S S ISSUE 10 ||| 2012-2013 ||| DWDRUMS.COM A A Neil Peart of Rush, on location in Los Angeles,A CaliforniaA Thin IS in. Our newest Collector’s Series Gray Coat Aluminum, Polished Titanium, Black Nickel over Brass, and Stainless Steel snare drums feature a thin 1mm rolled shell for pure tone, attack, volume and sensitivity. See them all at www.dwdrums.com/snares www.dwdrums.com ©2012 Drum Workshop, Inc. All Rights Reserved. S S Contents Editor’s Notes: The American Dream DW really is an American success story. ARTIST FEATURES ‘American Dream’ is not a term we use lightly 12 THE DRUMMERS OF LATE NIGHT Featuring Conan’s James Wormworth, Jimmy Kimmel’s and we are thankful that our passion and Jonathan Dresel and SNL’s Shawn Pelton dedication to the art of drum-building has brought us to this place. I’m not just speaking 16 BIG GIGS about DW Founder, Don Lombardi, or resident Rock drummer extraordinaire, Atom Willard, speaks to Bruno Mars’ Eric Hernandez and Matchbox 20’s Stacy Jones Drum Designer, John Good. I’m talking about the team of dedicated employees and craftsmen 22 NEIL PEART that make the instruments by hand, including Gearing up for the road with one of rock’s most the machine shop workers that mill parts on a legendary timekeepers daily basis and the CAD engineers that translate 32 NASHVILLE’S RICH REDMOND the ideas into workable models. Our story also His rise to the top with Country megastar, Jason Aldean includes the professional drummers that have believed in our mission statement from day one. 48 THE GOSPEL OF R&B AND HIP HOP DRUMMING Some of them are household names, and others Godfather of the genre, Gerald Heyward, shares his thoughts on Gospel chops and woodshedding are accomplished musicians that back up the household names on some of the most notable 50 NOTEWORTHY DRUMMER SATNAM RAMGOTRA stages and in some of the most legendary studios Explore the world of composing with Hans Zimmer’s the world has known. right-hand drummer And we can’t forget you. You’re the ones 58 JACK WHITE’S DARU JONES that keep the American Dream alive. We’re a Balancing Hip Hop and Rock gigs keeps this Brooklyn-based company making products to better the art of rising star on track drumming, but you’re the ones using the tools we make to create music. Music is the reason we’re IN EVERY ISSUE here doing what we do. Drum Workshop wasn’t 7 TIME MACHINE: Chad Wackerman founded as a means to do anything other than educate drummers and make a contribution to the 10 ROAD RULES: 40th Anniversary Latin America Tour drumming community. This 10th issue of Edge DRUM CLINIC: Albe Bonacci goes linear magazine is dedicated to the American Dream 28 and the drummers that dare to dream with us. You 30 20 QUESTIONS: JP Bouvet don’t play drums because you have to; you play because it’s a burning desire inside you. For you, 36 IN THE STUDIO: JR Robinson drums aren’t just an instrument or daily activity, they’re a lifestyle. You call yourself a drummer 42 NEW ARTISTS because you’re proud to be part of something that brings art and creativity into the world. 44 SPOTLIGHT: Daniel Glass’ Century Project As you enjoy the articles and features within these pages, know that we do this all for you, the 61 TRENDS: Deep Snare Drums drummers. We’re a privately-held, family-owned business that cares deeply about the instrument, PRODUCT NEWS the art form, and where it’s all headed. We want 2 PERFORMANCE SERIES FINISHPLY® DRUMS, to see future generations share the same dream AIRLIFT STANDS & COLLECTOR’S THIN METAL SNARES we do, and we want to hear from you. Join us on Facebook and Twitter and share your thoughts. 4 CONCEPT SERIES DRUMS We’re listening. It’s the only way we can take things to the next level and live up to our slogan, 54 9000 SERIES PEDALS The Drummer’s Choice. 56 PERFORMANCE SERIES HVX SHELL TECHNOLOGY Scott Donnell Editor, Edge Magazine www.dwdrums.com ©2012 Drum Workshop, Inc. All Rights Reserved. ©2012 Drum Workshop, EDGE 10 ||| DWDRUMS.COM 1 The LATESTgear Thin is in: DW Collector’s Series 1mm Metal Shell Snare Drums. Drummers are always looking for their next go- to snare, the drum that’s favored for recording or live gigs and has earned its place among the top choices within their arsenal. Some drummers prefer brass for its bite, attack and metallic overtones, others like the warmer tone of aluminum or the sheer volume and sensitivity of steel. Still others swear by the boutique, throaty sound of titanium. Whichever drum you prefer, we have a new class of snares that are destined