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Tom Porter and Rhythm Magazine
"I would never count to 11... seek the path of least resistance"
"I would never count to 11, it’s always broken down into smaller pieces, like a 6 and a 5 or two 4s and a 3. Seek the path of least resistance."
"If you can play a group of 3, which I’m sure every drummer can, and you can play a group of 2, which I’m sure every drummer can, then you can play odd times because every odd time can be broken down into groups of 2 or 3. It’s actually much simpler than you imagine."
"When you see bars of 11/8 written down they look absolutely terrifying and I wouldn’t want to sit and try to read something in 11 without knowing what the key is - if it’s two 4s and a 3, ‘Ah, right.’ You can play a 2 and 3, then you can play 5. Play two 2s and a 3, you can play 7. It’s as simple as that. I don’t like it to sound terrifying. I don’t like to write music that sounds clever. That’s never my intention."
You can read the full interview in Rhythm 183 (available now as a back issue), or check out the latest funk special issue 184 featuring Zigaboo Modeliste and Stanton Moore.
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