This year's IMRO Showcase series features Dublin based pop punksters The Subtonics. Despite being together only eight months, Mark, Shane, Gareth and Mirish have made a considerable impact on their own idiosyncratic terms.
To mark The Festival of Fools on April 1st they performed a riotous show in the Dublin Brewing Company Brewery in Smithfield, which despite being a riot and piss-up in a brewery ranks as only one of their less confrontational shows.
In October 1999, they played from a roof behind HQ to a packed laneway as the Hot Press Awards were in full swing. "We got up everyone's noses RTE, BBC, Channel 4 and the Gardai," says Mark. "There were two vans full of riot police called in."
"The funny thing was that with cops so used to dealing with dance events and illegal raves they had no idea how to deal with a rock band!", adds Gareth. "We did it because the Awards did nothing to give exposure to new acts. All those acts were on the pig's back as it is, they don't need a push to sell more albums. They all have good stable careers while there are a multitude of bands being ignored. Everyone was too busy slapping each other's backs and licking each other's arses.
I was watching Bono last night on From A Whisper To A Scream and he's going on about how great The Corrs and Boyzone are! Mark continues. He came from a background of The Blades, The Undertones, The Rats and the Radiators! I'm shocked that he doesn't have the balls to voice his own opinions and a lot of people in the so-called Irish music industry are the same. We're pissing people off so what? Niall Stokes said in From A Whisper To A Scream that he knew The Virgin Prunes would be big because they were pulling off such spectacular stunts, and what we're doing is no different."
The Subtonics didn't stop there, and performed from a stage on a raft opposite The Point when the MTV Europe awards were on last November. While some may dispute the wisdom of their guerrilla publicity tactics, their first show on land in the Music Centre was a complete sell-out, and they have since played support to Stiff Little Fingers and sold out headline shows in Whelan's.
Their debut album is rather unsurprisingly titled Two Fingers To The World, and the first single 'Half Time Holiday' will be released on their own label Main Aim.
"We're going to do what Mother Records said they'd do but never did. We are recording the album in Loop Studios which is a collective that helps out young bands and gives them a hand with their sound. There is nobody else who genuinely gives a shit for nurturing bands like that apart from Aidan Walsh. A lot of people dismiss him and write him off but that is just musicians being too cool to be cool and the media being too cool to be cool. We're coming close to the end of rock n' roll in Ireland and we're going to do something about it."
Mark forged his strong DIY ethnic after legendary modish punk outfit The Josephs disintegrated through the soul destroying process of being spun on the rock merry go round.
"The magic disappeared for me," explains Mark. We were knee deep in a fuck-off industry we had absolutely no control over. I got pissed off and depressed after The Josephs split up, but I decided to go for what I knew was the only thing that would make me happy. We are extremely passionate about what we do, and if that passion offends anyone, fuck them.
Young kids are being spoon-fed bullshit. There are all these record labels around but it doesn't matter a damn it s ultimately a one horse race of making as much money as possible and being as formulaic as is necessary to achieve that. There is still great stuff around Brian Jackson is an unsung genius who will shock people. The Walls are a fucking amazing band that never get their dues, and there's a young band called Spiderbaby who are brilliant but they don't realise it and give themselves a push.
"Outside the tabloids no one has written about us yet, but we've sold out every gig we've done and set up UK dates in July including a show in The Cavern. The first single is out in the next month with a video that will surprise and shock people. We're also got a few tricks up our sleeve that will make playing on a roof look tame."
Dublin Ireland consider yourselves warned. The Subtonics play the IMRO Showcase in Whelan's on Thurday 13th April and Mon Roes, Galway on May 26th.