I haven't visited the lounge in quite a while but I'm so glad to see that it's still around. I still have my cocktail set and my 'arena rock' stand-up kit but I've mostly been playing guitar the last few years. However, I've just stumbled on a whole new corner of the minimalist drumming world, the cajon drum set. I just ordered a cajon kit and the accessories to make a super low-volume drum set for acoustic and busking gigs. The cajon functions as the bass drum and the drummer's throne at the same time. It uses a bass pedal with a cable drive and a super-soft beater. It also has a little cajon snare drum that clamps to a 'low-hat' stand with a set of small hi-hat cymbals. I'm adding a little hi-hat-mounted tambourine to mine to function as a sort of accent/splash cymbal sound.
Here's a link to a photo of the Meinl set that got me started on this new obsession: https://meinlpercussion.com/en/products ... 10379.html
Meinl Percussion of Germany seems to be leading the charge on these new percussion approaches. I got onto YouTube and found out there are people really getting into these new, crazy creative minimalist set-ups. It reminds me of when I first discovered the cockail drum scene. Drummers can throw one of these things together pretty cheaply and playing a totally different type of set really stimulates the old creativity.
Anyway, good to visit the ol' Lounge and see it's still hangin' in there. Thanks, John Mettam!