King Gizzard's Michael Cavanagh - CAVS (Live at Drumtek 2022)

On September 21st 2022, Michael Cavanagh performed his first ever solo drum performance/Q&A. I was one of 50 people lucky enough to be there, and I couldn't miss the opportunity to film his incredible talent up close. I set my phone off to record and enjoyed the show, so the angles aren't always perfect but who cares - I had to take it all in while I was there as it was such a rare opportunity! Huge shoutout to Drumtek for setting up the event, and of course to Cavs for coming out to perform and chat with all of us.
You will hear occasional pops in really loud spots, I've tried my best to correct them but there were some moments where it was so loud it just peaked the microphone and there was nothing I could do to fix that - sorry!
Hope you all enjoy watching!
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
0:21 - Drum Improv
7:50 - Hot For Teacher (Van Halen)
8:38 - T2JD
9:41 - Self Immolate
10:55 - Gamma Knife
11:18 - Fishing For Fishies
11:35 - Crumbling Castle
14:14 - Gaia
16:09 - Fool In The Rain (Led Zeppelin)
16:55 - Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin)
17:00 - Good Times Bad Times (Led Zeppelin)
17:25 - Minimum Brain Size
18:26 - The River
19:23 - Kepler-22b
20:06 - Open Water
20:58 - Planet B
21:55 - Muddy Water
22:33 - Elbow
22:45 - Oddlife
24:41 - Q: Do you have a fav drumbeat?
25:07 - James Brown + Clyde Stubblefield groove
25:43 - Vicarious (TOOL)
25:57 - TOOL + James Brown combo beat
26:50 - Q: How did you develop your singles?
28:45 - Double kick beat
29:39 - Q: Were there any standout moments for you on your solo album?
30:43 - Madlib/Two Skunks beat
31:21 - Q: Do you have a favourite song off of the upcoming 3 albums?
32:20 - Q: I’m too young to go to your show, can I try telling security I know you?
32:57 - Q: Can you tell us about the craziest thing a fan has done?
34:04 - Q: What was your favourite band at the DIY?
34:22 - Q: Where did Gizz’s famous use of odd time signatures originate?
35:10 - Q: You guys met Black MIDI recently, have you heard their new album?
35:35 - Q: What happened to the Zanzibar gem?
35:43 - Q: Can you talk about your setup/gear?
38:09 - Q: How did you come to start using Dream cymbals?
39:09 - Q: Do you record with Dream cymbals?
40:19 - Discussing his gong’s
41:50 - Q: Would you ever get a third gong?
42:08 - Q: What’s it like to be in King Gizzard?
44:04 - Q: Is Amy ever going to play with Gizz as a 2nd drummer?
44:33 - Q: You said once that Stu spits on your cymbals, is there any context to that?
45:09 - Q: What was your ATAR? (Aus Tertiary Admission Rank)
45:49 - Q: How long did it take you to learn the double kick?
47:02 - Double kick demo
47:21 - Q: What’s the worst hire kit you’ve had?
48:12 - Q: How do you find being the sole drummer of Gizz now?
48:59 - Q: Any more solo stuff on the way? What’s the routine?
50:05 - Q: Do you have any tips for learning double kick?
51:54 - Q: How often do you break drumsticks?
52:50 - Q: Do you use 5A’s?

[@FeGoinHeem]

What's just as impressive as the drumming is being able to recall all of the patterns for their library of a discography

[@whatthewonder]

Love how chill everyone was, Cavs seemed more and more relaxed taking requests and answering questions. Lowkey events like these are one in a million, you guys are lucky !

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Yeah he was awesome! It was so fun and conversational! Thanks for watching!

[@ricardoureno8696]

"Dime a dozen" means its very common

[@stereoraptor6940]

"dime a dozen" a bit of a misnomer there lol

[@Killenmachine05]

one in a million was the expression you were looking for.

[@whatthewonder]

@@Killenmachine05 oh lol y’all are right I got my expressions mixed up

[@andrewmcnamara6978]

As a drummer who loves king gizzard, this is porn.

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Hell yeah, I knew when I got my ticket that someone had to document the night. Was so incredible being right in front of him and seeing him play, as well as getting to ask him so many questions (and getting his broken drumstick!) I actually bought the stool he was playing on too and he signed it for me, so I probably have the only Cavs signed drum stool, and it’ll be with me for as long as I’m on this earth!

[@stereofidelic67]

Get Cavs on Drumeo!

