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Not So Modern Drummer

1370 Vera Cruz St.
Memphis
3303386035
Since 1988, a treasure trove of info about vintage drums, custom drums & legendary drummers

Drummer community & drum marketplace
The first vintage & Custom Drum Magazine, since 1988

Not So Modern Drummer

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Database of Articles 11/13 to current

Video & Review: John Crocken Drum Sticks - Premium Persimmon, Brazilian Cherry, Jatoba and Purple Heart

June 30, 2022 George Lawrence

Percussionist John Crocken has been manufacturing high end drum sticks by hand in Baltimore Maryland for forty years. Not your typical hickory, maple or oak sticks, but more rigid and dense, yet lighter woods that are preferred by symphonic percussionists and rope drum drummers. John sent four models for us to check out:

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In Reviews, George Lawrence Tags John Crocken, Persimmon drum sticks
5 Comments

Quick Review of TRX Cymbals' DRK Thunder 16" Crash

July 31, 2021 George Lawrence

Since I’m a little old school and like conventional crashes, I decided to use this one as a substitute for my 20” China cymbal that I always use with my kit. This thing definitely explodes quickly and gets out of the way. It has the same sharp and cutting characteristics of a China. I give it a thumbs up.

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In Reviews Tags TRX cymbals, DRK Thunder crash cymbal, vented cymbals
Comment

Review: Snare Skirt reduces snare volume on stage

May 31, 2021 George Lawrence
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My friends, Allen and Gina Blaxton of Nashville, have come up with a device that could solve a particular problem for a lot of drummers. It’s called the Snare Skirt, a heavy cloth baffle with plastic hooks to attach to your snare drum.

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In Reviews Tags snare skirt
1 Comment

Review: WFL III Drums - new finishes, new lugs, new improvements

October 29, 2020 Brian Hill
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WFL III Drums is the latest chapter in the Ludwig Family’s legacy and love affair with drums and drum building. Since my last review, William F. Ludwig III, has again raised the bar and made these drums even better.

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In On the Ropes with Brian Hill, Reviews, Ludwig Tags WFL, WFL III Drums
1 Comment

CD Review - "The Shadow of the Sun" by Joey Stuckey

April 18, 2019 George Lawrence
Click here to order Joey’s music and for free downloads.

Click here to order Joey’s music and for free downloads.

When the veteran blues rocker booked his trio into the legendary Sun Studio for a three hour session on an off day from their tour, he had no specific plan except to record a few originals and covers. Letting the legendary spirits in the room (Roy Orbison,Johnny Cash, Elvis, et al), the vintage 50s-60s equipment and the refreshing spontaneity of a “live in the studio” opportunity take over, Stuckey created InTheShadow of the Sun, the most unexpected full length album of his career

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In Reviews, Product Reviews Tags Joey Stuckey, Shadow Sound Studio, Sun Studio, Blues rock
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Book Review: The Tommy Thomas Percussion Library"

June 10, 2018 Bob Campbell
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Tommy Thomas is a classic example of “the most famous drummer you probably never heard of”. 

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In Reviews, Bob Campbell - Every Drum Tells a Story, Educational, BCA!, BCA1 Tags Tommy Thomas
2 Comments

Review: Canopus shows prototype of Zelkova drum set at Summer NAMM

September 22, 2017 George Lawrence
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The set was a four piece bebop size kit -  14 x 18 bass drum, 8 x 12 mounted tom, 14 x 14 floor tom and a Zelkova snare drum. It was tuned extremely high, in the jazz and bebop range. It sounded beautiful. Extremely clear tones.

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In Industry News, Reviews, Custom Drums, GLA1, George Lawrence Tags Canopus, zelkova, bebop set, be bop set
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Review - New BopWorks drum stick models

August 17, 2017 George Lawrence
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Bopworks has two new stick models you are going to want to check out. Bopworks' largest stick ever at 16 1/4", the Rhythm and Groovz, has a 5B style thickness (.590) on the shaft. The long 7" taper starts halfway down the stick and ends in a medium smallish, yet tip. This new model gives you a larger stick feel with great cymbal control. The Memphis R&B model features a taper slightly longer than 5 of its 16 inches overall length combined with a 5A diameter of .570. Lots of "heft in the hand" to go along with the long taper. 

