Various Artists, Drum Nation, Volume 3

“How do you know when a stage at a rock concert is level? Drool is coming out of both sides of the drummer’s mouth!”

“What’s the last thing a drummer says before he/she is kicked out of a band? ‘Hey guys, let’s try one of my songs!'”

Drummers have it hard. They spend most of their time in the background, and then they get made fun of and labeled as less than musically-talented. Luckily, Magna Carta Records feels their pain and has faith in their abilities. To make this known and hopefully advance the appreciation of heavy metal drummers, they have created the Drum Nation series. Currently in its third volume, Drum Nation collects drummers from different bands and labels, allows them to write and produce their own instrumental songs and puts them together on a compilation disc. Most tracks feature the highlighted drummer on drums with guest musicians on guitars and bass, but some of the most interesting ones have the drummer playing all instruments. Whether those other instruments are live or programmed, they collectively accomplish two tasks: 1) They provide the listener with a headbangin’ good time, and 2) They give the listener a much better appreciation of drummers in general.

As a whole, Drum Nation, Volume 3 is a collection of technical instrumental metal in the similar realm of groups such as Dysrhythmia and Don Caballero. Track highlights include Chris Adler’s (Lamb Of God) “The Near Dominance of 4 Against 5,” Jeremy Colson’s (Steve Vai, Apartment 26) “Fluoxetine,” and Justin Foley’s (Killswitch Engage) “Up and Atom.” The album’s most unique moment, however, lies in Chris Pennie’s (The Dillinger Escape Plan) “YMCA or TCBY.” Almost entirely electronic, the tune combines technical drumming with synth beats and samples to create an anthem that rides the border between industrial and techno. Some fans may not find this as too big of a surprise when they consider the innate experimentalism of the man’s main band, but it still stands out as an amazing anomaly on the disc.

In a nutshell, Drum Nation, Volume 3 excels as a metal album. It’s packed with intelligently-done tunes that fill listeners with the urge to rock out and perhaps even think. Metal fans should love it, and non-metal fans should enjoy it even if they’re not converted by it. Music afficionados of all stripes should definitely check it out.