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November 2020 Issue – Volume 44 • Number 11

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Articles in November 2020

Turkish Cymbals - Cappadocia Series

Dry and funky, just like the region for which they’re named. Turkish Cymbals is—not surprisingly—a Turkish company that fabricates a wide array of contemporary and traditional-sounding cymbals utilizing a combination of ancient and modern processes. Each instrument starts from a…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Maximal Sounds from Minimal Sources

Drummer Ben Bigelow had two of his musical passions in mind when he designed this ultra-modern hybrid setup. “I’m a big fan of jazz and ambient music,” says drummer Ben Bigelow, “and this kit is an attempt to blend the…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Tony Allen

A Tribute to the King of Afrobeat Drumming Afrobeat pioneer Tony Allen’s contribution to modern music runs as deep as his groove. As the creator of an entirely new drumming style, his contributions are profound, and his influence has reached…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Identity Crisis…Embraced

“What do you do?” That’s such a common question, and one that’s often asked innocuously whenever I meet someone for the first time. But more and more, I’m having trouble answering as simply as I should. Am I a drummer?…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Get on the Good Foot! Part 1

Hi-Hat Comping Riffs in 4/4 Jazz drummers depend on the hi-hat to help propel the band and provide strength to the weak beats of 2 and 4. When played in sync with the ride cymbal, a dynamically controlled hi-hat pulse…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020
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Jimmy Cobb 1929–2020

“It just sounded good,” Jimmy Cobb told MD in a 1979 interview. “And it just seemed to get better as it got older.” This is a colossal understatement. The “good” album the humble drummer is referring to is Kind of…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

The Go-Go’s’ - Beauty and the Beat

Among the facts that the band’s recent Showtime documentary made clear: Without the crucial early leadership of drummer Gina Schock—or her crack drumming—we likely wouldn’t be talking about them forty years later, and the history of rock would be a…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Barrett Deems

The Self-Proclaimed “World’s Fastest Drummer” This month I’d like to talk about the great Barrett Deems. Barrett wasn’t as much of a household name in the big band world as Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, or Louie Bellson, but he was…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Joe Pollard

Syndrum Innovator Joe Pollard is a well-respected drummer who was part of the legendary group of Los Angeles–based session players in the 1970s known as the Wrecking Crew. He also toured with top R&B and pop artists, including Etta James,…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

9 Reasons to Love Narada Michael Walden

One of the most successful record producers of the recent past is also among classic fusion’s most blazing drummers. Parallel with his ’70s career as successful producer and solo R&B artist, Narada Michael Walden was arguably the most emotional fusion…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

The Earth Is a Drum

A Grammy-winning, world-traveling producer makes the case for looking beyond technology and academia for rhythmic and musical inspiration. A sage, veteran live-sound engineer in San Francisco used to joke that he could already tell how much a drummer was going…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Jerry Granelli

It’s hard to think of another drummer who’s found more success making music in such disparate situations. Yet, always, he’s done things his way. More than a classic soundtrack, it’s a seasonal institution. The Vince Guaraldi Trio’s jazz score to…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020
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Rogers USA - Covington Series Drums

A faithful reproduction of the mid-century originals with a fewwelcome upgrades. Rogers is one of the oldest names in American drum manufacturing. Joseph Rogers founded the company in 1849 to make drumheads, but in the 1930s his son steered the…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

March 1983

I was with Keith Moon the night before he died. We went to the premiere of a Buddy Holly film. There was a reception and we were talking with Paul McCartney and he said, “I’ve got this idea and I…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Zigaboo Modeliste on “Cissy Strut”

The Meters’ Funk Master Shares the Essence to Nailing This Timeless Two-Hand Hi-Hat Groove “‘Cissy Strut’ is a song that was written by Leo Nocentelli, and he was very good at writing rhythms,” said Zigaboo Modeliste in an online course…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker

Though Kevin Parker has handled pretty much every task on Tame Impala’s recordings since the earliest days, he’s always considered himself a drummer first. And getting the drums just so has always been Parker’s main objective even as his processes…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Resurrection Drums

Hollywood, Florida Resurrection Drums was founded in 1982. Originally located in a warehouse by the Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida, the company literally focused on resurrecting quality used drums. In 1983 Resurrection moved to a location in…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

Critique

RECORDINGS Theraphosa Transcendence Yet another debut from an international heavy-rock band that slays. A product of Paris’s ever-more-prolific metal scene, Theraphosa named themselves after one of the most “metal” inspirations we’ve seen recently: the largest genus of spider in the…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020
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“Sticks & Wires”

An extensive two-hour course on drum miking by top session/touring drummer Blair Sinta that covers everything from bare-bones one-mic setups to more intricate applications. After graduating from the famed music program at University of North Texas in 1995, Blair Sinta…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2020

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