I have noticed a common, and ever growing mission among drum companies in the last year or so, and that is to bridge the gap between electronic, and acoustic drums. Pearl made the most notable advance with their ePro Live kit, which made it’s debut at NAMM 2010. In case you are not familiar with the ePro Live kit, click HERE to view a previous post I did about the kit last year. Zildjian is also working on the cymbal side of things with their Gen 16 acoustic/electronic hybrid cymbal line.
The latest advance I’v caught wind of is in the realm of heads. Aquarian drum heads has partnered with MIDItronix to develop the inHEAD acoustic/electronic trigger head.
From what I gather, it works much like any midi trigger that pulls a sound out of your drum module, but the electronics that make it work are mounted in edge the of the head. It is a completely real head which does not sacrifice any feel, or size like a normal electronic pad. With this product, you can turn your existing acoustic kit into an electronic kit with no compromise!!
The head is coupled with the inBOX which plugs into your existing module. I’m not aware of all of the features of the box, but I’m excited to learn more about this potentially fantastic product! Click HEREto be taken to a product description on the Aquarian website.
Avenged Sevenfold A7X Announces New Drummer – Arin Ilejay
A7X has gone through quite a bit in the past 13 months. From the death of their drummer, Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan, to releasing a #1 record, to touring with iconic, former Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy. Many speculated that Mike would be inevitably asked to join the band after their tour, but A7X stuck to it’s original agreement with Mike, and sought out to find a permanent member. They have finally announced a drummer for their 2011 tour, and that drummer is Arin Ilejay.
Arin Ilejay’s most notable work was done with an LA based Metalcore band called Confide, with whom he recorded and toured from 2007 to 2009. Arin is about to embark on a major tour with Avenged Sevenfold, and the video below is of the song “Danger Line” from a show they did just a matter of days ago on January 20th with him. In my opinion, he sounds great! ClickHEREto read the official statement released by the band announcing Arin’s involvement with A7X.
Josh Freese Live with Nine Inch Nails – Letting You
As you may know, Josh Freese has quite a few videos online, but very few are drum related. There are ones that he has posted himself, most of which are really quirky, and have nothing to do with music, and there are ones taken of him from random sessions, gigs, etc… but the sound quality is not great. Recently he has been posting videos of himself playing with NIN. This is his latest one called “Letting You,” and my favorite of the three he’s posted so far. Enjoy!
For quite some time, I struggled with my decision between Remo and Evans. Having used both of their heads extensively in both live, and recording situations, I ultimately decided that Remo gave me more of what I was looking for in terms of tone, dynamic response, and tune-ability. The Evans head that was by far the most difficult for me to switch from was the Emad bass drum batter head.
For this reason, I am stoked about Remo’s new bass drum batter, the Powerstroke Pro. It seems like their version of the Emad, and I can’t wait to hear how it sounds. Much like the Emad it has built in external dampening for sound control, and I anticipate good things. Check out the full specs on the head, plus a small video HERE.
Unfortunately the head won’t be available until March of this year. Can’t wait!!
My Favorite Drum Kits and New Products From the 2011 NAMM Show
I was lucky enough to get a pass for the NAMM show this year, and thought I would take some pictures of my favorite new products and kits from the show.
As you might know, NAMM is a trade show where all companies music come to display their latest and greatest products. Buyers come to check out these products, and potentially purchase them. Each company wants their booth to stand out, so drum companies usually have one huge, overly elaborate kit set up. I decided to take pics of my favorites so check them out!
The Kits
TAMA
This kit wrapped 360 degrees, and it was the largest kit at the show from what I saw
LUDWIG
Check out that suspended bass drum! It was hanging from wires attached to the ceiling.
DRUM WORKSHOP – DW
In case you didn’t know this is the latest Neil Peart kit. Keep in mind they endorse Terry Bozzio as well. How do they keep up!?
GRETCH
Speaking of Terry Bozzio, this is reminiscent of his cymbal set up. This rack was incredible.
PEARL
This kit was the hardest to capture in a picture. It was so tall I couldn’t seem to get it all in frame.
TRICK DRUMS
This kit was tiny but so cool! That metal wheel on the resonant bass drum head was slowly spinning, and their was smoke billowing from some of the metal tubing.
And now for my favorite new products from the show. Fyi I wanted to take more pictures but I ran out of room on my memory card! Its cool though, I still got some good ones.
The Products
Chad Smith’s Holy China: Sabian
This is Chad Smith’s signature china from Sabian. I haven’t tried it personally, but I definitely trust Chad Smith to put his name on great sounding stuff.
Corey Miller: Remo / Ludwig
As you may know, Corey Miller is first and foremost a tattoo artist. He does, however, play drums and designs killer artwork for them. Here is a picture of his signature snare drum through Ludwig, and his signature head by Remo.
Jarrah Snare Drums: Brady Drums / Chris Brady
As I said in my previous NAMM post, Chris Brady went on another one of his “walkabout” tours in the Australian wilderness to find all kinds of amazing woods to make drums out of. Pictured is one of his Ply snare drums made from Jarrah.
“Triple Bass Pedal”: Dualist
Dualist has been making these pedals for a while, but I didn’t even know about them until this year. In a nutshell, the right pedal control the two right beaters so both the upstroke, and the downstroke of the pedal trigger a stroke by a different beater. The left pedal controls the far left beater like a normal double pedal. Kind of a dumb concept if you ask me, but who am I to judge.
The Vari-Tone and Qube Shakers: Latin Percussion – LP
Here is something I am genuinely excited about. These shakers are both awesome in their own ways. The Vari-tone shaker is spring loaded and has a tiny opening in the center that can be closed if you squeeze it. Closing the shaker provides a different tone than if it’s open, so you can change while you’re playing!
The Qube might be the most original, and ingenious shaker I’v ever seen. You can use it like a regular shaker with a back and forth motion, BUT, you can also shake it side to side. Furthermore, if you shake it in a circle you can achieve steady 16th notes as all four walls trigger a sound! Once you get the hang of it you can play ruffs, and other patterns in the midst of your playing. Awesome.
Twenty Masters Series Cymbals: Paiste
My favorite new product from NAMM had to be the new line of Paiste Cymbals. These are an extension of the Twenty series, and every new piece sounds incredible. The line is called “Masters” and rightly so. The tones range from elegantly dirty, to bright and washy, but stay true to Paiste’s amazing craftsmanship, and tonal options.
I hope you enjoyed my NAMM show 2011 wrap up! As I said previously, I am going to try to post more as time goes on. Thanks for reading!
Its cool though, I still got some good ones.
