Rusty Hopkinson

Rusty Hopkinson (Born Russell Keith Hopkinson, in Fremantle) is the drummer for Australian rock act You Am I. Allegedly, Rusty was an occasional drinking buddy of You Am I while with his then band, indie act Nursery Crimes, around the turn of the 1990s. Shortly after the recording of You Am I's first album, "Sound As Ever" (1993), the relationship with drummer Mark Tunaley soured and Rusty was seen as an ideal replacement. Ever since, Hopkinson has been a core member of the band.

Bandmate and songwriter Tim Rogers often cites Hopkinson's drumming style as the key part of the group's sound. So much so that when he writes new material, it's the drumming ferocity that will decide whether the song will be performed by You Am I or Rogers' other band, the Temperance Union. Rogers was quoted regarding Rusty " [He's] an enigma, a renaissance man and the best drummer in the world," [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/18/1063625154909.html?from=storyrhs]

To date, Rusty's only lead singing role in a You Am I song has been on the "Good Mornin'" B-Side- a cover of the Mummies' classic "(You Must Fight to Live On the) Planet of the Apes".

Hopkinson has a show on Sydney radio station 2SER called "Stronger Than Dirt" (a reference to his beloved Mummies) that features all manner of music from the last two centuries including Pre WW2 Folk and Jazz, Obscure Psychedelia, Gutter Punk, "Blue" Comedy records and Asian Go Go music.

Drumming style and influences

Rusty is often seen to wear his drumming influences on his sleeve. In a Triple J radio [http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/music_specials/s1391535.htm J File] interview he comments "I try to sound like three different drummers in every song [laughs] ", citing Ian Paice of Deep Purple as a key influence. Other sixties and seventies influences referenced include the Super Stocks, The Pretty Things, The Honeycombs and the Who.

With several songs, particularly on the "Convicts" album, Rusty recorded the drum tracks after only rehearsing the piece two or three times. His fills are often heavily improvised.

Upon the death of Syd Barrett in 2006, Rusty was interviewed on Triple J radio about the influence of Syd in the early days of Pink Floyd. He is also believed to be a fan of much other psychedelic era music.

Equipment

Since 2001 Rusty has enjoyed a relationship with Pearl Drums whose drums he endorses wholeheartedly. On the 2006 "Convicts" tour, he played with a blue Pearl five-piece with two floor-mounted toms. He consistently uses Zildjian Custom A cymbals and New Beat 15" hi-hats. His snare drum collection includes a solid Jarrah Brady Snare (handmade Western Australian Drum), a 1968 Ludwig Superphonic snare and a handmade perspex Gas snare.

ide projects

Aside from You Am I, Rusty has also played with Australian punk act Radio Birdman on the Zeno Beach album and consequent tours.

Other bands Rusty is said to have been associated with during the course of his career include Circle A, Zoo Rejects, Genocide, Mob Vengeance, Dismembered, Insurrection, Vicious Circle, Greenhouse Effect, The Bamboos, Memento Mori, Cremator, The Kryptonics, Nursery Crimes and Killing Time.

Outside of his band involvements, Rusty manages record label and distribution company Reverberation Records.

Quotes

* "Tim comes up with the chords and the melody and we start playing it – I don’t know I can speak in terms of drums being a drummer. I want to provide a back beat for people to be the foundation of the song… it’s all about trying to make Tim’s hips swing basically when I see him when in studio playing he’ll pull off some move and you know you’re in the right zone – it’s just about turning each other on and enjoy playing to each other. That’s the bottom line". [http://www.accessallareas.net.au/indie/youami.php Access All Areas.net.au]
* [User profile from SETI web site] "Hey I'm a rocknroll drummer from Sydney, Australia. I'm in my thirties and as a hobby I run an independent record label called "Illustrious Artists". I love sixties science fiction movies like "Teenagers from Outer Space" and I collect records, mainly underground psychedelia like The Blues Creation and July. I'm married to a beautiful woman named Andrea (we got married in Vegas a couple of years ago)and we have two cats (Flugelhorne and Cheeks)and an Old English Sheepdog (Dewey)." [http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/view_profile.php?userid=553988]
* [Asked about his favourite song] "Drumming-wise, Rumble, because I nicked the drum beat from Kraftwerk's Showroom Dummies", says Hopkinson. "Or Minor Byrd, because it's the sound of a very white-bread punk drummer trying to be funky like a James Brown record and ending up sounding like something else entirely." [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/18/1063625154909.html?from=storyrhs]
* "I've played on more shitty punk records than you've had hot dinners".