THEMAGAZINEM OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONA OF DRUM WORKSHOPG • 6.0 A Z I N E LIVE! ONON TTOUROUR WITHWITH TOMMYTOMMY LEELEE ANDAND MOTLEYMOTLEY CRUE!CRUE! CHECKCH OUT THE ECK OUT THE TOMMYTOMMY PPOSTEROSTER NEWNEW GEAR FOR ‘05 + FREE! INSIDE GEAR FOR ‘05 IN THE TIME R&B SUPERSTAR MACHINE WITH USHER’S NIGEL OLSSON AARON SPEARS NASHVILLE A-LIST LOS ANGELES STUDIO DRUMMER SESSION MASTER CHAD CROMWELL CUSTOM BUILD YOUR DREAM KIT ON CURT BISQUERA AT WWW.DWDRUMS.COM ALL-NEW B.O.A. TECHNOLOGY GOESGOES HI-TECH! HI-TECH! Shown from top to bottom: Collector’s Series® Aluminum, Brass, Copper and Bronze www.dwdrums.com ©2005 Drum Workshop, Inc. DRUM NOTES DIVERSITY IN DRUMMING As I glance through this latest edition of Edge magazine and witness so many different, yet inspiring drummers within its MAGAZINE pages, I’m instantly reminded ARTIST PROFILE: of how diverse the drumming AARON SPEARS 4 world can be. Whether it’s jazz, R&B, pop, Usher’s Aaron Spears has all rhythm country, hard rock or alternative, one thing and no blues. remains constant—the drums are our voice. At DW, we never forget that diversity THE TIME MACHINE 9 means many drummers have specialized A career retrospective with drumming needs. By making pedals that are easily ad- legend Nigel Olsson. justable to every player’s taste, a full line of TECH TIPS 15 Page 4 Page 9 hardware in multiple weights and drums The second installment of our feature that not only sing, but are as versatile as the that gives you secrets and tips from multitude of music genres represented here, today’s working drum techs. our goal is to make tools for drummers to ex- press that voice. Q&A: JAZZ DRUMMERS 16 We’ve received a number of patents and ON THE RISE: NATHAN FOLLOWILL 21 have had many novel ideas over the years, The Kings of Leon’s drummer is an but the ones that really stick out in my mind up-and-coming artist to watch. are those that have made a change in the way drummers approach the instrument, no mat- ARTIST PROFILE: ter what style of music they play. These are CHAD CROMWELL 24 Page 21 Page 25 the ideas and the innovations that cross over Chad Cromwell has the know-how to musical boundaries: the free-fl oating 9000, survive in the Music City. the double pedal, the 9702 Multi Stand, Tim- bre Matching and even our new VLT technol- LIVE! WITH MÖTLEY CRÜE 28 ogy. They all make translating the language DW DRUM NEWS 30 of music just that much easier. Get the low-down on exciting new DW So, as we welcome new artists from all products and innovations. over the music world to the DW family, we can learn from each other and embrace our BACKSTAGE PASS: QOTSA 38 Get on the tour bus with Joey Castillo diversity. It’s part of what makes drumming Page 28 Page 31 a truly universal language. and Queens of the Stone Age. DRUM CLINIC 40 DW artist Rick Latham talks contem- porary drumset technique. Don Lombardi ARTIST PROFILE: President, Drum Workshop, Inc. CURT BISQUERA 44 Class is in session with DW artist and L.A. studio master Curt Bisquera. EDGE TOMMY LEE POSTER INSIDE! PACIFIC DRUM NEWS 48 Page 35 Page 39 Want to see what’s new in the Pacifi c world? Get the info you need here. SPOTLIGHT: OMAR PHILLIPS 52 R&B’s Omar Phillips delivers the Southern-style Hotlanta funk. NEW DW DRUMWEAR AND DVD 54 Check out all the new DW logo gear and DW’s exciting new generation of drumming DVDs. Page 44 Page 48 NEW ARTISTS 56 Back cover: Top row (L-R): Regal-Royal Fade Laqcuer Specialty over Curly Maple Exotic with Gold Hardware, Lavender Fade Satin Specialty with Satin Chrome Hardware, Coarse Silver Tribal Band Graphics over Black Heavy Metal with Black Hardware. Second row (L-R): Natural Lacquer Free in this issue is a full-color poster fresh from over Cedar Exotic with Chrome Hardware, Pearlescent Mötley Crüe’s sold-out reunion tour. Over the Yellow to Red Solar Flares Graphics over Black Lacquer with years, Tommy has reached legendary status Black Hardware, Tobacco Fade Lacquer Specialty over Mapa among hard rock’s elite and has inspired genera- Burl Exotic with Satin Chrome Hardware, Tangerine Glass FinishPly™ with Chrome Hardware. Third row (L-R): Coarse tions of young drummers with his solid chops and Silver Metal Flame Graphics over Solid Black Lacquer with Page 52 Page 55 energetic stage persona. This one-of-a-kind poster Chrome Hardware, Rich Red Fade Lacquer Specialty over can only be found in Edge magazine and is noth- Zebrawood Exotic with Black Hardware, Emerald Onyx FinishPly™ with Gold Hardware. Bottom row (L-R): Blue Hot Rod ing but pure Tommy! Don’t forget, you can see Flames with Purple Edges Graphics over White Pearl Lacquer with