Dennis Thompson (né Tomich; September 7, 1948 – May 9, 2024) was an American drummer known for playing with the 1960s–70s Detroit proto-punk/hard rock group MC5,^[1] which had a No. 82 US single with "Kick Out the Jams" and a No. 30 US album with the same name.

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Dennis Thompson
Background information
Birth name	Dennis Tomich
Also known as	Machine Gun MGT
Born	(1948-09-07)September 7, 1948 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Died	May 9, 2024(2024-05-09) (aged 75) Taylor, Michigan, U.S.
Genres	Garage rock proto-punk
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	Drums
Years active	1965–2022
Formerly of	MC5

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Thompson was born Dennis Tomich in Detroit in 1948.^[2] He began playing drums by the time he was nine years old.^[3] Joining the MC5 by 1965,^[4] Thompson was later given the nickname "Machine Gun" because of his "assault" style of fast, hard-hitting drumming that sonically resembles the sound of his namesake Thompson machine gun (commonly referred to as a "Tommy Gun"). His drumming pre-figured and influenced punk, metal, and hardcore punk drumming styles.^{[citation needed]}

After MC5 broke up in the early 1970s, Thompson was a member of the 1975–1976 Los Angeles–based supergroup The New Order, the 1981 Australia-based supergroup New Race, The Motor City Bad Boys, and The Secrets. In 2001, he guested for Asmodeus X on the song "The Tiger" (St. Thomas Records).^[5]

His influences include Elvin Jones, Keith Moon and Mitch Mitchell, and Motown.^[6] In 2015, he described how his drumming technique had changed considerably over time, playing with "much less force and tucked in elbows, more wrist action and less arm action".^[7]

Thompson was in the band DKT/MC5 with the surviving members of MC5, from 2003–2012. Later, he recorded two tracks for a new MC5 album scheduled for October 2022 release, although as of February 2023 the album has not yet been released.^[8]

Thompson suffered a heart attack in April 2024, and died in Taylor, Michigan, on May 9, 2024, at the age of 75.^[2][9] He was the final surviving member of the MC5.^[10]