Michael Cavanagh

Michael Cavanagh (born 5 July 1990) is an Australian drummer best known for being the drummer for King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. He also releases solo music under the pseudonym CAVS.

Musical career Cavanagh grew up in Deniliquin, New South Wales and was drawn to drumming at an early age. Cavanagh became the drummer for a band called The Houses which was formed in 2005 and by 2010 consisted of him, Lucas Skinner, Blaise Adamson, and Stu Mackenzie. However, despite this, he was not an original member of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, which was formed by Mackenzie, Joey Walker, and Eric Moore in 2010, rather, he joined the band via an audition.

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

Cavanagh (right) and Moore (left) performing at Rough Trade East in London. Cavanagh would join the band as their dedicated drummer, with Eric Moore as the band's manager. Besides their highly prolific discography, King Gizzard was also known due to their novelty of having two drummers.

In 2022, while touring in Greece, Cavanagh would come down with COVID-19 and would be replaced for two shows by a drum machine.

Solo career On June 8, 2021, Cavanagh announced that he would release a solo album of some of his drum solos under the pseudonym CAVS. Alongside this announcement came a video of a ten-minute solo dubbed T2JD, directed by John Stewart (who made other Gizzard music videos, including the video for "Some of Us"). The self-titled album CAVS would be released on July 9. He would release another single, Gun Point on August 28 of that year.

On February 24, 2026, a second CAVS solo album was announced, titled Sojourn. The album was produced by Mildlife drummer Jim Rindfleish alongside collaborations from other Melbourne-based musicians, and was described as a "journey through Cavs' rythmic imagination". The album was announced alongside a lead single, Candiru.

Discography

Studio albums (as CAVS) Title Details Peak chart positions AUS CAVS Released: 9 July 2021 Label: PHC Films (PHC-002) Formats: LP, streaming — Sojourn Released: 24 April 2026 Label: p(doom) Records (PDOOM-018LP) Formats: LP, streaming 88

Singles (as CAVS) Title Details T2JD Released: 7 June 2021 Label: PHC Films Formats: Streaming Swordfish Released: 18 June 2021 Label: PHC Films Formats: Streaming Fury Gong Released: 7 July 2021 Label: PHC Films Formats: Single, streaming Gun Point Released: 28 August 2021 Label: PHC Films Formats: Single, streaming Candiru Released: 24 February 2026 Label: p(doom) Records Formats: Single, streaming First Light Released: 26 March 2026 Label: p(doom) Records Formats: Single, streaming

Personal life Cavanagh is married to Amy née Findlay, the drummer for Stonefield.