Category — General Drums

One of the most important things to me when considering a place to live is the proximity of the practice space to the neighbors. That’s why I was stoked to find my current place of residence, a small house in Los Angeles that shares no walls with anyone else. I’ve been here for a year now, practicing almost everyday at a level where my ears are ringing even though I’m wearing my super-fancy Ear Love earplugs. Then the other day, a neighbor (who I’ve never met before) walks by and asks if we play music here. He explains that the music is just way too loud and that it’s all he can hear in his living room. I’m thinking this guy either just moved in or is incredibly patient, having waited a year to say anything about the noise factor. Either way I was happy that he was chill and not one of those freaky cat lady types.

So I decided we needed to mute the drums a bit so we can lower the volume for the rest of the instruments. I already had a Sound Off cymbal silencer laying around for the hi-hats, but I needed a way to mute the rest of the kit. So I started digging through the cabinets for old rags. I ended up stuffing a pillow and an old blanket in the bass. Then I stretched a couple of old t-shirts underneath each of the drum heads. The resonant heads are completely covered with fabric and the batter head has a strip going across the inside. And to finish off this super DIY muting project, I hung beer carriers to the crash and ride cymbals.

So Rolling Stone has a piece up about Rock Band 2, the sequel to the hugely successful Rock Band game. Of course, Rock Band upped the Guitar Hero ante by adding a full band setup with guitar, drums and a microphone.

Rock Band 2 adds more of the same as the first, with more downloadable content, more songs and new controllers. You can also play all the songs you downloaded from the first game.

The game is already out for Xbox 360 but the PS3 version and new instruments will be released on October 19th. The Wii release date is November 19th.

You’re only choice now is too decide if you want Rock Band 2 or Guitar Hero: World Tour, which is also shaping up to be an excellent game. I really wonder for drummers, if they will ever add a double bass pedal setup to  one of these games. This would a great way to work on your double pedal skills, while having fun playing a game and not making too much noise in the house.

I know it’s a little early to start thinking about Halloween costumes but lately I’ve seen a ton of stores and websites advertising Slipknot masks, its really kind of comical. If your kid or you yourself want to dress up as Joey Jordison for Halloween they now make a mask modeled after the one he wears.

It’s a little bit lame for adults, but I am sure the band is seeing a pretty penny from having people license the right to use Slipknot’s trademark masks. I’m also sure that a lot of people will want them this year, as the band’s latest release “All Hope Is Gone” debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart last week.

This past Friday I received an e-mail from Jon Cohan of All Things Loud telling me to check out his blog. Jon Cohan is a professional drum tech who has worked with The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dropkick Murphy’s, The Vines, Breaking Benjamin and many others. He has also written books, as well as pieces for magazines like DRUM!

Needless to say, his blog is great. He covers topics ranging from studio and tuning techniques to stories from the road. He even shows off some of the setups of the drummers he works with.

He has linked to my site and I thought I would do something in return and post about his blog here. It is something you should check out if you have any interest in drums at all.

Jon Cohan’s All Things Loud Blog.

*(Image courtesy of All Things Loud Blog)

I usually hate lists, but I figured why not start some debate. Here is a list of my 5 favorite drummers in no particular order.

-Brendan Canty (Fugazi)

-Danny Carey (Tool)

-Bill Bruford (King Crimson, Yes)

-Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters)

-Bill Ward (Black Sabbath)

To anyone reading, feel free to post your Top 5 drummers in the comments of this post. Just hope the debate won’t get too heated…

Now in it’s 16th year the Montreal Drum Fest will be held October 24th, 25th and 26th. This year’s edition of the festival features an impressive lineup of great drummers.

