How To Play Like Bonham
The big one. From the beats to the gear to the attitude and showmanship, every drummer wants to have a little bit of Bonzo in their playing. The stars of the Natal Bonzo Bash, including Nicko McBrain, Brian Tichy, Mike Portnoy, Simon Phillips, Dave Lombardo, Glen Sobel, Gene Hoglan and Virgil Donati, have all helped Rhythm unpick some of the master’s technique and feel. They give their spin on how they approached playing their chosen Led Zep tracks for the Bonzo Bash, imparting wisdom and tips on playing like John Bonham.
All of this is our cover feature in this month's Rhythm!
The enhanced iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch edition also features videos of these players in action, putting their own personality into covering Led Zep tracks.
Check out Whitesnake drummer Brian Tichy’s solo at last year’s Bonzo Bash:
How to get gigs
Alice Cooper sticksman Glen Sobel knows a thing or two about landing the big gigs – let’s face it, it doesn’t get much bigger than Alice Cooper! In this month’s Rhythm, Glen gives his tips on having the right attitude, getting out there and landing yourself your dream drumming job.
“You can’t waste people’s time,” he advises. “People hate wasting time in the studio, they just want it to get done. I’ve worked with some producers where they want it fast or they want it never.”
Read more of Glen’s sage advice in this month’s Rhythm.
Here’s Glen showing Rhythm around his Alice Cooper set-up:
All the best drum-related Apps
In April’s Rhythm we’ve helpfully rounded up all the Apps you might want for your iOs or Android devices. Everything from beat making and recording to artist apps, learning and improvement, timing and tuning, gigging, health and more are all checked off in our handy guide!
How to play Soundgarden's 'Rusty Cage'
Taken from the band’s third album Badmotorfinger, Rusty Cage is classic Soundgarden with its fast pace and odd time signatures that feel so natural at the hands of Matt Cameron. The track is fully notated in this month’s Rhythm, while backing tracks with and without drums can be found on the covermount CD, or at the click of a button on the enhanced iPad edition.
Here’s the video to ‘Rusty Cage’:
How to address 'toe creep'
Reader Alan Booth wrote in to our resident gear guru Geoff Nicholls regarding the problem of ‘toe creep’ on the pedals, complaining that he often finds that his right toe stits between the pillars of the kick pedal, touching the chain. Geoff is on hand – as he is ever month – to help Rhythm readers like Alan make the best of their gear. “If your foot is pressing farther forward than you want it to, this could mean that you have unwanted tension somewhere in your posture and execution.” His solution? Read this month’s Rhythm to find out!