Premier is celebrating 100 years since the birth of the company with a new acoustic kit line-up comprising some of its classic series names alongside some Special Edition, Centenary kits and snare drums.
The announcement by the British drum brand, which was acquired by UK retailer Gear4Music in 2021 sees its range of acoustic drum kits split into four main ranges starting with the flagship Elite, Genista, Artist and Revolution series’, with a number of updates announced for each.
Centenary kits and snares
Genista 100SE kit
First up, there’s the striking Genista 100 SE, which has been given a tri-band solid white/red stain finish which allows the birch grain to poke through. It follows the same all-birch shell configuration as above with an un-drilled bass drum and ISO-mounted toms. It’s available as a six-piece 22x18”,10”x7”, 12”x8”, 14”x14”, 16”x16” kit including a matching 14”x5.5” snare.
Genista 100SE snare drums
If you can’t justify buying an entire kit but still want in on Premier’s 100th anniversary celebrations, the Genista 100SE snares could be for you. Based around the same design as the Genista 100SE kits, the snares come in two sizes: 14”x5.5 or 14”x7.
Finished in the same white/red tri-band finish, they’re made of an all-North American birch, 5.6mm, 7-ply shell with 45-degree bearing edges. Each snare is fitted with the Genista lugs, 2.3mm triple-flanged hoops, 20-strand snare wires and Premier’s 610 strainer. These aren’t limited edition in terms of the numbers produced, but Premier has stated that they will only be available for a limited time.
Artist Club 100
As a special edition kit for its 100th anniversary, Premier has also released the Artist Club 100. This 20” shell pack comes in British Racing Green follows the same shallow ‘Club’ dimensions as its popular 90s predecessor, (and the Artist Heritage 20” setup) with a 20”x8” bass drum, 10”x6” rack tom, 13”x11” floor tom, and a matching 13”x5.5” snare drum.
Della-Porta 100 Limited Edition snare drum
Honouring Premier founder, Albert Della-Porta is the Della-Porta 100 snare. It’s handmade in the UK featuring a 14”x5”, 5mm, 4-ply shell made from walnut, and Premier says it has followed the brand’s original shell-building techniques to produce the 100 limited edition drums.
Inside, the shell is fitted with 6mm, four-ply, beech support hoops, while the outer ply of the drum is an oiled, figured walnut.
Unlike Premier’s modern ranges, the Della-Porta uses a 30-degree bearing edge, and the drum comes fitted with an Evans Calftone head for maximum vintage tone.
Hardware-wise, it’s got a Premier 610 throw-off, Puresound 20-strand wires, and the hoops are single-flanged. 10 traditional tube lugs with vintage claws take care of the tuning, and the badge is cast in the uK from pewter.
In addition to this, every Della-Porter snare comes with a special edition Hardcase carrying case, finished in an exclusive brown finish, and each drum Hardcase and accompanying Certificate of Authenticity is individually numbered.
Premier Elite
The Elite series shells have been redesigned, and now come as a four-ply design featuring a blend of two plies of maple and two plies of birch. The thin shells are strengthened by one-inch-wide beech reinforcement rings, and the tom shells are undersized by 3mm. Premier says this allows the drum head to sit flatter against the shells’ 45-degree bearing edges to improve tone and sustain while also making tuning easier.
Elsewhere, the Elite series uses 2.3mm triple-flanged hoops, and a low-profile ISO tom-mounting system. Elite series kits are offered in four shell pack configurations based around the bass drum size.
There’s the three-piece 18” kit (18x14” 12”x8” and 14”x14” toms); four-piece 20” kit (20”x16”, 10”x7”, 12”x8” 14”x12”); four-piece 22” (22”x16” 10”x8”, 12”x9”, 16”x16”) and a five-piece 22” shell pack (22”x16”, 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 14”x12”, 16”x14”).
All feature un-drilled bass drums and are available in a choice of Baby Blue, Copper Sparkle, Gunmetal Sparkle, Rosewood Satin, Walnut Satin Burst and white finishes. Additional toms, bass drums and matching 14”x5.5”, 14”x6.5” and 14”x8” snares are also available.
Premier Genista
The all-birch Genista series was a much-loved range during Premier’s renewed success in the 90s, and here it returns with three sub-ranges complete with the original one-piece lug design, which has been recreated from the original drawings.
We get 5.6mm, 7-ply shells for toms and snares, while the bass drums are 7.2mm, 9-ply with matching lacquered hoops. Once again the shells are undersized (this time by 6mm) to promote better head/shell contact, but there’s a choice of three all-birch kits, plus a full-maple Genista shell pack, each with slightly different features.
