Add The Revs to the list of comeback kings. They might not have been apart for as long as The Police, or even The Verve, but they too are back with a bang this summer with a new Irish tour.
Adulation from teenage girls, encounters with Jack Osbourne and hi-jinks with coked-up prostitutes – Donegal rockers The Revs are starting to make a name for themselves in Britain and beyond.
Since their debut single ‘Wired To The Moon’ went gold here The Revs have established themselves as Ireland’s hungriest and most energetic rock combo, with an appetite for gigging and an eye for publicity that has seen them embroiled in a number of amusing controversies. But behind the brash exterior is the fascinating story of three dedicated young musicians who have overcome their status as outsiders to build one of the biggest and most loyal grass roots following of any local act. Now with the release of their debut studio album, Suck, they are ready to go international.
Donegal rockers The Revs have been ensconced in Malmo’s prestigious Yellow Studios for the last three months working on the eagerly anticipated follow-up to Suck. Steve Cummins joins the group in Malmo for an exclusive listen to what many expect to be their breakthrough album.
Album number three sees them progress to such a startling extent that they have a right to believe both critical acclaim and commercial success will follow.
You’d want to be extremely hard of heart to remain uncharmed by The Revs. True, they don’t do anything startlingly original, but they’ve got attitude and commitment.
Donegal three-piece The Revs have in two short years become one of the country's most successful independent outfits, but, as Nadine O'Regan discovers, the majors are beckoning
The oh-so-lucky winners of the trip to NYC (not to mention a trip to Donegal, Hot Press subscriptions and a huuuge signed poster of The Revs) are announced
The Revs sign massive international licensing deal with Sony and prepare to release non-difficult second album onto an unsuspecting world. Also: secret Irish gig in December announced (you heard it here first)
Donegal rockers The Revs begin their extensive tour of the Republic on Friday, and if you want check out what they’re like, you can watch a live'n'sweaty performance online.
Two top 20 singles, a top 5 album and a slot on the Rollercoaster tour not good enough for you? Well, no, actually, say The Revs: we wanna play the Ambassador. Make it so
Our correspondent gets his snout out of the suey trough long enough to watch Hal, The Revs and former Snow Patrol man Iain Archer participate in the Eurosonic talentfest in Groningen. Words and Photos: Stuart Clark
Hot Press Magazine and The Campaign for the Prevention of Smoking among Adolescents In the European Union bring the citizens of Dublin a one off, special gig to Meeting House Square at 6.00 pm SHARP this Friday 26th September featuring:
THE REVS [right by Kip Carroll], BLINK & JUNO FALLS
[get there early to avoid disappointment!]
The Flowers remain as positively charged as ever, and songs like 'Hallelujah Jordan' and 'Don't Go' remain among the best to come from an Irish band, but there is a uniform harmlessness to their work that begins to pall before too long
As George W. Bush’s visit to Ireland looms large on the horizon and ceremonial and security preparations go into the final phase, a different kind of welcome is being prepared elsewhere...
John Walshe had a ringside seat for all the music, speeches, laughs and tears that made the 2002 hotpress Irish Music Awards in Belfast a night to remember.
When The Revs imploded, frontman Rory Gallagher bit the bullet and supported himself playing the bars in Lanzarote. Eighteen months later, he’s back with a new solo album.
The latest radio listenership figures suggest that the once embattled Today FM is finally emerging as a credible national alternative to RTE. In the second of a three-part series, Jackie Hayden meets IRMA winner, Hot Press Readers' Poll champion and Pet Sounds-smith Tom Dunne
Early this month Beat 102-103 opened for business as ireland's first regional radio broadcasting station covering Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and Tipperary. according to the beat manifesto the station is targeting the 15-34 year old age group with “an upbeat and entertaining programme schedule provided by young presenters, with the aim of giving the youth of the region a service to reflect their tastes and attitudes.
The biggest ever music exhibition in Ireland will cover all aspects of the entertainment business – with something for every music fan. What’s more, it is happening at the perfect time for Christmas browsing.
The future in nifty twelve-point type, summoned for you out of the ether by the Oracle of Hot Press, the redoubtable, all-powerful, spookily omniscient, scarily prescient, frighteningly knowledgeable but really quite friendly when you get to know him, Old Hayden. Read it and live better
With titles like ‘Cum When You Cum’, ‘Cafe Necrofilia’ and ‘Wasted So Ferociously Stoned’, The Unsuspecting Public will probably not be playing at a folk mass anywhere near you in the forseeable future
As popular with the Europeans as with their home crowd, Therapy? return to Lund for the first time in ten years. Shilpa Ganatra catches up with the lads to find out how their tour is going and what the rest of the year holds in store.
The latest radio listenership figures suggest that the once embattled Today FM is finally emerging as a credible national alternative to RTE. In the third of a four-part series, Jackie Hayden breakfasts - as do more Irish radio listeners than ever - with morning-show helmsman Ian Dempsey
There is many a haven for shunners of the Christmas Cheer like myself. Lots of lovely bands, singers, comedians and even hynotherapists are at hand to entertain the life out of us, and distract Santa while we throttle him. Right up to the New Year there’s so much going on you needn’t come home till Easter.
