Two Icelandic natives who came together in London and have carved out a niche playing supremely melodic, melancholy pop music – boy-girl duo The Honeymoon look to be here for the long run.
Ahead of his Dublin gig, Motown legend Smokey Robinson tells Hot Press what it was like running one of the greatest music labels in the history of pop music.
As the management force behind Boyzone, Westlife and Samantha Mumba, LOUIS WALSH is Ireland s Mr. Pop. In a candid interview with Joe Jackson he talks about his relationships with his acts, the ones that got away, the importance of the producer, the uselessness of critics and why he s unlikely to end up managing Van Morrison. Portraits: Cathal Dawson
OUT FROM BEHIND THE GREASE-PAINT THAT ADORNS HIS FACE ON THE COVER OF ‘SPIKE’, ELVIS COSTELLO EMERGES TO TALK ABOUT THE MUSIC THAT RUNS IN HIS FAMILY FROM BIG-BAND TO SPEED-METAL, HIS MUCH-TOUTED IRISH CONNECTION, WORKING WITH PAUL McCARTNEY, HIS CONTEMPT FOR MUCH OF TODAY’S POP MUSIC AND THE FEELINGS THAT INSPIRED HIS DEATH-WISH FOR MARGARET THATCHER.
Lucky Soul make pop music for indie fans, in a similar fashion to St. Etienne and The Cardigans. What we’ve got here is lush, twinkling girl-pop, with a rich, Motown sweep and bundles of style. Hard to resist, frankly.
Cowboy X’s follow up to debut ‘Gabbi’ continues their marriage of Kim Deal vocals and Goldfrapp melodies, amid wafts of guitar-induced electronica. Peppered with hooks, ‘Between The Hit And The Miss’ references punk and radio-friendly pop before erupting into a mass of sunshine electronica. Constantly shifting styles and consistently engaging, this is pop music for the thinking man. Good stuff.
You can’t but hark back to the days when Ash made good punky pop music. But thank goodness for the fantastic Nine Black Alps. The Manchester boys possess the same youthful energy which Tim Wheeler and company used to churn out at the drop of a hat.
Good news kids. Bent have dropped the silliness and sample-overload attitude of their Programmed To Love debut in favour of well-crafted, perfectly executed ethereal pop music.
This bunch of anonymous San Francisco parodists have been deconstructing pop music for well over 30 years with mixed results. While their avant-garde approach makes them an acquired taste at best you have to admire their longevity and refusal to conform. Personally, I hated this!
The common view is that making throwaway pop music is a piece of cake, which is probably right unless you’re looking to produce something that will stand the test of time beyond two and a half minutes. The Radio fall into that trap, clearly trying to come up with something both light and substantial but ‘One Of Two Ways’ is just too flimsy, not helped by a complete lack of bottom end to the production.
Tales Of Silversleeve is pop music that it’s OK for indie fans to revel in, taking the listener on a musical journey that’s as inventive and idiosyncratic as it is infectious.
How much do we love the Pipettes? Let us count the ways. A ‘60s girl group for the riot grrrrl generation, they make disposable pop music that is built to last, and do it in matching polka dot dresses. ‘Your Kisses...’ is absolutely fantastic, and comes from an album that will most probably guarantees them media darling status and makes them your new favourite band. Love it, love it, love it.
The Duran Duran sound and Suede-like lyrics in ‘She Waits For Me’ all lend themselves well to an excellent historical reconstruction of another musical era. A slick production, the big guitar sound has all the right festival twang and shriek to it. “We want to make pop music cool again,” goes their manifesto, so it’s up to you whether to take that as a gesture of optimism or a snide dig.
Like one of his heroes, Bob Dylan, Karl Wallinger may not be the finest singer the world has ever heard, but he certainly is one of the planet’s finest pop music composers.
Wallinger’s songs are confounding buggers, though.
Not wishing to put myself or my colleagues out of business, but some records simply do not need a written description. All you really need to know about the Arctic Monkeys’ ‘Fake Tales Of San Francisco’ and its withering look at music biz wannabes is that it contains the line “his bird thinks he’s amazing so all that’s left is the proof that love’s not only blind it’s deaf". That should say it all. Still, we get paid by the word, so I feel duty bound to inform you that this is one of the most razor-sharp, witty and memorable records you’ll hear this year. It’s also entirely fitting that the Monkeys should come from Sheffield, as they slot nicely into the region’s penchant for producing biting, intelligent alternative pop music ("you’re not from New York City you’re from Rotherham” could have come straight out of the Smiths’ songbook), presented with in such a knowing manner that you’re reminded of Mike Skinner fronting the Fall. Their fleeting Irish debut may have been and gone, but we’ll know what to do next time.
