The Metal Kit That Finally Works in the Studio

From Cardboard to Clarity: Andrew “Parms” Parmelee on Dialing It In

Andrew Parmelee—better known as Parms—isn’t chasing perfection. He’s chasing feel. As the drummer in Cevilain, a self-described “old metal boy band,” and a working engineer, Parms has spent years trying to get recorded drums to sound like the ones in his head.

Being able to dial in the exact thing that I wanted right away was ticket here cuz I like to play everything really low... These cardboard boxes sing.

For Parms, Dialtune has solved a studio problem that’s haunted him for over a decade: the fight between tone and time.

Fifteen years later, I still couldn't get my drums to sound how I want them to... I always end up resorting back to samples.

Until now. With Dialtune, he’s using the actual shells in recordings without wasting time or resorting to libraries that make every metal kit sound the same.

Now we have the option to actually have the real kit in there and it doesn't waste a ton of time. Saves everybody money, saves everybody time, makes it a lot easier for the engineer.

Parms also lives deep in low tunings—the kind that traditional lugs just can’t hold. “If you tune it too low, your lugs are basically screwed,” he says. “With this, I can get them as low as possible and they stay put.”

And in big rooms with tall ceilings, he’s finally able to harness the natural room tone instead of fighting it. Sessions are faster. Takes are tighter. Drum tone is real again.

You can just listen after every take and go, ‘Yeah, we're good. Let's roll it again.’

More from Parms

Follow Andrew on Instagram: @soundthedrum
Check out his band: @cevilaintheband
Try the gear he uses at dialtunedrums.com/SOUNDTHEDRUM using code SOUNDTHEDRUM.

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