Of the three crashes, my favourite was the 17" Thin Dark. It is fast yet supple and deep with a short sustain, a dark and mysteriously explosive "bish". The heavier crashes are a little more familiar souding. They are just as powerful [as Paiste 2002s] but differ in being darker in timbre and more Zildjian in their roundness of tone.

The 22" Medium ride has an alluring, wiry zing in the tone which I've not heard anywhere else. The stick tip response is super clear and lively but not hard; there is a clean "tick" quality with a spongy give underneath and a controlled spread with a seriously deep tone.

The 14" hi-hats will appeal to those who want something controllable and not too abrasive. For jazz, indie, folk, funk - where a complex warm tone is appreciated, and you want to be able to control dynamics and occasionally play softly, this pair is certainly worth checking out.

Not So Modern Drummer Magazine (USA)
There can be no doubt that Matt Nolan's creations are doing as much work as anyone's to advance the art and craft of cymbal making. The combination of modern thinking and traditional tools and techniques makes these instruments worthy of serious consideration.

Drums & Percussion Magazine (Germany)
Excellent sounding high quality handmade gongs and sculptures.

Drumhead Magazine (USA)
These cymbals straddle the gap between percussion instruments and works of art in both sound and appearance. Masterpieces. Definitely check these out.

Perhaps the coolest looking gong I've ever seen is Nolan's "Bat-Head" Gong. Crafted in the shape of a bat's head (complete with ears and eyes), the gong strikes an eerie, supernatural appearance. It sounds the same way too, with a massive, dark sound that billows out when struck. Nolan also manufactures some amazing drum set cymbals. Matt is where you go when you want unique sounds you can't find anywhere else.

Sticks Magazine (Germany)
With the help of hammer, anvil and fire, objects of sounding art emerge out of traditional bronzes, nickel silver, or even stainless steel. They are visually appealing, as well as soundwise. A special sound event was a colourful gong that could be played as a usual gong but also had real cymbal qualities when played with sticks. Likewise charming were the mini hats.

Not So Modern Drummer Magazine (USA)
Gorgeous instruments that not only sound great but blur the line between musical instruments and art.

Michael Bettine (gong artist and writer for Modern Drummer)
Matt is truly an artist in metal... Matt is producing world class instruments as good as anyone else out there. One word sums them up: FANTASTIC!... They are stunning and as much sculptures as they are musical instruments. And yes, they sound as amazing as they look!

Modern Drummer
Some of the coolest drum-related items at NAMM 2010.

Mikedolbear.com (review of UK Custom Drum Show 2009)
Highwood were also showcasing Matt Nolan's beautiful hand made custom cymbals, displaying them on a kit. Not only do they make a lovely kit look even better, they sound as great as they look.

Mikedolbear.com (review of NAMM 2010)
The cymbals are as varied as you could want to cover all bases. Matt doesn't build from conventional materials all the time and I was rather surprised to find one of the crashes was made from sheet steel which isn't known for its cymbal qualities. It just goes to show you can give anything to someone who knows what they are doing with it and you can end up with a masterpiece.

Marcus de Mowbray (inventor of Spacer Snares, Busker Drums and Tour Timps, among other things)
This [15 inch minicup ride cymbal] has a classic "Smoky Manhattan Jazz Club" sorta vibe, if you have heard Elvin Jones, Tony Williams, Art Blakey you will know at once what this cymbal does, and it does it extremely well regardless of its diminutive size. I would never have believed you could get this sort of character out of anything less than 20", and then only from a Turkish K Zildjian. It still has reasonable definition, but responds beautifully to shifting dynamics, very alive and full of, well, zest!

Drum! Magazine
Matt Nolan Custom Cymbals are no ordinary slabs of bronze, but cymbals for drummers who want to make a statement. His custom creations, in bronze and steel, take gongs into a new world of sound, characterized by sustained vibrato, tremolo and flanging effects. A decidedly different set of instruments.

Happy customers
You, sir, are a cymbalsmith master.

I was floored. These are by far the best sounding hi-hats I have ever heard.

I played the cymbal last night - 'tis great!

I received the gong today, and I absolutely love it! I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning. It is so awesome!

I have received the greatest piece of art and cymbal ever created thank you so very much. Your work is truly inspirational. It sounds even better live than on the [mp3] soundfile.

Thank you so much for doing what you do. This really embodies exactly what I feel about the art of percussion, visually and aurally. I will put them to their highest use.

She gave them to me as a Christmas present and I’ll freely admit it was the highlight of my holiday. I’ve since played them (drooled on them) daily and love them. Not only are they an amazing set of hats, they are also the coolest looking cymbals in my collection.

It hasn't left the stand for rehearsals or gigs since its arrival.

Visually, the most beautiful cymbal I've ever seen ...and it looks almost as good as it sounds. To me, if 20" 602/Sound Creation Dark Rides were on-par with the 22s, or arguably better than many of the 22s, they'd sound something like this one.

Thanks for such a great in instrument, it fills a sound I've been searching for.

It was great to see your booth at PASIC. It really gave me new perspective as to how wide the sound spectrum of percussion can spread.