Thor Harris is a fairly multi-talented man. Aside from being the chief percussionist for experimental rock band Swans, an activist, a spokesperson and a carpenter, he's also not bad at negotiating the shoddy Hot Press phone signals from all the way out in Baltimore.

Thor is making a brief stop in the Maryland city before jetting off to Ireland for two performances at the Drogheda Arts Festival on April 27 & 28. He's performed in Ireland several times before, but this time around, he'll be bringing something new.

"I'm coming to give a reading from my book, Ocean of Despair, which is kind of an illustrated account about my descent into depression and my battle with it. I'm hoping that after the reading, the audience and I can get into a discussion where other people can talk about their experiences or knowledge of depression. I've done those kind of readings before in America and in Canada, but it'll be interesting to see how it works in an Irish context."