Drumtastic blog update

Update: I've had a Lion Active cajon for a couple of months now, and just want to confirm that it is indeed awesome. If you're thinking about buying a cajon, then this company is a good way to go. The drums are very sturdy, look and sound good, and they're much cheaper than the likes of Meinl (although I quite like the look of their drums too). I've thought about putting up a video me playing it, but frankly no one needs to see or hear that.

It's been a long time since I last wrote on this blog, thanks to a combination of videogames (50%), family life (40%), Twitter (10%) and bad mathematical jokes (15%). Now that I've completed Mass Effect 2, however, I've got a bit of time on my hands, so I thought I'd just say a little about what's been on my mind lately.

With the World Cup still going on, BP oil spilling into the sea, huge budget cuts and Cheryl 'Princess Diana' Cole in hospital, there's much to think about, but only one thing has really caught my attention: cajons.

Pronounced 'ka-hone', it's basically a wooden box with a hole in it, but it's also a great substitute for a drum kit. You just sit on the box and hit it in different places to get different sounds, and a snare wire inside can be used to add flavour.

They're not new, but I'd never seen one till recently, when I went to a local carnival where they had some bands playing. At first I thought there was just a guy on a box, pretending to be part of the band, but then I realised there was no drum kit - but I could hear drums. Obviously, my initial reaction was to suspect some kind of witchcraft, but it eventually dawned on me that the guy on the box was more than just some random nutter who'd wandered on the stage. He was, in fact, part of the band, and that box was an instrument.

Well, in spite of never having owned a drum kit or even a set of bongos, I'm determined to get myself a cajon, as soon as my poor little bank account will allow. I've been looking around and found Lion Cajon Hand Drums, which offers some interesting drums for very good prices. Here's a video of some drummer dude playing one of them:



There's also a video of Sting's daughter's band using a Lion cajon at the Isle of Wight festival. Note how much she sounds exactly like her dad. I'm sure she's very happy with her lot, but what she doesn't know is I'm only interested in her drummer. And what he doesn't know is I'm only interested in his drum:



Awesome.