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DVD and Album Reviews March 09
Methods & Mechanics – Todd Sucherman First I need to apologies as I have had this DVD for a few months now but I was waiting for major distribution worldwide before I could put it on the site. Also the DVD is over 5 hours long and I wanted to watch it all before I passed judgement! For those who maybe are not familiar with the name Todd Sucherman, he is currently the drummer with Styx and has worked with Brian Wilson, Spinal Tap, Eric Marienthal, Peter Cetera, John Wetton and on this DVD he brings over three decades of knowledge to this 16x9 High Definition DVD. The DVD is one of the most beautifully shot drum DVDs that I have seen with some stunning locations. The opening scene on disc one… Wow! There is no doubt that a lot of effort and thought has gone into this from a relatively new name to drum DVDs - Altitude Digital - and this DVD is worth the money just for the locations alone. There is some stunning playing and information on this package with music supplied by Styx, Taylor Mills and Jerry Goodman that shows off Todd’s versatility and musicality. Throughout the DVD Todd covers many areas including rudiments and hybrid rudiments on a practice pad before going onto the kit, where he looks at drum vocabulary, an in depth look at the hi hat technique and how it effects the groove, odd time signatures, thoughts on playing and practice routines, dynamics and so much more. There are some really nice extras including downloadable PDF files and one of my favourites “A day on the road” and “Drum room diary”. This is an excellent DVD in everyway and you could watch it (as I have) over and over again and find something new each time. I must admit I didn’t know much about Todd before this DVD which was recommended to me by Gavin Harrison (which is a pretty high recommendation). Go and get this DVD. You will not be disappointed, it is one of my favourites for 2009. www.altitudedigital.com $29.95 / £19.00 Mike Dolbear |
Behind The Player - Stephen Perkins Ever heard of something doing exactly what it says on the tin? Well this DVD does exactly that. Mr. Perkins takes you through each song part by part and shows you how to play it! It’s as simple as that and quite effective it is too. The first section of the DVD is ‘Behind The Player’ which, in line with the other DVDs in the series, talks about Steven’s history and how he got into drumming, how he found his own style and success with Jane’s Addiction and Porno For Pyros. Good stuff. Next up is the actual education! Starting with ‘Pets’ then ‘Been Caught Stealing’ then ‘Mountain Song’ (going up in difficulty), each section has a ‘Lesson’ and the ‘Track play-along’. The lessons are good. Stephen’s enthusiasm is so apparent when explaining his grooves - you can tell this guy is proud of what he’s done and achieved. He is clear with his instructions and they are easy to follow. What I like about his playing in these songs is that he doesn’t over complicate his beats and really plays what is needed. He has a great tribal feel to his drumming and is a real hard hitter. Slipknot bassist Paul Gray makes an appearance jamming through the latter 2 songs. With a difficulty rating of 3 out of 5 I would recommend this for intermediate players. It doesn’t get too technical but you can have some real fun with it. Oh yeah, it helps if you like the songs too... Other IMV Behind the Player drum titles include: Rob Zombie drummer Tommy Clufetos and Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin Alfred publications £12.99 / $22.49 Chris Persiv |
Set Up, Tune and Play Drums Your Drums by Jason Gianni
Topics include: Unpacking your drums, assembling your drums, adjusting your pedal, setting up your drumset, fine tuning the snare drum, getting comfortable on your kit, stick selection, basic hand technique, pedal technique, tuning, introduction to rudiments and 5 basic rock beats. The DVD creates a great package for the new drummer by simple step by step instructions on how get your drums from those two big boxes in your house to rocking out to your first beats in bite size steps all for £9.95! Explanations are simple, presented in a non-technical manor and introduces the viewer to the basic and essential terminology used within drumming The DVD is separated in good bite size chunks and so the viewer can work at their own pace, set up their drums and get playing as quickly as possible. Hudson Music £9.95 / $ 19.95 Adrian Graham |
New album review Therapy? - Crooked Timber
1) The Head That Tried To Strangle Itself (3:25) Crooked Timber is being released via Demolition Records/Global music. The album was produced by Andy Gill (Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Killing Joke) and was mixed by the bands front man, Andy Cairns with the aid of Adam Sinclair. Since their last release (One Cure Fits All), ‘Crooked Timber’ has taken the band on a new path, it has challenged them to diversify their already unique sound, and try new concepts. The album has a more rhythmical approach to how it was written, being wildly energetic from start to finish, with a variety of music styles which demonstrates the bands versatility. Each track has its own distinctive feel, whilst maintaining an overall hard and heavy sound throughout. The new studio album contains some exciting rudimental ideas that are incorporated well into the songs. Tracks that especially stand out on the album include ‘Crooked Timber’, ‘Clowns Galore’ and ‘Enjoy The Struggle’ With lots of fun chuggy riffs, soothing melodic guitar tones mixed with solid grooves and chunky drum sounds, Crooked Timber is a rhythmic treat for the whole family. Overall the album showcases a new side to Therapy? incorporating new ideas, taking the bands sound to a new level, that will definitely keep fans satisfied. Other albums to check out from the band include, ‘One Cure Fits All (released 2006)’, and ‘Shameless (released 2001)’. For info, updates and much more from the band, go to www.therapyquestionmark.co.uk. Daniel Kerr |
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