In an innovative approach to public relations, along with Cork punk foursome Los Langeros, Ten Past Seven earned themselves the title of the Highest Band In Ireland two years back when they played a gig at 3,000 ft. “Ourselves and Los Langeros wanted to bring out a split CD and it turned into a split vinyl because we had the opportunity to do a full analogue recording,” Shallow explains. “We said ‘We’ll get the tape reels, we’ll put it onto vinyl, it’ll be fantastic!’ and then I dunno where the mountain idea came from. Carrantuohill, you can see it
out our bedroom windows, it’s only 20 minutes down the road so we thought we should climb Carrantuohill and play a gig on top! “We had battery powered amps and acoustic guitars, bongos, bodhrans and harmonicas. It was a beautiful day and there were around six or seven English and German tourists there, just baffled. There was a goat and then there was those tourists.” If you think scaling the highest peak in Ireland was somewhat of a male bonding experience, you’re underestimating the Killarney natives’ relationship. “We’ve been playing music together since I was 13, what’s that? I’d say around 11 or 12 years by now,” Shallow laughs. Starting life as Rift, Matt Shallow, Ger Mangan and Rory O’Brien reformed under the moniker of Ten Past Seven when all three found themselves in the Music Management & Sound course at Colaiste Stiofain Naofa in Cork. “We met a lot of great musicians in that course, some of them have done very well. Mick Flannery was in our class and Katie Kim.” Indeed, collaborator Katie’s understated vocals are the first to grace Ten Past Seven’s tunes in quite a while. Was making instrumental music a conscious decision on the boys’ part? “Rory said that he just didn’t want to sing anymore,” Shallow explains, “and then we saw two instrumental bands, Rest and Weasel, who both really blew us away. Instrumental music is much more accessible. When people go to gigs and hear a singer they tend to focus on what the message is and that kind of takes away from the music.” Shallow is adamant that there was no eureka moment... and that it didn’t happen at 7.10pm one evening. Even if it doesn’t mean much to them, the name Ten Past Seven has brought about
a few curious coincidences of late. “Recently we found out that there had been a Ten Past Seven from Belfast that did very well locally,” he reveals. Headed by Brian’s big bro Bap Kennedy, that Ten Past Seven merged with fellow rockers the Bankrobbers to form late ‘80s rock outfit Energy Orchard... kids, ask your parents! “That there was another Ten Past Seven seems quite strange. Also, people keep telling us that in the movie Ring, all the clocks are set at ten past seven.” Scary! Ten Past Seven play The Quad, Cork on October 31. Giveamanakick