Nicko McBrain celebrates 20 years with Premier Drums

Nicko's new snare

To celebrate 20 years as a Premier artist, the drum company presented Iron Maiden's Nicko McBrain with a special, one-off anniversary snare drum to recognise his commitment and hard work across the two decades, and Rhythm was there to capture the moment it happened.

A family affair

Speaking at the presentation Premier General Manager Craig Buckley (pictured, left) said, "All companies have endorsees. I think we’re lucky to have quite possibly the best. It’s not just about playing, it’s about the interaction with the company, a genuine love for the company and the family feel. Nicko is a huge influence on an enormous amount of things that we do."

He continued: "What we wanted to do was make something that would never be sold, will never appear anywhere other than with you. We wanted to make something that pushed us harder than we’ve ever been pushed before and do things that we’ve never done before, so maybe we can take something from it and use it in production in the future."

The snare in detail

Handcrafted in England, the anniversary snare was constructed from 100 percent British indigenous woods and made of a 7mm thick shell that consists of 6 outer plies of English brown oak with a single ply of sycamore and 2 plies of yew. The inner ply of the snare drum is walnut.

The outer ply carries a stunning piece of marquetry in the form of the Iron Maiden 'A Matter of Life and Death' logo which is created completely out of wood then set seamlessly within the outer veneer. This image is created from walnut burr with sycamore detail and positioned in an outer panel of English yew.

Inside the shell

The inner ply features Nicko's name set in yew with a sycamore outline. The outer hardware features Premier's new 'weathered' chrome which is also hand finished in the UK.

Taking over 100 hours to create, this snare drum will never be repeated and represents the highest level of skill and craftsmanship that Premier have put into any one instrument.

Nicko reacts

Nicko was clearly touched by the gift and took time out to thank everyone involved, particularly Premier master craftsman Keith Keough. "That is phenomenal, Keith. Having you with the family and your experience as a master craftsmen and the passion you have for wood and drums is unique. We’re blessed to have you. The craftsmanship is superb. There’s nothing I’ve seen recently that can match it. Thank you so very much.

"To have this presented to me really warms my heart."

Premier have posted a video of the entire presentation at their Facebook page.