Palmerston North’s Try Music rocks around the clocktower

Try Music students, led by owner Johnny Robert (centre), play My Hero by the Foo Fighters on Saturday. Photo / Judith Lacy

The chimes of Palmerston North’s clocktower were temporarily replaced by rock music on Saturday.

Rock Around the Clock, part of May Music Month, featured Try Music owner Johnny Robert, 12 drum students and four guitar students.

They played My Hero by the Foo Fighters on repeat underneath the clocktower in Te Marae o Hine/The Square for about 15 minutes.

Robert said the crowd was bigger than he expected and was a testament to the strength of music in Palmerston North.

It was hard to ascertain the size of the crowd, with people coming and going, but 200 is this reporter’s guesstimate.

Music Planet Palmerston North owner Jeff Carr asked Robert to put together a gig for May Music Month, which has been organised by Carr and Palmy Bid.

Robèrt came up with the idea of playing My Hero on repeat.

The 1998 song by the Amercian rock band has two separate drum parts - the primary open hi-hat-driven pattern and the tom beat overdub.

Robert always wanted to try it with two drum kits; he more than achieved this goal on Saturday.

Try Music provides drumming and guitar lessons.

Robert was 7 when his father introduced him to the drums and he joined his first band at 9.

He gained distinction in Grade 8 drums from Trinity College.

Some of the crowd at Saturday's Rock Around the Clock in Palmerston North. Photo / Rob Edwards

Free performances continue through NZ Music Month in central Palmerston North. Artists include Sage Tucker, Chrissy Kerr, Bailey Kauri and Miles Poananga.

On May 25 at noon at The Plaza there will be a pop-up performance by Manawatū Youth Theatre (Myth) of songs from Frozen Jr. Myth will perform the musical at the Globe Theatre in the July school holidays.

The programme is at palmybid.co.nz/musicmonth or printed programmes can be picked up from Munch, Joe’s Garage, Stunned Mullet, Celtic Inn and Tony’s Pizza.

Judith Lacy has been the editor of the Manawatū Guardian since December 2020. She graduated from journalism school in 2001 and this is her second role editing a community paper.