How to Sound Like Navene Koperweis — Drum Gear & Setup Guide | MetalForge

Frequently Asked Questions

What style does Navene Koperweis play?

Koperweis plays at the intersection of djent, progressive metal, and technical death metal — riff-locked double bass developed during his 2010–2012 Animals as Leaders tenure, layered polyrhythmic precision, and a wide dynamic range refined across his own band Entheos, which he founded in 2015.

What drum kit does Navene Koperweis play?

Koperweis currently plays a DW Performance Series kit with a double 22" x 18" bass drum configuration and a DW Performance 14" x 6.5" steel snare. His cymbals are Meinl Byzance — 15" Dual Hi-Hats, 18" and 19" Extra Dry crashes, a 21" Transition Ride, and an 18" Extra Dry China. He uses a DW 9000 Series double pedal and Vic Firth American Classic 5B sticks.

What is riff-locked drumming?

Riff-locked drumming, as Koperweis plays it, means rewriting the double-bass kick pattern to match the exact rhythm of each guitar riff rather than applying a fixed template underneath changing parts. It's a compositional approach that bonds the drums to the arrangement instead of layering them on top of it, first documented on Animals as Leaders' "Tooth and Claw."

What bands has Navene Koperweis played in?

Koperweis played with the grindcore band Animosity, then joined Animals as Leaders from 2010 to 2012 during the Weightless era that helped define djent drumming. He founded Entheos in 2015 with vocalist Chaney Crabb, and has also done session and touring work with Machine Head and Job for a Cowboy.

What should I practice first to sound like Navene Koperweis?

Start with the Riff-Lock Rebuild drill: take a single guitar riff, write a kick pattern that locks exactly to its rhythm, then change the riff and rebuild the pattern from scratch. That habit — treating the kick as compositional rather than templated — is the foundation everything else in his style is built on.