(Part 1 covers 1964-1984) Alex Van Halen is responsible for inspiring a generation of young drummers to pick up drumsticks because of his virtuosic playing and HUGE drum sets. Kurt Ekstrom joins us on the podcast to guide us through each and every one of Alex's iconic drum sets and all the accessories and details that make them absolutely one of a kind works of art! Alex Van Halen's drum sets feature 4 bass drums, fire extinguishers, gas masks, exhaust pipes, and rubber tubes connecting everything together. Does it get any cooler than that? In this episode, Kurt takes us through all the iconic kits that AVH used from his childhood drum set up to the mid-1980s at the last show that Van Halen played with David Lee Roth. Part 2 will pick things up from the mid 80's up to 2015 when Alex hung up his sticks. Here are links to Kurt's other episodes of Drum History: The Gear of John Densmore - https://youtu.be/1d_Vm9x4LNA?si=hUGccRZk0dXOsukQ The History of WFL Drums - https://youtu.be/9QEJket9eTA?si=cfjq7MDGbqNeD0nz You can check out this series on YouTube if you would like to see the visuals we discuss: www.youtube.com/@DrumHistoryPodcast Thanks for listening/watching! **JOIN PATREON** https://www.patreon.com/drumhistorypodcast **DRUM HISTORY MERCH** https://www.teepublic.com/stores/drum-history-podcast?ref_id=26024 ** CHECK OUT MY GEAR ON SWEETWATER ** https://imp.i114863.net/yRYRGN ** 30 DAY FREE DRUMEO TRIAL ** https://drumeo.pxf.io/c/3607735/1268414/14652 **I record interviews with Riverside.FM - I highly recommend it. use code DRUM to save 15%*** https://riverside.fm/?via=bart-vanderzee