Live Report and photos by Christian Tallone & Fabrizia Cameretti

Rovigo, 19/20/21 June 2026. As if this late-June week wasn’t already sweltering enough, the Drumzilla organisation set the city alight with an incredible and one-of-a-kind event — a festival for drummers, created by drummers, to celebrate a magnificent instrument that is all too often treated as secondary, overshadowed by charismatic guitarists and frontmen, yet is in fact the beating heart and engine of every band.

Unfortunately, due to work commitments, I was only able to attend Saturday the 20th. The day began as early as 10am in a room at the Hotel Palace, where a clinic was held by Alex Cohen — a New York-based musician and composer widely recognised as a virtuoso of modern technical drumming, celebrated for his coordination techniques, speed, and extreme polyrhythms. He was joined by two other giants of the drum world: Nic Collins (son of Genesis legend Phil Collins and founder of Better Strangers) and Finnish drummer Kai Hahto of Nightwish — world-class artists who generously shared their experience with students of every age and level.

It’s not every day you get to play, talk, ask questions, and then share pizza and crisps over a spritz with genuine legends — among them Christoph Schneider of Rammstein, the headline guest of the evening’s drum galà, who dropped into the clinic to share a convivial moment with everyone present, taking photos, signing records and drumheads in an atmosphere that had by then become wonderfully relaxed and familiar.

Metalshock Finland’s staff with Christoph Schneider

The Evening: Drum Galà

The drum galà itself was a completely free event held in the beautiful Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II in the centre of Rovigo, packed to the very last inch — Rammstein fans above all, but also clinic participants, children, elderly people, families, music lovers, and those who perhaps simply happened to be passing and thought: “Why not… let’s go watch these two playing drums — it’s free.”

Mission accomplished, because that’s exactly what Drumzilla is all about: beyond its primary goal of giving musicians, both professionals and amateurs, the opportunity to exchange ideas and study together, it’s also about making it accessible to everyone… because there’s nothing more powerful and exciting than a drum kit that makes you tremble.

Dario Capacci

At around 9pm, Riccardo Merlini — the creator and organiser of this event, a local son and himself a drummer of international renown, considered among the fastest in the world, a student of Mike Mangini and Thomas Lang, with collaborations including Paul Gilbert and Michele Luppi — took to the stage. He was joined in hosting duties by Dario Capacci, known as Il Batterista Metal, a well-known musician and content creator from Romagna (his channel #FACILISSIMO is one I’ve personally followed since its launch).

Dario had the honour of opening proceedings with a set of around 30 minutes — intense and powerful. Two tracks from the repertoires of Margin Code and Trick or Treat, the bands of which he is a member, followed by two covers: a tribute to Avenged Sevenfold with the magnificent “Nightmare” from the 2010 album of the same name — a track born from the legendary Mike Portnoy following the premature passing of co-founder The Rev — before flooring the accelerator with a devastating rendition of Meshuggah’s “Bleed”, arguably one of the worst nightmares for anyone approaching the double bass pedal. As he himself remarked during the evening: “I was the first to play Bleed in this square — who knows, maybe the second will be Tomas Haake himself. We can all hope, so Riccardo — make it happen!”

MΞTHØD NØIR

At 10:30pm it was Riccardo Merlini’s turn — and he dedicated his slot not to a solo performance, but to the live debut of his new band, MΞTHØD NØIR: a brand-new and highly promising project with rock, metal and progressive influences. A rhythm section with an irresistible groove — Riccardo on drums, Otus Rex on bass, and Max Nonato on guitar — launched into “Late Check-Out Love”, followed by “Under Your Pillow”, a track I’d already heard on their channel. Then came “Under These Open Skies”, with vocalist Vic Mc alternating between clean and screaming vocals with impressive versatility, enriching the band’s sound with shades ranging from melodic rock to full-on metal assault. Time was unfortunately brief — two more tracks, “Stardust Dream” and “Break the Pattern”, closed the set.

What to say about MΞTHØD NØIR? A band of the highest calibre — with a musician of Riccardo’s stature, the rest simply had to match it. We will certainly be hearing more from them, and I hope to see them live again soon with a longer set. After a debut of this prestige, only great things can follow.

