Daniel Erlandsson's Drum Setup on Arch Enemy's Rise of the Tyrant (2007) | MetalForge

Frequently Asked Questions

What drum kit did Daniel Erlandsson use on Arch Enemy's Rise of the Tyrant?

Daniel Erlandsson recorded Arch Enemy's Rise of the Tyrant (2007) on a Pearl Masters Premium kit — Pearl's flagship all-maple professional shell series of the mid-to-late 2000s, delivering the bright, defined attack and fast transient response that producer Andy Sneap's close-mic production approach required. The configuration maintained his standard Arch Enemy setup: two 22" x 18" bass drums in a true double-kick configuration, 10" and 12" rack toms, 14" and 16" floor toms, and the Pearl Daniel Erlandsson Signature snare 14" x 5.5" — his co-designed model. His cymbal setup incorporated Meinl Byzance Dark and Vintage series alongside the Traditional line, expanding the tonal palette toward deeper, more complex warm characters. The Pearl Eliminator double bass pedal provided the mechanical consistency for the album's sustained double-kick passages. For the full Erlandsson gear context: [Daniel Erlandsson drum setup at MetalForge](/articles/daniel-erlandsson-drum-setup).

Which Arch Enemy song from Rise of the Tyrant appeared on Guitar Hero?

"Revolution Begins" from Rise of the Tyrant (2007) appeared on Guitar Hero: Smash Hits, marking one of the most significant mainstream crossover moments in Arch Enemy's history. The inclusion brought Arch Enemy's music to a mainstream gaming audience far larger than their dedicated melodic death metal fanbase, contributing to the band's peak commercial profile during the Angela Gossow era. The drum track on 'Revolution Begins' — Daniel Erlandsson's relentless double-kick foundation combined with precision blast beat placement and groove-forward hi-hat articulation — is one of the most technically demanding performances in the Guitar Hero catalog. For more on the album and Erlandsson's technique: [Daniel Erlandsson at MetalForge](/drummer/daniel-erlandsson).

What cymbals did Daniel Erlandsson use on Rise of the Tyrant?

Daniel Erlandsson played an expanded Meinl Byzance setup on Rise of the Tyrant (2007), incorporating the Byzance Dark and Vintage series alongside the Traditional line that had characterised his Anthems of Rebellion work. The configuration included 14" Byzance Dark hi-hats (deeper, warmer character than Traditional for groove-oriented verse playing), a 16" Byzance Vintage Medium Crash (aged-alloy tonal complexity for musical left-side accent work), an 18" Byzance Traditional Medium Crash (standard Byzance warmth for larger structural accents), a 20" Byzance Dark Ride (complex, warm texture for groove sections), an 18" Byzance China (aggressive trashy Gothenburg-style riff accents), and a 10" Byzance Splash. The multi-series Byzance palette gave Rise of the Tyrant's cymbal work more tonal variety than any previous Arch Enemy album's cymbal setup.

How does Rise of the Tyrant compare to Doomsday Machine and Khaos Legions in Erlandsson's discography?

Rise of the Tyrant (2007) sits between Doomsday Machine (2005) and Khaos Legions (2011) as the commercial peak of the Angela Gossow era and the midpoint of Erlandsson's most documented decade as a professional drummer. Compared to Doomsday Machine, Rise of the Tyrant has a more commercially polished production and a more melodically accessible composition style — the Guitar Hero crossover confirms the album's mainstream reach. Compared to Khaos Legions (2011), Rise of the Tyrant is more energetically consistent, while Khaos Legions features the more varied compositional architecture and the Pearl Masterworks Custom / Pearl Demon Drive configuration that represents Erlandsson's most refined setup. Together the three albums document the full arc of the Gossow era's commercial expansion and Erlandsson's gear evolution through some of melodic death metal's most consequential records. For the follow-up: [Khaos Legions drum setup (2011)](/articles/khaos-legions-drum-setup).

Who produced Rise of the Tyrant and how did Andy Sneap's production shape the drum sound?

Rise of the Tyrant (2007) was produced by Andy Sneap at his Backstage Studio in Derbyshire, England — continuing the production partnership between Sneap and Arch Enemy that had begun with Wages of Sin (2002) and continued through Doomsday Machine (2005). Sneap's approach on Rise of the Tyrant is his most refined Arch Enemy production: close-mic discipline capturing the Pearl Masters Premium all-maple shells with maximum component definition, sample augmentation of kick and snare for the commercial weight that mainstream metal audiences required, and mixing choices that give each drum element clear sonic territory within the album's dense guitar arrangement. The result is the tightest, most polished drum sound Arch Enemy had produced to that point — a production that contributed directly to the album's commercial success and the band's growing mainstream profile.