Urban Boards Drumming Shoes

I was recently approached to review some drumming shoes made by Urban Boards who are a specialised sports shoe company based in Brazil and who are distributed by Get Musical here in the UK.

For years I have had my favourite drumming shoes to gig with and I also have a pair of dancing shoes that I use when playing in a suit and need smart shoes. I have also had many discussions with many top drummers about shoes to play drums in - Thomas Lang, who is no slouch when it comes to fast feet, likes to use thin soled trainers (or ‘snickers’ as he likes to call them), where as players such as Jojo Mayer, Dave Weckl and Steve Gadd (amongst many others) also have their favourite shoes to play in.

So are drumming shoes a good thing or a gimmick?

First these drumming shoes do not say you are going to be able to play faster – its still the same feet that go into them! But they do say that you will be more comfortable and will help you play faster. The way I look at it is this: I run about 20 miles a week and I could probably run in a pair of working boots and still run the same distance. However, it would be very uncomfortable and probably damage my feet, knees and back, so I buy a good pair of running shoes that help me perform better, recover quicker and are a lot more comfortable. So I buy a product that has been designed to do the job. In theory then, the same principle must go for drumming shoes.

The shoes are made of a ‘rapid perspiration wicker’ that lets your feet breath during performance in the same way as a running shoe does. This helps keep the feet cool and helps with ‘fast moisture transport’ or getting the damp out of the shoe (so no more smelly drumming shoes) and dry faster when wet. They also have a removable innersole for an even thinner sole if you want it. The shoe is very light at 200 grams which is about 15% lighter then normal trainers and has good support all around the feet with a thin sole that helps to slide up and down or across the pedal plate, which is something I find I cant do with a lot of trainers. The shoe also has a higher heel to give the foot more support when playing fast notes and keeps the foot steady in the shoe.

The shoes come in two designs including a Dennis Chambers signature shoe. The ones I reviewed were a black and white pair which look very smart but I couldn’t wear them with a suit (on a recent function gig) as they look a little too funky. They also have ‘Drummer Shoes’ written on the side so nobody will steel them from the changing room!

Conclusion

In the week that I had them I used them on gigs and to teach in, and as I wanted to really give them a REALLY good test, I wore them to the gym and there is no doubt that they really do keep your feet cooler than a trainer or a shoe. They are also so light that at times it feels like you don’t have any shoes on. I used them with and without the removable insole and to be honest I couldn’t decide which I preferred. I don’t like playing bare foot as I like the support in my foot when playing which I get from these shoes. The shoes look really cool and over the course of a week a couple of people mentioned them. They’re also cheaper than trainers and my dancing shoes with an RRP of £39.99 or £49.99 for the Dennis Chambers models,

There is no doubt that these shoes work and I will be buying a pair. As I said at the top of this review it does not matter what you play in (or run in) but getting the correct shoe does really make life more comfortable and help when playing.

A word of warning about the sizing though as I normally wear a UK size 9 in a trainer but in these I needed a UK 10 so think a size bigger than you normally are.

So lets go back and answer the question "are these shoes a gimmick?"

The evolution of drumming has come a long way since our ancestors hit hollowed out tree trunks with branches. What would we have done without the invention of drum sticks? If the hi hat pedal hadn’t been invented our cymbals would still be placed 12 inches off the floor. What about the double bass drum pedal? The boom stand? The list goes on and you get the idea. While I am not saying that these shoes are as important as these devices that we now take for granted, if something new comes along to help us play better or more comfortably then bring it on! These shoes are no gimmicks.

But I still can’t play doubles with my feet as fast as Thomas Lang though.

Mike Dolbear