Here’s our review of a Mapex Saturn 2020 Shell Pack, featuring…
22″ x 18″ bass drum,
10″ x 7″ rack tom,
12″ x 8″ rack tom,
16″ x 14″ floor tom,
Hybrid 4-ply Maple / 2-ply Walnut shells,
Satin white finish,
Mapex SONIClear bearing edges,
SONIClear rack tom mounts,
Mapex SAS 90° floor tom legs with Sonic Saver pedestal feet,
Nodal line air flow venting system,
REMO heads fitted throughout.
SONIClear Rack Tom Mount
Nodal Line Air Flow Venting
SAS 90º Floor Tom Legs
Mapex says…“The New Mapex Nodal Line Air Flow Venting Scheme gives Saturn a superior feel and just the right amount of resonance. Whether tuning up high for jazz and fusion or down deep for rock-n-roll, the unique Maple and Walnut shell composition, complete with SONIClear™ bearing edges, results in clear and focused toms and a bass drum that sounds bigger than it should.”
For more completely impartial, HD video reviews, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/drummersreview and click on the bell icon to be notified as soon as each new video is released. You can also follow us on our social media channels:
All of Drummer’s Review videos are recorded in a top quality studio with the finest equipment. To get the best from our reviews and really hear the instruments perform be sure to listen on good quality speakers or headphones!
On September 18, renowned virtuoso drummer, songwriter and singer Cindy Blackman Santana will release her astonishing new solo album, Give the Drummer Some. Three years in the making, the record is a rapturous testament to Blackman Santana’s unparalleled musicianship and compositional mastery, featuring 17 tracks (both instrumentals and vocal songs) that take listeners on an exuberant, compelling and beautifully sustained journey that will leave them breathless.
“If I had any kind of agenda at all, I wanted this album to be all-encompassing,” says Blackman Santana. “Pop, funk, rock, jazz – I embrace the creativity in all of it, and I feel so inspired when I play it. That’s what I wanted people to feel when they listen to the album – inspired.”
Working as her own producer as well as with multiple Grammy-winning hitmaker Narada Michael Walden (Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin and Mariah Carey, among others), Blackman Santana welcomed a brilliant array of musicians to her sessions, including an eye-popping host of guitar titan guest stars, such as Mahavishu Orchestra legend John McLaughlin, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid and Metallica’s Kirk Hammett. As one might expect, the drummer, who for the past decade been a mainstay in the band Santana, features the unmistakable artistry of her guitar icon husband, Carlos Santana, on eight remarkable cuts.
Heralded as one of the greatest drummers of her time, Blackman Santana turns in bravura playing throughout Give the Drummer Some – check out her dizzying jazz solo turn on “Mother Earth.” But this is also the album on which she distinguishes herself as a supreme vocalist, as evidenced on the record’s first single, an extraordinary rock-funk re-imagining of John Lennon’s classic “Imagine.” Having received a “thumbs up” from no less than Yoko Ono Lennon, the stomping track (which features a wicked guitar solo by Carlos), is already burning up radio and streaming playlists and is also the first track issued via SongAid, a new global initiative the Santanas have helped launch to benefit WhyHunger’s Rapid Response Fund.
Blackman Santana, who had logged over a decade in Lenny Kravitz’s touring band, recalled how he put a new groove to his hit version of “American Woman.” “Narada and I talked about that, and we decided to do something similar with ‘Imagine’ – thanks, Lenny!” she says. “It’s a profound song that we turned into a joyous celebration, one that really rocks.”
Blackman Santana’s sparkling vocals light up Give the Drummer Some’s next single, “She’s Got it Goin’ On’” – a doozy of a party jam but one with a distinct point of view. “It’s a fun, clubby, party song that celebrates the confidence that a strong woman has,” says Blackman Santana. “She’s dressed for success, she’s got her hair just right, she’s got a strut – she knows who she is. I wanted to celebrate confident women in a really cool way. And a celebration can be empowering.”
On the epic instrumental “We Came to Play,” Blackman Santana creates a gargantuan groove while engaging in a riveting musical conversation with John McLaughlin and bassist Matt Garrison; on top of which Neal Evans adds an amazing palate on organ providing warm, textured undertones. “This track kept building and building, and things got very fiery,” says Blackman Santana. The title sums up the vibe: ‘This is us, we’re playing, and if you don’t like it, go home!’”
