mick mccullugh

It is another day and another Interview With A Vaulter!

This time with Michael Mac Cu Uladh from Son of The Hound.

How's it going, Michael?

It’s going mostly grand for me. I get up days and I get down days, but it’s the people who I live with that I pity the most. Never before have they been subject to my inane questions and insipid musings about the world around us.

What is your living situation? Do you have outside space or are you living in an underground bunker?

We have a small rooftop terrace, which makes us sound fancy, but we’re not. We can’t even get birds to come and eat from our bird feeders. We are thinking of relaxing our ‘no magpies’ policy but it’s a slippery slope. Next thing we’ll be begging rats to come and eat our crumbs. There’s no coming back from rat-begging, which is the McCullagh family motto.

How has the pandemic affected your arts practice?

I work in scriptwriting and in music - both have taken a hit. A lot of scriptwriting is speculative, you do all the work in the hope that someone picks it up and buys/rents the rights of it for development. It means I’m still working as normal but the industry has almost ground to a halt, so producers aren’t looking to take on and develop projects the way they had been two months ago. I had just completed my first ever week of pitch meetings with producers before this shitshow rained down on the world.

How are you coping with the temporary closing of the Vault?

I miss my drums so much. But when the weather is good I try not to spend too much time in my windowless studio, so I worked from the member’s room. I really miss the craic in there. Or even the seating area outside. What I wouldn’t give to be out in that sun out the front of the Vault right now.

What do you appreciate during lockdown?

I’ve been doing a podcast for the last 2.5 years, and we’ve used the lockdown to interview other artists rather than recording in our normal format. It’s been a port in the storm at times, and feels great to be able to share and communicate with like-minded people who are struggling as well. I also appreciate the time we have to cook now. The biggest upside to lockdown is that my diet has never been better. Although it should be noted I have counterbalanced it with an unholy amount of red wine.

How do you imagine the future after lockdown? For yourself and the wider art world in general.

Is it too optimistic to hope that the world becomes a fairer place? The people who were once described as unskilled/unqualified are now essential workers. Celebrities are all stood looking at the reflection of their giant private pools, staring at their own irrelevance while underpaid nurses go to work in bin bags to save vulnerable people. That has to be addressed. For myself, I’m never going to take a pint of Guinness for granted again.

Where can people find you online?

I’m most active on twitter.com/sonofhound or instagram @sonofthehound.

https://twitter.com/sonofhound

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyTNiQ-tSdU

Thanks!!