As a follow-on from the last update, I’m now going to look at the effects models I mentioned. These are from a few different series and each offer different sonic characters and feels. 17” & 19” Complex O-Zone crashes Ok, I love the Complex line of cymbals. I’ve probably said that before to be honest.

I’d love to say it’s not often I get given a box of cymbals to check out, but that would be a lie. However, when I get given a box of cymbals without really knowing what they are, that’s kinda fun.  Now, as far as that box goes, it also contained a whole bunch of

I remember discovering Alex Cohen's work a couple of years back as I was entering this mad phase of coordination practice. I thought I had achieved some higher level of coordination after months of intense practice and then I realised after checking some of Alex's solos that... I really was nowhere! For the ones of

So, in the previous two updates we have looked at ten of the new Mapex drums for 2020 and here we will be looking at the last four.  First up...  Shadow  The Shadow has a 14x6.5” birch/walnut shell, which is 7-ply 6.85mm. It’s finished in a natural gloss and has chrome hardware. The drum comes with

Ok, so this update is part two of our look at the new Black Panther snares from Mapex. Picking up from where we left off, first we have the... Metallion The Metallion is a 14x5.5" 1.2mm seamed brass drum with SONIClear bearing edges. It has a brushed/gloss finish and staggered offset B-lugs. Like all the

Anika Nilles has been a drumming sensation since the early 2010's and she has built a solid reputation amongst highly technical drummers over the years. Based on that reputation, I can confidently say that she did not disappointed with her first book “Pad Book” which was released earlier this year. It offers a huge range

Over the next few updates we’ll be looking at Mapex’s new snare drum offerings for 2020. Mapex designed and created all of these drums with top drummer/endorser Russ Miller. There are fourteen new drums in this selection and we’ll be looking at five drums in this first batch. In the video, and with the exception

This year, Steve Gadd and Yamaha celebrate their 40 year partnership. In commemoration of this achievement, they wanted to invite 800 of us to join in with that celebration and so together they produced this special snare drum. The new Steve Gadd signature drum has a 14" x 5.5" 1.2mm thick steel shell, with aluminium

It feels a bit strange to say that I could happily use cymbals intended for quieter/practice playing on my regular kit, but that’s where I find myself with these Quiet Tone cymbals. Obviously cymbals designed for low volume or practice aren’t exactly new, but I think in these rather more challenging times they’re probably more

Take one camera... I started playing drums in the 1980s; the time when electronics and drums really started to properly meet each other head on. At that time, the electronic drums available - certainly initially - generally had a hard playing surface which was, shall we say, not that much fun to play