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I have been using Sabian cymbals since I was 9. It all started when I was a kid, begging my parents for that shiny fire-engine-red Westbury drumset. They said ‘well, no that won’t be happening, but try the piano!’. But my dad did take me to a music store and, for reasons no one knows, instead going the traditional route and buying me a practice pad, or a snare drum, he bought me … a set of Sabian B8 hihats. Only the hihats! And that was it: no drums for you! So I had to fill in the rest of the set myself, with anything I could find, like barstools, phonebooks, a coffee table, pots and pans, the cats (not really) …. anything to fill out the rest of the set. So you can imagine it, these shiny, very real and very loud full blown hihats with my hand crafted ‘drum’ set built around it, rocking out to Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, and Kiss.
It was awesome! Such great memories … but I recently after all these years had to go back and ask my dad, why JUST the hihat? He has no idea. And even though since that young age I’ve tried what else is out there in the world, there are no other cymbals for me. There is simply not another company on the planet that is as innovative, has consistently excellent quality, and is creating a spectrum of such rich musical tones. I’m blown away every time I sit behind my kit and play these great cymbals!
Visiting the Sabian Factory I came away with such a profound respect for the craftsmanship, tradition, and the warm community of people that are dedicated to excellence. I was lucky enough to work on some prototype sounds with Mark Love, the Picasso of Sabian, who is responsible for so many of the amazing tones and colors we hear from these cymbals.
These are my colours that create my sound and give me inspiration every time I sit down to play. Thank you Sabian!
WHAT I’M USING
I love using the HHX line of cymbals, for their dark and modern tones, so inspiring to play these cymbals!
My main setup usually consists of (but can vary depending on the situation):
- 18” HHX OMNI Ride/Crash
- 17” HHX X-Treme Crash
- 20” HHX LTR Prototype Ride
- 17” HHX Fierce Crash
- 13” HHX Groove Hats
- 12” HHX LTR Prototype Hats
- 7” HHX Evolution Splash
Creating new sounds at the Sabian factory
