Zildjian – Big Drum Thump

Zildjian Is Turning 390 This Year

BDT — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 22:24:00 +0000

That is a whole lot of candles for Zildjian to blow out. They’ll be so out of breath that we are just going to have to ~~steal~~ borrow (?) some of the new A-series cymbals getting released. I mean, it’s almost like it is our birthday. Thanks, Big Z.

First up is the re-introduction of the 19” and 20” Thin Crashes and the 20” Medium Thin Crash. A brand-new and totally huge 23” Sweet Ride is coming to the A series too.

Bill Zildjian Wins Lawsuit Against Sabian Cymbals

BDT — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 08:25:45 +0000

Bill Zildjian, son of Sabian founder Robert Zildjian, filed a lawsuit against his family and the cymbal company back in April, claiming that as a shareholder he was owed dividends. At the time, there was some talk that Sabian would be required to “wind up, dissolve and liquidate the company and assets as a whole” if necessary to pay up. That thankfully hasn’t come to pass, but a judge did recently rule against Sabian and award Bill $517,575 for dividends owed plus another $2,500 for court costs. No word yet on whether Sabian will appeal the judgment…or if Bill was invited over for Christmas dinner.

Update: Bill Zildjian was also awarded five percent interest on the outstanding dividend payments, which amounts to another $200,000. Sabian is definitely appealing the ruling. The lawsuit will likely drag deep into next year and get much uglier because Bill is alleging that “his father Robert misuses company funds for personal expenses and that his brother Andy actively undermines his position and influence on the business. He also claims his father has ignored established business regulations and protocols so as to maintain complete control of Sabian Ltd.”

Zildjian Releases Two New Signature Sticks

BDT — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 08:09:35 +0000

Two of our favorite drummers, the incomparably funky John Blackwell and the understatedly awesome Ronnie Vannucci, have released some new wood with Zildjian. Blackwell’s whacker is 100% hickory, measures in at 16 1/8″ long with a 0.57″ diameter, and features a beefy neck, short taper, and a wood barrel tip. Vannucci has opted for a 16″ maple stick with a diameter of 0.610″. It features an oversized barrel tip and some artwork sketched by Ronnie himself.

Chat Live With Tommy Igoe

BDT — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 04:31:57 +0000

Tommy Igoe will be answering questions in Zildjian’s Z-Club chat section tomorrow night at 8 p.m. (EST). He’s toured with name acts like Lauryn Hill, Art Garfunkle, and Blood Sweat & Tears, but most of us know him from the video Groove Essentials, which got many a beginning basher off to the right start.

…Beginning basher? Shit, we still suck at playing this Mozambique groove.

Zildjian Rezo Crash Video

BDT — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 00:39:02 +0000

Boston Drum Center has posted a little clip of a 17″ Zildjian Rezo in action. Fast-forward to the 0:12 mark.

Zildjian K Custom Dry Complex II Rides

BDT — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 04:25:51 +0000

Man, Zildjian is seriously busting out with the new gear lately. First Pitch Blacks, then Rezos, and now Dry Complex II rides in the K Custom line. They were designed in consultation with jazz guru Bill Stewart and feature a wider bell design with a lower profile that helps to control metallic overtones, hence the “dry” in the cymbals’ moniker. Three sizes are available: 20″, 22″, and a big old 24″.

Check out the promo vid, again not capable of being embedded, here.
Sigh.

[Update 2022: the promo vid is down of course, but we’ve embedded a demo vid from our fav cymbal-demo-channel, Memphis Drum Shop.]

Zildjian’s Pitch Black Promo Vid

BDT — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 06:22:29 +0000

Today is the day that Zildjian officially unveils its Pitch Black line (even though pics and prices and actual purchasable product leaked weeks ago). The promo vid, irritatingly unembeddable, is available here on the Zildjian site and features Diecast drummer Dennis Pavia bashing the new cymbals.

Surprisingly, they don’t seem completely horrible…but there ain’t no way we’re trading in our A Customs. Sound quality, after all, is still the new black.

[Update 2022: the official promo video is no longer available, but there is a different version in French below as well as some other vid tidbits.]

Zildjian Rezo Crashes

BDT — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 03:15:50 +0000

Not content to unveil only one much-talked-about line of cymbals (can you say Pitch Black?), Zildjian is showing off some sweet-looking new crashes called Rezos. They are part of the A Custom line and feature alternating bands of spiral and full lathing techniques in traditional and brilliant finishes. You can grab ’em up in six sizes: 15″, 16″, 17″, 18″, 19″, and 20″.

Zildjian Pitch Black Cymbals in France

BDT — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 17:05:31 +0000

An online music store in France is displaying pics, prices, and descriptions of Zildjian’s Pitch Black cymbals. They are essentially coated ZHTs, and it looks like they’ll be heavily marketed to the young, up-and-coming bashers among us. For pics, scroll past our very rough (and possibly inaccurate) translation of the French promo text. If there are any native French speakers out there, let us know in the comments if we blew it bad.

Pitch Black: “Black is black”! Change your vision of cymbals! The Pitch Black series has a formidable and explosive Rock sound that approaches perfection! These cymbals were designed by and for heavy hitters who need a huge sound! Based on the manufacturing process of the 12% bronze formula that is already used in the ZHT series, the Pitch Black line has an additional tin element that reinforces the cymbals’ character. That in particular makes it possible to add weight and width to these cymbals, which gives a profile to the Black Pitch that is perfect for metal heads! These cymbals are guaranteed 100% Rock’n’roll, 100% brilliant, 100% as you love them! Zildjian worked for months to find a process that makes it possible to keep the black coating of your cymbals intact, even after years. Eight models of common Rock sizes are available. Once again, Zildjian is confirmed as being THE mark of innovative cymbals for discriminating musicians.

Travis Barker Playing Zildjian Pitch Black Cymbals?

BDT — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 01:59:46 +0000

This is a new video of Barker beating the hell out of the song “Dope Boys” by The Game. Cool enough. But what really got our sticks standing at attention were the cymbals: are those Zildjian’s new Pitch Blacks Travis is bashing? And if so, they sound much better than we had anticipated. Perhaps there will be a professional and a budget line….