In 1980, with the various Irish bands who have taken the easy road in terms of rock'n'roll fashion, it is easy to overlook the emergence and development of other groups. Scullion are a good example, every bit as committed and interesting as others, yet adopting a form that is at divergence with much of what's going down in pop music at the moment.
Unashamedly sunny, musically, while the lyrics often tread far darker and more complex water, OK Go! is inventive, interesting and intelligent pop music from a band unafraid to take risks.
Four years is a hell of a long time in pop music – the fact that The Corrs could afford to lay low for such an extended period is a testament to the band’s confidence in their audience...
Is there any other artist in the history of pop music who has used the words “I”, “Me”, “My”, “Mine” with such regularity? No wonder one UK critic was recently moved to describe Alanis Morissette as “the Queen of self-absorption”.
HAILING FROM Macroom, Co. Cork are the recently formed Coil, a four-piece who trade in a type of narcotic Goth pop music. The group’s line-up is Ann-Marie Ryan (vocals), Mark Tangney (guitar), Paul Kelleher (bass) and Rory Hanly (drums).
On her sixth album, Missy Elliott has – for the most part – ended her long-running working relationship with gifted producer Timbaland. It’s difficult to be happy about the death of a partnership that has thrown up some of the most dazzlingly futuristic pop music of recent years, but it was a collaboration that had been on the wane for some time.
Currently flavour of the season in the UK, where they are being hailed as the new saviours of British pop music (ie this year’s Coldplay), Keane are the victims of that most despised of four-letter words, hype.
Shop-assistant by day, budding songwriter by night, Funzo's Liam McDermott has finally gotten around to unleashing his debut album. He talks about forging his own path and his love for musical cross-pollination.
Though soaked in the musical culture of Southern California, female-fronted indie quartet Saucy Monky say there’s an undeniably Irish strain to their music.
Dublin art-rockers Rollers/Sparkers are currently earning critical garlands for their debut EP, Geography For The Leaving erudite band member, John McMahon, here holds forth on the local music scene and forsaking academia for rock’n’roll.
The criterati may not like them but Adrian Young doesn't care. and why should he when No Doubt have crafted a most excellent pop record, with dancehall rhythms, in rock steady
In the instant world of pop music, it would be fair to say that life can be a bit of a rollercoaster – as some of our homegrown teenybop maestros discovered in 2001. But WESTLIFE and SAMANTHA MUMBA are still riding high.
BY STEPHEN ROBINSON
An estimated 100,000 people showed up in the Phoenix Park for the O2 sponsored gig that featured Samantha Mumba, Ronan Keating, Mundy, Six, David Kitt and Kells' rock outfit Turn. Would one of the local scenes hottest contenders shine brightly enough to win the hearts of the nation’s pop kids?
Currently riding the crest of a wave following the unexpected chart success of ‘Danger! High Voltage’, Electric Six frontman Dick Valentine here puts paid to those rumoured Jack White/Bill Clinton collaborations.
Irish teen popsters B*WITCHED last month became only the seventh act in chart history to see their debut single go straight in at Number One in the UK Top 40. Are they the latest great white hope for pop music, or simply a troupe of over-hyped cod-ceili dancers? And what does all this signify for the Irish music industry as a whole? peter murphy reports.
Two girls, two countries, two very different perspectives: put them together and they make Saucy Monky – originators of some of the sexiest and most addictive guitar driven pop music we’ve heard in years.
She may be very sensitive about babies and young people and her ideal bloke might have to be respectful, responsible and Christian – but that don’t mean Kelly Rowland doesn’t want to be bootylicious.
Or how a short-term model, aspiring novelist and Indie kitten became a sophisti-cat and lived to twitch her tale. Peter Murphy meets the multi-layered Sophie Ellis Bextor
Paul Smith of Geordie punk-pop sensations Maxïmo Park talks to Phil Udell about breaking out of stylistic straight-jackets, the band's affinity with fellow northerners The Futureheads, and why Jose Mourinho's managerial philiosophy is equally as applicable to music as it is to football.
Rregarded as the original, manufactured boy band, once upon a time The Monkees ruled the world. Now, half of television's fab four are back and, as you might expect, they have quite a tale to tell. Joe Jackson talks to Davy Jones and Micky Dolenz
The Corrs Talk On Corners was the biggest-selling album of 1998 in the UK. So far it s shifted 6 million copies worldwide and rising. And now the band are set to embark on their American campaign, with who knows what ultimate destination at journey s end. So they ve had it easy, eh? It s all a big marketing scam, masterminded by the moguls in the American record company that signed them? We thought you d like to know so we put these and other accusations to someone who should know, their manager of nine years, john hughes. And got some interesting answers too. Interview: niall stokes.
