LASD

The Sound of Los Angeles

With a rich history spanning several decades, the Los Angeles drumming scene has played a pivotal role in shaping the sound of modern music. Los Angeles has long been home to a wide range of musical styles, from jazz and blues all the way to the biggest pop records ever produced – the city has provided session drummers with a wealth of opportunities to explore, experiment, and push the instrument to new heights. 

Along with that comes a wealth of knowledge, curation, and specialization that only L.A.’s most in-demand drummers can bring. In an era flooded with copycat sample libraries and drum replacement software, LA Session Drummer was founded with the vision of providing producers, composers and e-drummers with the actual kits, cymbal choices, tuning methods, and recording techniques used by real working session drummers of Los Angeles.

Every kit has a story to tell.

These drum kits are individually sourced and expertly curated by Zak St. John – utilizing his 20+ years experience as a recording/touring drummer and tuning expert working alongside Ross Garfield as part of the world famous Drum Doctors in Glendale, California. 

Our library grows with each kit we release as we emulate Zak’s collection of vintage and modern drums, including some of the rarest and most sought after drums and cymbals on the planet. Everything from Zak’s drums, his tuning and dampening methods, and microphone selection and recording techniques have been expertly captured and recreated using our sampler. 

Keeping composers, producers and e-drummers in mind – all of our samples are carefully prepared to give you the highest quality sound with the most flexibility to make your own mix decisions. We offer two mix modes: Stereo or “Pro”, the latter allows for routing of any or all mic sources to their own dedicated stereo channel. We’ve also included mapping to a wide range of e-kits for e-drummers to quickly absorb the feeling of playing these glorious kits.

This is real as it gets: the sound of Los Angeles. 

Our doors are open. 

Our collection. Now yours.

THE TEAM

  • Zak St. John

    • With a professional career spanning over 20 years, Zak St. John is the living embodiment of LA Session Drummer.
    • From playing on his mother’s pots and pans at the age of two years old and learning through the tutelage of his father, a world renowned guitarist, Zak has come a long way from his humble roots in Wisconsin. After finishing school, Zak made the move to Los Angeles to further his music career.
    • While in L.A, Zak has recorded/played or currently plays with Black Star Riders, Corey Taylor, Stevie Wonder, The White Buffalo, Karmin, The B-52’s, Bitter:Sweet, Meg Myers, Christian Martucci (Stone Sour), Ben Moody (Evanescence), Bruce Kulick (Kiss), Phil-X (Bon Jovi), In The End - The Linkin Park Experience, Tara Macri, Annie Bosco, and many more! Teching, tuning and consulting credits: Metallica, Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Foo Fighters, Paul McCartney, Marooon 5, U2, Michael Buble, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Zedd, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, Adele, Bruno Mars, Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus, Imagine Dragons, Slipknot, and many more. 
    • When Zak is not touring, he can be found in any number of recording studios in Southern California or working alongside Ross Garfield at the world famous Drum Doctors where he tunes, repairs, and supplies drums for some of the biggest projects in Los Angeles. 

    CONNECT: @ZakStJohn

  • Kevin DePree

    • Kevin DePree is a composer/producer and drummer based in Los Angeles DePree is actively producing music for film, television, games, advertising and also for some of the most established music publishers around.
    • He began his career drumming professionally by his teenage years and has since gained a reputation for having an ear for creating unique percussion effects in his music. A talented multi-instrument performer in his own right, DePree spent years honing his talent as a musician playing bass, keyboards, synths and guitars as well as his beloved drums while perfecting his craft as a composer/producer.
    • In recent years DePree has worked with Emmy winning composer Sheridan Tongue as a session drummer, bass player, programmer and sound engineer with credits on Tongue’s soundtracks for Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty (BBC America, AMC+), Spotlight on The Troubles (BBC UK), Narco Wars (National Geographic) and Mavericks (PBS Montana).
    • Kevin is the creative director behind LA Session Drummer, using his experience on both sides of recording and production to ensure the LASD instruments are of the highest quality and usability.

    CONNECT: @KevinDePreeMusic