“Not the most thunderous of kits. Not particularly loud, but sophisticated, rounded and darkly inviting": Slingerland Radio King drum set review

‘Sing, Sing, Sing’, the Benny Goodman Orchestra’s sensational hit of 1937, featured the explosive drumming of Gene Krupa, with the most enduring tom-tom tattoo ever committed to wax. It’s still an infectious beat, butchered by every drummer with a floor tom while also endlessly engaging the advertising, TV and movie industries.

Goodman famously stormed Carnegie Hall in 1938 and the visceral thrill of Krupa’s take-no-prisoners stomp (here on YouTube) instantly entered drumming folklore. That moment furthermore revolutionised the drum set itself. Krupa’s mahogany ply Slingerland Radio King toms were the first to be tuneable both top and bottom. Radio Kings became the prototype for the modern drum kit.

Although widely forgotten, Slingerland was also second only to Ludwig in the post-Beatles world. Slingerland had built “the world’s largest, most modern drum plant”, just north of its Chicago hometown. By the time Buddy Rich was reducing us to quivering wrecks with his yearly appearances in the UK, his gleaming late-1960s/1970s Slingerlands were robust ‘Unimold’ ply. Numerous top drummers followed Buddy’s lead: Brits Bill Ward (Black Sabbath), Bev Bevan (The Move, ELO), Nigel Olsson (Elton John); and many, many more across the pond, including Peter Erskine with Weather Report and Neil Peart in early Rush.

Rich ended his career playing a restored Radio King from the 1940s. He just loved that vintage warm mahogany tone.

What is it?

Why mention all this? Well hopefully it explains why the revamped Radio King is such a big deal. Why Chris Lombardi secured the marque for his dad, DW founder and lifelong drum nut, Don Lombardi, in 2019. Why it has taken the financial clout and respect of today’s biggest US drum company five years to re-imagine.

The quandary facing DW was how to cherry pick from 40 years of historic drum crafting (roughly 1930s to 1970s) to formulate a worthy modern successor. Following Krupa, Slingerland’s popularity ballooned, resulting in occasionally slipshod workmanship. So whilst eminently collectable, 1930s-1950s RKs are inconsistent. Re-rings can disengage, shells may not be quite round.

By the 1960s Slingerland had largely overcome these demons. But the vintage sound of Krupa’s earlier toms and kicks remained that of the ‘airplane type’ thin three-ply mahogany-poplar shells with their solid maple re-rings; a labour-intensive type of construction lost to most modern manufacturers. Slingerland’s erstwhile Chicago neighbours and rivals Ludwig finally resurrected this shell layup for its Legacy Mahogany kits in 2015. Now the new DW/Slingerland has taken on a similar job.

So, much rests on the quality of these new shells and you only have to take the briefest look to be assured: they are top-draw. Construction is flawless, the finish immaculate. Two ultra-thin veneers of horizontally laid mahogany are wrapped around a rather thicker vertical core of poplar and held in the round by solid North American maple reinforcing rings. Forming these rings involved DW in the age-old craft of steam bending at its California Oxnard plant. (Note that most re-rings offered by major companies today are simply another belt of plies.)

The original Slingerland famously continued to make solid maple shell snares long after other major companies had stopped. DW kicked off its Slingerland rebirth with limited edition solid shell Radio Kings, but the snare drum seen here today has the same mahogany ply shell as the toms. This is fine as old Slingerland (check out the beautiful 1960s/70s catalogues) also made three-ply mahogany snares.

Finishes

Most RK drums from the 1940s are yellowed White Marine Pearl. Some are Black Diamond Pearl. Both these definitive wraps are back on offer. The BDP of our review kit is the real deal with that large diamond pattern rarely seen today. Alternatively, Slingerland offers two attractive heritage dual-fade lacquer finishes.

Hardware

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The sheer heft of the drums tells you something about the hardware. Vintage hardware is too feeble for today. DW has wisely plunged for 21^st century stadium-ready stability.

Bass drum spurs are of familiar modern design, while the floor tom legs are half inch diameter, with thickset brackets and integrated memory clamps. As for the small tom mounting, many will simply resort to a snare stand. But DW has retained the traditional outsized diamond plate, now part-isolated from the shell by rubber buttons, and sporting a mounting clamp with saw-toothed innards, eliminating the dreaded lateral slipping characteristic of so many ‘L’ arm mounts.