Prior to their recent Dublin gig, THE BLUETONES talked to NADINE O REGAN about the fickleness of fame, artistic integrity, America and the dangers of sausage sponsorship!
Personally speaking, the death of the wonderful Elliott Smith was a major blow his year. I found out about his suicide through Ollie Cole, who had e-mailed me with a very succinct, “Elliott Smith is dead. He was my king”, on the day of his death.
Erasure - namely Vince Clarke and Andy Bell have been creating electronic pop for over a decade. John Walshe catches up with them on a recent promotional tour.
He’s just knocked Lady GaGa off the top of the UK charts with his banging new single ‘I’m Not Alone’. So why is CALVIN HARRIS so worried about sounding like an oldie chasing after his fading youth?
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.
As rock’n’roll’s finest get ready to remake ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ Colm O’Hare talks to the man who kickstarted it and numerous other hits, Midge Ure.
Following the implosion of Suede, drummer Simon Gilbert quit the rock'n'roll business and moved to Thailand, only to hook up with a pair of fellow ex-pats, making big music under the Futon banner.
Dark circumstances surrounding the making of her new album and the everyday hassles of fame notwithstanding, Macy Gray assures Paul Nolan that, for her, the thrill has definitely not gone
The Heineken Rollercoaster Tour is taking to the road again and this time the capital is nobody’s hometown gig. From Kells come Turn, from Limerick Woodstar and from Cork The Frank and Walters. Next stop: a venue near you.
englebert humperdinck s legendary career stretches over the past 30 years. Now, however, it s reinvention ahoy! as he releases . . . a dance album. adrienne murphy meets The King Of Romance and is told she has a beautiful handshake .
Get your dancing shoes on. Electro newcomers Magistrates are here to rock your blocks off. They talk about hanging out with Damon Albarn, worshipping Michael Jackson and living up to the legacy of heroes like Bowie and Talking Heads
An Irish band who don’t entirely fit in at home, Relish can console themslves with a great new album Karma Calling, and an international fanbase that stretches from the U.S. to Japan.
An Irish band who don’t entirely fit in at home, Relish can console themslves with a great new album Karma Calling, and an international fanbase that stretches from the U.S. to Japan.
From Sheffield via New York to Montreal, Stars vocalist Tarquill Campbell is happy to fetch up in a place where “loving The Smiths is not against the law, yet”.
He used to be an actor but there's nothing showbizzy about Johnny Flynn's baroque folk-pop. He tells us what it's like to grow up in a thespian household and of his friendship with Kevin Spacey.
In Auckland, it was punk rock, gang wars, heroin and prostitution. In Cavan, it s rolling countryside, a recording studio in a church and more dogs than you could throw a stick for. It s been a long way from there to here for BRENDAN PERRY, the former partner in Dead Can Dance who now has a solo album on release.
Interview: NICK KELLY. Pix: CATHAL DAWSON.
The former NME rock crit, ZTT founder and hyper of Frankie has written a book. But it s not about pop it s about the suicide of his dad. PETER MURPHY reports on how Nothing matters.
Vampire Weekend, the preppy Ivy Leaguers whose Afro-beat references indie pop, talk about instant fame, their fondness for nice trousers and class politics in America.
Pop star, movie star, UNICEF youth ambassador – Samantha Mumba has already packed a lot into her young life (including a secret boyfriend!) and the stakes are constantly being raised
EMINEM s Marshall Mathers LP has gone 12 times platinum in Ireland. He s been voted Time magazine s Man Of The Year. And, having broken through into the mainstream with the remarkable Stan , he s just been nominated for four Grammys. So why is the world suddenly falling at the feet of a venomous bottle-blonde rapper who s penned some of the most repugnant, hate-filled lyrics since the invention of the gramophone record? Peter Murphy tells one of pop music s most extraordinary stories ever
She's the red-haired electro-pop debutante of the year. La Roux frontwoman Elly Jackson talks about her love of the 80s and tells us why Blur were the only decent rock band of the past 20 years.
But try finding someone who doesn’t like it. The album Monster is yet another glittering addition to arguably the most astonishing canon in pop music, ever. Here, in a historic summit, the world’s greatest fortnightly rock paper gets together with the world’s greatest rock band for an intimate chat about the big issues: sex, death, drinking and, of course, rrrrrock’n’roll. What else is there? Interview: Liam Fay
He helped invent synth-pop and is famous for his huge open-air shows. Now Jean-Michel Jarre is going back to basics to reprise his landmark Oxygene album.
