Migrating at a young age to Tucson from Michigan (via Washington D.C., Minnesota, and Colorado), Daniel Mayhew grew up in a musical family. His father played French horn, which Daniel picked up briefly in elementary school, his mother played piano and accordion, his brother played piano and classical guitar, and his sister became a lawyer. After injecting his brain with large doses of Heavy Metal, Daniel tried to emulate his heroes in Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, and Van Halen on his brother’s classical guitar. Lacking a pick, Daniel broke apart a cassette case and used a shard as a surrogate, severely scratching his brother’s beautiful nylon string guitar in the process. Knowing there was no getting around it, Daniel’s mother bought him his first guitar and amp and signed him up for guitar lessons.
In high school, Daniel played in the school jazz band during his junior and senior years. During this time he cut his teeth in local Tucson bands such as Osiris, Dark as Day, Acid Panic, and Sage Meridien. After a brief stint in college, Daniel joined an alternative band in the stylings of Jane’s Addiction, U2, and Bauhaus called Ouroboros. The group relocated to Las Vegas where they became Caravan and then moved on to Portland as Lighthouse. Eventually the group broke up and Daniel returned to Tucson where he played in a hard rock band named Love Sludge. The Sludge opened for acts such as Ratt, Dread Zeppelin, and Quiet Riot.
After a hiatus, Daniel rejoined the music scene by joining a progressive rock power trio called Then When who released two albums and an EP. Then When played the local Tucson scene and supported acts such as Living Colour and Transit Method. Then When participated in the charity event Tucson’s Got Talent, played live on KXCI, and had radio airplay locally and in Australia. Feeling the pull to play heavier music in a classic two-guitar lineup, Daniel parted ways with Then When and joined with drummer Trek Fitzgerald to create Netherdred.
Daniel is thankful for the opportunity to bring the Netherverse to life with his bandmates, and thankful to friends, family, and fans that have supported his passion for guitar driven music that lets you escape the realities of the world and throw horns, bang heads, and brave the pit \m/ 🙂 \m/
