text: Barker has described himself as a stoner during his tenure at Fontana High School. His mother, who had been diagnosed with Sjögren syndrome three months earlier, died the day before he started high school. She told him to keep playing music and to follow his dreams. At Fontana High School, Barker played the drum set in the jazz ensemble and snare drum in the marching band. He gained a lot of experience performing at regional competitions and festivals. Barker employed a variety of styles including military and jazz rhythms, but was attracted to the driving rhythms of hip-hop and punk rock.
  Career
  Musical beginnings (1993–1998)
  After graduating from Fontana High School, Barker worked as a trash man in Laguna Beach and played with the punk rock band Snot and Feeble, a Fontana-based band where he met Chad Larson. Larson went on to co-found the ska punk group the Aquabats in 1994. After local shows and demo tapes, the band recruited Barker through Larson's connection. Barker, who was "sleeping on [his] friend's couch" and still working as a trash man, only intended to fill in for a few days but ended up joining the band. The group then went into the studio with veteran producer Jim Goodwin to record The Fury of the Aquabats! Barker's speed and accuracy meant that once his parts were recorded, he was free to head off and rehearse (and sit in with other bands). He had picked up a nickname with the Aquabats—Baron Von Tito—the reasons for which are lost to history as none of the members recall why.