Once a celebrated manufacturer, the Rogers drum company fell on hard times and was almost relegated to the history books before Yamaha stepped up and bought the name last year. Of course, it might have been better to let Rogers die with a little dignity instead of becoming a budget brand aimed squarely at beginning players. But what can you do? We live in some ruthless times.
Yamaha is, however, at least expanding the Rogers line with new sizes and finishes in the Trailblazer and Prospector series. The first new Trailblazer kit features a 20″ kick, 10″ and 12″racks, a 14″ floor tom, and a matching 14″ wood snare. The second Trailblazer set boasts a 24″ bass drum, 12″ rack, 16″ floor, and a 14″ x 6.5″ steel snare drum. The latest Prospector configuration sports a wee 18″ kick, a 12″ tom, 14″ floor tom, and a matching 14″ wood snare. No mention of what wood the drums are made of, but it’s probably some poplar or poplar-like mix, the standard for entry-level drums now.
The new finishes include this not-too-shabby Brushed Copper in the Trailblazer series. Definitely better than a bunch of cardboard boxes anyway.
And for a shitload more than we were led to believe a few weeks ago. The iconic Pepper drum was expected to fetch $195,000, but it actually raked in over $1 million. Not even the lyrics to John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” sold for that much.
We drummers finally get our due?
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″.
Chad Sexton and his 311 mates may be in the thick of writing and recording a new album with Bob Rock, but the drummer knows what is ultimately important to his band’s longevity:
I think we have the same appeal as a band like the Grateful Dead….We have some Deadheads in the band, and when they stopped touring, Phish kind of took over for them, and maybe Dave Matthews Band has some of that same appeal as well. We can jam on our [songs] like those bands, but I’d say we’re kind of a band between—and I’m not comparing us to these bands, but just in the level of status and accomplishment, and that they’re still together—U2 and Phish. It’s somewhere in the middle of that, and we’re hoping to define that a little better over the next couple of years. It’s a weird phenomenon: We keep playing, and kids are having a great time every summer….We wanted to make sure we tour every summer, regardless of our records, because we’re here to play live music. We don’t want to spend a summer getting away from the people.
If you’re anything like Web-worshiping us, you probably let your U.K. magazine subscriptions expire long ago. Who needs the overseas shipping charges, not to mention all that extra paper?
Well, dear thumpers, that was a big, stupid-ass mistake because the upcoming issue of Kerrang! will include a CD of Iron Maiden cover tunes performed by Metallica, Machine Head, Trivium, Avenged Sevenfold, Dream Theater, and lots of shreddin’ others. How cool is that? According to Lars Ulrich, about 10% cooler than you first thought:
Iron Maiden are 10 percent cooler than every other band….From their relationship with their fans, to their album covers to their stages, to their live presentation, to their photos—whatever they did was always cooler than what everyone else did! I have always had an incredible amount of respect and admiration for them and obviously getting a chance to be part of this CD feels like that has come a full circle. We played “Remember Tomorrow” as it was basically the blueprint for songs like “Fade To Black” and “Welcome Home (Sanitarium)”, and some of the more epic ballady type of songs that Metallica had done later. We had so much fun jamming with this! We put a bit of an intro on it, to give it a bit of a Metallica stamp, and we are super pleased with how it has turned out.
The Goos are putting in a little road time before returning to the studio:
July 2008
19 – Cadott, WI (Rock Fest)
26 – Indianapolis, IN (Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
August 2008
22 – Syracuse, NY (New York State Fair)
23 – Salamanca, NY (Seneca Allegany Casino)
December 2008
31 – Atlantic City, NJ (House of Blues)
It’s called Harrybu McCage, it’s a jazz trio, and it’s pretty close to AWESOME. Check out the band’s MySpace page for a two-song sample. The self-titled debut goes on sale tomorrow in stores, but you can order it now if you manage to successfully navigate the labyrinth of Pearl Jam’s online store.
Well, we’ve devoted a considerable amount of bytes to Zildjian’s Pitch Black line, so now it’s Paiste’s turn. The Swiss cymbal maker’s Black Alphas were designed with input from Slipknot shredder Joey Jordison and are made from Paiste’s proprietary CuSn8 bronze, the same alloy that is used in the excellent 2002 line. The sound is described as “bright, crisp, energetic, powerful, and cutting.” Anyone tried them out yet?
Happy 4th from all of us here at BDT. We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate independence and freedom than providing you with lots of extremely hot drum porn. Forget the family for a few minutes, lock the door, close the curtains, turn out the lights, and enjoy a little you-time courtesy of Tama.
First up are new bubinga/birch shell packs. They are part of Tama’s venerable Starclassic Performer series and will come in four possible configurations. The 7-piece version lists for $5,649.99.
Next comes more news from the bubinga front: a limited-edition Starclassic Reserve kit. The high-end drums feature Tama’s bubinga shells with an outer-ply of North American walnut. Sets will be available in two configurations: a 5-piece kit with a 20″ x 18″ bass drum, and a 6-piece kit with a thumpin’ 22″ x 20″ kick. A total of only 50 kits will be available worldwide. If you got a spare $7,689.99, better get in line now.
Can’t part with that kind of cash but still want some new gear? Tama has also unveiled a few limited-edition snares that are more wallet friendly. The one we really want is the Artwood Custom (pic below), which features a 14″ x 8″ maple shell that screams ’80s arena rock. Only 100 of the drums will be available, and they’ll all be sold only in the good old U.S. of A. The list price is $549.99.
The former Mars Volta drummer is joining forces with vocalist Zach De La Rocha to form the power duo One Day As a Lion. The pair’s self-titled debut EP will drop on July 21, and if it lives up to the following description, we’re buying two copies:
It’s a sonic reflection of the visceral tension between a picturesque fabricated cultural landscape, and the brutal socioeconomic realities it attempts to mask.
The name is taken from the infamous 1970 black and white, captured by legendary Chicano photographer George Rodriguez featuring a center framed tag on a white wall in an unspecified section of Boyle Heights.
It reads: “It’s better to live one day as a lion, than a thousand years as a lamb.” This record is a stripped down attempt to realize this sentiment in sound.
Jon Theodore, oh how we’ve missed you.
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.
