Another drum innovation of mine....

I have always done this: I strike my bass drum dynamically... IOW varying the volume... and I don't mean I NEVER keep it solid, I do... but I vary a LOT.

Until not that long ago that was not at all common, OR wanted. All the recording sessions I was part of the engineers HATED it... they weren't used to it, to the point of thinking it was simply 'wrong'. It drove them nuts trying to set the sound board for my bass.

Ok, so in all fairness dynamic bass drumming is not innovative, by me anyway. Jazz drummers have always done it. But even though I'm a big jazz man I did NOT learn drums with jazz in mind... I had rock in mind, and rock only. Nor did I do it thinking 'innovation'... or just being different.... since I learned drums by ear, no lessons, I simply mimic'd what was in my head.

It's only been lately that I'm seeing some of the top drummers playing this way.

And another... not always but perhaps mostly (I've never counted), I will follow the lead guitar rather than the bass guitar.... something akin to Bonham, (just not as good ). That is also becoming more popular today. Just a guess but I think I began doing it because:

I first learned to play a trumpet, with lessons. In fact, I played trumpet thru college, (also drums from my Jr. year in HS). So when I began teaching myself I was trumpet, (melody), trained... it just came natural for me to think 'melody'.

I had to work hard in the beginning to follow the bass... which nearly all rock songs require. Today both are natural to me BUT... when I follow the melody it does tend to throw my fellow band members for a loop. They are used to that solid bass thump to set the time and rhythm.