Interview by Remzi “Jam Man” Yates
Brian Tichy has spent decades earning the trust of some of rock’s biggest names. From Ozzy Osbourne and Billy Idol to Whitesnake, Foreigner, Gene Simmons and countless other stages and sessions, he has built a career as one of the most in-demand drummers in the business. But with Led By Vultures, Tichy is stepping out from behind the drum kit and putting his own voice, guitars, bass, songwriting and vision at the center of the music.
In this new Rocking With Jam Man conversation, Tichy explains why creating his own band feels completely different from joining a legendary act, why he wanted the record to sound like a real band instead of a one-man experiment, and how he finally stopped making excuses and finished the project he had been talking about for years.
From hired gun to frontman
Tichy does not bristle at being called a hired gun. To him, the label reflects the level of trust required to walk into a band built around songs, history and huge personalities, then serve that music the right way. He has been fortunate to work with artists whose records he grew up loving, but he also remembers what he wanted as a kid: not simply to be the drummer in somebody else’s band, but to start his own.
Led By Vultures gives him that opportunity. The project lets Tichy show the side of his musicianship that can get overlooked when people only see the drum stool. He is writing the songs, singing, playing guitar and bass, arranging the parts and shaping the production. The goal is not to make listeners hear a drummer trying on other instruments; it is to make them hear a rock band with its own identity.
Building the sound himself
Much of Led By Vultures came together in Tichy’s home studio, where he could work without waiting for another musician’s schedule, another room to open up or another person to approve the next step. That freedom was part of the challenge. Starting from the ground up means there is no famous catalogue or built-in audience underneath the songs, but it also means the decisions belong to the person who started the idea.
Tichy compares the approach to the spirit of the first Foo Fighters record: one musician doing nearly everything, but the music presented as a band. He wants Led By Vultures to be heard that way— not as a novelty solo project, but as a heavy rock group driven by riffs, groove, vocals and the feeling of people making music together.
No Auto-Tune, no samples, no shortcuts
One of the clearest lines Tichy draws is his decision to keep samples and Auto-Tune out of the record. He respects what modern production can do, especially when it comes to power and precision, but he still wants the players’ individual feel to survive. The classic records that shaped him—whether they came from Led Zeppelin, Queen, AC/DC, Van Halen, Aerosmith, The Who or the Beatles—sound like specific people locking into a sound that could not have been made by anyone else.
For Tichy, that human identity is the point. A singer needs to sing in pitch, a drummer needs a groove that belongs to them, and a band needs to sound like itself. Led By Vultures is his attempt to chase that kind of character while still bringing the weight and impact of a modern hard-rock production.
The songs that refused to disappear
The conversation also digs into “Massivity,” a song that began with a riff and a word Tichy once thought he had invented. The title became a loose way of exploring how much pressure one person can carry, but the track’s real engine is the oversized groove and the feeling of something heavy moving forward.
Then there is “Psyched to Be Psycho,” the song Tichy first talked about roughly a decade ago. It stayed alive through years of responsibilities, family life, work and procrastination until he reached a point where he decided there were no more excuses. The old demo already had the arrangement, lyrics and much of the musical shape; re-recording it turned the long-delayed idea into one of the album’s rowdier moments.
“Waves,” co-written with longtime friend Derek Sherinian, shows another side of the project. The song began with an acoustic, expansive idea before growing into something with a large chorus, and Sherinian contributed keyboards and co-writing. Tichy also explains the different physical and streaming versions of the release, including the extra artwork and format decisions that make a record feel like an object instead of just another file.
Ozzy, Billy Idol, Whitesnake and full-circle moments
Tichy’s own project is informed by a career spent inside other people’s music. He recalls joining Ozzy Osbourne’s band for Ozzfest in 2000 and the responsibility of entering a group that already understood its material inside and out. His love of Randy Rhoads’ guitar playing remains personal, but his job in that band was to serve the songs and make the live performance feel right.
He also talks about the strange timing of his Whitesnake chapter. David Coverdale had reached out years earlier, when Tichy was happy working with Billy Idol. The opportunity eventually returned at a different point in his life, and the answer looked different because his priorities had changed. His work with Billy also grew beyond drumming into songwriting, giving Tichy the experience of sitting across from an ’80s icon and building songs together.
Those full-circle moments continue with Gene Simmons. Tichy grew up learning KISS songs, so playing them decades later with Simmons still carries the feeling of the kid who bought the records. The same thing happens when he plays Foreigner songs written by Mick Jones and sung by Lou Gramm, or performs “Rebel Yell” with Billy Idol. The résumé matters, but the sense of wonder never completely disappears.
What comes next for Led By Vultures
Tichy is realistic about the cost of touring and the difficulty of keeping a lineup together without consistent financial support. Shane Hawkins and Brent Woods have already been part of the “Get It Right” chapter, while Leah Bluestein and Robbie Crane joined him for the “Massivity” video. He would love to find the right second guitar player and build the project into a true working band, but he is comfortable taking it one step at a time.
The immediate victory is simple: the first Led By Vultures record is finished and people can hear it. Tichy can start writing the next one without waiting for permission or a perfect plan. That is what makes the project feel less like a gamble and more like a road that is finally open.
Brian Tichy’s Death Row Meal
To close out the interview, Tichy answers the classic Rocking With Jam Man question. He says he is not especially picky, but if he gets to choose, he wants a burrito and some chocolate cake. It is a perfectly unpolished answer for a record built around keeping the human parts intact.
Connect with Brian Tichy and Led By Vultures
- Brian Tichy’s official website
- Led By Vultures at Deko Entertainment
- Watch the full Brian Tichy interview on YouTube
Keep exploring Rocking With Jam Man for more artist interviews, music news and conversations with the people behind the songs.