A lot has been written about Big Country’s guitar sound, almost to the exclusion of everything else about them. While it’s undeniable that the band’s guitar sounds have captured a lot of people’s attention, their drummer is not exactly out to lunch. Behind that much touted bagpipe sound is some thunderously massive drumming, a whirlwind of crashing cymbals, throbbing tom-toms and rolling snare drums, all combined to propel Big Country out of the studio and over the airwaves. Drummer Mark Brzezicki once remarked, “Do you want to know the secret of our guitar sound? I’ll tell you. It’s in my drumkit.” And in a way, he’s right because his aggressive, Afro-army-esque rolls perfectly highlight and complement what he calls the “stirring “sound of the band. Never was a band better named, because their sound really is big—big to the point of Mark’s drums sounding like a bulldozer plowing through your […]

February 1985 Issue