January 2018 Issue – Volume 42 • Number 1
On 01st Jan 2018
Articles in January 2018
Jon Epcar
Jon Epcar’s master plan didn’t involve drumming on Broadway. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Epcar went to a high school with a strong music program that included graduates like saxophonist Kamasi Washington. So the drummer got the bug and…
Steve Jordan - 10 Things the Groove Master Has to Have on Tour
https://vimeo.com/243198181 No touring musician is exempt from the grueling demands of life on the road. Whether he’s playing sold-out arenas with John Mayer or Eric Clapton or hip clubs with Robert Cray or the Verbs, Steve Jordan has ten things…
Get Good: Listening
As a teenager in high school, I practiced classical piano for two hours a day. I could play really difficult music—as long as it was notated. I ran into trouble when it came to playing music with other people, because…
Malachi DeLorenzo on Langhorne Slim’s Lost at Last, Vol. 1
A drummer and producer talks about the subtle, refined, and contemplated figures and tones that bedeck an indie/folk singer-songwriter’s latest release.
What Album Features Your Favorite Drum Tone?
Drummers have long lauded and attempted to duplicate certain distinct tones from records that span a variety of decades and genres. John Bonham’s powerful, booming tone with Led Zeppelin, Elvin Jones’ thunderous onrush with John Coltrane, and Stewart Copeland’s dry…
Paul Koehler With Silverstein
Hot off the release of a new record, the heavy hitter propels his tireless rock band around the world with a never-stop attitude.
Dream - Energy Series Additions and Dark Matter Eclipse Ride
Big, all-purpose plates and a clean, quick dual-finish ride.
Hi-Hat Accents - Adding Melody to Your Grooves
https://vimeo.com/243360989 In this lesson we’ll embellish 16th-note grooves with hi-hat accents. In Exercises 1–4, accents are placed on the main hi-hat in the first measure, and in the second measure the right-handed accents are moved to the ride or an…
“A Little Better All the Time”
This month’s featured kit comes to us from Edward McCarthy of West Springfield, Massachusetts, who recently purchased this vintage 1970s Ludwig set. McCarthy explains that the drums, which were originally covered in a wine-red wrap, had seen better days. But…
Drum Design Knowledge, Part 3: The Snare Bed
We need to be experts at our jobs, and knowing our tools is a part of that. I always put together my rig for tours or gigs, and then take suggestions from my tech on how to make the setup…
The Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins
As any recording artist will tell you, part of the fun of heading into a project with a new producer is not knowing exactly what sonic pathways you’re going to find yourself exploring, or just what the final result is…
Dweezil Zappa’s Ryan Brown
When he took over the drum chair with Dweezil Zappa more than four years ago, Southern California–based drummer Ryan Brown had to expand his setup in order to accommodate all of the sounds required in the extensive catalog that the…
Ibeyi
These dynamic siblings derive much inspiration from their ancestry. But the direction of their art is undeniably full speed ahead.
New Gear from Promark, ATV, Cymbomute, Sabian and drumdots!
Promark Matthew Strauss Signature Sticks This signature stick series is the first in the Promark catalog to use persimmon, a preferred wood type among concert percussionists for its strength, comfortable weight, and density. The .670"x17" General Concert Stick features a…
Live Vibes
Having somewhat recently moved to northern New Jersey, I’ve been enjoying the opportunity to check out some of the jazz clubs that have long defined New York City culture. Although some of the more prominent venues have moved from their…
Chris Cohen
Chris Cohen describes himself as a member of the Portastudio generation. It’s a classification he’s coined to describe musicians, now in their late thirties and early forties, who cut their teeth in production with Tascam’s legendary Porta One tape machine.…
