April 2019 Issue – Volume 43 • Number 4
Articles in April 2019
Big Brother and the Holding Company’s “Piece of My Heart”
San Francisco circa 1967/68 was home to some of the most successful and forward-thinking rock bands of the time, including the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Santana, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Big Brother and the Holding Company, featuring singer Janis Joplin.
Long Live Rock!
Perhaps more than any other band on the planet, Dave Grohl’s post-Nirvana vehicle represents the very heights of grandeur that rock can still attain.
The Hollywood Custom and Vintage Drum Show
Since its inception nearly two decades ago, the Hollywood Custom and Vintage Drum Show has built up a reputation as a national premier drumming event.
Ty Segall and GØGGS’ Charles Moothart
A multi-instrumentalist from Los Angeles, Moothart has spent the last decade crisscrossing the globe with his impossibly prolific pal Ty Segall, supporting a slew of projects ranging from lo-fi garage rock to glam to psych pop and hardcore punk.
Five-A-Diddles
Throughout their careers, great drummers such as Zigaboo Modeliste, David Garibaldi, and Dave Weckl have opened our imaginations to the possibilities of paradiddles and their inversions.
The Transformer
This creative yet compact setup comes to us from Westminster, California’s Jimmy Tran, and it marks the second time that one of the drummer’s kits has appeared in MD’s featured spotlight.
New Gear from Vic Firth, Tama, Mapex, CruzTools, Los Cabos, Vater, LP, Gretsch, and more.
New Gear from Vic Firth, Tama, Mapex, CruzTools, Los Cabos, Vater, LP, Gretsch, and more.
British Drum Company - Lounge Series Drumset
Several personalities from the English drumming community came together to launch the British Drum Company.
Porter & Davies BC-X Bass Drum Monitoring System
Porter & Davies is a U.K.-based company that manufactures a range of high-quality tactile monitoring systems, including the flagship BC2, the rack-mountable BC2rm, and the portable BC Gigster.
Oh Sees’ Paul Quattrone and Dan Rincon
Since 2015 the Oh Sees have utilized a double-drummer rhythm section, which currently features Dan Rincon and Paul Quattrone.
New Releases by Phil Stewart, Henry Conerway, Jeff Berlin, Rudy Royston and more.
Groove and pocket are something drummers discuss often. It’s something where you know it when you hear it.
What's Your Favorite Charlie Watts Performance?
When we first took to social media to ask which performances you’d recommend from the seminal Rolling Stones drummer, Charlie Watts.
NickyMoon Custom Cymbals
Even with the vast amount of choices on the market, there’s a particularly human element missing. I decided to change that and create my own unique instruments.”
Music As A Game
In his book Effortless Mastery, jazz pianist, composer, and author Kenny Werner wrote, “Don’t forget: Music is something we just made up. It doesn’t actually exist as anything but a game for us.”
Modern Drummer 2019 Readers Poll Winners
The Foo Fighters’ tandem drummers had another huge year in 2018, with Taylor Hawkins powering the band throughout
Morgan Ågren Of The Mats/Morgan Band
The career of Swedish drummer Morgan Ågren is proof that you needn’t adhere to typical scenarios to forge a unique professional path.
Amanda Shires’ Jerry Pentecost
When Modern Drummer reached out to catch up with Jerry Pentecost, the drummer filled us in on his impressive performing schedule and concluded, “I’m really just a dude looking for donuts.”
Sean Lennon on the Claypool Lennon Delirium’s South of Reality
On February 22 the Claypool Lennon Delirium—an alternative psychedelic group that consists of Primus frontman Les Claypool and multi-instrumentalist/drummer Sean Ono Lennon—released their new album, South of Reality.
Rogers USA Dyna-Sonic Snares
The new Dyna-Sonic snares are designed to be accurate replications of the original wood-shell models made during the company’s heyday in the 1960s.
Paris_Monster's Josh Dion
New York-based multi-instrumentalist Josh Dion has been honing his own unique slant on the concept with Paris_Monster to push the envelope.
Eights And Sixes
We’re going to build upon the Eights and Sixes exercise that I introduced in Part 1 of this series by adding double strokes and rimshots into the routine.
Kyle Crane with Neko Case
Crane says that during rehearsals he homed in on tempos and focused on the way Case’s tracks were supposed to feel.
Latin Jazz Drumming Part 3: Mambo Bell Ideas in 3/2 Time
Welcome to the third installment in our series on Latin jazz drumming. In this lesson we’ll focus on mambo bell variations in a 3/2 time signature. The inspiration for this month’s column comes from an audition experience I had several…