Micheal Quinn talks about his career and how important it is to love yourself

Micheál Quinn is not on of the best drummers on the scene, and yes! You may have seen him on stage with Irish singer and songwriter Dermot Kennedy since his early days but Micheál is also a producer from Dublin, Ireland, known for his dynamic performances and versatile musical contributions.

Beyond performing, Micheál is dedicated to education, offering drum lessons and sharing his passion for music with aspiring drummers. His commitment to the craft is evident in his energetic performances and the joy he brings to the stage.

Micheál's musical journey includes playing with the alt-rock band Enemies and collaborating with various artists such as Fehdah. In 2020, he showcased his solo artistry by releasing his debut album, 'Colours,' highlighting his skills as both a drummer and producer. ​

When did you realize that being a drummer was going to be your full-time job?

I still wonder if I’ll ever truly feel like that’s happened. In this world, you get a gig, do the gig, and then once it’s over, you’re back to figuring out how to keep doing what you love. I’ve been fortunate to stay on a long-running gig, but it doesn’t provide a sense of security that makes it feel like a full-time job, even to this day. However, it does feel like a calling, a vocation.

Why the drums?

It was a happy accident. I had to pick an instrument in a music school, and I flicked through a list of choices, looking for the guitar. When I didn’t find it, I picked drums, almost at random. Fast forward 20 years, and now I have the word “DRUM” tattooed on my leg.

Have you ever had a backup plan?

I used to not have one—I decided to leave myself no other options so I would have no choice but to chase my dreams. But these days, I feel myself building up other ideas on how to keep secure. 

What would you say to someone who wants to start playing an instrument?

Passion is very important. It will see you through all the ups and downs. Fall in love with the instrument and all it brings into your life.

You have your own brand “Yo Buddy What’s Up.” What is the message?

Talk to yourself like a friend! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE.

You’re not just a drummer. You surf, run your own brand, and teach drum lessons. Do you ever have time off?

My time off usually comes when I run out of steam doing the things I love. I have enough different passions to bounce between, which keeps things fresh for me. I also stretch and meditate a lot, and that’s my downtime.

You’ve been touring with Dermot Kennedy since the beginning. What’s been the biggest lesson?

The importance of practicing letting your body relax. It started behind the kit with lessons from my teacher, Dave Elitch—learning to let go of tension from places I didn’t even realize I was holding it. That practice gradually poured over into the rest of my life, making me more aware of tension and how to release it. Also… it’s the music industry, it’ll get you!

…and your best memory?

At Madison Square Garden, I remember the entire room exploding into this great white light right in front of me. I left my body and became pure spirit in the air. In that moment, I felt like I had attained that all-elusive feeling of arriving exactly where I was meant to be.

You’re from Ireland. What’s the best thing about being home?

Hanging out with my friends. I’ve kept a lot of friends from before all of this, and I’m incredibly grateful to them. They’ve always seen this as something that I, Micheal, am going and doing, but we all know not to get wrapped up in the spectacle. That’s really important to me.

You’re going to be in Sydney and Boston for Misneach. How important is it to you as an Irish person to be part of it?

I’m just happy for the other Irish acts who get the opportunity to perform in Australia. Dermot and his team have been great in offering opportunities to other Irish artists. It’s hard to get the funding needed to leave Ireland for shows, so Australia often feels out of reach. Seeing all the Irish acts excited to be there and landing additional shows outside of the festival has been wonderful.

You’re always kind and positive when fans approach you on the street or while on tour. How important is kindness in a world full of terrible news?

The world has always been full of terrible news—we just have a non-stop stream of it now, which makes it feel worse. I try to focus on staying present, right here, right now. I’ve been a huge music fan my whole life, so even though I don’t see myself as a “somebody,” I understand the excitement of meeting a musician you’re interested in. I do my best to honor that. You also have to take care of yourself and maintain a sense of who you are, though—this stuff can play tricks on you!

Colors, what is the album about?

The album is about exploring—designed for driving late at night on dark, empty roads. It's about missing people. It's about finding ways to let that missing go.

You're working on a follow up album, who have you worked with?