Carlos Santana: Photo credit Roberto Finizio
“Everybody’s Dancin’” is a hook-filled, deliciously vibey treasure that features a mega-searing guitar solo by Carlos. As Blackman Santana explains, the song came about following a remark that producer Walden made about her hair: “Narada loves my Afro – he said it was electric,” she laughs. “That really sparked the idea for the song. We wanted something that united people, something fun and universal that would be a joy for them to sing. It certainly was for me.”
The musical journey expands with the aptly named, ultra-funky “Superbad” (which features a sublime guitar solo by John McLaughlin) and the slinky yet poignant ballad “You Don’t Wanna Breaka My Heart” (laced with Carlos’ soaring leads). For mind-altering art rock, there’s “Social Justice” (called by a spirited and uplifting rap by Santana vocalist Andy Vargas) and the daring, epic exploration of light and shade, “Twilight Mask,” on which Carlos unleashes torrents of sonic fury.
On the hard-charging rock-metal gem “Evolution Revolution,” Blackman Santana pairs Vernon Reid’s singular talents with those of Metallica’s Kirk Hammett – and the results are utterly spectacular. And as its title suggests, “Miles Away” is an unabashed tribute to jazz pioneer Miles Davis. The combination of Blackman Santana’s magnificent drumming and trumpeter Bill Ortiz’s exquisite soloing casts a magical spell.
During her illustrious career, Blackman Santana has performed with a prestigious and diverse group of artists (Lenny Kravitz, Ron Carter, Bill Laswell, Joss Stone, Wallace Roney, Buckethead, Angela Bofill, Vernon Reid, Jack Bruce, Jackie McLean, Don Pullen, Buster Williams, just to name a few), and she has released a string of critically and commercially hailed solo albums. In many ways, Give the Drummer Some represents a grand summation of Blackman Santana’s talents and history, but it’s also the start of an exciting new chapter in her musical life.
“It was a lot of fun to do so many vocal songs on this album,” she says. “I am, and always will be a drummer, but it’s also exciting to showcase the singer side of me. I want people to have a great time listening to it. I set out to make a record that was fun and uplifting, but more than that I wanted the messages to matter. If people come away from it feeling all that I put into it, then I’ve done my job.”
Here’s our review of a selection of Sabian AAX FREQ cymbals, featuring…
14″ Hats,
16″ Crash,
17″ Crash
21″ Ride,
dual-band lathing,
minimal hammering,
raw bell,
B20 Bronze construction.
Sabian says..“When you think AAX, think of a cymbal you can play all day long on modern or mainstream music – with a range as wide as Bruno Mars to Meshuggah. Definitely check out the brand new Thin and Medium crashes – they sound like HEAVEN.”
For more completely impartial, HD video reviews, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/drummersreview and click on the bell icon to be notified as soon as each new video is released. You can also follow us on our social media channels:
All of Drummer’s Review videos are recorded in a top quality studio with the finest equipment. To get the best from our reviews and really hear the instruments perform be sure to listen on good quality speakers or headphones!
In what has already been a whirlwind year, the British Drum Co. are pleased to announce the latest addition to their artist family, Russell Piner, who joins as an independent marching artist.
Piner is a serving member in the Corps of Drums of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines. His extensive career has afforded him many opportunities to excel as a composer and as a drummer; writing multiple compositions and gaining his diploma in Snare Drum & Natural Trumpet in 2012. In 2017 Piner became Bugle Major Training at the Royal Marines School of Music and is responsible for the development of all Royal Marines drummers and buglers.
He has had the privilege of performing with some of the world’s best drum lines, including Top Secret Drum Corps, West Point ‘Hellcats’ Field Music Group and The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. In 2016 Piner became a member of the United States National Association of Rudimental Drummers (NARD), and in 2018 he was appointed to the education committee for the Society of International Rudimental Drummers (SIRD). Piner is also the lead organiser for the 3rd International Rudimental Drummers’ Symposium taking place in Portsmouth, UK between the 18th and 20th June 2021.