Genista Classic
The core modern Genista kit offers the original lug design, 7-ply tom/snare and 9-ply bass drum shells, all made 100-percent from North American birch.
The hoops are 2.3mm triple-flanged with un-drilled bass drums and ISO mounts for the toms, and it comes in either 20” three-piece (20”x16”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”) or 22” four-piece (22”x18”, 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”) shell packs.
Finish options are Ermine or Shadow Fade (both stained lacquer), Red Sparkle or Vintage Gold Sparkle (lacquers). You can buy add-on toms and bass drums, as well as 14”x5.5” and 14”x7” matching snares.
Genista Heritage
The Heritage variation of the Genista is designed for fans of vintage configurations, and while it shares the same shell construction as the Classic, it comes in a bop-friendly 18” three-piece (18”x14”, 12”x8”, 14”x14”), and dual-floor tom, classic Rock-sized (24”x14”, 13”x9”, 16”x16”, 18”x16”) shell packs.
Another key difference with the Heritage, is that it doesn’t use ISO mounts for the toms, instead reverting to a more vintage direct-to-shell mounting.
The additional options on the Genista Heritage range is more limited, with a 10”x7” rack tom and 14”5.5” or 14”x7” matching snares on offer. Both configurations come in either Aqua Sparkle or Vintage Gold Sparkle lacquer finishes.
Genista Maple
Stepping away from birch is the Genista Maple. It shares the same features as the Genista Classic - the shell thickness and dimensions, 45-degree bearing edges Genista lugs, un-drilled bass drums and ISO-mounted toms, except it’s swapping North American birch for North American maple.
The Genista Maple configurations are also the same: 20” three-piece (20”x16”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”) or 22” four-piece (22”x18”, 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”), as are the add-on drums and 14”x5.5”/14”x7” snare options. But the finish options are unique within the Genista range, with solid Pink and Pistachio, or sparkle lacquers courtesy of Purple Fade Sparkle and Silver Sparkle.
Premier Artist
Artist is Premier’s mid-range series, offering a lot of gig-ready features and options for less. Another all-birch design, we get 7.5mm, 6-ply shells with 45-degree bearing edges, ISO mounts for the toms (in the standard Artist range) which are mounted to the bass drum.
Hardware-wise, Premier has come up with its new Deco low-mass lug design for the Artist series, and the hoops are 1.5mm triple-flanged steel, with wooden hoops on the bass drum.
Standard Artist series kits are offered in three preset configurations, all with a matching 14”x5.5 snare. There’s the five piece 20” (20”x16”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”), five-piece 22” (22”x18”, 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 16”x16”), and an alternative five-piece which offers a one-up/one-down setup (22”x18”, 12”x8”, 14”x14”, 16”x16”). These kits are available in four lacquer finishes: Indigo Burst, Sunset Coral, Steel Grey and Sunburst.
Artist Heritage
Similarly to the Genista Heritage, the Artist Heritage is a retro take on the standard Artist series configurations, with Premier having its sights set on players who want a smaller setup with vintage appeal.
The shells and hardware are the same design as the standard Artist setups but once again replaces the ISO-mounts for a direct-to-shell tom mount, and the retro theme is continued with folding bass drum spurs.
It comes in three portable sizes, all including a snare, starting with the four-piece 16” (16x14, 10”x7”, 13”x”13” and 13”x5.5” snare). Next is the four-piece 18” (18”x14”, 12”x8”, 14”x14” and 14”x5.5” snare) and finally there’s the shallow-shelled, four-piece 20” (20”x8”, 10”x6”, 13”x11”, 13”x5.5”).
Artist Heritage kits include a tom holder and bass drum riser, and are available in Blue Pearl, Burgundy Pearl and White Marine Silk wrapped finishes.
Premier Revolution
The Revolution series is Premier’s entry-level range, and comes complete with everything you need to start playing including cymbals (14” hi-hats and 16” crash/ride), stands, a bass drum pedal, a drum stool, even sticks!
Revolution kits are offered in two five-piece configurations (20”x16”, 10”x7”, 12”x8”, 14”x12”, 14”x5” snare drum) or 22”x16”, 10”x7” 12”x8”, 16”x14” and 14”x5.5” snare. It comes in Black, Red Sparkle or White finishes.
For more information or to find your nearest stockist, visit the Premier website
