John Longstreth – Origin – Antithesis

Band Name: Origin / DimMak
Drummer Name: John Longstreth
Album Name: Antithesis / Knives of Ice
Release Date: out now
Studio Name: Chapman Recording Studios (antithesis)
Engineer Name: Robert Rebeck (antithesis) 

 

Cymbals: Paiste

18″ Vision thin crash

16″ RUDE crash

14″ Signature Dark Crisp hi hat

20″ Dimensions Power China

18″ 2002 Novo China

22″ Dimensions Power Bell Ride

22″ Sound Creation new dimension Bell Ride

(new paiste set up coming soon) 

 

Drums: Pearl Reference (piano black finish)

Heads: toms-clear ambassador/kick-clear power stroke 2

8″x7″ Tom
10″x8″ Tom
12″x8″ Floor Tom(left)
14″x14″ Floor Tom(right)

20″x18″ Bass Drum 

 

Snare Drums:

14″x5″ Reference (coated cs)

10″x6″ Mike Mangini (coated ambassador) 

 

Pedals: Axis A Long Board with Marksman beaters and custom heel block by Guy(Infectus) 

 

Triggers / Microphones:

Ddrum 4 w/Ddrum trigger for the kick drum. 

 

Studio Tips:

Make sure you have everything well practiced to a click before entering. Make sure your guitarist can play to a cick as well. Try to have the kit tuned by a professional, fresh bearing edges, and make sure your hardware is free of all squeeks and groans BEFORE entering the studio.  Thin cymbals tend to work out better in the studio, as do thin heads.  No RUDES or Pinstripes. Be ready to work long hours!

 

Practice so you can play for a week straight without any special rituals. Make your drumming and your songs as much a part of you, as your own beating heart. You don’t want anything alien happening in your head when in the studio. Practice so you can endure 12 hrs of playing, so an 8 hr shift won’t kill you. 

 

Drummer Comments:

I have recently started working on groove playing.  Steely Dan, Toto etc etc …….. Learning these grooves is more difficult than one may think.  Spending two hours on a simple groove, focusing on feel, tempo, NOT hitting too hard……… in doing this, I find my practice mentality is strengthened.  I find it easier to spend more time on things like blast beats and double bass.  Also, in working on groove playing, I’m using muscles that I wasn’t aware I had. Again, it’s a great overall conditioning system for ALL of my drumming ideas.

After a week of groove playing, my blast beats have a smoother, less frantic sound to them.  They flow better, and everything makes much more sense.  Diversity is the key to being a world class drummer.  That’s why Steve Smith, drummer of Journey (a rock band) is now one of the worlds premier jazz drummers.

Don’t just practice death metal for death metals sake……. remember,  you need to be solid in death metal. You need to be able to keep things rock solid. Now go learn “Back in Black”.  Easier said than done.