[@andrewbeard5250]

this is a gold mine for kglw fans who play the drums omg. basically a tutorial for all their best songs

[@ramunayy]

i like how he literally played the start of dragon as “improv” and nobody knew

[@Richaud89]

Which section is it? Around the 6 minute mark?

[@druid5931]

You can TELL this man plays to the song! Clearly a Ringo type, not showy and flashy. Sounds so GOOD!

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Just showy and flashy enough! He’s a master!

[@druid5931]

@@DeclannShieldsFilms It’s also so weird how you can imagine the band behind him so EASILY! The trippy guitar and vocals, the low aggressive bass. It’s all there, clearly the best drummer for the band. Sorta like the drummer for Gojira soloing, you can hear the band!

[@robertbelchick8263]

I'm getting a Nick Mason vibe here, to me it sounds like cross between Nick Mason (Pink Floyd) and Bill Bruford (Yes). With a little bit of John Bonham(Led Zeppelin) thrown in for good measure.

[@maxotto9877]

you heard PDA yet? he absolutely rips

[@dougmcauliffe2253]

There's nothing I love more than hearing and watching Cavs get exponentially better record-to-record over their discography. He's really come into his own since Eric left the band. Awesome video thanks for the timestamps too!

[@drewbocop]

He was already better than Eric in the first place lmao

[@brown9671]

@@drewbocop i dont think its about being better its just that its easier to be yourself with only one drummer, sure eric couldve done other weird shit, maybe not as technically impressive but still unique

[@Posterharpua]

Saw my first king gizz show last night and my first observation was holy shit this drummer is world class. Among the Best drummers I’ve seen live - Danny Carey, Jon Fishman, Zach velmer to name the others

[@electrikefeel]

It’s so cool to see the drum fills and all from a really close angle. Thanks for posting

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

I agree! You can chuck it in 0.5x speed for a smooth slow motion (since I shot it in 60fps) to study them even closer!

[@iii2187]

His drumset is weirdly awesome, double bass drum after listening motorhead about 5 years ago

[@peterjonston5905]

4:39 sounds like the intro/main theme for 'Dragon' love it!!!

[@jesseaverdijk9060]

No way, I’m the dude who started rowing at Best Kept Secret and Lowlands aswell. Amazing

[@vulfura]

Cavs my beloved

[@sleeve_e]

yoooo watched this when it came out but re-watching i clocked that sneak-peak of iron lung around @5:52 nice!!

[@TrueAdamRipaStory]

Thank you for posting !!! Cavs is so underrated in the drum community

[@photonpilot__]

33:00 The rowing in the crowd is a popular thing in Europe. There's quite a few metal bands/genres like Viking Metal and the song Put Your Back Into The Oar by Amon Amarth that brought that rowing in the pit thing into the Nordic/European countries.

[@BurgerSauce-nk6dz]

Cavs you are the goat

[@cartdog3]

What a bloke

[@2112CO]

Turning into one of my all time favorite drummers. You can hear Bonham all the way.

[@Plejer1067]

5:52 a little bit of Iron Lung!

[@TACKMONJA]

All CAVS all day baby

[@jacobpg1246]

Thanks for this upload, I swear this man will be noted more publicly sooner than later as one of the greatest drummers of all time

[@SpiralCasterPlaysPedals]

To the people who disagreed here- I think Cav’s stamina and consistency/plus mental retention for time signature changes and styles/genres of playing that Stu throws at him could easily put him in the top tier. And humility should be a factor 😂

[@leodokardosb8207]

Such a lovely guy

[@notsure8847]

Great stuff. A very important part of the KGLW sound on display!

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

He absolutely is, to see his drumming isolated like this too was such an awesome opportunity!

[@unclefreddy2009]

THANK YOU youtube algorithm for bringing this me and thanks so much for posting this! My favorite band, and as a drummer it’s great to see Cavs up close

[@OngoderFurzbanause]

I just can't tell, how much I appreciate this! thank you!

[@nichollebraspennickx943]

I love his drumming so much… huge fan….

[@soupand2sticks921]

Incredible recording! Thanks a bundle for this

[@KhalDrogo76]

He's got a great pocket/feel and that's the #1 most important trait a drummer can have..if they don't have that, all those chops don't mean anything!

[@SpiralCasterPlaysPedals]

Truth

[@frankiesunswept]

Thanks so much for sharing, love this dude

[@jaza451_]

Awesome man. Thanks for documenting this!

[@bloodhoundsoldier7445]

love Cavs !!!

[@skiz_]

thanks for uploading this, AND for the timestamps. legend

[@gd_hmlf]

THANK YOU THANK YOU, the timestamps are incredibly helpful and the video is perfect for what it is, thanks again this is truly amazing !!

