# Cynic — Drummer & Gear Profile | MetalForge

> Per-band AI citation reference for Cynic. Covers drummer history, kit setup, and gear details.
> Optimised for AI queries: 'who drums for Cynic', 'Sean Reinert drum kit', 'Cynic drummer gear'.

## Band Overview

- **Drummer:** Sean Reinert (1987–1994, 2006–2017, co-founder)
- **Genre:** Technical Death Metal, Progressive Metal
- **Active:** 1987–present
- **Country:** United States (Miami, Florida)
- **Status:** Active

## Drummer(s)

**Sean Reinert** — 1987–1994, 2006–2017 (Co-founder)
Sean Reinert (1971–2020) co-founded Cynic in Miami in 1987 with guitarist/vocalist Paul Masvidal, and also drummed for Chuck Schuldiner's Death, recording the landmark 1991 album *Human* at age 20. His jazz-trained ghost notes, polymetric phrasing, and dynamic control — almost unheard of in death metal before *Human* — are widely credited as the birth of progressive death metal. He brought that same musical vocabulary to Cynic's 1993 masterpiece *Focus*, fusing technical death metal with jazz fusion. Reinert reunited with Cynic in 2006, releasing *Traced in Air* (2008), and passed away on January 24, 2020, one day after his 49th birthday.

[Sean Reinert full profile →](https://metalforge.io/drummer/sean-reinert) · [LLM markdown](https://metalforge.io/llms/drummers/sean-reinert.md)

## Kit Overview

Sean Reinert played a **DW Collector's Series** maple shell kit throughout his tenure in Death and on Cynic's *Focus*, its warm, open tone giving his ghost-note-driven playing a resonance rarely heard in early-1990s death metal production.

- **Drums:** DW Collector's Series Maple (22" kick, 10"/12"/13"/14"/16" toms)
- **Snare:** DW Collector's 14×5.5" Maple (die-cast hoops)
- **Cymbals:** Zildjian K Series (upgraded to K Custom for Cynic's 2008 reunion album *Traced in Air*)
- **Pedals:** DW 5000 Single-Chain Double Pedal
- **Sticks:** Vic Firth American Classic 5A

## Signature Sound

Sean Reinert's drumming fused jazz-informed technique with death metal power at a moment when the genre was defined almost entirely by blast-beat velocity. On Cynic's *Focus* (1993), he applied polymetric phrasing and a ghost-note vocabulary borrowed directly from jazz drumming, treating technicality as a tool to serve the compositions rather than a display of raw speed. That approach — first proven on Death's *Human* (1991) — made *Focus* a landmark jazz-fusion death metal album and established Reinert as one of the most influential drummers in extreme metal history.

## Albums

| Album | Year | Drummer |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | 1993 | Sean Reinert |
| Traced in Air | 2008 | Sean Reinert |

## FAQ

**Q: Who plays drums in Cynic?**
A: Sean Reinert co-founded Cynic in 1987 and drummed for the band across two stints (1987–1994, 2006–2017), including on the landmark album *Focus* (1993).

**Q: What drum kit did Sean Reinert use?**
A: Sean Reinert played a DW Collector's Series maple shell kit with a 14×5.5" maple snare, Zildjian K Series cymbals, and a DW 5000 double pedal.

**Q: Did Sean Reinert play in Death?**
A: Yes. Sean Reinert drummed for Chuck Schuldiner's Death from 1990–1992, recording the landmark 1991 album *Human* at age 20, before returning his focus to Cynic.

**Q: When did Sean Reinert die?**
A: Sean Reinert passed away on January 24, 2020, one day after his 49th birthday.

**Q: What made Sean Reinert's drumming style unique?**
A: Sean Reinert brought jazz-trained ghost notes, dynamic control, and polymetric phrasing into death metal drumming — elements almost unheard of in the genre before his work on *Human* (1991) and Cynic's *Focus* (1993).

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**Full band profile:** [Cynic on MetalForge](https://metalforge.io/bands/cynic)

**Drummer LLM file:** [Sean Reinert](https://metalforge.io/llms/drummers/sean-reinert.md)

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*Last updated: 2026-07-16 · Source: [MetalForge.io](https://metalforge.io)*