The British Drum Company, which launched in September 2015, was founded by master drum maker Keith Keough; Kasabian drummer Ian Matthews; top-level marching specialist Stu Warmington; product designer Alan Kitching; and award winning comedian and drum enthusiast Al Murray, aka The Pub Landlord. The ranks expanded when in 2017 The Verve & Charlatans drummer, Pete Salisbury, joined the company.
Commenting on Piner’s appointment, Marching Division Manager Warmington said, “Having Russ come onboard brings a whole new style of drumming to our ever-growing family of marching artists. Russ plays in, arguably, the best military drum corps in the world and it’s a privilege that he’s chosen to join the British Drum Co. Russ will be using a variety of drums from our highly successfully Regimental Series.
Aston Microphones have announced their 3rd and final public test session for the all new Aston Element, the world’s first ‘People’s Microphone’.
As Aston enters the 3rd month of public voting to help create the final sound of their new mic, they are teasing us with yet more information in this stunning new product. Rumours have been circulating about accessories and we’re now able to give you a first look at the entire package.
Like all Aston mics, Element incorporates a huge amount of innovation. Everything from new capsule technology, the chassis design, the uber-cool magnetic pop filter and custom shock mount, and even the backlit-LED logo 48V phantom power indicator (or as Aston likes to call it, ‘the cool light!’) go way beyond the limits of products in this class.
Over 4000 customers from across the world have helped, so far, to define the sound of Element in peer-reviewed blind listening tests against the biggest brands in the business. During the course of this 3-month public testing series, Aston have developed the sound of the mic using data collected from these comparison tests, which have included major brand competitors such as Blue, Rode, AKG, Audio Technica and Neumann.
James Young, Aston CEO, comments “We chose to put Element up against the mics we consider to be the best in their class, so we could push the boundaries of performance. All these brands make superb products, but our goal was to make a mic which is able, in blind tests, to be consistently voted as the favourite. Of course, this doesn’t mean it’s the ‘best’ because mic choice is very subjective. However, what it does mean is that, in these public tests, the majority of people prefer the sound they get from Element compared with big brand competitors… and that means that at the very least, you can be absolutely confident that you’ll get superb results every time.”
Have Your Voice Heard
Session 3, the final round of public voting for Element, is now open. Aston still need your help to perfect the sound of what they are dubbing ‘The world’s first People’s Microphone’. To get involved in blind listening tests and have your say in the final sound of this stunning new mic, all you need to do is register to vote at https://www.astonmics.com/votingform.aspx, download the audio files, listen and then rank them in order of preference.
As well as playing a vital part in helping Aston to create the Aston Element, registered voters will also be given Aston Family Developer status, receive a certificate of participation, stickers, badges and the opportunity to pre-order a limited edition Aston Family Developer mic bundled with shock mount and pop shield at special introductory price.
About Aston Microphones
Aston Microphones has become a major player in the global microphone market in the 4 years since our launch in January of 2016. Our products were nominated 3 times in 4 years for a prestigious TEC Award winning Best in Show for ‘Starlight’ at NAMM 2016, and winning Best Microphone at the recent NAMM 2020 TEC Awards… a string of successes never before accomplished by ANY Pro Audio company in their first 4 years.
Now you’ve got Bonzo’s sticks, you need somewhere to store them!
Promuco Percussion are pleased to announce the release of the officially licensed John Bonham drumstick bag.
The compact stick holder is designed to hold 8 pairs of sticks in 2 primary internal compartments. It is made from woven nylon and is complete with grab handles, a shoulder strap and metal clasps for attaching to drum hardware.
Outside, the Promuco John Bonham Drumstick bag is adorned with the John Bonham name and the famous three ring symbol plus has embossed union flag zip-pulls.
This drumstick bag is the latest addition to the Promuco brand, which – on top of a range of quality regular sticks – has already re-issued the Bonham drumsticks: replicas of Bonzo’s original signature Promuco sticks from the 1970s.
With the Promuco brand now available across Europe, North America and Asia, drummers can get their hands on the sticks, the stick bag and even official Bonham T-Shirts through many retailers across the world.
Promuco John Bonham drumstick bags will have a recommended retail price in the UK of £15.95.
Alesis have announced a new nine-piece premium electronic drum kit featuring all-new white drum heads and the powerful Crimson II Drum Module, packed with in-demand sound and complete kit customisation options.