“Headliners are: Legend Lenny White (Innovation, Istanbul, Vic Firth, Remo), Simon Phillips (Zildjian, Tama, Pro-Mark, Remo),  Morgan Agren & the Mats/Morgan Band (DW, Sabian, Vic Firth), The Yamaha Groove Hour with Canadian drummers Paul Brochu, Mark Kelso and Larnell Lewis, Wolfgang Haffner (Meinl), Johnny Rabb (Roland) and Tommy Clufetos (Sonor, Sabian).”

For more information about the festival, visit Montreal Drum Fest online.

Ludwig drums have announced new centennial maple drums, which are the first product being linked to the company’s 100th anniversary in 2009.

“The Ludwig Centennial Series fuses the need for reliable gear with the desire for perfect drum tone in one exceptional package. Expandable to fit the needs of any playing style, Centennial Series Drums are Ludwig’s answer to the battle-cry of the mobile percussionist.”

“The Centennial Series Drums start with 6-ply (toms and floor toms) and 8-ply (snare and bass drums) North American Maple shells. Augmented with Ludwig’s new Classic Micro-Lug, Vibra-band mounting system on toms, and 2.3mm drum hoops, Centennial Series presents the road-worthy player with new ways to expand their spectrum of tone. Centennial’s three “Core” shell packs each come standard with a bass drum (20″, 22″, or 24″, each with a 20″ depth for added low and punch), a 12″ rack tom, 16″ floor tom, and snare drum.”

The kit (pictured above), looks absolutely beautiful to play and I’m curious to see what the reviews will be like. I’ve personally always loved Ludwig’s, as a 1967 Ludwig Blue Sparkle kit (with Supraphonic Snare) was the first I ever played on.

For more information go here.

Just this week I heard an interview on NPR with a guy who collected the broken sticks of famous drummers on eBay. He didn’t do well. No one would pay more than a couple bucks for them. I suppose Ringo Starr’s might bring in a little more cash, but no one seemed interested in the cast-aways some death metal bands former drum major. Nowadays I see that many vendors are selling “unbreakable” drumsticks. But as far as I can tell, none of them seem to “feel” right. These guys push a drumstick that at least seems to last longer. Les Ulrich says so, anyway. But maybe he gets free sticks to say that. Check ‘em out at Guitar Center.

Zildjian Cymbals has announced that it will produce the first ever run of all-black cymbals in its 385 year history.

“Pitch Black™” cymbals are available in a full range of sizes and models and are designed specifically for Rock and Metal applications. The series features eight models including a 22-inch Ride, 20-inch Crash Ride, 18 and 16-inch Crashes, 13-inch Splash, 15-inch Mastersound HiHats, 14-inch HiHats and an 18-inch China.”

“Utilizing a proprietary coating process, all Pitch Black™ cymbals are made from Zildjian’s high performance Bronze 12 Alloy which features enhanced tin content for a richer sound. The coating process allows the cymbals to be durable and visually striking while still opening up as a cymbal should. Heavier weights and large sizes combined with new profiles, cups, lathing and hammering techniques help to deliver the brightness and presence required for Rock and Metal applications.”

I don’t know much about the sound of these yet, but they look very cool. I am pretty sure purists will still want traditional cymbals, esp considering how expensive they are, although this is a great choice of a cymbal for the player who wants a different visual aesthetic for their drum kit while still having great sound.

Source.

A new documentary on underground heavy music will be shown tomorrow in Los Angeles as part of The Cinefamily, Silent Movie Theatre series.

The documentary is titled “Such Hawks, Such Hounds” and features acclaimed acts such as OM, Acid King, Dead Meadow, Nebula, Sleep and many more. If you are into stoner rock or heavy underground music you know these bands to be essential to the scene, also many of them have great drummers. If you aren’t aware of this scene/style of music, it is well worth checking out if you are in the LA area.

To those who don’t know, a lot of these drummers drum kits vary, as there isn’t one specific set-up or kit to have for the style. A lot of the bands are working with very little money or none at all and often times piece together whatever they can for a drum set.

If you’d like to check out more info about the movie go here.

You can view a trailer at YouTube.