Despite already having two unit-shifting records under their belts, Roy Mayorga and Stone Sour entered 2010 still lurking in the shadows of Joey Jordison and Slipknot. By the time they welcomed in 2011, things looked very different…

A Top 10 UK album, a smash Number One US single, a blistering Download Festival performance and a breathtaking co-headline tour with Avenged Sevenfold saw the Corey Taylor-led Stone Sour establish themselves as a monster rock act in their own right.

Mayorga is the hard-hitting sticksman given the task of keeping this ever-growing rock behemoth under control. Having honed his chops with spells behind the kit for Soulfly and Nausea - as well as writing film scores and soundtracks between projects - it’s no coincidence that Mayorga is reaching his prime as Stone Sour blast the side project tag into oblivion.

Rhythm caught up with Roy Mayorga, his drum tech Ron Hise, and Stone Sour’s Audio Secrecy producer Nick Raskulinecz, to talk gear, production and playing live. Among the shots of Roy’s kit you’ll see in this gallery are snippets from all three interviews (you can read them all in their entirety in Rhythm issue 187), kicking off with Ron Hise and a closer look at Roy’s DW Collector’s kit…