The Alesis Crimson II Special Edition features mesh heads, enabling quieter play in home or in the studio and natural feel. It features an 8-inch kick, 12-inch dual-zone snare, two 8-inch dual-zone rack toms and a 10-inch dual-zone floor tom, along with a 12-inch hi-hat with pedal, two 12-inch crashes with choke and 14-inch triple-zone ride. A premium quick-lock steel 4-post rack with separate double-braced snare stand keeps everything solidly anchored.
The included Crimson II Drum Module features 74 drum kits (54 factory + 20 user) with over 671 sounds and 120 play-along tracks built-in. To further sharpen your skills, there’s a built-in metronome, real time recorder and 1/8-inch input for playing along with your mobile device. Drummers can then listen back with the 1/4-inch stereo outputs, headphones or with your favourite virtual instrument via the built-in USB MIDI output.
The Drum Module also features a USB memory stick input to load your own WAV samples for the ultimate flexibility. Once the .WAV samples are loaded, you can assign these to any zone of any pad on the Crimson II Special Edition Kit. You can also load in WAV files for play-along tracks using this input.
Features
White mesh drum heads for enhanced feel and playing response
Five-piece pad set with 8/8/10” dual-zone toms, 12” dual-zone snare, and 8” Kick
Four-piece cymbal set with 12” hi-hat, (2)12” crashes with choke and 14” triple-zone ride
Crimson II drum module with 74 kits (54 factory + 20 user) and 671 sounds
Load .WAV or .MP3 samples and play-along tracks via USB memory stick
Real-time recording (5 tracks internally; up to 99 tracks via USB memory stick)
USB/MIDI output for use with virtual instrument and recording software
Premium 4-post quick-lock steel rack with double-braced snare stand
All connection cables, mounting hardware and power supply included
Here’s our review of a Pearl Modern Utility 14″ x 10″ Floor Snare, featuring…
6-ply, 5.4mm maple shell,
Satin mahogany finish,
1.6mm hoops,
REMO UT heads (coated batter, thin clear resonant side),
Pearl CL Bridge lugs with rubber backing,
Pearl SR700 snare strainer.
Pearl says…“Shallow floor tom or a monstrously deep snare? Why choose? With our Limited Edition Modern Utility 14”x10” snare floor you can have both. Pearl Modern Utility 14”x10” duo snare doubles as a floor tom, saves you some space and add an extra touch to your sound. Equipped with a throw off that easily turn it into a Floor Tom and back. 100% Maple shell.”
For more completely impartial, HD video reviews, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/drummersreview and click on the bell icon to be notified as soon as each new video is released. You can also follow us on our social media channels:
All of Drummer’s Review videos are recorded in a top quality studio with the finest equipment. To get the best from our reviews and really hear the instruments perform be sure to listen on good quality speakers or headphones!
UK-based drummer and educator (and Drummer’s Review’s very own product demonstrator) Nick Carter has just launched his brand-new eBook ‘Progressive Snare Solos’ available exclusively from his website: www.nickcarterdrums.com priced at £10.00.
The 75-page book features a collection of 25 solo pieces written specifically for beginner through to advanced players in a range of time signatures and different styles. Alongside this, the book contains further sections that take an in-depth look at rudiments and sticking patterns as well as comprehensive warm-up exercises and a host of hand development exercises to help drummers of any ability to gain more control, strength, stamina and finesse within their technique.
To celebrate the books release, Nick is offering followers and fans of Drummer’s Review a very special 25% discount. To take advantage of the offer, simply head to www.nickcarterdrums.com/store, select ‘Progressive Snare Solos’ and enter the code ‘DR2020‘ when prompted at the checkout.
Following the clamour to own one of the 2000 limited-run Black Origin studio production bundles released by Aston Microphones in January 2020, which sold out in less than a week, a large number of the British brand’s followers have been making a lot of noise about giving the same treatment to their flagship condenser mic, the Aston Spirit.
Not to disappoint, Aston have announced the Black Spirit Bundle, another strictly limited edition release of only 1500 individually numbered pieces. The box-set is centred on the multi-pattern, high performance Spirit mic which is a go-to with artists including Noel Gallagher, Radiohead, Tory Lanez, Don Broco, Jamie Cullum, Bullet For My Valentine and many other major artists, producers and engineers.