Bopworks is THE vintage stick company specializing in authentic reproductions of vintage stick models of famous jazz era artists and standard stick sizes from past eras. With their two newest offerings, BopWorks has applied some of the design elements of those vintage sticks into longer and thicker modern sizes. Paying homage to the R&B and soul music eras of the sixties, these sticks have very modern, standard size handles but utilize the longer taper and smaller bead that give the vintage models their great bounce and cymbal sound.

The main characteristic of both of these models is the amount of "flex" in the business end of the stick. If you are a 5A or 5B player who thinks it necessary to go to a skinnier or lighter model for softer playing, these might be the perfect alternative; a stick that has the same thickness in the grip area that you are used to but with a taper that starts further back on the stick - giving  you a "skinny front end". Basically a 5A or 5B with more bounce at the tip. AND the smaller BopWorks tips are famous for the woody sound that they draw from thinner ride cymbals.

BopWorks sticks are made of quality hickory, are pitch paired, and are finished with a high quality, light varnish. They can be ordered directly from the website, from their dealer network, AND now can be ordered from Not So Modern Drummer in the the online store.

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Below is a comparison image chart of BopWorks models.

In Reviews, Industry News Tags BopWorks
Comment

Remo + Peter Erskine Felt Tone Heads

April 17, 2017 George Lawrence
Peter Erskine on why he uses the Powerstroke 3 Felt Tone Drumhead The Powerstroke® P3 Felt Tone™ Bass Drumheads incorporate the traditional style of dampening a bass drum with a strip of felt into an easy to install all inclusive Drumhead.

Peter Erskine on why he uses the Powerstroke 3 Felt Tone Drumhead The Powerstroke® P3 Felt Tone™ Bass Drumheads incorporate the traditional style of dampening a bass drum with a strip of felt into an easy to install all inclusive Drumhead.

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In Industry News, Reviews, Remo Tags Peter Erskine, Remo, Remo Felt Tone
1 Comment

Review: Remo Classic Fit Drum Heads For Vintage Drums

March 14, 2017 George Lawrence

The Remo Classic Fit Drumheads feature a slightly narrower flesh hoop and step design to address oversized drums made prior to the mid 60s. They are also ideal for older vintage drums that are out of round with thick overlapping drum coverings.

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In Vintage Drums, Reviews, Product Reviews, From Editor George Lawrence, George Lawrence, GLA1 Tags Remo, Remo classic fit drum head, vintage drum head
1 Comment

Review: Canopus's new Alphonse Mouzon Signature Snare Drum

March 20, 2016 George Lawrence

“My Signature snare drum series has a fat, deep, crisp and powerful sound that is great for all styles of music : Rock, Jazz, Funk and Fusion and more!”

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In Reviews, From Editor George Lawrence, Custom Drums, Product Reviews Tags Canopus, Alphonse Mouzon
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Book Review: "Walberg and Auge - The History and Future of America's Most Innovative and Unknown Drum Company" by Jeremy Esposito

February 28, 2016 George Lawrence

Mr. Esposito will be very instrumental in the future of W&A because he now owns the company. A rather new vintage drum enthusiast, having started only recently in 2011, Jeremy bought his first W&A drum set and was hooked. He started researching the history, discovered that the company had dissolved in 1983, and quickly purchased and registered the company name and trademarks, the website domain and started a Facebook Page. Walberg & Auge is now registered as a non-profit for historical and educational purposes.

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In Reviews, Walberg & Auge, Product Reviews, From Editor George Lawrence Tags Walberg & Auge, Walberg and Auge
2 Comments

Review of the new Canopus Nickel Black Brass Snare Drum

November 2, 2015 George Lawrence
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 I hate to use the obvious comparison, but it does sound very much like the heavy brass Ludwig Black Beauty drums that were made in the seventies, which are sought after. And I think that’s what Canopus was going for since they mentioned it on their website. 

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In Reviews, Product Reviews Tags Canopus, Yaiba
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About the 150th anniversary sets

https://www.johncrockenpersimmondrumsticks.com/

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