It’s been more than a short stint since we’ve received a slab of heavy drum breaks that makes perfect for sampling producers and DJ’s who love rocking doubles alike that have filled our crates with essential listening. But here we are right before the end of 2024 with something that checks off all of the tabs in the drum department with the new Maximalist Minimalisms Vol. 1 LP by drummer, Reed Michaels.
Maximalist Minimalisms, Vol. 1 is the first installment in a series of drum library records. Minimal elements comprise each track with an emphasis on the drums. In an age of the prevalence of digital drum packs, Reed Michaels sought to create a tangible artifact of his drumming with the intention of use and re-use by the listener. The result is otherworldly, timeless, and funky.
The new LP features 38 tracks spanning a wide spectrum of Reed’s recording and drumming styles. One-shots of kicks, snares, and percussion are sprinkled throughout, and a suite of dubbed-out Kalimba tracks adds grounding to the piece as a whole. ‘electro lysis’ and ‘shug’ feature deconstructed drumset recordings resulting in b-boy and funk breaks, while ‘for to fore’ and ‘this is not a break’ draw from the live rawness inherent to the Tascam 424 4-track.
The hard hitting, raw sounds of ‘farfisa’ (no farfisa organ here) are complemented by the J-Dilla style slump-funk of ‘claps’ and ‘tambo,’ while ‘temple’ is recorded imagining Ziggaboo hanging out with Lee Perry.