Eyebrows were raised in the Irish rock community at Dave Fanning’s appointment as a panellist for RTE’s next series of You’re A Star. Colm O’Hare gives him a chance to explain why he doesn’t care.
Lovely former Longpigs frontman and occasional Pulp guitarist Richard Hawley talks solo albums, Sheffield sauces and swears a lot, before offering a world exclusive on Robbie Williams. Sort of.
Dave Caplice is a man with a knack for being in the right place at the right time. So far, he’s recorded with Wizardz Of Oz, played at Washington’s White House and signed a five-album deal with Telstar, and he’s only just begun
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.
Their contribution to Robbie Williams' 'Rock DJ' may have gone unacknowledged, but Soul Mekanik, aka brothers and acid house veterans Kelvin Andrews and Danny Spencer, are now earning kudos in their own right for their dynamic and eclectic '80s-influenced debut album, Eighty One.
Klaxons have got glowstick-waving fans, yes, but really, there’s so much more to this band than retro-beats, explains frontman Jamie Reynolds. For instance, have you heard the one about his spiritual healer grandfather.
Colm O’Hare talks to local indie heroes Saville, the acclaimed quartet determined to make their inspired blend of ’60s pop and rock heard above the din of their hipper contemporaries
Never mind CD:UK, Top Of The Pops and Later With Jools – you really know you’ve made it when the phone rings and it’s Sparks telling you they love you. Stuart Clark hears about the irresistible rise of Glasgow hotshots Franz Ferdinand.
He used to be the ultimate indie no-hoper. But now JACK PEÑATE has discovered Krautrock, nu-rave and world music and released one of the year’s most engaging, and surprisingly accomplished, records. He talks about cultivating his eclectic side and discovering an outsider sensibility he describes as ‘joyous melancholy’.
They’ve sold millions of records but don’t expect to find Beautiful South frontman Paul Heaton breaking out in a grin. Unless England have been stuffed at football.
Veteran 2FM DJ Larry Gogan was honoured by IRMA earlier this month, in recognition of the forty years he has spent at the top of his profession. To mark the occasion, Hot Press catches up with the presenter to discuss the beginnings of his career during the showband era, how Irish music has changed down through the years – and the time he earned Larry Mullen's thanks for playing U2 records despite the protestations of station chiefs.
Having survived the Stone Roses and a spell in jail, IAN BROWN briefly toyed with the idea of a career in gardening before re-inventing himself as the man most likely to bridge the gap between rock and dance. Ahead of his appearance at Homelands, he talks to RICHARD BROPHY.
With 2009 entering its final months, it’s time to take stock of the quality of northern releases thus far. If this year’s batch of stand-out records have anything in common, it is their determination to break boundaries and confound expectations
STRIKING THE RIGHT CORD'
Film soundtrack buffs and nattily-attired acid jazz whippersnappers CORDUROY tell peter murphy about their strange
passion for Dave Allen's theme tune.
HEADGEAR, THE BRAD PITT LIGHT ORCHESTRA and DRUMMING ROOM are among the plethora of exciting new acts featured on a compilation of Limerick’s finest talents.
As pristine popsters ABC gear up for their appearance at the Heineken Weekender in Cork, NICK KELLY grills band mainman MARTIN FRY about his new album Skyscraping, his love of all things Elvis, his battle with illness and why it felt right to wear that gold lami suit in 1982. Below, meanwhile, we preview the rest of the Weekender s goings-on down in Cork.
John Walshe meets Paul and Ashley from The Frank & Walters and hears all about their latest album, Beauty Becomes More Than Life, why they don t want to go to posh parties and how major labels take all the fun out of being in a band.
Mark Eitzel and American Music Club have had all the critical plaudits and cult status that they ever could've wished for. What they really want now is fame and megabuck success! Patrick Brennan met the Wet Wet Wet wannabees.
Sigur Rss are the latest highly-rated Icelandic export. They talk to PETER MURPHY about ambition, inventing their own language and the showband circuit
Despite the beliefs of many misguided Americans, paula cole has no intention of giving up her singing career to look after a macho cowboy. colm o?hare feels neglected.
Far from it in fact with even the world of advertising now bestowing its blessings, things seem to have come full cycle for one of
Ireland s most original and enduring songwriters. SIOBHAN LONG meets SONNY CONDELL.
They’ve been heralded as the biggest thing in Irish rock since U2 – a prediction that proved prescient when The Script romped to the top of the charts with their debut album.
A North Carolinian who speaks Irish and a country performer who only occasionally performs country,
jim lauderdale has a way that makes the seemingly contradictory work well. Interview: siobhan long.
