Rebel Meets Rebel

I don’t typically do CD reviews and I’m don’t plan on doing another one after this but I have some time before I get some products in to review so I thought that I would do this one really quick. Whenever I talk to people about this CD, I get blank stares back because no one seems to have heard of it and honestly, that’s sad because this is a GREAT CD.

The best way to describe this CD is Heavy Metal Country. Yes, HEAVY METAL COUNTRY. Let’s look into this further shall we? On drums we have Vinnie Paul, on guitar, Dimebag Darryl, and Rex Brown on bass, yes, ¾’s of Pantera fronted by country music rebel David Allen Coe.  We’re talking country music that knocks you out and stomps you in the face. 

The opening track “Nothin to Lose” is a great song. There’s nothing like Chugging guitars over a train beat.  “Get Outta My Life” has a guest appearance by Hank Williams III…country royalty if there ever was any.

While I am a Pantera fan, I’m not really a fan of David Allen Coe or country music in general but I personally LOVE this album. It was recorded during the Reinventing the Steel tour in 2000 but didn’t come out until 2006, two years after Dime’s tragic murder in 2004.

Here's the video to "Nothin To Lose".

If you can find it, pick it up. It’s a great album!

I have a cymbal and a couple snares coming in for review….stay tuned!

Gig Grips

I saw these back at NAMM and was interested in trying them out.  I’m the type of drummer who starts out a set at full speed with my playing and about two or three songs into the set I find myself holding on to my sticks for dear life because my hands get tired. Yes, I need to pace myself better, but when I saw these I thought maybe they would help a little. 

Basically, they’re a piece of rubberized plastic that fits over your sticks and forms a loop for your finger to fit through…simple and effective.  They are comfortable to use and don’t really get in the way while playing. I noticed I could relax my grip a little and still play without worrying about doing any unintentional stick tricks!

Although these are pretty cool, I feel that there are some drawbacks to them, mainly for the rock and metal guys. They don’t change out quickly. If you break a stick mid song you’re pretty much stuck until the end of the song, you can’t just drop the broken stick and get a fresh one. I think that these would work better for lighter players. I did see that they also work for traditional grip players too, you just use it with your thumb.

So for mainstream drummers I think these are a great product, for rock and metal drummers, not so much.

If these are for you, check ‘em out at www.giggrips.com.

Feel free to discuss!

Guerrilla Drum Making

This is for those who have always wanted to make their own drum but didn’t know the first thing about drum building. Guerrilla Drum Making is a step by step DVD for the amateur drum builder.  The main points of the DVD are finishes, how to prep the shell and how to do the finishes. 

They include:

Collage

Black satin stain

Veneer

Sunburst

Laminate

Working with acrylic shells

While it talks about drilling the shell and how to align the holes properly, it doesn't go into cutting bearing edges. That is still best left to the professionals, but I will say that on their webpage (www.guerrilladrummaking.com) they have a very comprehensive blog on building with MANY resources listed. They even have a gallery to post pictures of drums made by owners of the DVD! So don't just buy the DVD, utilize the webpage as well!

As a builder myself, I do some of the things in this DVD differently than they do but their methods still work and even with my personal drum building experience, I still managed to glean some new info from it!

So if you ever wanted to build your own drum I suggest that you pick up this DVD, it has a lot of great info and tips in it. I received an email a while back saying that there’s going to be a sequel! I’ll be picking that one up too!

Until next time!

Supernatural Cymbals

Supernatural Cymbals is one of many new cymbal companies that have popped up in the past few years, I had heard of them for a while before I saw their booth at NAMM 2010 and heard MANY good things about them so I thought I’d try them out…Man! Was I surprised with what got! 

For this review I chose the 13” Aura Hats, 22” Impact Power Bell Ride, 18 Aura Crash and 18” Prodigy Pro Crash. I have shot a video of each cymbal as well to check out!

