About

Hello! My name is Brendan Smyth. I am a multi-instrumentalist (primarily a drummer) based in the Chicagoland area.

My three siblings and I were born in Chicago and raised in south suburban Oak Forest. My mother was a Chicago Public Schools special education teacher and my late father was a grade school music teacher and music director/pianist/organist/singer at a handful of local catholic churches.

I discovered my musical talents very early on in life - I was able to hear melodies from songs and play them on my dad's piano at a very young age. I eventually began piano lessons at 8 years old, then discovered my love for percussion a year later. From 4th - 11th grade, I played percussion in all of my school's bands - concert, marching, jazz, etc. I quit the school bands my senior year so I could focus on playing drums with one of my first garage bands, the local legends of Oak Forest - de Triomphe. From that point on, I knew that music was truly my calling. I spent most of my teens and twenties playing in many bands of many different styles.

Now, in my thirties, I still have that same passion that I've always had for music. Every time I play an instrument or sing, I try to improve in some way and just zone out and live in the moment. And now having gone through the pandemic and a very rough '22 and '23 dealing with the loss of my father and other various hardships, I'm very eager to get back to being an active musician.