Today is the birthday of possibly the worlds best drummer, Neil Peart of the band Rush.

Music Radar (via Drumtom) has an interview with Ulrich regarding the band’s production process with Rick Rubin for the new album Death Magnetic.

“Rick Rubin is a big fan of keeping things organic. We found out along the way that he’s not much for samples or triggers or anything artificial. He’s a pretty straight-ahead kind of guy - he doesn’t like reverb, he doesn’t like anything on the drums.”

Former Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker and DJ AM’s project, titled TRV$DJAM, have made a free mixtape called “Fix Your Face” available for download at trvsdjam.com. They have been touring together with Barker drumming while AM mixed and scratches. Check out this interview with Q101.1 as the pair talk about the project and the shows. They appear tonight on the MTV’s Video Music Awards, aka, the VMAs.

The BBC reports (via Valleywag) the new Metallica album, Death Magnetic, has leaked to the internet a full week before its intended release. The band has given up the stance that made them infamous at the dawn of Napster in 2000 when he took an adversarial position against innovators and fans. They did not make their catalog available on iTunes until 2006. Ulrich spoke on San Francisco radio station Live 105 saying, “If this thing leaks all over the world today or tomorrow, happy days. It’s 2008 and it’s part of how it is these days.” (photo by izaeus|argazk.)

Lisa Hlavinka reports that Nickelodeon’s Nick News will feature a story on Jam Camp, a summer camp that teaches kids to be rock stars. This year, campers met with drummers like Liberty DeVitto, Jeff Carlisi, Ricky Byrd, and Jim Peterik.

There are 15 Jam Camp locations across the country. 15-year-old drummer Cayla Asvestas will be featured as the drummer from the Cleavland Jam Camp location. Cayla’s story will run on September 21st at 9pm on Nick News. Here is a video taken by an audience member of Cayla’s and band’s July 18 perfmance, playing “We’re Not Gonna Take It” by Twisted Sister at The Boneyard bar (complete with cowbell!!).

If you are not having any luck using Craigslist to find band mates or to join a band, you should check out JoinMyBand.co.uk. They currently have listings for US and UK regions.

Sean, one of our biggest fans, made a video review of The Demon Kit he purchased at Big Apple Music in New Hartford, NY. Sean talks preciseness of the construction, the quality vs. cost of the kit, the Evans heads, the drum’s tonal character, and the flexibility of the hardware mounts. This is the same kit that is available at all of our dealers’ stores right now, for you or your band’s drummer to play on, video with your camera or cell phone, upload it to our YouTube group, and win a chance at getting a record deal, and win The Outlaw Kit.

Sean has also posed some great pics of his kit at the Drums My Life forum. Thanks, Sean! You rock!

The LA Times reports Lee Young, a jazz drummer who played with Fats Waller, Lionel Hampton, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Oscar Peterson, Count Basie, Ethel Waters and Billie Holiday and musical director for Nat King Cole passed away in his Los Angeles home on July 31. Young was the first African American employed with a staff position with a Hollywood studio orchestra. He was also A&R for record labels such as Vee-Jay and Motown.