Table of contents for Issue 297 in Rhythm

We are delighted to announce that Stu Warmington’s marching column will be returning to Rhythm in Issue 298. After 22 years’ service in the Corps of Drums of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines, Stu recently joined forces with the British Drum Company, as co-owner and manager of the Marching Division. In his new column, Stu will be exploring the crossover between drum set and marching, giving readers an insight into the world of drumlines around the world. Also back by popular demand is his ‘coffee break challenge’ – so be prepared! Stu had this to say about the launch of his new series: “Due to COVID-19, I’m fully aware that many of our readers won’t have had the chance to tour and travel this year, so I’d like to take you…

The Flamacue The Flamacue is one of the more challenging flam rudiments as it requires an accented note to be played immediately after an unaccented flam. In other words, the flam is played with both the grace note and the note that would normally be accented at the same low volume, but then the hand that plays the grace note immediately has to then play an accented note. Finally, after two more unaccented single strokes, the figure is completed with another unaccented flam. As if this wasn’t tricky enough, the challenge really lies in not only being able to do this leading with either hand (Exs 1 and 2), but also moving it from hand to hand (Ex 3). Finally in Ex 4, the duration of the final flam is…

1. LP Red Hot Pack Price: TBA Coming soon: The new Chad Smith signature percussion pack from Latin Percussion includes the Red Cyclops tambourine, Medium-Pitch Jam block and the RHCP stickman’s Signature Ridge Rider cowbell. The pack also includes LP’s Mini Everything Rack, which provides an easy mounting option. www.lpmusic.com 2. Gruv-X X-Click Price: From $59.99 (£45.59) The X-Click is the debut product from Gruv-X, launched late this year by artist Russ Miller and Bill Detamore of Pork Pie Drums. Constructed from a hybrid formula of 24 plies of American rock maple and copper, the design gives expanded volume and boosted low frequencies to the cross stick sound on any drum. www.gruv-x.com 3. Bill Sanders Brush Pad Price: £29 Practice your brush work on the move with Bill Sanders’s latest…

“TO CRAFT EVERY NUANCE OF THOSE GROOVES, BEATS AND DEVELOPMENT... HE REALLY DID HAVE THE MIND OF A PROFESSOR.” When I discovered Neil Peart and Rush in the early ’80s, it was very much a case of the right band and the right drummer at the right time. It was exactly the type of challenging music I was looking for to help me grow and develop as a musician in my mid-teens. Neil became my number one hero. Nobody was applying themselves to a big kit in the same way that he was, and I was fascinated by his setup, his incredible time signatures and the feel of his patterns. He constructed his drum parts in such a musical way, and everything he played was so meticulously thought out and…

“Neil and I may have first met because we both had the same ‘day job’ description – playing challenging music with our respective bands – but we connected in a way that went considerably beyond the wood and metal. “Both of us loved the subtle and powerful art of language, and we would often write each other long, tall tales from the road. There was a mutual understanding about the challenges of touring and the cerebral, athletic and musical requirements of our respective gigs. When we got off the road, we would have these long, luxurious lunches, talking broadly across multiple topics and everything time would allow: literature, science, history, philosophy, astronomy, nature, exotic cars, obscure musical influences, the state of the world and the state of us in it.…

We love that you source wood from unusual places. What got you into this? “I decided to use the kind of wood that I use because there are lots of good stave drum builders out there already – in order to separate myself from them, I looked at what I found interesting. That’s all well and good, but the instrument itself has to stand up to the tone test, playability, sensitivity and overall fundamental note coming out of the heads, as well as the shell. I might have wood from John Bonham’s bed, but if it makes a rubbish drum, that’s no good.” Did you have any preexpectation of how this wood might sound? “No, it’s an absolute lottery! I have thrown shells away, or they’ve been repurposed into fruit…

