Former Tumbleweed Drummer Joins Hoodoo Gurus

Aussie rock mainstays Hoodoo Gurus have revealed who will be replacing departing drummer Mark Kingsmill.

The band's frontman Dave Faulkner told theMusic.com.au at yesterday's Vivid Sydney launch that former drummer for Wollongong rock stalwarts Tumbleweed, Nik Reith would be Kingsmill's replacement.

"We’ve already chosen a drummer. In fact I can announce it today, haven’t said it to anyone yet, but Nik Reith is playing with us," Faulkner revealed.

"There were a lot of great drummers, but he was the one that had the personality and style that made us sound like ourselves to us. Obviously every player is going to be different and we expected that, but we don’t want to be just a band that works; it sounds like a cover band of itself. So Nik we felt was the most perfectly suited to us with dynamic and playing.

"It’s funny, he’s our third drummer – we’re not quite on Spinal Tap level yet. I think of it more like Doctor Who. We’re changing Doctors. He’s actually been the third drummer in a couple of other bands. In Tumbleweed, he was their third drummer. It’s funny, he’s the third drummer guy. Maybe it was meant to be."

The band announced Kingsmill's amicable departure in January, admitting the news hit them so hard they considered breaking the Gurus up for good.

"None of us want to see him go and, to be honest, we even contemplated breaking up the band rather than try to replace him," the band confessed at the time.

The drummer played his final gig with the current Gurus outfit last weekend in Victoria, but he will return for the one-off Vivid show in Sydney said Faulkner.

"We did our last show last weekend in Victoria. This is like a special show. We don’t consider this to be his last… that was his last official show as far as being just the Hoodoo Gurus as we are, but this show where we’re all coming back, that will be the last time he will do that as well."

Relive the Vivid announcement here.