It's weird—I’ve been working on a follow-up project for the past year, and that turned into an EP. That’s nearly ready to go, but this past month, I decided to do a little project: making a piece of music every morning for 30 minutes. I accidentally ended up creating a full-length body of work that I want to release. It’s a mixtape, as it lives more in the realm of demos rather than fully fleshed-out pieces. It’s an antidote to my overthinking—a way to just make something and release it.

Would you ever explore going back to your artwork outside of Buddy?

For artwork, I’m currently working on a whole series that steps outside of Buddy—but only briefly. It’s based on my experiences with meditation, and I’m chipping away at it in the background, with plans for a whole show based around it.

What’s the most challenging song or performance you’ve ever played, and how did you handle it?

The most challenging song has to be Donegal by Meltybrains?—it’s just relentless repetition of a really intense part that grows and grows over the course of five or six minutes. Playing that is an endurance test—or a test of my will, haha. Technically speaking, Saharakungoh by Fehdah is the most difficult. The polyrhythms and independence coordination are seriously challenging!

How do you balance technical precision with feeling and groove in your playing?

I listen to a lot of hip hop beats and listen out for the depth of groove coming from drummers on records. I listen to a lot of isolated drum tracks on Youtube to see whats going on in the drums behind the music. Often its actually doing slightly different stuff to what we perceive it to be doing.. Good groove implies more than it states... Then a lot of work to be releaxed physically, staying centred and grounded is the best approach to good groove for me! Technical precision is the fun nerdy brain/mind work, but you gotta have a solid foundation to build all that on effectively. Practicing, the groove work is sitting patiently and feeling it out and seeing how good I can feel while playing, the technical work is more broken upn working piece by piece to figure out a puzzle, if you will..

Can you share a memorable or funny moment from a live show?

One time, at The Met in Philadelphia, Dermot was running late to the stage, and we had a countdown to the lights setting up his reveal to the audience. Because he was already running late, we were both giddy and panicked—so I decided to add some chaos and tried to trip him up... like, I really tried. I put my job on the line for the hell of it because we were just having fun! Somehow, he managed to evade my attempt and still hit his mark on stage just as the lights went up. But in the darkness of stage right before that, I was actively engaged in trying to fuck everything up..... I cant stress enough how I genuinley decided 'I 100% am trying to trip him up'...

How do you stay creative and avoid falling into repetitive patterns in your drumming?

I listen to a wide variety of music, and there’s only so much time in the day, so I’m always searching for more and more—that keeps me engaged. That said, I also have plenty of “old faithfuls”—ideas, beats, or licks that I fall back on over and over again. But even those develop over time. The way I play them changes, and I find new ways to enjoy something I’ve done countless times before. I try to make each time I play it the best or most enjoyable version I’ve ever played.

What creative goals have you for the next couple of years.   What does your calendar look like for the next year or two?

In terms of goals—I’d honestly love to get further into surfing. Musically, I ticked off some major goals already, and that left me a bit unsure of where to go next. I’d love to do it all again with a new project— I would love to be part of a band this time. I also want to record and release a lot more of my own music, with the hopes of getting involved with lots of different artists and helping them make their music. I want to be involved—more and more—in the creation of music.

How much input do you have into the drum parts of the songs of a tour you're a part of?

When performing, it’s a combination of mimicking the tracks and putting my own flair on them. I have the freedom—and encouragement—on the gig to bring my own style to the live versions, to help bring them to life on stage. So, I start by listening to the recorded track and thinking: How do I bring this into Micheál Live territory? Then, me, the MD, and the band piece together a version that represents and stays true enough to the studio recording while lifting it into exciting Dermot Kennedy live territory.

Have you ever created the drums for tracks for any artists/songs we'd know?

I played on After Rain and Shelter. Over the years, I’ve worked with plenty of Irish acts—Meltybrains?, Enemies, Slow Skies, Kingfishr, Come On Live Long, to name a few. But I’d love to expand into working with bigger artists in the next few years.

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Words by Sal F. with the help of the fantastic Fiona and all photos provided by Micheál Quinn