Gaspard Augé of acclaimed electro duo Justice on the group’s stunning live performances, upstaging Kanye West and putting the humour back into dance music.
As he prepares for the release of his band s third album, Cold And Bouncy, high llamas mainman
sean o hagan tells an awestruck
nick kelly exactly why there s always been a Beach Boys element to his music.
The best electro-rock outfit since KLF or this year's Sigue Sigue Sputnik? The jury's still out, but Fischerspooner's Casey Spooner tells us he's more than just a cheap stunt
Their debut Hot Fuss sold over 4 million copies and in the process set The Killers up as one of the brightest young hopes of the modern era. On the eve of the release of their second album Sam’s Town, the band look like settling for nothing less than U2-sized supremacy. Now, if only Brandon Flowers would shave off that, ahem, controversial face fuzz.
He’s played with The Corrs and was a member of the real-life Commitments. CONOR BRADY talks about life as one of the great unsung mainstays of Irish rock and roll. photos Ruth Medjber
Dom Joly hasn’t heard them but says they’re his favourite band. Noel Gallagher hasn’t heard them but thinks they’re probably shite. And what has country troubadour Crawford Bell got to do with all this? The Embers explain all to Colin Carberry
You can tell how highly regarded she is by the number of top stars who want her to sing with them. But for Emmylou Harris such collaborations are a two-way street.
Three-minute love songs simply can't cope with all the intricacies of a complex relationship, and inevitably veer off into angst-ridden cliché or syrupy feelgood banality. Dr. Millar, however, attempts to tell it like it is, and explains how and why to John Farrell.
Accompanied by images from his photo diary, DONAL DINEEN takes us through a month-by-month guide to the records that kept himself, and the Today FM faithful happy in 2001
Having delivered a storming set at Oxegen, pop-rock powerhouse NOISETTES confess a love for all things Irish in the Hot Press Signing Tent. Plus, they hold forth on their passion for everything from jazz to punk to heavy metal.
JJ72 are being cast as the great new hopes of Irish music. Intense, passionate and melodic, their music has captured an increasing number of fans. With a single in the UK Top Thirty and a debut album about to hit the shelves, they tell NIALL STANAGE how good they are and how good they want to be. Portrait of the Artists As A Young Band: MICK QUINN
The introduction of Ryan Tubridy's breakfast show and the rescheduling of Dave Fanning's slot have led critics, both inside and outside 2FM, to claim that the station is buckling under the pressure of increased competition and limited financial resources. Jackie Hayden reports
The spectacle of U2 playing to 50,000 admirers with OASIS as their support band would seem to suggest that reports of PopMart's demise have been greatly exagerrated. And, behind the scenes, the mood is even more upbeat as the two bands revel in a mutual appreciation society.
Neil "Access All Areas" McCormick was with them in the dressing room, the mini-bus and the after-hours bar.
As suede prepare for their headline slot at Dublin Castle next month, their stock has never been higher, thanks mainly to the success of their fantastic third album Coming Up. craig fitzsimons talks to singer brett anderson about it and invites him to take stock of the last few wildly successful months.
As the masses prepare to descend on Punchestown, we dispatch Hannah Hamilton to assess the festival fitness of one of this year's Oxegen buzz bands, Franz Ferdinand.
Girls Aloud’s Nadine Coyle talks about her Derry childhood, drug use in the pop industry and explains why she gets irritated when the band are called “British”.
Paul Weller has a reputation as one of the most truculent men in pop, with a deep-seated dislike of the promotional process. But with the release of his latest solo album Illumination, the man who once led The Jam and the Style Council agreed to put himself in the firing line. Looking back over a career that's studded with success, he's reflective and forthright - but the anger that inspired much of The Jam's finest output still burns
When the decision to dump Rattlebag and Mystery Train from the RTE Radio 1 schedule was taken, accusations of dumbing down were rife. So is there scope for arts and music programmes with a bit of depth in Montrose? John Kelly insists that there should be.
There was a time when TOASTED HERETIC’s world view was, to put it mildly, a little on the jaundiced side. Now, though, with the imminent release of their Mindless Optimism album, Galway’s finest look set to put ‘The Year Of The Lawyer’ behind them and prove that while they’re not necessarily the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in the world, they’re certainly the happiest. Discovering the art of Zen: OLAF TYARANSEN.
Annual article: When Kylie Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2005, she was forced to cancel the remainder of her Showgirl World Tour. Unbelievably, she made her comeback just last month.
WHAT IS the connection between The X Files, massive drinking bouts, Man United fans and top ten hits? CATATONIA, that s what. The Welsh guitar popsters are currently nestling in the upper reaches of the charts with their hit Mulder And Scully , and JOHN WALSHE talks to vocalist CERYS MATTHEWS about their meteoric rise to the top.
