Australian session musician, drummer, percussionist and vocalist.

drumdriver1@gmail.com

A DRUMMING NATURAL…

Danny McKenna is an Australian session musician who has displayed a passionate involvement in drumming and music for over twenty five years.

He is a highly regarded and spirited player, whose uniquely textural approach to playing the drums has earned him well-deserved recognition.

With an intuitive musical language that combines innate feel, adeptness and flair with perceptive listening, Danny is called upon to perform and record regularly with high profile Australian and international acts.

Working primarily in the Australian Blues/Roots/Soul scene, he is also embraced by artists in other genres like jazz, world, experimental soundscape and hard rock.

 

Live to air on PBSFM 106.7 with instrumental psychedelic ensemble Magic Mountain Band

Danny cherishes the connection made through a live music experience, and brings a solid professional approach and expressive performance to every show.

Regular touring and recording gigs in 2023 are with multiple ARIA award winners Jeff Lang and C.W. Stoneking, Yorta Yorta singer/songwriter Benny Walker, melodic pop architect Ainslie Wills, award winning speaker/author/creative leader Mykel Dixon and nu-folk rebel Nigel Wearne. Read further below about the wide breadth of artists who engage Danny for tours and session work.

Danny has enjoyed tours across continents including Spain, France, Turkey, Japan, Austria and New Zealand, and performed at renowned international festivals such as Fuji Rock and Sakifo, Reunion Island.

International artists that Danny has toured and recorded for include gruff Canadian troubadour Ben Caplan, New Zealand crooner Marlon Williams, Irish folk hero Gallie and Norwegian dark pop songstress Zia.

With world music ensemble Unified Gecko at Federation Square, Melbourne Australia

Gallie's 'The Occoquan River' album launch at Memo Music Hall, St Kilda. Pic by Marcus Byrne.

Danny is a veteran performer at esteemed Australian festivals, including Byron Bay Bluesfest, Womadelaide, Port Fairy Folk Festival, Woodford Folk Festival, St Kilda Festival, Meredith Music Festival, A Day On The Green, Queenscliff Music Festival, Blues at Broadbeach, Blues at Bridgetown, Cairns Music Festival, National Folk Festival, Thredbo Blues, Darwin Festival, Dark MOFO, The Gympie Muster and Falls Festival, to name a few.

With Mia Dyson at the Supernatural Ampitheatre, Meredith Music Festival

With Ben Caplan at Woodford Folk Festival, Queensland.

Danny has been fortunate to drum with a diverse range of global artists throughout his career, in genres including

BLUES with Matt Walker, CW Stoneking, Chris Wilson, Ian Collard, Shaun Kirk, Benny Walker, Ray Beadle,

FUNK/SOUL with Kylie Auldist, Lance Ferguson, Clairy Browne, The Wolfgramm Sisters, Ella Thompson, Phill Ceberano, Jo Jo Smith,

JAZZ with Steve Magnusson, Tamara Murphy, Paul Williamson, Tim Neal, Claire Patti, Carl Pannuzzo

REGGAE with Nicky Bomba, Blue King Brown,

ROCK/POP with Dan Sultan, Ella Hooper, John Butler, Vernon Reid, Dallas Frasca, Paul Greene,

FOLK with William Crighton, Jordie Lane, Emily Lubitz, Jill Barber, Greg Arnold, David Bridie, Neil Murray, Sime Nugent, Jaron Freeman Fox, Leah Flanagan, Suzannah Espie,

CORPORATE events/conferences with Phil Ceberano, Mykel Dixon, and

WORLD with Bobby Singh, Frank Yamma, The Borderers, Neda Rahmani, Savas Zurnaci and Joseph Tawadros.

The wide musical breadth of these artists is testament to Danny’s seasoned expertise.

Mia Dyson's 'The Moment' record launch at The Corner Hotel, Melbourne.

Photo by Hans J. Jahr

Supporting Eric Clapton at the Sydney Entertainment Centre with Jeff Lang (duo).

Danny works on request as a recording session artist for a variety of musicians, producers and studios.

He relishes the process and collaboration that is captured when in studio, and has been a contributor on over forty releases. 

He makes a point of incorporating diverse and emerging artists into his roster, and has worked across Australia with producers like Paul McKercher (Midnight Oil, The Cruel Sea, the Living End) and Mark Opitz (ACDC, Bob Dylan, INXS, Lenny Kravitz, Paul Kelly). 

Session for (and photo by) Mitch Cairns; overdubbing drums and percussion onto existing tracks.

Tracking some live e-kit drums for a television show soundtrack for Keegan Music, Melbourne, Australia.

Recording with jazz guitarist Robbie Melville for his forthcoming 2016 release at Incubator Studios.

Also pictured is pedal steel player Garret Costigan.

In good hands here, exploring sonic textures and drum grooves for (and photo by) Brett Langsford. Also pictured is engineer, ambient sound artist and jazz drummer Joe Talia. 

Touring exposure and recognition throughout Danny's career has led to endorsement deals with world-renowned Italian cymbal company UFIP, Turkish cymbal manufactures Bosphorus, Australian distributors of SONOR drums.

Most recently Danny was asked to join the exclusive artist roster of a boutique custom drum maker in Melbourne Australia, Swan Drums. See the video section below for examples of him talking about and playing some of these wonderful drum sets.

In 2013 Danny was awarded an ARIA for his drumming and percussion work on Jeff Lang’s ‘Carried In Mind’(Best Blues and roots Album).

Danny can also claim true universal distribution. A track from Magic Mountain Band’s 'Wilderman' was chosen for inclusion on a gold record, which was sent into space, as part of the Forever Now project in 2014.

(1994-Present)

LISTEN:

SPONSORSHIP

Swan Drums

LIVE

Jeff Lang

Mia Dyson

drumcam

drum solos

miscellaneous

Music videos

Danny McKenna continues to passionately embrace music as a collaborative art form amongst an expanding creative collective.

Say g'day today. 

drumdriver1@gmail.com

Image by Wilk

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