I agree, string him up!!!!! Kick drums for show?? Argghhh!!!
I did a festival last weekend, and Vince Neil was the headliner at one of the dates I played. His drummer was using a rental back line (Yamaha RC), and there were 2 kicks but with a double pedal.
I sat at the kit, and the hats were a mile away and really high, and the cymbals were above my head! He sat about 12" off the ground on a cut down seat, & the snare stand was cut down too. The floor tom legs were above the rim it was so low.
ALL the heads on the drums but the snare felt like they were just
on the drum, I can't really even say there was any tension on anything. He may have tightened them up later, but these were loose as you could get.
I know they used gates on the kick, and they used them on the kit I used too (trans black Mapex Saturn).
I can't believe the guy could do anything on those drums or the (1) bass drum (but Vince Neil's music isn't Dream Theater either....) The kick heads were all P3's.
...Oh, the second kick was not mic'd....at least put a mic on it to look like a real DB kit...
I've seen that a lot though. Much easier for the FOH, so I can understand.