The bundle includes a highly collectable, black textured version of the Spirit, plus the best-in-class Aston Swiftshield pop filter and shock mount set – everything you need for high-class recordings of vocals, instruments and most other sound sources.
The Aston Spirit Black Bundle, like the Black Origin before it, is expected to become scarce very quickly, so snap yours up now before they’re all gone:
The Aston Spirit is a multiple award-winning high-performance switchable pattern condenser microphone utilising a 1” gold evaporated capsule. A switch on the mic body selects from Omni, Cardioid or Figure-of-Eight polar patterns. It is versatile enough to use with most instruments and excels on acoustic guitar and vocals. Its Aston 33 panel selected capsule is teamed with high-end transformer balanced circuitry using only the best components.
Nominated for the prestigious NAMM TEC Award in 2016, and holding a host of other international awards, it is universally acclaimed as one of the best condenser mics you can own at any price point, even up against mics 10 times its cost
The Spirit is designed to deliver a beautifully open sound with sparkling harmonics. This highly accurate microphone gives a stunningly natural and transparent recording, capturing all the detail in the high range but without adding the harshness that some condenser microphones seem to.
The mic features Aston’s signature Wave-Form Mesh head, a built in ‘stainless steel wool’ pop filter, direct to stand mounting and the, now famous, tumbled stainless steel chassis, for beautiful and near indestructible performance.
Professional, transformer based cardioid condenser mic
Detailed, transparent, beautifully open sound with sparkling highs
Selectable polar patterns; cardioid, omni, figure of eight
Shock-resistant wave-form spring head
Direct to stand mounting
Built-in pop filter
Beautiful and tough tumbled chassis
Eco-Friendly Packaging
When it comes to Aston’s packaging, simplicity is king. They have created protective, re-useable, environmentally sensible packaging that doesn’t cost the earth… 99% recycled materials, 100% recyclable.
The Aston Sound – Aston 33 Panel
Right from the birth of the brand, Aston engaged many of the top audio professionals in the industry to create a development panel for blind testing each new mic at prototype stage, ensuring each was best in its class before production. It is this process, unique within the audio industry, which has been rolled out to the public with Aston’s most recent mic in development ‘Project Element’, the world’s first ‘People’s Microphone’… and it is undoubtably this development of sound by professional peer review process which makes Aston mics world leaders in performance to price.
Specs
Transducer Type: Condenser
Acoustic Operating Principle: Pressure Gradient
Frequency Response: 20Hz – 20kHz (+/-3dB)
Equivalent Noise Level: 14dB A-Weighted
Sensitivity at 1kHz into 1kohm: 23.7mV/Pa
Maximum SPL for THD 0.5%: 138dB
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (rel. 94dB SPL): 80dB A-Weighted
Polar pattern: Omni/Cardioid/Figure-of-Eight
Pad Switches: -20dB/-10dB/0dB
Low-Cut Filter: 80Hz
Product length: 175 mm / 6.89 in
Product width: 54 mm / 2.13 in
Product weight: 625 g / 1.38 lb
Aston SwiftShield
SwiftShield combines the Aston Swift shock mount and the Aston Shield pop filter into one bundle to give you the perfect setup for your studio vocal mic. The Aston Swift shock mount takes microphone mounting to the next level of ease. With 2 quick release spring clips designed to fit the Origin, and a wide range of other mics, from 40-60mm diameter, mounting your microphone takes seconds.
Aston have reconceived the shock system, and as with all their products, worked from the ground up on an entirely new design idea. The ‘ShockStar’ suspension eliminates the need for fiddly rubber bands, but offers a high level of elasticity for maximum isolation.
The 75-page book features a collection of 25 solo pieces written specifically for beginner through to advanced players in a range of time signatures and different styles. Alongside this, the book contains further sections that take an in-depth look at rudiments and sticking patterns as well as comprehensive warm-up exercises and a host of hand development exercises to help drummers of any ability to gain more control, strength, stamina and finesse within their technique.
To celebrate the books release, Nick is offering followers and fans of Drummer’s Review a very special 25% discount. To take advantage of the offer, simply head to 
