Barry Wood's NAMM Oddities 2015 Edition

 Packrat Barry

Percussion

My Eyes are Up Here

If this had been da Vinci's Mona Lisa, I don't know that anyone would have noticed the smile.

Stone Custom Drum Co.

Not a Stunt Drum

When I saw this at NAMM I thought it was just one of those items designed to ensnare people like me but when I visited the National Music Museum in South Dakota, I learned about Goblet Drums, which were used in Buddhist temples to signal the start of the day.

Tycoon USA

The Anthropology Wing

These varied "drumsticks" look like a display of indigenous Polynesian weapons.

Headhunters Drumsticks

Ummmm…

Something tells me this isn't going to become the new fitness craze sweeping the nation.

  • Aschenbach Audio Team GmbH & Co. KG
  • Herr Kai Aschenbach, Industriestr. 26
  • 24536 Neumünster
  • www.fit4drums.com

Pads For Your iPad

I really liked Roland's HandSonic HPD-15 because it had a very organic feel when you played it. I got the same feeling playing the Jambé.

Sensorpoint, Inc

Closer to the Peart

As a long-time Rush fan, I really enjoyed getting an up-close look at the R40 drum kit. It's made from 1,500-year-old oak pulled from a bog in Romania and has artwork from previous albums inlayed on each drums.

I got to see the kit in action when I saw them on the last date of the tour.

Drum Workshop, Inc.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Apparently Zildjian has found a new application for their Spiral Trash Cymbal

Avedis Zildjian Company

Customary Acrylic

A NAMM without translucent drums is like a day without sunshine... which would technically be night.

Solidrums

Beat Box Bling

Next to translucent instruments, metal flake paint jobs are the most popular motifs found at NAMM.

Peace Drums Co., Ltd.

The Well-Appointed Cajon

Adjustable "snare" sound, adjustable bass port for tuning, and an internal micing system. What more could you want in a cajon?

  • Pur Cajon Manufaktur
  • Lotte Lehmann Promenade 1
  • 5026 Salzburg, Austria
  • www.pur-cajon.com
Pur Cajon Manufaktur

Kitchen Sink Cajon

The only thing missing is a bulb horn for the comedic accents.

  • Latin Percussion
  • 160 Belmont Avenue
  • Garfield, New Jersey 07026
  • www.lpmusic.com
Latin Percussion

Switch Hitter

This kick pedal system has all manner of unusual beaters that you can swap out with their quick release system.

Serve the public trust, protect the innocent, uphold the drinks

I think that this paraphrasing of RoboCop's prime directive serves as a reasonable guide for the RoboCup.

This spring loaded stick/drink holder does seem like a very useful product.

  • The RoboCup, LLC
  • 5130 S. Fort Apache Rd.
  • Suite #215-180
  • Las Vegas, NV 89148
  • www.therobocup.com
The RoboCup, LLC

Top Address Bass Drum

No longer must marching bass drum players be obscured by their instruments of choice.

Ergosonic Percussion

Decouple All Things

I've been very happy with the performance of the Recoil Stabilizers that I use with my nearfield monitors. The Booty Shakers use the same acoustic decoupling idea on drums to allow them to more freely resonate.

TnR Products

Rimshot-Resistant Tuning

If you find that your rim shots are causing your snare to detune, you might want to try these out.

Rimshot-Locs

As Prophesied by Billy Squire

The patented "Spinal-Glide" technology that the Motion Pro drums thrones use is ergokinetic, which I think has a different definition from the term used in anime.

Spinalglide Drum Thrones, LLC

Get Lit

…which was their marketing slogan for their LED drum thrones. I suppose that's better than "where the sun now shines from."

Arts & Crafts

I was hoping that these would be available as wood burning kits, but alas, no.

Gretsch Drums
Next Up: Instruments

©2015 Barry Wood