A group of drummers from indie and alt-rock bands paid tribute to drummer Rick Allen of Def Leppard.
The Indie Drummer Collective did a full performance along to Hysteria, the first album Allen played on following the tragic car accident on December 31, 1984 in which Allen lost his left arm.
Following that accident, Rick had a special drum kit built with triggering devices to create additional beat phrases and sounds, allowing him to rely on his remaining three limbs.
“For 75 percent of the show I use what I call a base kit, which is everything straight – no loops, nothing. It’s just as I would play with one arm and two feet. And then for the occasional song that I think needs to be carried by some kind of percussive element, I’ll use some… triggering devices… It makes for a very musical approach to using percussion.”
The drummers playing in the video include Zach Lind of Jimmy Eat World, Tucker Rule of Thursday, and Jason Gerken of Hum. You can see some of them struggling with drum parts written for Allen’s disability, but they all find ways to make it work on their own drum kits.
Check out the video below.
