The Drum Kit, Its Not Just About Size

I have always had the feeling that you should have the biggest drum kit you can. But recently I decided to downnsize my kit to force myself to be creative and do more with less. Heres a video showing my kit before and after. Feel free to contact with any questions or anything you may have.

Kit specs can be found in my "My Drum Kit" video.

Hornets Drum Sticks Review

Product: Hornets Drum Sticks (Hickory Black) 

Price: $16.98 A Pair from Hornetsdrumsticks.com

Size: 5B (Available In All Normal Sizes)

Features: Pitch Paired, O-Rings (reduce vibration and act as mallets), Many Colors Available  

Balance: Very Very Well, Just Spinning These Sticks Shows You How Well They Are Balanced

Comments: Let me say that I may be a touch biased, I usually play $2 pairs of Vic Firth seconds, not sticks this nice. But my-oh-my these feel wonderful. 

The O-Rings are the best idea i've seen lately. They really do what they say they'll do, decrease impact on your hands (always a good thing) and serve as great mallets. 

They also have a taper to them which makes for great handling and prevents the stick from slipping much in your hand. 

The biggest problem I have with these sticks is price... I, like most drummers, break sticks and drop them frequently and at 16 bucks a pop, no way I can afford to buy enough of these to keep me stocked up... Which is a shame considering they are the best sticks i've ever used. 

I need to mention that their website features a dealer locator so you can find these bad boys in a store near you (now including guitar center). 

Pros: 

Great Feel 

Many Great Finishes/Colors And Types 

O-Rings (Worth the price alone) 

Tapered Grip 

Cons: 

Price 

Not Huge In Retail Yet 

Testing Video (Sorry for sound quality) 

Amazing Video, The Invisible Drum Kit

My Drum Kit, A Taste Of Animoto

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqmQseoOfh0

Thats a little photo montage I made with old clips of my drum kit. Though I love showing off my kit, I mostly made it to show you the power of http://www.animoto.com/

That entire video was done, for free, in a matter of 15 minutes, with no work on my part (other than uploading the pictures) and is a great way to show off your kit, your kid, or any other pictures you'd like to display.

Cool Links

Hey guys,

I thought today i'de post up some of my favorite drum websites for your looking.

http://www.onlinedrummer.com/ is a great educational site and drum community. Defiantly worth your time.


http://www.cymbalcellar/ I got turned on to this place through a guy from OnlineDrummer. Its a site where you can buy or sell used cymbals and the prices are amazing.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drums If your new to drums that is a good article. It basically tells you what a drum kit is, which is vital info considering thats what you'll be playing...


I'll post some more later and please e-mail me with any you have, amazenyou@yahoo.com

Thanks guys!

The Beginners Series #1. Just Starting Out

Hey guys,

The beginners Series will be a series of blog posts with things for beginners... shocking right?


The first tip I can give is to get a drum teacher... If you are at all interested in drumming this is a great place to start. A drum teacher can help you go through the rudiments, setup, and literally anything you want to know for much cheaper than buying books with all of this info... plus its hands on experience.

Finding a good teacher isn't hard, just go to your local music store. If there is not an actual drum shop in your city, try a place like Sam Ash or Guitar Center and even guitar shops. All of these places are constantly asked these sorts of questions and will have the best info.

If you are one of these social masters you can use you little black book for more than getting people to drive you home wasted! Find a friend who plays drums and have he or she show your the ropes, its a great way to feel drums out before putting any money into it (other than the cash you spend to drive your friend home wasted).


Your drum teacher or friend will probably have a book he teaches out of (DO NOT go to a teacher who only plays by ear) but if not (or if you are going at this alone, shame on you) I suggest The Ultimate Realistic Rock Drum Method by Carmine Appice. It is a great foundation for drumming period, rock or not and will teach you all the basic concepts and way, way more (now comes with a dvd).

Once you'v got your book and teacher you may wonder... what do I play? Drums are expensive, bottom line (and your friend has kicked you out of his house for playing his kit at 3 AM)... but luckily the world has given us tons of things to use instead. Buy a pair of sticks (get the heaviest you can find, it will build wrist strength) and setup your "drum set". Sit in a chair (dinner chairs work well) and spread your legs a bit. Your left leg operates your hi-hat and also serves as a (light) hitting surface as your snare and your right leg operates the bass drum and acts as your hi-hat... bam... drum kit. A practise pad is also a great purchase and should be on your "to buy" checklist.

Well thats a few tips to get you started! Drums are alot of fun and a great art form. Please e-mail me at amazenyou@yahoo.com or comment the blog with any questions. Thanks to Portnoys_disciple from OnlineDrummer.com for his ideas in this post.

Drum Intro Series, #1

Click On Image To View Full Size

Legend:

Top Line, Crash(es)

Middle Line, Snare

Bottom Line, Kick

This intro is quite interesting and alot of fun to play. The very top line can be one, two, or even 4 crash/effect cymbals. I play it on two crashes with a RLRL sticking, but it can be played many different ways.

Inspiration, Nathan Jordison, Shawn Crahan, Chris Fehn.

Feel free to ask or e-mail me any questions.