The lugs really give vintage RKs their distinctive look, but the pot metal of the 1930/40s was prone to cracking. DW has painstakingly copied these timeless profiles with expensive new moulds. They look perfect and won’t fail. 1940s beavertail ‘clam shell’ lugs adorn the toms and bass drum, while the snare drum has eight double-ended Streamlined, ‘cigar’ lugs. Our 20” bass drum has 16 lugs; all but the bottom pairs have tap handle rods, completing the elegant period guise.

Pre-War hoops were dubbed ‘Stick Choppers’. But from around 1955 Slingerland was distinguished by its chic inward-rolling Stick Saver ‘Rim-Shot’ hoops. DW has recreated these complete with the Slingerland script logo stamped into them.

Choice of snare strainer is the straightforward mid-1960s Zoomatic. This also has been faithfully copied and solidly re-worked.

All the metalwork is nickel plated, which has a warmly radiant, slightly golden tinge, softer than chrome, suiting the aura of the drums. Other details such as the internal name-stamped washers and updated ‘cloud’ badge complete this classy revival.

Performance

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If you’re used to modern loud and clattery tom sounds be prepared for a different vibe. Bearing edges are cut at 30 degrees giving a smoother, less aggressive attack than modern drums. The tail-off from the toms is shorter, not so much muted as defined.

I tuned the 14” floor tom batter down for a deeper Krupa rumble and was rewarded with a generous velvety thrum. No real necessity for damping, which rather questions the inclusion of ‘tone’ controls. They’re nice for authenticity though, and practical if used judiciously. Because they’re now so sturdily made, they don’t rattle, slip or tilt, so just by allowing the tiniest kissing contact you can get a subtly foreshortened, almost eq’ed timbre.

The Stick Saver hoops look pretty and somehow create a different, cossetted ambience, splendid on the snare drum in particular. European drums including Sonor and Trixon had similar hoops back in the 1960s and were widely prized.

The bass drum came with both single-ply coated Remos intact and two DW BDP2 pillows inside. Unsurprisingly the sound was supressed. Taking the pillows out allowed the drum to breathe. Even so, the retort was thuddy rather than slamming. A simple felt strip under the resonant head will probably suffice for many.

Incidentally, when I re-mounted the heads I just gave each ‘T’ rod a swipe and they flew in – the threads are so finely engineered. Details like this give you confidence in the overall quality of components.

The snare has a dark yet snappy scrunch. Centre hits are brisk, but followed by a pronounced ring. It’s a musical ring, the result of the thin resonant shell and inwardly curved hoops. Rim shots have a melodious woody clonk, almost like a soft cowbell. This carries over into the side-stick response which is borderline shrill with a flute-like clarity. There is no doubting this is a sensitive instrument.

All-in-all not the most thunderous of kits. Not particularly loud, but sophisticated, rounded and darkly inviting, with a woody, thuddy tone.

Also consider

Specifications

• Review kit sizes: 12”x8”, 14”x14” toms, 20x14” bass drum, 14”x5½” Slingerland Radio King snare drum
• Where built: Drum Workshop’s factory in Oxnard, California, USA
• Other available sizes: (bass drums) 18”x14”, 20”x14”, 22”x14”, 24”x14”; (toms) 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 13”x9”, 14”x14”, 16”x16” and 18”x16”; (snares) 14”x5½”, 14”x6½”, 14”x5”, 14”x7”
• Finishes: Black Diamond Pearl (pictured), White Marine Pearl, Black and Gold or Blue and Silver Lacquers
• Shell makeup: 3-ply mahogany-poplar-mahogany with steam bent solid North American maple reinforcing-rings
• Badges: Vintage style gold ‘cloud’ badge in aluminium, laser-etched with the legend ‘Slingerland Quality Drums U.S.A.’
• Lugs: Beavertail, single tension ‘clam shells’ on bass and toms; Streamlined, double tension ‘cigar’ shape on review snare
• Hoops: Stick-saver triple-flanged steel, nickel plated
• Bass drum tension rods: ‘T’ handle rods with modern cast hooks lined with thin protective felt
• Snare wires: Slingerland Snappy snare wires, chromed steel
• Mufflers: Twin tone control felt pads with nickel plated steel frame and small exterior knurled adjustment knob
• Supplied heads: All drums ship with Remo coated heads sporting the 1970s style Slingerland script logo
• Welcome pack: Contains Radio King pennant, cloth bag for dusting cloth, spare tension rods and drum key with pouch
• Contact: Slingerland