Chrome Hardware, Lava Oyster FinishPly™ with Chrome Hardware, Ghost Hot Rod Flames Graphics with Candy Black Fade Lacquer Specialty over Kurillian Birch Exotic with Satin more of Tommy and the boys at www.dwdrums. Chrome Hardware, Azure Fade Satin Specialty with Black Hardware. com—The Drummer’s Web Site. Period. ������������������ ���������������������������������� �������������������������������� ������������������������������� ���������������������������� ������������������������������ ������������������������������ ������������������������������� ������������������������������ ��������� ����������������������� ����������������������������� ������������������������������������� ��������������������������������� ���������������������������������� �������������������������������� ���������������������������������� ��������������� www.pacificdrums.com ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� LXE-Perkins (EDGE).indd 1-2 5/18/05 2:37:29 PM ALL RHYTHM, Collector’sSET-UP Series® SPECS: Maple Drums with Black Lacquer over Spider Pine Exotic and Satin Chrome Hardware 18x24” Bass Drum 10x13” Edge Snare Drum mounted on fl oor tom legs 8x10”, 9x12”, 13x16”, 14x18” Tom-Toms 9000 Single Pedal 6 1 9500 Hi-Hat Stand 3 7 9100 Standard Drum Throne PDP Super Rack 8 4 2 5 AARON SPEARS ALL RHYTHM, NO BLUES IT’S BEEN ANOTHER CHART-TOPPING YEAR FOR R&B SUPERSTAR USHER, AND HIS STICK MAN IS MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF AS ONE OF DRUMMING’S NEWEST CHOP MASTERS. >>> EDGE: Talk about coming up in the gospel on Band. It was there my musicianship Jon Roberts, Calvin Rogers, Chester scene and how that shaped your playing. and concept of playing together with a Thompson, Chris Dave, Travis Barker, band began. Our music was compared a Brian Frasier-Moore, Ladell Abrams, Aaron Spears: I was born and raised in lot to Mint Condition and EWF because Milton Smith and Simon Phillips are a DC. I remember my fi rst taste of music of the instrumentation represented. few of my modern day heroes. There was in church. I came up as a Church We had three horns, two keyboards, a is a crop of drummers who I consider of God in Christ kid. As I look back B3 Hammond, percussion, bass, lead, to be, like, “new age” who also inspire there were so many different grooves three vocalists and drums. We also per- me with their innovation and new con- and feels represented. The choir would formed all our songs with a sequencer cepts. Because of newcomers like Eric sing so many different types of songs. (drum machine). This really helped me Green (Jill Scott), Dana Hawkins, Cora I would play everything from a blues because when it came to hitting on the Coleman, Tony Royster, Jr., Thomas shuffl e to a straight funk groove. It was big stage, the challenge of playing with Pridgen, George “Spanky” McCurdy never a dull moment. Back then I always tracks and loops was not diffi cult for (Tye Tribbett & GA), Jamal Moore and thought of it as fun and challenging but me. If it wasn’t for Gideon, I am sure Ronald Brunner, Jr., I believe the world now I see how even then it helped to that the transition wouldn’t have been of drumming will continue to evolve. shape my vocab and my love for mu- as smooth. However, going into the sic. It was defi nitely a great outlet for fi rst week of rehearsal smoothing out EDGE: Describe your live set-up with Ush- me. When I’m not on tour you can fi nd the rough spots, that’s a whole different er and why you’ve gone with a relatively me playing at my church. I’ll never get mountain to climb. If it wasn’t for God, modest kit. away from my roots. the support of the band and the insight of my MD, and the advice of a couple AS: On the tour I am playing a beautiful EDGE: How do you make the transition of my boys, I could have gone down in DW Black Spider Pine Maple kit with from playing in church to being a profes- fl ames. It’s good to be in close contact Satin Chrome hardware. I sound like a sional musician? with people who know fi rst hand and salesman [laughs]. I play an 8x10”, 9x12”, can identify with what you are going 14x16”, 14x18” (the 18” is to the left of AS: Making the transition from the kid through. my hi-hat), 18x24” kick and a 10x13” sitting in the fi rst row of the church, Edge snare—this monster sits on fl oor begging and waiting impatiently with EDGE: Who are some of your strongest mu- tom legs. I use the Pacifi c rack and the my one pair of sticks for my turn to sical infl uences? 9000 hi-hat and single pedal.These were play, to where I am now defi nitely was the tools used to make this tour feel like a process. As I got older, I began to lis- AS: Let’s see. I have so many.