Sound and the Cymbal Obsessed, Pt 1 {reconsidered}

Cymbals. When I first started drumming I gave little thought to them. I was a preteen with a kit inherited from my dad, and it came with a set of Zildjian A's: 15" hats, 20" ride and an 18" crash. They were all models from the 70's and they sounded great. I didn't fuss and played those cymbals late into my teenage years (playing metal and punk). Along the way I simply added what was given to me by friends and bandmates. I acquired a stack of broken stuff that I used for effects and general bashing. Some were great, some were just junky beginner-stuff from Chinese drumsets (back when "Made in China" meant buyer-beware). I was given a Zildjian Scimitar 18" China (sheet bronze) by my girlfriend for my 17th birthday. At the core of the noise were those Zildjians and they were enough.

Hardcore in the shed. Old Zildjian A's and a lot of stickers.

It was not until I became interested in more experimental music and started paying closer attention to production quality that I began to seek out alternatives to my setup. Somehow the Zildjian brand had laid its hooks into me, so I stuck with them and invested in a set of the new A Customs designed by Vinnie Colaitua. I went the whole hog (see picture, don't laugh) as I was playing with a prog-guitarist at the time and thought Vinnie was the archetype of the drummer.

My Vinnie stage. Check out the multiple splashes, eh. The prog-art is the awesome-sauce.

The Custom A's sounded shimmery, glass like, bright and even delicate; they had a quicker decay and little extra sonic qualities or surprises, unlike the old A's with a more earthy texture and long decay. I bought into the brand, but the sound never really captured my heart. I always felt they lacked the sort of presence in the music that I wanted to hear. They were too tame, even wimpy. Custom A's, say "hello" to ebay.

Next up, I went dark. I dove into the turgid waters of the "jazz" cymbal. At the time there were a few new companies being setup in the States, so the options were broadening; but I stuck with Zildjian and bought some K's, the original big K stuff: 22" dark heavy ride; 15" hats; 18" crash; as well as a 18" breakbeat ride. At some point I bought a friend's father's kit (as he had passed away and they were looking to move his stuff quickly) and with it came a heap of Zildjian K's in various versions (a very heavy dry-ride was in there somewhere along with some of the newer Steve Gadd designed stuff). Needless to say I got to experiment with a wide range of the K line, and went through a period of messing around with various setups. Of all these the most memorable were the Breakbeat Ride and a Bill Stewart Complex Dry Ride (two discontinued models). The former is used by Phil Selway as his basic ride for most of Radiohead's music. As small and dark and dry as it is, there is a very pronounced woody ping at the top. It cuts through the type of sonics Radiohead creates and yet sits within the music well.

Phil Selways's live set-up with Zildjian Break-Beat 18" Ride.

…More on the sonic qualities and a search for my SOUND next time. Cheers for now.

Yours in drums,
Chris