Drumlove65
Senior Member
I've been seeing more and more drummers even of the heave rock genre playing one up and one or two tom down kits. It's refreshing for aspiring drummers that they don't need to buy the monster size kits of days of old.
I don't know... I feel like the reason that this is is that straight tom rolls and boring fills are no longer interesting at all. Creativity is considered a very important part of being a "good drummer", and if you're a creative drummer, you don't need rows of toms.
I'm the opposite. I miss the 7 and 9 piece double bass kits. I miss the power toms and bigger tom sizes in general. Give it another 10-20 years and it will probably cycle back around.
I think the small kit made its comeback in heavy music for a few reasons:
1) Economics - way cheaper to buy 4 drums than 8 or 10
2) Quicker to get in and out of clubs and festival stages with multiple acts on one bill (which is the norm for a lot of heavy music)
3) Rebelling against the old "hair metal" large kits, just like punk did back in its day against classic and prog-rock "dinosaurs"
Interesting how everything old is new again. Heck, even I've been playing a four-piece recently!
We may not see Bozzio sized kits but I think the 1up/2 down shtick is nearing the end
Well it hasn't ended for over 60 years of jazz players, 90% of whom use a 4 piece.
In a practical sense, the only players who can use more than a 6 piece or so are people who are both pro and have roadies or drum techs.
Wow - I have an era? Cool Not sure it will be a memorable one thoughkeep it simple era.
Wow - I have an era? Cool Not sure it will be a memorable one though
Well unfortunately the vast majority are not jazzers. I love jazz, but I don't play it. It ended for everyone else in the 70's through the 80's. I saw plenty of locals giging the bigger kits back then and they could do it now. They just have to want to and I believe its coming. PDP is selling the shit out of those 7pc CM kits to someone
I don't understand - jazz - "it ended for everyone else in the 70's and 80's"?! Are you saying jazz is dead?
Plenty of " locals" could gig a kit that has all the pieces you speak of but who wants to drag all that into/out of a club, for a that is too small anyway. Obviously most are choosing not to, as the music or the gig is not calling for it. For the clubbng musicians its smart to pare down it affects your transportation. Not many guitarist hauling double stacks of Marshalls to their regular gig at Jimmy's Beer Parlor.
The 7 piece CM kits are selling because the PDP are a good value but also there is no option for that particular model to buy say a 4 piece. Many entry to mid level packages offer only a set number of pieces - usually 5 or 6 pieces - think Catalina, Mapex ProM, Tama, PDP, Stage Custom
But i hear you all the same, that is "everything old is new, is old again, is new...". But the small kit is here to stay in a big way, the way it has for 60 + years.