Dropped by Warners, but buoyed up by mega-sales of a soundtrack hit, Nick Lowe is back with a great new album, The Impossible Bird, and lots to say about Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello and a benevolent devil with the feet of a chicken. Interview: Joe Jackson.
One of the greatest penslingers in rockdom, he’s championed U2, Joy Division and Kylie and taken a critical scalpel to Oasis, The Strokes and their “miserably narrow mates”. he’s also locked horns with Germaine Greer, helped Frankie to relax and let The Frames slip through his fingers.
Private, reserved and self-controlled, Tanita Tikaram seriously wonders if there’s a place for her music in the world of frantic rock and frenetic rave. Interview: Joe Jackson
The High Priest of Soul, AL GREEN is one of the greatest singers this century has known. Coinciding with his recent trail of magnificent shows in Dublin, the mercurial Rev granted this exclusive interview to KARL TSIGDINOS.
Pics: Bernard Walsh.
You'd have thought that 12 consecutive top 40 hits would have earned them the key to the executive bathroom but, nope, before the ink was even dry on their Guinness Book Of Records entry, THE WEDDING PRESENT were shown the door by their record company. Unperturbed, everyone's favourite indie popsters found a new label, a new bass player and a new studio accomplice who's helped them produce their best album since the classic George Best. A slightly battered and bruised DAVE GEDGE gives a blow-by-blow account of the events to our ringside reporter STUART CLARK.
Even though he s just as acerbic and witty as he ever was, these days GRAHAM PARKER isn t what you d call the man of the moment. Which is a shame, because the veteran new-wave critics darling is currently writing some of the best material of his life, including last year s Acid Bubblegum album, which he describes as a fucking great record . And as if that wasn t enough to be going on with, he s also got plenty of short stories on the go.
Tape: Peter Murphy
Recorded in the bucolic splendour of County Westmeath, Bloc Party's second album is a labyrinthine concept album about urban living. Better to take a risk, says frontman Kelé Okereke, than to repeat yourself .
Rsismn Murphy was born in Dublin, raised in Arklow, lived in Manchester and moved to Sheffield. That was when it all started to go right. Linking up with Mark Brydon, she formed Moloko an eclectic and soulful outfit who ve gone on to become one of contemporary music s hottest properties. Now they re back in Ireland for the Creamfields extravaganza.
Interview: Barry Glendenning. Camera: Steve fisher
After two decades of electro-pop hits, the PET SHOP BOYS have gone back to basics with their new album Fundamental – and thrown some timely political digs into the mix while they’re at it. But the real battle is getting people to take them seriously.
Wank, bollocks, Chris Evans. These are dirty words.
Pop isn t.
STUART CLARK refrains from ruining their career for long enough to discover whether
IN UTOPIA have got what it takes to become Ireland s next three minute heroes.
Pix: Cathal Dawson.
Is she a manufactured pop act made to look like a rock chick? is she a rock chick who sells records like a manufactured pop act? or is she something else entirely? Why’d Avril Lavigne have to go and make things so complicated?
After a storming appearance at the Eurosonic festival in Holland, Patrick Freyne talks to Cathy Davey about recording, redecoration and ill communication.
CHRIS DONOVAN looks at the incremental progress of the would-be King of Slane, who tells him about life, love, Christianity, veganism and scoring for films Plus: Profiles of Slane s other attractions, MACY GRAY, MEL C, BRYAN ADAMS, THE SCREAMING ORPHANS and DARA. Also: A Quickie with LORD HENRY MOUNTCHARLES
He was one of the most controversial figures in the history of Irish broadcasting, turning Radio Nova into a money-making machine and courting confrontation with the gardai, RTE and the NUJ. With the end of the pirate era, he moved to England, where he came unstuck, following a scam that deprived Rupert Murdoch of millions. Many a colourful adventure later, Chris Cary is back in the news - and determined that he can convince the powers-that-be to let him operate the national long-wave frequency that once housed Atlantic 252.
Over the hills and far away, Chumbawamba come out to play! They get knocked down. But they get up again. They get dropped by Indie One Little Indian, and then get signed up by Capitalist major EMI. Then the Tub-Thumpers Anonymous go on to score the most unlikely hit single of 1997. So what now for Alice Nutter and her chums? ANDY DARLINGTON reports.
Over the hills and far away, Chumbawamba come out to play! They get knocked down. But they get up again. They get dropped by Indie One Little Indian, and then get signed up by Capitalist major EMI. Then the Tub-Thumpers Anonymous go on to score the most unlikely hit single of 1997. So what now for Alice Nutter and her chums? ANDY DARLINGTON reports.
