Lou Dog (a NAMM Oddities regular) built this cool self-propelled and self-amplified drummobile for a guy who looked to be a double amputee.
I just got a photo of him in passing so if anyone has any additional info please let me know.
Update: I was told that his name is Joe Hardey and he plays in the band Unit 287. You can check them out on MySpace as well.
I stopped for the alien hand and stayed for the practice pad. This is a practice pad made specifically for the drum line crowd. It responds like a kevlar head and has a rim, unlike normal gum rubber pads.
They say the pad material is made of dark matter, but I don't think it accounts for a substantial percentage of the stuff scientists think is out there.
This clever adaptation of the bass port concept to a cajon drum or kick really seems to work nicely. Even in the cacophony of the NAMM drum ghetto I could hear that the kick had a nice focused thump.
Ford Drums came to my attention a couple of years ago with their "Smart Ass" drum throne. This year they've got snare made from Corian, the stuff of kitchen counters. Corian makes for a very loud, but still responsive snare.
NOTE: the "counter rhythm" title was misappropriated from a post by PRobb on the Womb forums.
This clever little toroid is a shaker that mounts on a high hat stand. The two jumbo dogtag chains you see are for additional jangling.
Most drummers I've known would have opted for a beer or whiskey-themed drum set.
This is like paint by number for drum setup (or Twister if you do it wrong). To make this dead-easy for roadies you could use a P-Touch to label each stand leg.
I've got a few egg shakers with elastic bands that can be used like this but the elastic gets stretched out because the eggs are fairly heavy. These guys are a lot lighter and have a nice bright sound.
OK, I know this isn't all that odd but it's my website and I can post whatever I want. So there.
The only time your cymbals need to be out of their bags is when you're hitting them. Cymbags have a slot in them that allows them to be put on or taken off while the cymbals are on their stands.
These guys will not rest until they rid the world of interfering vibrations. The Crashgard isolates the snare mic from the cymbals and the Kickstand keeps floor vibrartions from the kick mic.
If you look closely you'll see a bit of foam inside the kick with a PZM mic lying on it.
I use a pair of their Recoil Stabilizers at my studio and they do a great job.
©2010 Barry Wood