Iron Maiden’s Nicko McBrain Opens Up About the Lasting Impact of His 2023 Mini-Stroke: “I Don’t Play the Trooper Fill Anymore”

 

Iron Maiden concert tickets

Iron Maiden drummer Nicko McBrain has candidly shared the ongoing challenges he faces following a mini-stroke he suffered in early 2023. The 72-year-old drummer, who has been with the legendary heavy metal band since 1982, experienced a transient ischaemic attack (TIS) in January 2023 but was back on stage by June for the band’s Future Past tour.


In a recent interview on The Washington Tattoo podcast, McBrain discussed how the TIS has impacted his drumming abilities, specifically when it comes to performing one of Iron Maiden’s iconic songs, 1983’s “The Trooper.”


“I can’t do a 16-note roll going into 32nd-note rolls anymore,” McBrain revealed. “What happens is I can play eighth notes, like that kind of groove. I can do doubles, but when I try and play that 16th at that speed, instead of going up and down, it wobbles from left to right when I start playing fast. So I’ve had to adjust my fills now.”


He further explained, “I don’t play the ‘Trooper’ fill anymore because I can’t get it… It’s the speed of it. I can do everything slow, but I’ve had to make sure that as long as I can keep the groove of the song, which is normally…”


McBrain also spoke last month about how his TIS affects his ability to perform “Caught Somewhere In Time,” the opening track of Iron Maiden’s 1986 Somewhere In Time album. During a concert with his side project, Titanium Tart, he explained that he struggles with the song’s snare drum-heavy middle section.


“When we were rehearsing last year for the Future Past tour, we were doing ‘Caught Somewhere In Time’ to open,” McBrain shared. “Now there’s a middle section, it’s all snare drum on the record. I can’t play it. As you probably noticed, those of you nerds that are in the audience that go, ‘He didn’t do the drum fill.’ Well, that's why, ’cause I fucking can’t do it.”


Iron Maiden is currently taking a short break from their live shows but will return to the stage in September, resuming the Future Past tour with dates across Oceania, Asia, and the Americas. The tour’s setlist prominently features material from their 1986 album *Somewhere In Time* and their latest release, 2021’s Senjutsu.


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