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Modern Drummer is the world’s most widely read drum magazine, is dedicated entirely to the art of drumming and caters to the needs of amateur, semi-pro, and professional drummers.
Going Above and Beyond
In Robert Girouard’s excellent interview this month with Ed Sheeran’s drummer Mark Pusey, they talk about “having more skills than you need for the job.” I was extremely happy to see Mark mention this, as it is something that I…
Sonor and Paiste Beauty from the UK
For this month’s Kit of the Month, Modern Drummer brings you London, England’s Arnaldo “Arnie” Rogano’s drum set that he uses with his band Madre Sun. His drums are Sonor, his cymbals are Paiste Rude’s, his heads are Remo, his…
The Big Drum-Off
The name Rodger Fox may not ring a bell for some readers outside of New Zealand or Los Angeles, but he is very well known by just about everyone in the Land of the Long White Cloud (“Aotearoa,” the Maori…
Warren Huart Home Studio Recording, The Complete Guide
Drummers are musicians, and today more musicians are also engineers and producers. But that isn’t always a natural progression. Learning about music production and engineering can be very confusing. There are many different ways to record and mix music, and…
OUT NOW! May 2023 – Volume 47 • Number 5
Modern Drummer is spotlighting certain new recordings that have the drums at the center of their sound. These recordings might be drummer-led, or just include a high-quality, special, or unique drumming and musical performance from the drummer and/or musicians in…
Art Blakey’s Gretsch 1960s Custom Moon Glow Flame kit
Art Blakey was an individualist in every way, including the look of his drum kit. The Gretsch kit shown here features a 14×20 bass drum, 8×12 and 9×13 rack toms, a 16×16 floor tom, and a 5×14 metal snare. The…
Allan, Chick, Edward, Jeff, and Wayne
One of my favorite sayings is “great drumming lives within music” or simply “music contains drumming (and hopefully Drumming Contains Music.)” In the last few years many of my favorite musicians have died. Throughout their careers these musicians have invited…
Drake’s Avengers kit
Cassie Birchmeier has submitted a cool little kit, and a nice story for Modern Drummer’s April Kit of the Month. She writes, “My son, Drake, has the coolest kit around. He is seven years old, and we bought him a…
Balloons in the Sky
You know that feeling when you’re playing a piece of music and you’re somehow disconnected? What you’re playing is not wrong, but it’s not right either. Something is missing. What? Who? The answer is you! YOU’RE missing. And sometimes, you…
OUT NOW! April 2023 – Volume 47 • Number 4
Modern Drummer is spotlighting certain new recordings that have the drums at the center of their sound. These recordings might be drummer-led, or just include a high-quality, special, or unique drumming and musical performance from the drummer and/or musicians in…
Bryan Hitt’s Ludwig Epic Series REO Speedwagon 2009 Tour Kit
The Ludwig Epic kit shown here was used by Brian Hitt on REO Speedwagon’s 2009 Common Ground Tour, and it also appeared in Ludwig drum ads. It’s a custom kit that starts with two 16×22 bass drums, to which additional…
Ready and Prepared
In reading this month’s Modern Drummer I saw a bit of a theme. When the time came, all of this month’s great drummers were ready and prepared for anything that the music world could offer. I often hear the question…
Let’s Face It...
Chinese New Year usually finds me seated at a large circular table in Hop Woo’s, a terrific dining establishment in West Los Angeles. This annual meal is organized by the wife of my longtime friend and drummer Peter Donald. We…
Benjamin Patterson’s Crush Kit
This month’s Modern Drummer Kit of the Month comes to us from Benjamin Patterson. Benjamin is rockin’ a Crush kit with his band Rock ‘n Roll Ave. The bass drum is a 20, and his toms are 12 and 14.…