Baard Kolstad

At around 10:30pm, it was the turn of Baard Kolstad — born 1992 — and calling him a phenomenon feels like an understatement. Norwegian, and despite his relative youth, he carries a formidable career: from street performance to a television debut in 2009 on the Norwegian version of Got Talent, through the Roland V-Drums World Championship title, membership of black metal band Borknagar, and ultimately landing with Leprous, the progressive band founded in 2001. Baard gave the Rovigo audience an absolutely extraordinary performance of around one hour: odd time signatures, polyrhythms, blistering speed without ever losing intensity or dynamics — then slowing to breakdowns so doom-laden they seemed to make the metronome stutter. Particularly striking was his use of two or three snare drums simultaneously.

Kolstad is the kind of drummer who either drives you to give everything you have, or makes you put the sticks down for good. Whatever his effect on each of us, witnessing him in a setting like this was an enormous privilege. Next objective: don’t miss the next Leprous live show.

Christoph Schneider

Riccardo Merlini returned to the stage, visibly moved: “This is it — the moment has arrived.” Despite the already extraordinary standard of the evening, in the end, we were all there for one reason. A man who needs no introduction: Christoph Schneider, legendary drummer of Rammstein — the greatest industrial metal band on the planet.

Christoph took the stage, offered the crowd a brief salute — “I am not a man of many words… let’s party!” — then sat behind his unmistakable kit and sent the square into delirium with “Tattoo” from their 2019 self-titled seventh studio album “Rammstein”, followed by the brooding “B****” from the masterpiece Liebe ist für alle da. I don’t believe those square walls had ever seen so many people — those who had secured front-row seats were quite literally buried under fans who had climbed every available raised surface.

“Weißes Fleisch” and “Sehnsucht” took us back to the past — a snare like a gunshot. Then the throttle opened with the fantastic “Waidmanns Heil” and its incredible chorus, followed by “Angst”, “Keine Lust” (prime headbanging material), and “Morgenstern” — one of my personal favourites, with that march in the verse, the epic chorus, and the explosive finale. Magnificent. Then “Sex”, “Heirate Mich”, the danceable groove of “Radio” getting everyone moving, before closing with the Spanish-flavoured “Te Quiero Puta” — needless to say, the entire crowd was singing along, and if any passing pensioner didn’t know it beforehand, they certainly left with a new favourite — and with Rammstein a new fan.

Twelve tracks, one hour of absolute joy and an unforgettable show. The performance was impeccable; the sound, perfect. Christoph proved himself a consummate professional as well as a towering artist — and a man of genuine humility, giving photos, hugs, and handshakes to everyone who managed to find him afterwards. That is not something every legend does. From the heart of a long-time fan like me: thank you, Christoph.

Closing Notes

A final group photo on stage with all the artists of the day and the vast Rovigo crowd at their backs. A plaque was presented to Christoph — “This is my first drum award!” — along with an enormous package of Italian pasta. Not bad at all.

A heartfelt thank you goes to Riccardo Merlini for having created something this extraordinary; to Dario Capacci for teaching at the clinic, performing live, and hosting throughout the entire evening; to all the artists of this day and those of the previous days I was unfortunately unable to attend; to the city of Rovigo; to all the sponsors; and last but by no means least, to the technicians and sound engineers who did a fantastic job — working all day mounting and testing equipment under what I can only describe, having been there, as one of the hottest suns in the last 2,000 years.

I leave you with an important message shared by Riccardo and Dario — may it reach even those who weren’t there to hear it in person:

“If you want to become a professional, always believe in yourself. Study. Don’t give up. Invest more in your education than in your equipment. With commitment and dedication, nothing is impossible.”

Thank you all. Greetings from Drumzilla — until next time.

A few days before the start of Drumzilla (June 19-21), organized by Riccardo Merlini, Metalshock Finland had the great pleasure of interviewing him, in case you missed it, read it HERE.

For more information, please visit:
https://www.riccardomerlini.com/
https://www.youtube.com/c/RiccardoMerlini