to become your most beloved. We’re very proud of the addition of four thin- shelled metal drums to our family of Collector’s Series snares. The newly-added models include: Black Nickel over Brass, Gray Coat Aluminum, Stainless Steel, and Titanium. Each possesses its own unique sonic quality and is outfitted with DW’s latest Custom Shop features, including: True Pitch™ Tuning, True Tone snare wires, 3mm flanged steel True Hoops, MAG throw-off system with 3P (3 position) butt plate, and DW Heads by Remo USA. To see sizes, drum hardware color options, and more, visit: www.dwdrums.com/snares. ACollector’s Series 1mmA Brass, Aluminum, Stainless Steel and Titanium Snare Drums Pewter Sparkle Black Diamond 2 EDGE 10 ||| 2012-2013 DW Airlift Hardware: Revolutionize Your Set-Up Let’s face it, it’s not easy being a drummer and a roadie all at once. Drummers just want hardware that makes their life easier. Introducing, the revolutionary new 9000AL Airlift hardware. It’s our tour- ready, industry-standard 9300 snare and 9900 tom stands, outfitted with a special, technologically-advanced feature. Each stand is mounted with a specially-selected pneumatic gas shock that literally floats the 9300AL Snare Stand top portion of the stand, drums included, on a cushion of air. The result is a stand that is effortless to adjust, even when holding your heaviest snare drum or toms. The technology was developed and time-tested by Randall May, International for marching drum applications and is now available for the first time on drum set hardware. Heavy-duty 9300AL and 9900AL stands are available at an authorized DW dealer near 9900AL Tom Stand you and include other pro features such as: heavy-gauge steel tubing, tube isolators, cast tube joints with Your Affordable Dream Kit has Arrived: Welcome to integrated memory locks, and much more. Performance Series FinishPly™ DW has always been To watch Thomas Lang demonstrate the synonymous with quality and innovation, but neither comes magic of Airlift, visit: www.dwdrums.com. cheap. What if California-made drums were suddenly within reach? Drummers, rejoice! Your time has come. Performance Series all-maple drums with exclusive HVX shell technology are now available in four popular FinishPly™ offerings to suit just about every style of music. Choose from traditional White Marine or Black Diamond finishes, or stage-stealing Titanium Sparkle or Pewter Sparkle. All are high-quality, durable wraps that feature DW’s proprietary overlapped seam with notched bearing edge to ensure that all head brands seat correctly. After all, it’s the sound of these HVX shells that really has professional drummers talking. Other high-end features include: True Pitch™ Tuning, STM (Suspension Tom Mounts), F.A.S.T. (Fundamentally Accurate- Sized Toms), MAG throw-off, proportional counter hoops, DW Heads by Remo USA, and more. Available in a variety of tom pack configurations, each can be combined with a choice of 20”, 22” or 24” matching kick drums. For hard rock and metal players, it’s an easy way to customize your next double bass rig. The build quality and sound that musicians, engineers, and producers have come to love and appreciate from DW is White Marine Titanium Sparkle now easier than ever to acquire. For more information, and to see a complete list of sizes and finish options, check out: www.dwdrums.com/drums/performance. EDGE 10 ||| DWDRUMS.COM 3 EBBER W A NN : A : REDIT C HOTO P PDP Concept SeriesA A unBOXED by Dave Elitch ince I live only 45 minutes from the Drum Workshop factory, I usually find myself paying a visit to DW at least once a week. It’s Salso a well-known fact that I’m a bit of a gear nerd and I have a growing collection of drum equipment, which is an open invitation for my fellow drummers to joke about my apartment looking like an episode of Hoarders! So, when DW asked me to check out these two new Concept Series kits, I simply couldn’t say no. UNBOXING I had the sound stage at Drum Channel at my disposal for this around, so I paired up these kits with a selection of DW 9000 little experiment and I’ve had the good fortune of doing quite a Series hardware and pedals. bit of work in there, so I’m pretty familiar with the way the room sounds. So, acoustics weren’t going to be a wild card. Plus, they The first thing I noticed was that DW really stepped-up the features wanted me to sample a birch kit and a maple kit, so a familiar and build quality on these new kits. I saw a bunch of things from setting was an advantage. my Custom Shop DW kits.