Hand-picked, coddled and manufactured: mainstream pop stars have the life. Don t they? KIM PORCELLI gets up about twelve hours earlier than usual and spends the day with SAMANTHA MUMBA. Hot shots: PETER MATTHEWS
...And the kids just keep on comin’, as Hot Press investigates another assortment of motley crews with songs in their hearts and stars in their eyes, and concludes that the future is indeed so bright, you’ve gotta wear shades.
FLEXIHEAD, MEXICAN PETS, THE GLEE CLUB, IN MOTION
ave Fanning: We just played "Wild Things Run Free" (sic) and as you say yourself you are "back in the harness". Now, except for the vocals would it be a fair assumption to call the music on the new album pop with a rock steady beat?
In Dublin recently to lend his support to the AIDS Action Alliance all-star Olympic Ballroom bash, Tom Robinson took time out to reflect on his Spokesman For A Generation past, his nervous breakdowns, his sexual re-orientation and his re-embracement of the Quaker faith
whinging, yak-herding and masturbating over the sunday dinner are just three of the tenuously-related subjects that come up for discussion as stuart clark gets completely wireless with radiohead plankspanker from hell colin greenwood.
The initial rumours were that it was going to be a rock n roll record . Then subsequent whispers hinted at everything from trip-hop to techno to ambient. But U2 s eighth studio album, Pop, is all of these things and more. It s the first album since 1983 that they ve made without the assistance of Brian Eno, it s been a long time in the making roughly a full year, all told and it s selling like the proverbial warm buns. Here, NIALL STOKES talks to BONO and ADAM CLAYTON, as well as co-producers FLOOD, HOWIE B and THE EDGE, about its lengthy genesis and what the band hoped to accomplish in creating it.
Pix: STEPHANE SEDNAOUI .
Brendan Tallon, guitarist and singer with No Disco darlings Revelino, talks to Patrick Brennan about his early struggle with the music biz that stopped his previous incarnation, The Coletranes, dead in its tracks, and the creative process behind the craft of song-writing that makes his new album, Revelino, one of the year s essential purchases.
It was hardly the perfect start to guitar-based London outfit Rialto’s career when, after scoring three hit singles and recording their debut album, they were unceremoniously discarded by their record label. Interview: Nick Kelly.
She’s the post-modern starlet who is stalked by paparazzi wherever she goes but is as comfortable talking about Andy Warhol and John Updike as she is hanging with fashionistas. Say hello to Lady GaGa the good-time pop princess who went to school with Paris Hilton, cultivated a drug habit ‘cos that’s what David Bowie did in the ’70s, but thinks fame is just a game.
Fame has come remarkably quickly for Lily Allen, with her sensational debut album Alright, Still hitting the No.1 spot in the week of its release. But, with babysitting for Bez on her CV, anything is a breeze – and the bolshie young singer is taking it all in her stride. Plus, having lived in Ireland for a number of years, she has more than a few interesting tales to tell. Just don’t ask her about Bob Geldof...
t certainly would, Joe. But you can have a toot on my megaphone if you like! Gavin Friday discusses the finer points of sexual politics not to mention the post-Freudian subtext to his stunning new meisterwork Shag Tobacco with Dr Joe Jackson. Our man in the white coat concluded: Gavin s time has come. But is the world finally read
Brendan Tallon, guitarist and singer with No Disco darlings Revelino, talks to Patrick Brennan about his early struggle with the music biz that stopped his previous incarnation, The Coletranes, dead in its tracks, and the creative process behind the craft of song-writing that makes his new album, Revelino, one of the year’s essential purchases.
Elstree, remember me, went the old Boggles tune. The location is a far-flung suburb of north London, former nerve centre of an entire B-movie industry, now home to television shows like East Enders, Holby City (wandering through the corridors, your correspondent comes across a room identified by the rather ominous notice: Make-up - GUTS), and of course Top Of The Pops.
Stylish purveyors of streamlined, controlled Pop, 'Til Tuesday were one of the late eighties most critically acclaimed acts. But for frontwoman, AIMEE MANN, life in that band was often a frustrating and demoralising experience. Now, however, having languished in record company limbo for far too long, AIMEE has re-emerged blinking into the daylight with an album which Elvis Costello says will have male songwriters blushing with envy. GEORGE BYRNE meets the Mann woman herself.
From a darkened studio in Artane to the bright lights of Top Of The Pops and beyond that 'Orinoco Flow' has taken Enya and all who sail with her on an unprecedented voyage of discovery. Niall Stokes joins the key figures as the flow swells into a torrent of success and is pleased to report that nobody on board is in danger of losing their bearings.