Here are my findings…

13” Aura Hats: These are REALLY bright hats! I love them. To me personally, Sabian’s 13” HH Bright Hats set the standard for bright hats but these Supernatural’s surpass them easily. They are brighter and project very well. They have a very nice slosh to them when opened slightly and a nice sharp, bright “chick” when closed tightly. Score!

Next is the 22” Impact Power Bell Ride. This is a 22” monster with a bell that a blind man could hit with ease. Nice wash, but not too much. A ping that stands out from the wash and the music as well. The tone is perfect to the ear of this writer.

18” Prodigy Pro: This is a nice bright cymbal that cuts through the music very well. Nice tone and resonance, yet there is enough middle frequencies that it won’t get drowned out.  A great sounding cymbal that has the potential to have quite a bit of versatility.

18” Aura: This is a very bright cymbal, especially for an 18” cymbal. While it’s the same size as the Prodigy Pro, it’s noticeably brighter…I love bright cymbals…did I mention that already? It works great in combination with the Prodigy Pro bringing out the higher frequencies.

Overall, Supernatural Cymbals is going to give “The Big Three” a good run for their money. These are Turkish Cymbals in the true sense of the word with their own foundry actually in Turkey! I like these cymbals. They have my official stamp of approval!

There is going to be a giveaway for a Supernatural Splash cymbal! I’m just waiting on a cymbal to be shipped to me. Once it’s in my hands I will post the rules for entering the giveaway! In the meantime, enjoy the videos!

PJ

The Eric Carr Story by Greg Prato

I wasn't planning on reviewing this book but after I finished it I decided that it was worth spreading the word about. The book also hit me for a few other reasons, one, I've been a KISS fan since I was 6, and two, I am the same age Eric was when he passed away and I can't imagine being done with life right now.

This isn't your standard biography book.  Greg Prato uses personal quotes from a wide range of people who knew Eric very well and arranged them chronologically spanning his audition with KISS to his way too early passing. People who include Eric's sister, Eric's girlfriend, Bruce Kulick, Eric's drum tech and members of various bands that toured with KISS and worked for KISS during Eric's tenure in the band.
There is a lot of information about what happened behind the scenes both in normal every day business in KISS and when Eric found out he was sick and the reactions of Gene and Paul...some of which aren't very flattering.

There isn't much distribution for this book, the only place you can get it is at:
http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/the-eric-carr-story/15144516.

It's a great read for the KISS fan but it's also a great read about a great drummer who is given too little credit for his technical abilities and giving KISS a kick in the ass when they needed it the most.


Be sure to check it out!

Giveaway coming up!

Just got confirmation from the company!

Stay tuned!

Mr Sawbladehead Designs

Mr Sawblade Head Desgins

Ok, Shawn Lowery a.k.a Mr Sawbladehead, friended me on facebook and I about crapped when I saw his product. Mr Sawbladehead Designs makes custom mic stands, cymbal stands and drum racks and we’re not talking standard tube pipe or making a “custom” rack out of Gibraltar rack pieces, we’re talking TOTAL CUSTOM. Shawn designs and fabricates them himself and his work is AMAZING.

I did not get a chance to try one out in person but I have seen the posts on his facebook from people who seem completely satisfied with his work and if you look at the rack he built for himself, you’ll know why. He can design something for you or you can tell him what you want and he’ll work with you to get you exactly what you want.

The only down side is that his work is expensive, this isn’t for the weekend warrior drummer. Cymbal stands start out at around $300. Not a bank busting price for a singer to put out for a very cool mic stand but most drummers need at least three or four stands for their kit…it adds up quick, and for the rack set up in the picture, you’re looking at about $15k…but NO ONE would ever forget your drum set!

If you can afford it, Shawn can make you a unique rack or hardware that no one will ever forget so check out Mr Sawbladehead Designs and see what he can do for you!

Email: mrsawbladehead@yahoo.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Mr.Sawbladehead

Phone: 727-967-7611

Make sure to tell him PJ sent you!

Ps.

He’s a pretty kick ass drummer too!

Video 1