[@psychedoutband]

Chillest demo ive ever seen haha. Love it

[@dragon13304]

That makes me even more keen to hear Laminated Denim!!

[@johnbgriffinjr116]

This is so cool…. Love the chill vibe throughout. Definitely a fan of his masterful tub tapping! ✌🏼

[@maxf4]

Such an incredible drummer

[@chonkeich8473]

honestly best drummer of actualitty

[@CYCMELAN]

that's a very professional-looking thumbnail

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

For a very professionally thrown together video ;)

[@CYCMELAN]

@@DeclannShieldsFilms ayyy thanks for filming this

[@DioHard]

What a true gift this upload is! Thanks so much for recording this. Feels like people in a hundred years will find this when they talk about him as they talk about Ringo now, haha. Now I only need the same thing for Baard Kolstad and I can die a happy drummerboi.

[@Oh_Gee]

this is awesome, thanks for posting

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

No worries! Thanks for watching!

[@HAZARDOUS88]

Can't thank you enough for posting this!!

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed

[@MrEtienne1122]

Must have been a sick experience! Thanks for posting!!

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

It really felt like a once in a lifetime thing to see him perform solo up close like that. Thanks for watching!

[@evil_death_roll]

YOU ABSOLUTE LEGEND!!! Thank you! "T2JD"

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Haha thanks, glad you enjoyed! Thanks for watching!

[@keithdoeskungfu]

His hi hats sound so amazing. Also everything else is awesome but those hi hats are fucking sweeeet

[@ariesram74]

Bonzo was also a drummer who did mostly singles I do believe.

[@reptilianbootlegger434]

amazing video! thanks for filming dude

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Thanks for watching!

[@moka8267]

Never even noticed the extra hit of the cymbals in the Oddlife solos part

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

That’s why I filmed it, so I could rewatch and analyse how he does it! and to share with those who couldn’t be there of course

[@polyduckwanaland]

I want to meet him so bad

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

We were very lucky!

[@OnNightmareRadio]

I dig this so much, but damn, it’d be fun to have a conversation about these beats and patterns and how they develop…

[@tmoss89]

Really good dude

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

He was amazing 🤘

[@nebithebold8940]

hey Cav, love ya

[@Dave-op9jd]

Just a heads up if you still feel like changing the timestamps: 26:03 is actually Supreme Ascendancy off of L.W. (though it doesn't get mentioned in the vid)

[@saturnkodiak]

Someone saying The Fourth Colour and it getting skipped over hurts my soul a little, but this was so sick

[@mrmellow01]

Damn I would have asked for the beginning of Melting :D

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Yeah that’d be sick - It’s hard to remember all their songs when you’re a metre away from him! I wish I’d asked to hear a bit of the dripping tap, Murder of the universe (or soy protein munt machine) or something like deserted dunes welcome weary feet!

[@mrmellow01]

@@DeclannShieldsFilms OH yea completely understandable im from the US tho im guessing this took place in Australia

[@ReverseThread]

Very tasty 🍻

[@PocketCloyster]

The James Brown beat is from the song Mother Popcorn

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Awesome, good catch!

[@Vor_Tex_Sun]

Is that James Hetfield JR in the background 😳

[@AyyyGabagool]

3:17 this is the solo he played during Gaia at Bonnaroo 2022

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

That section is from T2JD off of Cavs

[@haroldemmanueltrucco5642]

maaaan i wish someone asked him to play witchcraft!!!

[@DeclannShieldsFilms]

Witchcraft wasn’t out yet haha

[@haroldemmanueltrucco5642]

ooooohhh just noticed the date ha! man that one trips me out@@DeclannShieldsFilms

[@ShineOnBenevolentSun]

I dunno what to play... "Play a drum solo!" 😜

[@kaneda7368]

48:13 god damn, reinforcing the PMDB credit for Eric: nothing

[@sjc2052]

how does he get that high tom tone

[@RideTheLightning18]

Can someone confirm the ride for me, is it a Dream Energy Ride or Crash/Ride?

[@lukasage8487]

Crash ride 22”

[@rum02]

Effortless drumming, making busy complex stuff look pretty darned gosh darned darned eassssy

[@HMan2828]

I just wish someone would have mic'ed up that drumset better!

[@unclefreddy2009]

Kidding right? Amazing how he sounds just like himself due to how he hits

[@kingquasar4721]

Tje sound is ok I just wish the mics didn't cut out when he hits the China