Jay Weinberg, drummer for heavy music legends Slipknot, knows his way around a kit. From stints in the E Street Band (filling in for his father, trap set icon Max Weinberg) to his current role in one of metal’s most revered acts, Weinberg understands the power of responsive drums.
In this exclusive collection of videos, he takes the VAD506 for a spin and shares his impressions of the kit, Roland’s history of innovation, and how the sound of hybrid drums provide inspiration for his bludgeoning beats in Slipknot.
“This looks like a kit you would see on a major stage,” Weinberg explains. “As a drummer playing heavy music, you want that weight, that impact, and these give it to you.”
Unsainted
Weinberg adds, “You guy have taken it a whole step further. Roland has always been cutting edge, but this is completely new. You’re marrying two worlds into one—it’s futuristic, but it’s what I’ve been used to my whole life.”
Watch as Jay Weinberg plays through the punishing tom patterns and blistering snare rolls of Slipknot’s “Unsainted” on the VAD506.
Nero Forte
Weinberg goes on to share some insights into the band’s writing process, one which benefits from the versatility of hybrid drums. “So much of our newest record was written on V-Drums,” he explains. “We came up with a lot of ideas from sounds from a brain like the TD-50. Clown will come up with something, and that will become the foundation of a Slipknot song.”
Throughout this blistering version of “Nero Forte” Jay Weinberg’s double-kick work and tom fills showcase the VAD506’s responsiveness.
Solway Firth
In this performace of “Solway Firth,” Weinberg displays why he’s been an in-demand player for many of alternative and metal’s finest including hardcore legends Madball and punk road warriors Anti Flag. Of the VAD506, he enthuses, “You can mute cymbals as you would on an acoustic kit. With this new sensor for the toms, everything takes that next leap into expressiveness.”
Birth of the Cruel
There’s a visceral quality to Jay Weinberg’s playing that brings Slipknot’s complex drum parts to life. Like songs within songs, he creates arrangements that stand alongside the composition they support, offering commentary on Clown’s detailed riffs and the multiple vocal personas of Corey Taylor.
The brutal rhythms of “Birth of the Cruel” are a prime example of the physical demands of playing uncompromising music night after night in arenas worldwide. Hearing them through the VAD506 showcases both how far hybrid drum technology has come, and how the right player can bring a kit to life.
"As a drummer playing heavy music, you want that weight, that impact, and these give it to you."