PRICE: £129 As electronic drumming creeps ever closer to recreating the experience of the real thing, Toontrack’s Superior Drummer software continues to pave the way by producing high-quality samples from the world’s top studios – all accessed through an incredibly powerful user interface for sequencing or recording via MIDI. The Rooms of Hansa SDX is the latest add-on pack for Superior Drummer 3 and features six complete kits recorded across four rooms of the legendary Berlin studios. The man behind the mixing desk for this 121 GB extravaganza is Michael Ilbert whose impressive list of credits includes work with Adele, Katy Perry, Pink and Muse. The Marble Room, The Meistersaal, The Vocal Booth and The Live Room each have their own distinct acoustic character; painstakingly captured by Ilbert and the…

Welcome to my latest ‘Getting Started’ lesson, this time looking at using the bass drum in your fills. Ex 1 shows groups of three in triplets with the hands alternating right and left and the bass drum played as the last note. Take care to play slowly and get the notes nice and even; try moving the triplets around the kit or splitting your hands between snare drum and high tom. Ex 2 is the same idea, but in groups of four, alternating hands with the bass drum as the last note. This sounds great played “down” the kit, right hand starting on the snare, left hand on high tom, then third note right hand on the floor tom. Ex 3 is a very cool combination of threes and fours,…

As hybrid drummers we have the potential to control a multitude of musical parts with just the simple tap of a pad. In this session, we’ll be diving into our settings, tweaking a few parameters and generally getting to grips with looping samples. Loops not only make for endless fun but also unlock a world of possibility when it comes to playing live or even practicing. The Right Gear For The Job In terms of hardware, using a dedicated sample pad, such as the Roland SPD-SX, offers the advantage of being able to organise various samples across a selection of small pads, rather than requiring a separate pad or trigger for each one. If you’re still just dipping a toe into the hybrid pool and not quite ready to splash…

“Freddie was a force of nature and an incredible character. And man, did he have stories to tell – he was like a cat with nine lives! When I was in my 20s and 30s, I have to admit that I tended to avoid him – he could be overwhelming! But I ended up taking lessons with him after seeing Steve Smith play at a Zildjian Day in the ’90s. Every aspect of Steve’s playing had skyrocketed from when I had last seen him, and when I asked him what he’d been doing, he told me to ‘Go see Freddie!’ “So, Freddie came to watch me play at Catalina’s in Hollywood, but it wasn’t a good night for me... I didn’t feel comfortable, and it was only in the last…

“AT TIMES THE PLAYING IS RESTRAINED AND SUBTLE, WHILE AT OTHERS IT’S A TOUR-DE-FORCE. BUT ALL OF IT IS CLEARLY HONED, DELIBERATE AND PERFECTED…” Drummer: Neil Peart When it comes to a classic progressive rock drum track, ‘Tom Sawyer’ ticks all the boxes: demanding syncopated grooves, odd time signatures and round-the-kit solo fills. But as any Neil Peart fan will attest, it is not done gratuitously, but with a deliberate and methodical objective: to complement the track. The piece kicks off with the main 4/4 groove probably best felt in cut time and with the backbeat falling on beat 3. However, once Neil has established the main groove, things rapidly become more demanding. As the power chords are introduced, they’re cleverly punctuated between the kick, snare and hats, with the…

David West “I still remember my first job for Rhythm some 16 years ago, heading out to interview Andy Strachan from The Living End armed with a handheld tape recorder and a notepad. Too many interviews to count later, I’ve met my heroes, like Steve Gadd and Zigaboo Modeliste, and even faced the withering gaze of Ginger Baker and lived to tell the tale. I’m thrilled that Rhythm is now back in action!” Best Thing Done During Lockdown? “I bought a set of congas just before lockdown, so I’ve filledmy time working on my Afro-Cuban vocabulary, getting to grips wth the Tumbao, Guaguanco, Mozambique and Songo.” Chuck Parker Chuck is a freelance drummer and writer who has written several features for Rhythmover the last decade and who has performed and…

