“I come from that Orange County, mid-’80s punk rock scene,” says Lou Dog, drummer for hip-hoppers Kottonmouth Kings. “I’m a punk drummer. I play hip-hop like a punk.” Lou joined Kottonmouth Kings, with his former Humble Gods cohort, Brad X, in 1997. His goal in life? “To play hip-hop that rocks harder than anything else out there.”

As the rare hip-hop act using a live drummer, Lou’s hard-rocking approach gives The Kings cross-genre appeal, thanks largely to his elaborately customized kit, spawned from a vision he had while riding a ’64 Schwinn low-rider three-wheeler show bike. “The Drum Trike is so detailed, so engineered, so conceptual,” says Lou, “that to completely appreciate it is to get into the details. I was sitting on this bike one day. I got a beat in my head and started imagining that I was playing drums. The next thing I know, the snare pops up between my legs, right over the crossbar. On one end of the handle bar, I’ve got my miniature 10” remote hi-hat cymbals with the 8” splash cymbal off of that. On my right handlebar, I’ve got 6” and an 8” mini timbales, with a little cowbell on top of that to give me my distinctive sound.”

“I’m taking orders right now because people want to buy these bikes,” says Lou. “Tommy Lee is buying the bike I’m currently touring with.” Members of Limp Bizkit and Stone Temple Pilots have also expressed interest in owning the Drum Trike kits, which are individually hand assembled by Lou himself. Advertisement

With all the customizing involved in hybridizing the Drum Trike, it must be asked: Does it still function as a bike? “Hell yeah!” says Lou. “I can ride it off stage!”