Daygan

Growing up between Liverpool and Manchester Daygan felt the influence of the local live music scene from an early age. Finding an abandoned mandolin at the age of 9 had a profound effect, and he started his first band at the age of 14 playing Indie Rock music.

Having been in several bands since then, Daygan has slowly moved from Indie Rock to Folk Rock, through rediscovering the sweet sounds of the mandolin and also developing a love for the bouzouki.

Daygan started Dragonsfly with Maya in 1998, and continues to be a strong, driving force behind it’s development. Musically, he creates a bridge between the bass and drums and the melodic instruments. Moving between crisp lead lines, to strong, driven rhythms, he juxtaposes Eastern Reggae with Rock, creating a depth of textures and adding colour to the music. He also adds his own songs in to the mix, with his characterful, broad, northern, dulcet tones.

Amongst other things, Daygan also has a passion for pottery (ceramics degree and teacher), motorbikes, surfing and body art. He and Maya continue their exploration of ancient historical sites, travelling to stone circles with mandolin and bagpipes, enjoying and rekindling the bardic heritage of this land. His local stone circle is Stanton Drew, which he regularly visits on his motorbike. He connects with the land and many aspects of nature in these places of inspiration and magic.

For Daygan, Dragonsfly is a conglomeration of lots of aspects of his life and beliefs, from magic to the discipline and skill involved in developing musical abilities. He loves the creative spark between the band members and the friendship too.

His mandolin is a Paul Hathway handmade, with a solid top and cedarwood flat back. His bouzouki is a handmade Richard Osborne flat back, with a solid top of spruce and fruit woods. He also plays banjolin, bass and guitar.

Daygan has widely varying musical tastes, taking in The Velvet Underground, Gong, (he played with Daevid Allen as part of his band at The Big Green Gathering in 2000), Fairport Convention, Sonic Youth, Pentangle, The Fall, Nick Drake, The Doors, Malicorne, The Cardiacs, Ravi Shankar, Blowzabella, Nirvana and The Red Hot Chilli Peppers!