Led Zeppelin · 1975 · 3 over 4 · ≈80 BPM
The 3 over 4 polymeter in Kashmir by Led Zeppelin
Press play to hear the rhythm isolated. Slow it down, speed it up, or change the counts to feel how it works.
Every player fits the same bar: A splits it into 3, B into 2. They meet on beat 1.
Simplified educational demo, not a transcription of the recording.
Hear the real thing
Playing the track pauses the demo automatically (and vice versa) so they don't fight each other.
What's happening rhythmically
Kashmir is the textbook rock polymeter. The famous ascending riff is a three-beat figure, but John Bonham never follows it. He plays a completely straight 4/4 rock beat underneath.
Because three and four don’t divide into each other, the riff’s downbeat lands somewhere new against the backbeat each bar, and the two parts only meet again every twelve beats. That slow, grinding drift is what makes the song feel colossal rather than just loud.
What to listen for
- The riff’s accent walking across the snare backbeat, one beat later each time around
- The "reset" moment every twelve beats when riff and drums land together again
- How Bonham refuses to bend: the tension comes from the drums staying rigid