Coda Chroma for their Dreamself album tour in July and August. Dave finished the year performing on the Queenscliff Music Festival main stage with Liz Stringer and supporting Jackson Browne at Margret Court Arena.