30 minutes to set up a drum kit!

But what a drum kit this is. There are loads of drummers around who use amazing and spectacular drum risers. We talked to Sabatons drummer Hannes Van Dahl talks about his fantastic drum riser and his inspirations around it, starting with what gave him the idea for this ambitious riser in the first place? “I think in general Sabaton always has done things in an unorthodox way compared to many other bands. We of course wanted a drum riser that goes with the theme of the band, and something that hasn’t been done before. Of course Kiss had their cannon/tank sorry excuse of a drum riser in the Eric Carr era [I love Kiss], but I think ours tops it off… But no other drum riser specifically inspired us, it came from an original joke about having a tank on stage that we made into reality. The challenge was also in the consideration of building something that can tour 150+ shows a year and take a good ol’ beating and something that doesn’t take too long to assemble. Audie the tank takes 30 minutes for two people to build from cases to finished riser.”

Do you consider yourself a showman behind the kit? Is this kit just an extension of that? “Showmanship has always been very important for me. As a musician myself but also as a fan of other bands and a frequent concert attender, when I go see a show I want to see something spectacular and special, not just a pair of blue jeans and a white T-shirt and one or two occasional old man headbangs… Don’t get me wrong, the playing in itself can be spectacular and showmanship worthy enough for me, and that’s why I have John Bonham, who was a spectacular player and a thinker outside of the box when it came to grooves and challenging traditional playing in general, and Keith Moon with his utter craziness, as my favourite drummers of all time. I’ve always thought of these two maniacs combined in my head. The great playing and grooving and the great showmanship as one. They both had qualities from both camps of course. But yes, the tank is most definitely an extension of the whole show as more than you would expect going to a heavy metal show.”