“I got blacklisted in Birmingham when I was recording some demos with Way Of Life. The guy who ran Zella studios said my drumming was, ‘Too loud. There’s no future in it’. Nowadays, you can’t play loud enough. Years later, I sent him a Led Zeppelin gold disc with a note which said: ‘Thanks for your advice’.”…

They say the best art comes out of the direst of times, so on those terms, we are due for an absolute deluge of incredible music, right? Well, the signs are pretty darn bright already, as some of drumming’s biggest names have been hard at work during these unprecedented times… How’s this for an event? AC/DC have released their first album in six years – and fan-favourite Phil Rudd is back at the drumstool! Power Up, DC’s 17th studio outing, dropped earlier this month, with Rudd coming back in from the cold after his much-publicised legal and health issues. AC/DC aren’t the only classic rock act to release a hotly anticipated album in 2020 – Deep Purple beat them to the punch by a clear three months with Whoosh! Ian…

Steve White may be best known for his groove-filled drumming with Paul Weller and in The Style Council, but don’t overlook his soulful beats with Hague And White... What’s the concept behind your instructional book, Steve White’s Art Of Drumming? “I must give credit to Russ Tarley, the co-author – he’s been the driving force to get this done, and helping me to do my educational material for 10 years or so. Pretty much everything in there are things that I’ve found helpful to be a musical drummer, a drummer working in bands. There’s a lot of technique: coordination, working with a click track, areas of drumming and applications that I’ve found that supported my attempts to be a good, musical drummer. Some of these exercises go back to when…

PHIL’S BACK! Phil Collins has been snapped entering the studio for rehearsals with Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford ahead of Genesis’s The Last Domino? tour. The run is now due to kick off in April 2021 and will feature Phil’s son Nic behind the kit. We can’t wait! VIOLA SMITH RIP Pioneering big band drummer Viola Smith has passed away at the mighty age of 107. Smith blazed a trail for female drummers the world over with her work from the ’30s onwards. She passed away in her sleep at her California home, just a month shy of her 108th birthday. RIP Viola. 5 SECONDS OF SOLO Ashton Irwin, drummer for Aussie pop sensations 5 Seconds of Summer, has released his debut solo album, Superbloom. The record delves deeper than…

Most everyone will experience a game changing event in their life. That moment in time when you realise that nothing will be the same. This experience can occur through exposure to new knowledge or altered insight on differing opinions. In the case of musicians, this can be hearing instrumentation used in a different way or discovering a new artist for the first time. For millions of drummers, especially those that came of age in the ’70s, one of those moments was when we first heard the band Rush and their drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. My moment occurred in the back seat of a friend’s Datsun B210 in early January of 1977, right after Christmas break. We gathered in the usual desolate corner of a cemetery for our morning ritual…

A major part of our fascination with Neil Peart concerns his drum kits, which rank among the most talked about, ever. So, in this corner of our tribute we highlight some of the major stages that led to his ultimate setup. We aim to present a flavour of the relentless endeavour behind a lifetime quest. It would be impractical here to detail all his kits – they would more than fill the magazine. Luckily, since his fans are so devoted, you can find forensic details online. For a mind-blowingly full account, visit: https://bit.ly/3oZBnEq INSPIRATIONS Peart himself name-checked umpteen drummer influences over the years. But as a youngster, his imagination was sparked and shaped by Gene Krupa in jazz and Keith Moon in rock, both of these rascals making a huge…

“IT’S AN INCREDIBLY COMFORTABLE DRUM TO PLAY, AND THE LUDWIG HEADS GIVE IT AN EXTRA LAYER OF SOFTNESS THAT FEELS GREAT UNDER THE STICK.” PRICES: Bronze Beauty: from £958 Pewter Copper: from £1,305 Since 1909, Ludwig have continued to build a proud legacy in the world of drums. We have all heard them under the likes of Ginger Baker, Roger Taylor and John Bonham – but it was when Ringo Starr played them on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 that Ludwig became a household name for aspiring and superstar drummers alike. A relaunched Black Beauty and a special limited edition of the Pewter Copper snare drum are two new products that have been added to the Ludwig line-up for this year. In 2019, Ludwig released the 110th anniversary 8-lug…

