When
did you start drumming?
I started drumming around
the age of 4, my Dad is a drummer and I was always surrounded by drums and music,
so it was a given that I would probably start drumming at some point.
At the age of 4, I was only
messing around on the drums, I never took it seriously until about the age of
8. Dad would have Thin Lizzy albums lying around that I would play along too.
What
is your current gear setup?
I currently play Tama drums
and use Paiste cymbals, I have a Tama Superstar Hyperdrive Maple kit. I was
awarded The Music Generation Exceptional Young Musician bursary in 2016, which partly
financed the purchase of a professional kit. I have the Paiste pst7 series
cymbals, I love them, they are very good for heavy hitters like myself. My
setup is 14 x5.5 snare, 22x20 bass drum ( Tama iron cobra double pedal ) 10,
12, rack toms , 14, 16 floor toms ,14’ hi hat, 20’ ride , 18’ china and 16’ 17’
crashes. I occasionally put a bell on the kit as well.
Who
are your drumming influences?
My first drumming influence
was probably my Dad, I remember I would hear him playing and then when he was
done I would try and play the things he was playing, aside from my Dad, Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) was probably my first drumming influence. My influences have
changed since then, for the last 2 years my favourite drummer has been Mario
Duplantier from the band Gojira. I have never come across a drummer like him
before and I just love the way he puts things together, his drumming is very
groovy for a metal drummer. Aside from him my other favourite drummers would
be, Chris Adler(Lamb of God), Infero (Behemoth) ,Dan Searle (Architects) Eric
Moore ( Solo artist), Danny Carey (Tool) and Dave McGraw ( Cattle Decapitation)
What
are your favourite songs or albums?
This is a very difficult
question because I have so many. I will do top 5 favourite songs and albums, not
in order because it is impossible to choose an absolute favourite. Top 5 songs
would be;
1-Art of dying – Gojira,
the drumming in the song is absolutely insane It still remains one of my
favourite drum tracks ever.
2- Ov
fire and the void – Behemoth, I just love this track, everything from the
vocals to the bass.
3- Eulogy – Tool,
I don’t have 1 favourite Tool song because they all have something to offer
that I love, but this song is a great example of when Tool were starting to
find their sound, there is a polyrhythm that comes in around the 6 minutes and
35 seconds mark that I love,it really compliments the acapella.
4- What about me?- Snarky Puppy,
something a bit different from the other songs on the list this song is so
groovy and funky and Larnell Lewis dominates this track with his tastiness behind
the kit .
5- Teacher,Teacher! –Jinjer, this band blew
me away the first time I heard them, they are a metal band from Ukraine and
have an incredible vocalist, She has a beautiful singing voice but can also
show some pretty mean vocals at the same time , this song is off their latest
EP and it really shows how they have evolved as a band.
Top
5 Albums (not in order);
1.The Anthropocene
Extinction- Cattle Decapitation- probably my favourite heaviest album of all
time. One of the craziest bands I’ve
ever come across.
2.The Way of All Flesh –
Gojira – One of my favourite drum albums ever recorded, very technical and
heavy but musical at the same time.
3.Urn- NeObliviscaris- this
Australian metal band have a really interesting style, some great drumming is
to be found on this album along with some great contrasting vocals and the
violin ties it together nicely.
4.Sehnsucht-
Rammstein – this is one of the best electronic metal albums ever made. the
drumming in it is really simple but it really suits the music, crazy
synthesizers and low vocals sung in German make it the unique album it is today
5. Emperor of sand – Mastodon – this is the
latest full length album from this American experimental rock band. what I love
about this band is that they have 4 members and they all sing, there isn’t just
one singer, all the different voices on this album are brilliant and the album
is packed full of really cool guitar, drums and bass parts.
How
does it feel to win the Irish Young Drummer of the Year Competition at the Galway Drum Show 2019?
It feels pretty weird, but
it also feels really cool at the same time, I really wasn’t expecting to win it,
it was a shock. I was overwhelmed with the support and congratulations I got
from my friends and family when I got back home. I felt proud of myself and it
has made me want to play drums more than ever. it always feels great to get up
on stage in front of a lot of people and play something I love whilst making
them happy. I love the idea of making people happy with music.
At the moment I have no
current upcoming events planned, if any events do happen this year it will be
during the summer months since most of my band live in Dublin,they all go to
BIMM Music College. I hope to go there myself when I finish school. As far as
new projects go , I have a few in the works , nothing solid yet. You can find
all about new projects on my Instagram account where I post anything music
related. I also upload short 15 seconds clips of myself drumming to songs I
love every few weeks. So check out my social media to find out more about
upcoming projects and events.