5 great drummers in April's Rhythm

From playing pop with Gabriella Cilmi via free jazz to his place with drum ’n’ bass collective Rudimental, Beanie has had an eclectic and interesting career so far. In April’s Rhythm he tells us about his introduction to the drums (via church), his playing on pop records and his experience in working with electronics, in particular for award-nominated d’n’b-ers Rudimental. Plus, his striking tie-dyed drum kit!

Talented drummer-composer Jaimeo Brown features in the April Rhythm’s Introducing new bands section. In his drums-guitar-sax trio he mixes jazz, blues, East Indian Carnatic music and hip-hop, and makes a beautiful noise doing it. We particularly like the African feel of ‘Accra’, on his new Transcendence album, in which Jaimeo’s drums create an intriguing shifting-sands polyrhythmic effect, like a multi-layered African percussion group. “I hear that in African music all the time,” Jaimeo tells us. “That play of different things happening and hearing how they merge and mix together. The record celebrates African-American music and the spirituals they produced.” Read more about Jaimeo in April’s Rhythm.

Bob Henrit was a well-travelled pop journeyman with the likes of Adam Faith’s Roulettes before he formed progressive rock outfit Argent with The Zombies’ Rod Argent. In this month’s Rhythm he discusses his fascinating and long career behind the drums for the ‘Hold Your Head Up’ stars as well as Leo Sayer, Roger Daltrey, Ringo Starr, The Kinks and Don McLean. In his time he also wrote drum reviews and owned his own London drum shop.

“The thing about being a drummer,” Bob wisely reveals, “Is that it’s not an apprenticeship for anything else except the drum industry… if you can broaden it to your advantage then you must.”

The Clutch sticksman is one of our favourite rock drummers of recent years, and his playing with the Maryland quartet’s ’50,000 Unstoppable Watts’ is the focus of our fully notated playalong this month. Gaster’s heavy but funky grooves and fills are relentlessly powerful and energetic, but it is also a mature and musically thoughtful performance that is not overplayed and serves the needs of the band perfectly. Get April’s Rhythm to find out what to play; and get the drum-less backing track on the CD (print version) or video with iPad version.

Neil Peart presents the second of his truly insightful explorations of what a drum solo means to him. In April’s Rhythm he breaks down another of his great Rush solos, this time ‘The Percussor (I) Binary Love Theme (II) Steambanger’s Ball’. The prog legend then ponders the future of the solo, given its absence from mainstream music in the last few decades. “For almost a hundred years,” reasons Neil, “through countless style changes in hair, clothes and music, people have been excited by a drummer playing something that excites him or her. It’s in our very cells.” Part 1, incidentally, could be found in March’s Rhythm.

It’s nearly time for the May issue of Rhythm to hit the shelves, but in case you haven’t got April’s there may still be time. And, aside from Thomas Lang’s Boot Camp – providing an essential workout for drummers of all abilities – and these five sticksmen, there are plenty more great reasons to get hold of the mag.

Pick up April’s Rhythm today from myfavouritemagazines.com, digitally from iTunes, Google Playor from zinio.com.