Welcome to Beats Working, the part of the magazine aimed at helping drummers of all abilities to develop and progress. Kicking things off this issue is the familiar trio of Colin Woolway, Erik Stams and myself, all looking at ways of incorporating the bass drum into fills in ‘Getting Started’, ‘Creative Concepts’ and ‘Technical Difficulties’, respectively. Next, in ‘Six-Stroke Motions’, Jason Bowld explores some fluid fills to spice up your vocabulary, while in ‘Percussion Toolbox’, all-round percussion guru Pete Lockett turns his attention to the triangle, with some essential patterns that can be used to add sparkle and life to any drum track. In ‘So, You Want To Play Hybrid’, Tom Bradley turns his attention to creating and playing with loops, whilst in his ‘drum lesson without picking up the…

Welcome back! This month, we will be exploring the inclusion of the bass drum in our phrasing to create more melodic and syncopated fills. Playing rhythms on the drum kit one voice at a time is often referred to as linear phrasing. It’s comparable to the harmonic difference between a chord and an arpeggio. A chord is produced on the piano (for instance) by playing several notes simultaneously. An arpeggio is produced by playing notes sequentially, or one note at a time. On the drums, this concept can be used to create both grooves and fills. Check out Dennis Chambers, Nate Smith, Mark Guiliana, John Bonham, Max Roach, Anika Nilles and Vinnie Colaiuta to hear linear phrasing in action. As always, the first step with learning or practicing a new…

It may be the subject of unwanted jokes, but this instrument has such a penetrating tone and is so exposed that playing it well is a lot more important than is popularly thought. They that jest are themselves proved foolish! The triangle dates back to at least the 1400s as a musical instrument and is simply a metal bar bent into a triangle shape (originally without a gap and with round metal rings added that created a buzzing effect). It was introduced into western orchestral music in the 1700s when a Turkish-themed section was added. This would also have been the time where cymbals became more prominent in this setting – both have remained mainstays of the orchestral percussion section. Much later on, the triangle became a vital part of…

“HE WAS UNDOUBTEDLY ONE OF A KIND, AND HIS PAIRING WITH HIS RUSH BANDMATES GAVE HIM THE PERFECT OUTLET FOR HIS CREATIVITY...” Drummer: Neil Peart Spirit Of Radio’ is one of Rush’s most commercially successful tracks, a fact that’s somewhat surprising given its rhythmically challenging intro where Neil Peart and bassist Geddy Lee play a series of syncopated figures over Alex Lifeson’s hammer-on guitar riff. This part is actually so syncopated that to notate it in terms of specific note values is unlikely to convey its actual feel, with Neil and Geddy undoubtedly developing the phrasing together to move perfectly in sync over the 16th-note guitar part. Once we reach the main guitar riff, Neil settles into a familiar rock paradiddle pattern that appears on many Rush tracks, comprising the…

George Michael Track: ‘Kissing A Fool’ Album: Faith, 1987 “This was the first session for a major artist that I’d ever done. We rehearsed the arrangement in the studio with George. He insisted on singing live on every take to give us the vibe, and he was perfect on every single take. I always remember that. He knew exactly what he wanted, and he was funny. We had a good laugh that day. There’s a big tom fill in it, which I was very proud of at the time.” Jim Mullen Track: ‘Speed Bumps’ Album: Jimjam, 2000 “When I lived in North London, I had this small garage that I converted into a studio. We recorded it there, and I engineered it all onto reel-to-reel tape. It’s one of the…