Many Irish radio fans reckon that the 2fm evening schedule is at its most exciting for years – from 6 pm, when a revitalised Dave Fanning comes on, right through to Hotpress columnist Cormac Battle signing off at 2am. One of the linchpins of that stretch is Dubliner Rick O’Shea. To celebrate his tenth year in radio we sent Jackie Hayden to ask O’Shea a few leading questions and to check out the great man’s credentials with his colleagues.
So what’s it really like to take your band from Dublin to New York in search of that elusive breakthrough? Little Ghetto Boys present their diary of a Paddy’s week mini-tour of the Big Apple with special guest appearances by La Rocca, Mark Geary and others...
In a year that saw events which will forever change the world in which we live, selected hotpress contributors offer some personal recollections of the past twelve months. We begin by listing the critics’ choice of 2001’s single and album releases
It wasn't too long ago that The Blizzards were unknown outside of their native Mullingar. Now they've three top 10 Irish singles to their credit and an album, A Public Display Of Affection, that has the potential to explode internationally.
Otherwise known as the foursome from Athlone who ruffled Hugh Hefner’s marabou feathers (when they adopted his famous Playboy logo as their own), Bunny’s debut single ‘Fearless’, released last year, gave listeners an interesting taste of things to come. The good news? Slick Corporate Music delivers on this promise.
From A to Z, Paul Nolan and Ronan Fitzgerald introduce all the runners and riders for Punchestown – throwing in a baker’s dozen of acts who are not to be missed* along the way
When a gang of Ireland’s finest musicians, media stars and political types gathered in the Central Hotel for pre-Christmas drinks, there were fun and games aplenty. reporting: Stephen Bailey, Stuart Clark and Roisin Dwyer. Photos: Mick Quinn and Graham Keogh. Costumes: courtesy of The Dublin Costume Company.
From the biggest international names to the most dynamic local creations, festivals make Ireland a good place to be in summer, even when the sun refuses to put in an appearance
Ten, nine, eight… we count down the contenders for 2003. Words Hannah Hamilton, Colin Carberry, Niall Stokes, Richard Brophy, John Walshe, Eamon Sweeney and Stuart Clark
Brushing shoulders with the likes of Bob Dylan, Van Morrison and Bertie Ahern is currently all in a day’s work for hugely acclaimed singer-songwriter, Juliet Turner. But, as she tells Hot Press, the singer’s Northern Methodist upbringing has left her with a distaste for the spotlight and an overwhelming desire for creative and personal independence.
With a new 'best of' bringing the band's story up to date U2's guitar man steps forward to riff on good times and bad, the private life of a public figure, discovering the secrets of the universe on mushrooms and why, after all these years, few things match the high of being a member of U2.
Special hotpress.com members edition: "director's cut" featuring interview sections unavailable anywhere else.
So Bono and the lads did appear at last night’s IRMA Meteor Music Awards in the end (you would, too, if you had eight of them to collect). Read on for the IRMA results in full
With song after song full of aching melodies, luscious harmonies, chorus, chime and riffs that'll have you quaking in your boots, it isn't hard to see what all the fuss is about
While their paucity of years may occasionally be reflected in the lyrical themes of Hey, Jack! You’re Late!’, the album has moments of inspired noisemaking and compelling melody that hoarier headbangers would give limbs for
Spiritualised, The Redneck Manifesto, Redsettaz and Telepopmusic are merely a few of the latest additions to the delightfully overstuffed Witnness '02 bill
Gorge yourself on a selection of exclusive (and in some cases never-before-seen) hotpress.com video interviews from Witnness past, as well as some of the artists gracing the stage at Witnness 2003
Get a cross section of the Irish music industry to record/re-record tracks in their native tongue, thereby focusing the attention of the very group of people who hold the future of the language in their hands. It could have been awful, of course, a crass attempt to get down with the kids and make learning cool. Yet Ceol ‘06 manages to work on a number of levels.
Christy Moore declared “some of the finest songs I know are American, as are some of the finest people”. He expressed resentment that his involvement in the gig should be seen as anti-American. Moore made his point in the very simple but effective gesture of playing mostly American-written songs, before introducing The Haliburtons from Texas, who delighted the crowd with their own songs of protes
The use of rock music for soundtracking and advertising purposes has opened up important new avenues for artists eager to get their music out to a mass audience.
Like its predecessors, this double CD features some of the finest Irish and international artists in a pared-down, mostly unplugged setting, letting the songs do the talking
Maybe the place is just too big, maybe the sound's too low or the songs too weak, but rapt musical attention is giving way to inflatable chair fights and beery boredom
...here's the Hot Press Irish Music Awards, and a massive bash avec much live music is pencilled in for Belfast in April. Read on for the categories and nominees in full
Former Revs leader Rory will launch debut solo album God Bless The Big Bang with an instore signing and acoustic session at HMV on Dublin's Henry Street.
The Hot Press Irish Music Awards proved to be as keenly contested as ever with U2, Ash and The Corrs emerging as big winners. But the number of awards acknowledging nascent talent prove there’s more heavy-hitters waiting in the wings
