Michał Bryndal is no novice at beatit.tv. He was one of the first musicians to have ever trusted us at the very beginning of our work. He gave us an in-depth interview 5 years ago, when he was just starting his adventure with indie/jazz/folk/rock institution in Poland, which the band Voo Voo have been over 30 years now. Today, he has grown to become the band’s integral part and a member of the Family in his own right, with four studio records and three live albums the group recorded with Michał behind the drums. If the band’s leader and mastermind, Wojciech Waglewski, and co. had an office decorated with the portraits of all the past drummers, Michał’s picture would be right up there with the legendary Wojciech Morawski, Andrzej Ryszka and the late Piotr “Stopa” Żyżelewicz.
Obviously, an artist of this format must also be caught in the act, which is live, behind his drum kit. That happened on April 1, 2017 during Voo Voo‘s live show at the Centrum Kultury Zamek in Poznań, Poland. The band were promoting their latest studio effort titled “7“.
Michał Bryndal’s Drum Kit
The kit I’m currently using with Voo Voo is one of the best instruments I’ve ever had. The toms are from Ludwig (12” and 14”). The 14-inch is the rack tom from the model John Bonham used to play. The bass drum is a 20-inch 1965 Slingerland. On the song “Niedziela” (Sunday), which is featured on Voo Voo’s most recent album and has a kind of an Afrobeat feel to it, I used a Brazilian snare drum called caixa. It’s got snares on the batter head. As far as gear goes, I think your sound is in your hands. I don’t feel the need to buy very expensive stuff because that won’t change the way I play.
I’ve recently purchased a Premier brass snare from the 1920s. It cost me €100. Some say the chrome used on there came from the Rolls Royce factory. It’s got claw hooks with the Premier logo engraved on them. Looks amazing, and sounds unbelievable! From time to time, I will buy something like that, but I don’t like to spend a lot of money on gear. The most expensive I have bought recently was a 1940s Slingerland Radio King snare. Beautiful instrument. I’ve got a 6.5″ Ludwig Supraphonic, a Slingerland Radio King, I’d like to get a Ludwig Black Beauty and that’s about it. I also have a snare drum which does a great job in studio and I use it live with Voo Voo. That’s a 13”x7” Pork Pie Patina Brass, which I bought for €120. A great sound, both when tuned high and low, for €120.
As far as cymbals are concerned, a distinguished colleague of mine was going on a trip to Turkey. I called him up and said I was looking for a 24-inch ride. He called me from Turkey and told me there was this great Istanbul Mehmet. He brought it home, I hit it once and that was it. It was an 24″ Istanbul Mehmet 61st Anniversary Ride. Beautiful! I played it for quite some time, and then, I had a gig with my band Stryjo in Istanbul. I went to that musicians’ street near the Galata Tower. The choice wasn’t too big, but every single cymbal they had was great. I bought a 20″ Istanbul Mehmet 61st Anniversary Ride with a single rivet. The new Polish Istanbul Mehmet distributor has recently contacted me and I’m in the process of testing all kinds of models. The cymbals are beautiful! I think it’s time for something smaller. For tonight’s gig, I’m using a full Istanbul Mehmet set.
Drummers and Drummerettes! Exclusively for www.beatit.tv viewers! Here is Michał Bryndal‘s drum kit as used during this year’s Voo Voo tour in support of their 2017 release, titled “7“.
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