Today we’d like to introduce you to Maxx McGathey.
Maxx, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Music has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. Playing the piano has always felt less like work and more like an adventure, which is why I chose to pursue making original music as a career. Around 2008, I began playing professionally in jazz, rock, and funk groups in Chicago. Then, in 2011, I founded my longest running and most successful project, Gramps The Vamp, which over the years has grown a following in Chicago and beyond with frequent performances around the US and two full-length record releases. The dark, danceable and cinematic style of Gramps The Vamp led me to several film composing commissions, including one for the Chicago Park District’s Movies in the Parks in 2017, and one for the Music Box Theater in 2018.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The most difficult obstacle I’ve encountered is the challenge of deciding how to define success. There are so many ways one can approach a career in music. How you define success can really shape your goals and influence your level of happiness no matter what you do, but it’s especially critical for a musician. My definition of success took many forms before I settled on one that is both realistically attainable and fulfilling to me: to make a living creating original music with a unique voice.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Gramps The Vamp – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I’m very proud of the unique style of music we have crafted- Gramps The Vamp plays a combination of heavy funk/Afrobeat grooves, dark psychedelia, and freak jazz that breaks the mold of our influences and brings some new and intriguing ideas to the canon of groove-based music. I’m also proud of the compositions I’ve written for the group: they are some of my favorite things I’ve written for any project.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m currently writing new material for Gramps The Vamp’s third record and I’m really looking forward to delving even deeper into the doom funk idea. We plan on releasing this record in 2019 and touring extensively around North America and hopefully… Europe!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.maxxmcgathey.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grampsthevamp/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grampsthevamp/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrampstheVamp
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