Welcome back, Mike Portnoy. The Sons of Apollo drummer is back to crush a tiny drum kit for this edition of Gear Factor, but this time, it's in honor of his late hero, Rush's Neil Peart.

“Here we go again, first with the Hello Kitty, then the Pokemon. Just when I thought I was done, they pull me back in,” grouses Portnoy. “I’m getting too old for this. Well, maybe the third time will be the charm.”

This time around, we set Portnoy up with a seven-piece kids jazz drum set. “Neil was one of my biggest heroes of all time and this is what you give me to work with?” Portnoy begins. While no kit will ever be as elaborate as Peart's, seven pieces is a pretty sizable kit for the kiddie crowd.

Portnoy, a huge Rush fan, starts off with a couple of easy ones, rocking out to "YYZ" and "The Spirit of Radio." After a bit of meditation, the drummer returns and decides to make the segment a "name that tune," specifically calling out his Sons of Apollo bandmate Bumblefoot. See how well you do on Portnoy's Rush "name that tune" challenge.

While the tiny kit was all in good fun, the loss of Rush's Neil Peart is something that truly resonates with Portnoy, who decided this segment should be used for a good cause.

“Losing Neil has been truly devastating and heartbreaking and I don’t want to make light out of that. To get serious for a moment, we are going to auction this off. I’m gonna sign it and the proceeds for this are going to go toward brain cancer research. I just wanted to say, Neil, rest in peace. You’ll always be my hero and I love you. Thank you for everything.”

To place a bid on the signed kit, click here. All proceeds will go toward the American Brain Tumor Association.

Sons of Apollo are currently promoting their sophomore set, MMXX (pronounced 2020). Be sure to pick up your copy here. And catch Mike Portnoy with Sons of Apollo at these live dates.

See Mike Portnoy + Neil Peart in the Top 66 Hard Rock + Metal Drummers of All Time

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