# Traced in Air Drum Setup: Sean Reinert's Cynic Reunion (2008)

> Complete breakdown of Sean Reinert's drum gear on Cynic's Traced in Air (2008). The DW Collector's Series kit, Zildjian K Custom cymbals, and the return of progressive metal's greatest drummer after 15 years — filling the arc between Focus (1993) and Kindly Bent to Free Us (2014).

**Type:** Album Drum Setup
**Drummer(s):** Sean Reinert
**Band / Album:** Cynic — *Traced in Air* (2008)
**Genre:** Progressive Metal / Jazz Fusion

## Overview

Released on November 18, 2008, Cynic's *Traced in Air* is the album that answered a 15-year question: what would Sean Reinert and Paul Masvidal create if Cynic ever returned? After *Focus* (1993) dissolved genre boundaries and left the progressive metal world forever altered, Reinert stepped back behind the kit — and the result was something unexpected and essential.

*Traced in Air* is not a sequel to *Focus*. Where *Focus* was confrontational in its jazz-death collision, *Traced in Air* is contemplative. The death metal framework had dissolved in the 15 intervening years, leaving the jazz and progressive influences to develop freely. The album is mature, atmospheric, and shaped by the musical journeys Reinert and Masvidal had taken since Cynic first disbanded in 1994.

For Sean Reinert, the reunion required a rethinking of his entire approach — and a complete gear evolution. The DW Collector's Series kit he brought to the *Traced in Air* sessions represented a significant upgrade from the Tama Artstar II he had used on *Human* (1991) and *Focus* (1993). His cymbal setup had similarly evolved: Zildjian K Custom throughout — darker, warmer, and tonally more complex than the A and K Series palette of the early 1990s.

The album was self-produced by Reinert and Masvidal, giving both musicians complete creative control over how the drums were captured and mixed. The result is a drum sound that breathes differently than anything Reinert had recorded before: more spacious, more dynamic, the acoustic elements blended in service of atmosphere rather than aggression.

Sean Reinert passed away on January 24, 2020. *Traced in Air* stands as the reunion chapter in his story: proof that his musical vision had never stopped growing in the years between.

## Gear Breakdown

- **Drums:** DW Collector's Series (maple shells, custom configuration)
- **Snare:** DW Collector's Series Maple Snare, 14" x 5.5"
- **Cymbals:** Zildjian K Custom — K Custom Dark throughout
- **Hardware / Pedals:** DW 9000 Double Pedal; Roc-N-Soc Nitro; Vic Firth American Classic 5A
- **Heads:** Remo Ambassador Coated (batter toms/snare), Remo Powerstroke 3 (bass drum)
- **Snare tuning:** Medium-high — sensitivity for ghost notes and dynamic control

### DW Collector's Series: The Reunion Kit

Sean Reinert's *Traced in Air* sessions marked the debut of DW Collector's Series drums in his recorded output. DW's Collector's Series represents the company's top custom tier: shells built to exact specifications in Oxnard, California, using select maple with hand-crafted bearing edges.

The maple construction delivered a warmer, more complex resonance than the Tama Artstar II birch shells of the *Human* and *Focus* era. Where birch excels at attack and projection — ideal for cutting through heavy guitar in death metal contexts — maple offers fuller body, longer sustain, and harmonic richness suited to *Traced in Air*'s more atmospheric production.

Reinert maintained his characteristic single bass drum configuration with double pedal throughout his Cynic and Death career. On *Traced in Air*, double-bass passages are integrated into atmospheric passages that have more in common with progressive rock than death metal — the DW 9000's smooth, controllable action suited this compositional approach.

The three rack toms (10", 12", 13") and single floor tom (16") preserved the fill vocabulary he had developed over two decades. Self-production allowed Reinert to tune the DW shells with musical precision: higher than typical metal drummers, prioritizing tone and articulation over raw volume.

### Zildjian K Custom: Darker and More Complex

Sean Reinert's cymbal evolution from the *Focus* era to *Traced in Air* tells the story of his musical development across 15 years. Where the Zildjian A and K Series palette of 1991–93 provided the mix of brightness and articulate dryness that jazz-death fusion required, the *Traced in Air* sessions feature a shift toward Zildjian K Custom throughout — darker, warmer, and tonally more complex.

The K Custom Dark series uses Zildjian's B20 bronze with a darker hammering and lathing pattern, producing cymbals with more complex overtone stacks and longer decay. For *Traced in Air*'s atmospheric production, these qualities served the music's contemplative character directly.

The K Custom Dark ride became the center of Reinert's cymbal vocabulary — a warm, complex ride that rewarded the jazz riding technique he had pioneered on *Human* and refined on *Focus*. On tracks like "Nunc Stans" and "Adam's Murmur," the ride cymbal carries melody and atmosphere rather than simply marking time.

## Key Facts

- Cynic reunion album — 15-year gap between Focus (1993) and Traced in Air (2008)
- Self-produced by Sean Reinert and Paul Masvidal — complete creative control over drum sound
- DW Collector's Series maple shells replacing the Tama Artstar II birch of the Human/Focus era
- Zildjian K Custom Dark cymbals throughout — darker and more complex than the 1991–93 palette
- Released November 18, 2008 on Season of Mist
- Single 22" bass drum with DW 9000 double pedal — Reinert's consistent configuration
- Less death metal aggression than Focus; more atmospheric and jazz-fusion oriented
- Estimated kit value: $4,000–6,000 (DW Collector's Series, 2008)

## Frequently Asked Questions

**What drums did Sean Reinert use on Traced in Air?**
On Cynic's *Traced in Air* (2008), Sean Reinert used a DW Collector's Series kit — DW's custom-tier maple shell line. His configuration included a single 22" bass drum with a DW 9000 double pedal, three rack toms (10", 12", 13"), and a 16" floor tom. This was a significant upgrade from the Tama Artstar II birch shells he had used on *Focus* (1993) and Death's *Human* (1991).

**How is Traced in Air different from Focus in terms of drumming?**
On *Focus* (1993), Reinert's playing operated within a creative tension between jazz and death metal. On *Traced in Air* (2008), the death metal framework had dissolved entirely. The drumming is less aggressive, more atmospheric, and more integrated into the record's layered production. Reinert also upgraded from Tama Artstar II birch and Zildjian A/K to DW Collector's Series maple and Zildjian K Custom Dark — warmer gear that suited the 2008 album's sonic character.

**Is Traced in Air progressive death metal?**
*Traced in Air* (2008) is more accurately described as progressive metal or jazz-fusion metal rather than progressive death metal. While *Focus* (1993) operated within a death metal framework, *Traced in Air* largely abandons that aggression in favor of a melodic, atmospheric sound. It bridges *Focus* to the even more abstract *Kindly Bent to Free Us* (2014).

**Why did Cynic reunite after 15 years?**
Cynic dissolved in 1994 after *Focus* failed to find commercial traction. Reinert and Masvidal reconnected around 2006, reconnecting with renewed creative energy shaped by their musical development in the intervening years. Growing critical recognition of *Focus* as a landmark album had built a new audience ready for the reunion.

## Related Articles

- [Sean Reinert Drummer Profile](/drummer/sean-reinert)
- [Focus Drum Setup (Cynic, 1993)](/articles/focus-drum-setup) — the album that preceded this reunion record
- [Human Drum Setup (Death, 1991)](/articles/human-drum-setup) — where Sean Reinert's jazz-death revolution began
- [What's In Sean Reinert's Kit](/articles/whats-in-sean-reinerts-kit) — career overview

**Source:** https://metalforge.io/articles/traced-in-air-drum-setup

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*Last updated: 2026-06-29 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*