# Eloy Casagrande vs Jaska Raatikainen — Drum Kit Comparison

> Side-by-side gear comparison between Eloy Casagrande (Slipknot) and Jaska Raatikainen (Children of Bodom).

**Category:** Extreme / Death / Black Metal · **URL:** https://metalforge.io/vs/eloy-casagrande-vs-jaska-raatikainen

Slipknot/Sepultura's Eloy Casagrande vs Children of Bodom's Jaska Raatikainen. Modern Brazilian technical drumming compared to Finnish melodic death metal precision. Gear, technique, and legacy analyzed.

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## Eloy Casagrande Setup

- **Drums:** Tama Starclassic Bubinga (22"x16" & 24"x14" Bass Drums, 10", 12", 13" Toms, 16" & 18" Floor Toms)
- **Cymbals:** Paiste (15" Masters Dark Hi-Hats, 20" Masters Dark Ride, 20" & 20" 602 Crashes, 10" Rude Splash, 20" Masters Dark Crash, 20" 2002 Heavy Ride, 20" 2002 Novo China, 10" 2002 Mega Bell, Symphonic Gong)
- **Snare:** Tama Bell Brass 14x5.5" (BB146)
- **Pedals/Hardware:** Tama Iron Cobra Double Pedal, Yamaha DTX Electronic Pads
- **Sticks:** Promark Eloy Casagrande Signature

## Jaska Raatikainen Setup

- **Drums:** Pearl Masters Premium Maple
- **Cymbals:** Zildjian A Custom & K Custom Series (14" A Custom Hi-Hats, 17" & 18" A Custom Crashes, 20" K Custom Ride)
- **Snare:** Pearl Masters 14x5.5" Maple
- **Pedals/Hardware:** Pearl Eliminator Double Pedal
- **Sticks:** Vic Firth American Classic 5A

## Playing Style

Eloy Casagrande spent 13 years driving Sepultura's thrash-death fusion before joining Slipknot in 2024, earning Modern Drummer's No. 1 Metal Drummer honor in their 2024 Readers' Poll for his explosive speed and dynamic control. Jaska Raatikainen co-founded Children of Bodom in 1993 and spent 26 years providing the precise, driving backbone beneath Alexi Laiho's neoclassical melodic death metal, from "Something Wild" (1997) through the band's 2019 farewell.

## Technique

Casagrande combines dual-bass-drum power with controlled musicality, balancing explosive double bass runs with dynamic sensitivity across both Sepultura's and Slipknot's demanding live sets. Raatikainen built his technique around clean, locked-in double bass and precise timing across complex arrangements, keeping Bodom's dense keyboard-and-guitar interplay anchored with surgical consistency.

## Key Differences

Casagrande plays a Tama Starclassic Bubinga kit with a Tama Bell Brass 14x5.5" snare and an extensive Paiste array including Masters Dark and 2002 cymbals, driven by a Tama Iron Cobra double pedal. Raatikainen played a Pearl Masters Premium Maple kit with a Pearl Masters 14x5.5" Maple snare and Zildjian A Custom & K Custom cymbals, powered by a Pearl Eliminator double pedal. Casagrande combines dual-bass-drum power with controlled musicality, balancing explosive double bass runs with dynamic sensitivity across both Sepultura's and Slipknot's demanding live sets. Raatikainen built his technique around clean, locked-in double bass and precise timing across complex arrangements, keeping Bodom's dense keyboard-and-guitar interplay anchored with surgical consistency.

## Influence & Legacy

Casagrande's technical prowess and dual stints in two of metal's biggest bands have made him one of the most decorated modern metal drummers, voted the genre's best by Modern Drummer readers. Raatikainen gave Finnish melodic death metal its rhythmic identity, helping Children of Bodom become one of the genre's most globally successful acts and influencing a generation of Scandinavian metal drummers.

## Verdict

Eloy Casagrande and Jaska Raatikainen represent modern extreme metal's two technical poles — explosive dual-bass power versus surgical melodic precision. Casagrande's Modern Drummer-crowned intensity carried Sepultura and now Slipknot through their heaviest material, while Raatikainen's disciplined consistency anchored Children of Bodom's neoclassical death metal for over two decades. Both prove that technical extreme drumming can be built on entirely different foundations, raw power or exacting precision, and still define a genre.

## FAQ

**Q: What are the main differences between Eloy Casagrande's and Jaska Raatikainen's drum kits?**
A: Eloy Casagrande plays Tama Starclassic Bubinga (22"x16" & 24"x14" Bass Drums, 10", 12", 13" Toms, 16" & 18" Floor Toms) with Paiste cymbals, while Jaska Raatikainen uses Pearl Masters Premium Maple with Zildjian cymbals. Casagrande plays a Tama Starclassic Bubinga kit with a Tama Bell Brass 14x5.5" snare and an extensive Paiste array including Masters Dark and 2002 cymbals, driven by a Tama Iron Cobra double pedal. Raatikainen played a Pearl Masters Premium Maple kit with a Pearl Masters 14x5.5" Maple snare and Zildjian A Custom & K Custom cymbals, powered by a Pearl Eliminator double pedal.

**Q: What drums does Eloy Casagrande play vs Jaska Raatikainen?**
A: Eloy Casagrande plays Tama Starclassic Bubinga (22"x16" & 24"x14" Bass Drums, 10", 12", 13" Toms, 16" & 18" Floor Toms). Jaska Raatikainen plays Pearl Masters Premium Maple.

**Q: Who is the better extreme / death / black metal drummer, Eloy Casagrande or Jaska Raatikainen?**
A: Both are legends in their own right. Eloy Casagrande and Jaska Raatikainen represent modern extreme metal's two technical poles — explosive dual-bass power versus surgical melodic precision. See the full analysis at [metalforge.io/vs/eloy-casagrande-vs-jaska-raatikainen](https://metalforge.io/vs/eloy-casagrande-vs-jaska-raatikainen).

**Q: What cymbals do Eloy Casagrande and Jaska Raatikainen use?**
A: Eloy Casagrande uses Paiste (15" Masters Dark Hi-Hats, 20" Masters Dark Ride, 20" & 20" 602 Crashes, 10" Rude Splash, 20" Masters Dark Crash, 20" 2002 Heavy Ride, 20" 2002 Novo China, 10" 2002 Mega Bell, Symphonic Gong). Jaska Raatikainen uses Zildjian A Custom & K Custom Series (14" A Custom Hi-Hats, 17" & 18" A Custom Crashes, 20" K Custom Ride).

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*Full comparison: [metalforge.io/vs/eloy-casagrande-vs-jaska-raatikainen](https://metalforge.io/vs/eloy-casagrande-vs-jaska-raatikainen)*

*[Eloy Casagrande drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/eloy-casagrande)*
*[Jaska Raatikainen drummer profile](https://metalforge.io/drummer/jaska-raatikainen)*

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