Motherland Music Congas

[Bachikaze]

I've been thinking about taking a trip up to Motherland Music in Los Angeles. They have a wide variety of drums. They feature two lines of solid shell congas that look interesting. Has anyone had any experience with these drums or solid shell congas in general?

http://www.motherlandmusic.com/drums.htm

I'm not necessarily looking to play salsa or rumba with them, just considering for all-around drumming.

Thanks.

[goingquinto]

When I lived in Boulder, CO, there was a company called motherland drums. I don't know if they are related or not. Anyway, the solid shell congas that the company in CO had sounded awesome. The skins were raw, really raw, shaved like a djembe. The hardware left a lot to be desired, I can't tell from the pictures if the hardware is the same as the ones I saw. The sound was definitely good though, and the wood was super hard, although they were pretty heavy too, as I remember.

If Dave (aka windhorse) reads this, think of Cheri's or Jim's congas, they were from motherland drums.

[Derbeno]

I attended the Afro-Brazilian percussion class there a few months ago and tried them out during the class.

Great sound, especially the Tumba. It looked like a 13incher.

However, those babies were very heavy, definitely not for humping around with you.

[Garvin]

They are indeed heavy, but nice drums. The hardware can vary in quality as can the shells. It would be best if you are actually going to the shop to make sure that the drums sit level, and are truly round. I played with a guy who had a set of 4 from motherland and they sounded great, but sat a little cockeyed... Other providers of solid shelled congas include drumskull drums... http://www.drumskulldrums.com

They get top notch stuff, the video of the congas they have up there is my actual set...

[Bachikaze]

Thanks, folks.

I've been looking at rope-tuned congas (online, not in person), and I wonder how tightly they can be tuned. But, the lack of metal hardware could, theoretically, make up for the heavier shells.

I am a little worried about the strength of the hardware on the Motherlands.

[Garvin]

Hey B!

I have the rope tuned drums. Heres my 2 cents. I am a tuning freak, but went with the rope system because of its unique look. Drumskulls knows how to put a head on. They did a great job and even the climate shift from Northern CA to Northern MI has only required me to pull a few knots (like a djembe) and do some occasional fine tuning with a mallet. They are heavy, I doubt they could feel any heavier with hardware, but the additional cost would have to be considered.

I would only recommend the rope tuning on congas from Drumskulls or Onetree Drums. I know those guys know their s***, and I've seen and played their drums.

I would still give motherland a look though, especially if you're gonna be in the shop.

[Thebreeze]

Hello to everyone. seems like a nice topic going on here so I wanted to contribute with some pictures of a drum I picked up about 2 years ago. The seller told me it was a gift to him and that the origin was unknown. When I got this drum I could not believe how nice the hardware on it was. It is all 100% stainless steel, and made very well.There are 7 tuning lugs on it. The drum is about 30" tall with a head about 11 1/2". The inside of the drum was made into a semi-smooth finish, not like some drums that have a lot of gouges and chisel marks. So I know a lot of time and effort went into making this drum. I only have the one, and I think it is probably a one of a kind. Can anyone shed light on it? It is very heavy of course, and the wood is beautiful.
Thanks.

Will.

p.s....I could be open to a possible trade if anyone is interested in just one solid wood drum?

[Thebreeze]

I forgot to mention the sound...It has a very nice, non ringy sound that can be used as a conga or a tumba with no problems. A very unique drum to say the least. I cant imagine what it would cost to duplicate a drum like this, but the hardware itself would be expensive for sure.

Will.

[Mike]

Fancy conga, Will! Very peculiar shape at the bottom.

Has anyone had any experience with these drums or solid shell congas in general?

I have just come across these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnLhPEukSYI

which are built by
http://www.drumskulldrums.com/index.php
I do not have any first-hand experience, but I hope this helps a bit.

[Garvin]

Ha, thats my youtube clip Mike!

[Facundo1]

I've been thinking about taking a trip up to Motherland Music in Los Angeles. They have a wide variety of drums. They feature two lines of solid shell congas that look interesting. Has anyone had any experience with these drums or solid shell congas in general?

http://www.motherlandmusic.com/drums.htm

I'm not necessarily looking to play salsa or rumba with them, just considering for all-around drumming.

Thanks.

Hey Bchikaze,

Sorry for the late reply but I have experience with Motherland congas. A friend had one of the first sets they imported with Motherland hardware added. I first heard them on a gig he was playing and I was very impressed with the sound. His were carved from tweneboa wood and were not to heavy. I wasn't crazy about the heads nor the hardware that come standard.

Later that year I had to fly to LA and made it a point to stop by the store to see what was available. My intent was to see if I could buy just the shells and have hardware and skins installed back on the east coast. When I arrived at the store the owner was very accommodating and took me out back of the store to several shipping containers that was filled with all kinds of shells. He had a number of conga shells but was out of tweneboa shells. I ended up picking three shells with beautiful grain. I think they were carved from a wood called ngomi that tended to be a bit heavy in weight.
He sold me the shells and shipped them home for me.

When the arrived there was some damage to one of them so I called back to the store and told the owner what had happened and he agreed to replace it. However, I decided to take it to Mat Smith who I wanted to make hardware and put head on for me and ask him if he could repair the damage. Mat said he could so I left the shells with him and end product was far beyond my expectations.

I had to wait about a year before the work was completed. He is a one man operation and has a lot of orders. When I came to pick them up I was blown away with what he had done. Originally, he did not want to put any bands because the grain was so beautiful he did not want to interfere with the natural beauty. However, due to some flaws he found in the shell he put four bands. The hardware was custom made with shorter than usual lugs due to the high curvature of two of the shells so he made them all match. The heads are thin, about the thickness of a quarter, and are dark and oily. Bottom line the sound is fantastic but the drums are a bit heavy with the largest being very heavy. I play folkloric music for the most part and they are ideal for rumbas give a unique flavor the the music. Their sound is very round even when tuned high. The base tones are like nothing I have heard from other drums.

As soon as I can I will post pictures. My advice is to look very closely at the drums you buy from Motherland to make sure there are no flaws that could cause problems down the line. If you have them shipped ask them to pack the outer side of the shell very well. The shells are hand carved and the shell thickness tends not to be consistent over the entire shell.
I would not look for these to be your only set of congas as they may not fit into all playing situations. However, I and everyone else who plays them loves them.

Facundo

[Garvin]

Those sound like some awesome looking drums. Please don't forget to post pics when you can...

[seisporocho1]

Hey The Breeze,
How does that drum sound? Any videos?
Wow...it is a collector's item for sure!!! Nice catch!
What is the black strip that is seen at the bottom?
I love that drum and it's uniqueness.

seisporocho

[Bachikaze]

Facundo1,

The last time I checked this thread was right before you posted. Sorry I didn't catch it until now.

Thank you for the complete review of the drums. I haven't been to Motherland since I posted this thread. I may, yet, get some new congas, but in the meantime, I'm trying out a set of bugarabus. I bought three of them. Since I'm interested in drumming in general, not specific to any genre, I have a lot of freedom to explore whatever drums I take a fancy to. I may miss some of the sounds of congas, but so far, I love these bugarabus. I still have my Bauers if I need that conga sound or want something specifically for rumba or salsa.

I've also courted the idea of rope-tuned congas. I'm wary of how tight a drum with thick cowskin heads can be tightened with ropes. Still, I've heard the sounds of rope-tuned congas online and they were tuned up pretty well. They sounded pretty crisp.

[seisporocho1]

What are bugarabus????