It would be ever-so-depressingly easy for us to list all of the shows, events and sessions that have been canned due to the ongoing pandemic. However, not only are a slew of awesome events starting to come thick and fast, but there are also plenty of players who have been doing sterling work during lockdown, allowing fans a more-intimate-than-ever-insight into the world of the drum megastar. One of the finest examples of this has been the treasure trove of online projects, which have seen cosy at-home interviews and conversations, live streaming, in-depth masterclasses and the opportunity of one-to-one lessons with a plethora of big names. Drum companies in their droves have stepped up and provided access to top endorsees – with players sharing everything from top tips and techniques, favourite…

As a child, Yuya Maeta wanted to be a singer, but in the small town where he grew up, the only band with an opening needed a drummer. “So why did I first pick up drumsticks? Because I wanted to sing,” he says. Since making the switch, he’s drummed for Blue Man Group and BABYMETAL, and his fusion group, KARI BAND, has recently released their second record, Nimaime, packed with dazzling musicianship. How did you learn to play? “I’m completely self-taught. I guess I was a narrow-minded kid, as there were no drummers that I respected in Japan at that time. The first person I looked up to when I started playing drums at 13 was David Silveria of Korn – he was my first drum hero. I started to…

Veteran jazz, big band and session drummer Bobby Orr died in March, aged 91. A prominent player on the London jazz scene in the ’50s and ’60s, which included a stint as the house drummer at Ronnie Scott’s, Bobby also played as a founder member of the ground-breaking Joe Harriott Quintet. As well as accompanying international recording stars, such as Bing Crosby, Billy Eckstine and Sammy Davis Jr., Bobby also did three tours in the ’70s with the legendary Benny Goodman Orchestra – the only British drummer to get the coveted gig. Remembering a particular gig at the Festival Hall, Bobby told Rhythm: “Benny Goodman said to me, ‘That thing you do with your teeth, put it into the second-half before ‘Sing, Sing, Sing’. So I played Mozart’s ‘Turkish March’…

“THESE MADE-IN-JAPAN DRUMS, PACK SO MUCH PUNCH AND TONE FOR THE PRICE. IN A BLIND TEST, THEY GIVE THE BIG AMERICANS A RUN FOR THEIR MONEY.” OWNER, MARK JEFFS, RUSTY DRUMS Vintage drum collecting does not always mean breaking the bank. Part of the fun can be in seeking out less-fashionable drums from yesteryear, which are still eminently playable and of good quality and with a different sound from the run-of-the-mill modern kit. In a recent issue of Rhythm we featured a Silky Blue Japanese Star kit from circa 1972. Now we have a follow-up, which is a grander-named Royal Star kit, one of the last kits bearing the Star name. No prizes for recognising that Star was the precursor to Tama, which still uses the name Star for its…

TIM ‘HERB’ ALEXANDER (Primus) “I was walking to a friend’s house in Riverview, Michigan when ‘The Spirit Of Radio’ came on the boom box I was carrying. It shook my world. Complex but listenable. Powerful and interesting. It’s got to be the best intro into a song, ever... It made me feel connected to something that couldn’t be explained, and it became my focus to learn how to play like Neil. I would learn every note of every album until I started to become my own player and not imitate Neil so much – which was hard to do by the way! He was a major influence on me. “As a kid I couldn’t describe what it was that had such a big impact – it just was! The thing…

“For me, like thousands of other drummers around the world, Neil was a huge influence. His intelligence, technique and musicality continue to inspire and he is very sadly missed. “As a spotty, young drummer in the ’80s, I wrote to Neil - via Modern Drummer magazine - asking him about the Rush track ‘La Villa Strangiato’ and how to play it. Not expecting a reply from my drumming hero, I resigned myself to practicing the track without guidance, getting it wrong every time! “Fast forward six months and, totally unexpectedly, one cold October morning what should drop through the post box than a handwritten postcard from The Professor himself! “It was one of the many personalised cards that he used to send out to fans during the early ’80s, until…

Lorne ‘Gump’ Wheaton (Neil’s drum tech) “It was in 2000 that I got a call from Rush’s then-tour manager, Liam [Birt], to see if I’d be able to help them make a record. Neil was coming back after the tragic loss of his wife and daughter, and because I could cover everything in the studio, I was going to be the only tech for the whole session. For me, it was like going back to family... I’d known Geddy [Lee] and Alex [Lifeson] since high school in Toronto, and, after Neil joined, had toured with them while I was working with Max Webster. I actually have Geddy to thank for my nickname, ‘Gump’! “I’m so proud to have helped them singlehandedly with Vapor Trails – it was an incredible process…

“If any one of us hears something happening, we have to respond to it,” says Rich. “If I hear that there’s dialogue between Evelyn and Ant in a certain section, then I’m going to feel like a hectic solo form is not an appropriate time for me to be throwing ideas out. I need to lay out the time. It’s shapeshifting through your response, through people hearing things and deciding to be supportive. That doesn’t always go right, and that’s why every concert is different and why we keep refining. Sometimes I might play something and Rich and Ant might be like, ‘That was hard to maintain the form, what was going on there last night?’ Then in other times, Ant might say, ‘I really liked it when I did…

“ONCE AGAIN, FIRMER STRIKES ARE REQUIRED TO COAX THE FULL TONE FROM THE DENSE STAVE SHELL, RESULTING IN A WARM YET FOCUSED ATTACK.” PRICE: £3,975 If only wood could talk” seems to be the motto of British drum builder Andrew Johnston. Based in Glastonbury and founded just five years ago, Andrew runs REpercussion Drums, where he specialises in creating stave drums – each one with a hell of a backstory. In the past, the boutique company has offered drums crafted from 5,000-year-old bog oak, beams from the famous San Quentin prison and even an old cider press (fantastically named the Scrumpy Series). Andrew’s all-consuming quest for the ultimate reclaimed wood saw him travelling to Seattle last year to bring back pieces of The Western Flyer – the boat on which…

PRICE: £2,499 Roland have been leaders of innovation in electronic drum and percussion design for the past couple of decades. They have stepped up their output recently, having added many new products aimed across a range of budgets and for different performance situations. One of the latest additions to the mid-range series of virtual drum kits (V-Drums) is the TD-27KV. In my opinion, any electronic instrument is never going to be a replacement for an acoustic one. The best electric piano in the world will never truly feel or respond like a Steinway-D grand, for example. As such, one has to make some physical and mental adjustments when performing on an electronic kit – it makes sense to think of it as an instrument in its own right. So, let’s…

Developing the ability to use the bass drum within fills can transform the palette of ideas a drummer has to choose from. Most drummers starting out tend to use single strokes around the kit, but this can ultimately sound one dimensional. Alternatively, using the bass drum to break up the flow of notes can allow the hands to more easily move to different drums as well as create more syncopated and interesting phrases. Ex 1 shows a R-L-foot combination using 16th notes. The right hand can move around the kit while the left remains on the snare. To be most effective, the left-hand notes on the snare should be played as ghost notes. In Ex 2, the original three-note figure expands to a five-note figure: R-L-R-L-foot. In Exs 3 and…

Steve Smith (Vital Information, Journey) “My phone rang, and my friend Peter Erskine was on the line: ‘Do you know Freddie Gruber? He’s looking for you’. It was late 1989, and I had not heard of Freddie. Peter told me that one of Freddie’s students had showed him some of my 1987 DCI video Steve Smith Part One and Freddie said, ‘I can help him get out of his own way’. “Ian Wallace also told me about Freddie, and at the 1990 Zildjian Day in NYC, Ian introduced me to Fred. After the Zildjian Day concluded, Freddie, Ian and I, plus a small entourage, went to my hotel room for my first lesson. I had a pad and a pair of sticks. Freddie said, ‘Play a roll’. I played a…