If you’re Randy Newman you’ll also need a piano, some borrowed dominants and lashings of irony. And that’s just for starters. Joe Jackson hears about the private, public and musical lives of one of American music’s most singular talents.
Jackie hayden meetsjournalist turned PR guru, Tony O Brien and speaks to him about his rock n roll adventures with the likes of U2, Michael Stipe and Bruce Springsteen.
Having battled their way through eight weeks of the Raw Sessions, hip hop collective and noble underdogs THE INFOMATICS were awarded the title of Sony Ericsson Artist Of The Year. We caught up with Bugs, Mr. Dero, Konchus Lingo and BOC (try saying that three times fast!) to hear how appearing on the country’s first ever rockumentary series is going to change them and indeed the face of Irish hip hop.
Even more than winning a Mercury Prize, you know you’ve made it when the disappearance of your woolly hat makes the news. with rave reviews for his album offset by damning criticism of his live shows.
NADINE O’REGAN talks to DAMON GOUGH about nerves, self-belief, and the birth of his daughter. Well-taken pictures: MYLES CLAFFEY
DO YOU WANT NAILS OF FEEDBACK DRIVEN THROUGH YOUR BRAIN? DO YOU WANT YOUR EARS TO BLEED? THIS IS HARDCORE AND IT'S THE MOST VITAL ATTITUDE IN ROCK'N'ROLL, FROM LOU REED TO THERAPY? VIA NICK CAVE, FUGAZI AND... CHRISTY MOORE. OR SO SAYS GERRY McGOVERN, WHO ALSO ADVANCES THE THEORY THAT 'HARDCORE IS GENERALLY FOR HARD WHITE MEN'. SHOOTING GALLERY AWAITS YOUR RESPONSE!
Backstage at Creamfields, JOHN WALSHE talks to FATBOY SLIM about the joys of fatherhood, being one half of the posh and becks of the chemical generation; sharing a hot-tub with Baz Luhrman and how he got Christopher Walken to tap-dance
Having already conquered Ireland and the UK, SAMANTHA MUMBA is poised to join Britney and Christina at the top of the American pop chart. Not bad for someone who two years ago was fired from a panto by Twink! Now, with her new album Gotta Tell You ready for release, the Dublin singer talks candidly to JOE JACKSON about drugs, sex and the break-up of her parents marriage
THE CORRS' public image is one of unblemished beauty and soaraway success. But beneath the pop sheen lurk the darker lyrical themes of Andrea
Corr.
JOE JACKSON talks to her about the inspiration behind some of the Corrs' biggest hits, hears her anger at recent critical reaction and finds out what "Ireland's sexiest woman" really thinks about love, sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll and the whole damn thing.
New album, new look, new attitude: having turned the big three-oh, DIVINE COMEDY's Neil Hannon says he's much more sure of his place in the world. "Basically, the one thing I have to offer humanity is a good time with interesting words," he tells Olaf Tyaransen. Divine camera intervention: MICK QUINN
Niall Stokes: People would make an assumption that since The Corrs have sold millions of records, you ve already got it made. Does it feel like that to you?
By any standards, The Corrs are an extraordinary phenomenon. It won't be long before the combined global sales of their albums to date top the 20 million mark. In Ireland alone, by the end of the year, they will have sold over a million records - at which point they may well have established themselves as the biggest-selling Irish act of all time on home turf.
With 1993 going down as the year that Irish rock finally emerged from U2’s shadow, HOT PRESS takes an introductory look at four of the rapidly emerging outfits that are poised to make headlines and sell bucket–loads of records in ’94.
Schtum, Ash, Joyrider, Compulsion.
Not since the death of Elvis has the passing of a music legend so gripped the world. As fans and detractors alike struggle to come to grips with the sad, strange end of Michael Jackson we assess his legacy – as musician, celebrity and enduring icon and talk to some of the people who knew and understood him best.
Giant lemons, 100ft toothpicks and enough lights to put Las Vegas on full-scale UFO alert. Helena Mulkerns watches with gob well and truly smacked as U2's PopMart extravaganza opens for business at the Sam Boyd Stadium.
Pix: All Action
Journalist NEIL McCORMICK was a schoolmate of BONO when U2 were taking baby steps. Over the past 25 years their paths have frequently crossed, inevitably in rather more exotic circumstances than a classroom. As another year draws to a close, they meet up again: the result is an unusually intimate portrait of a man who came not to save the world but to serenade it. Plus: a close-up look at some of the most striking songs on All That You Can t Leave Behind
At 53, EMMYLOU HARRIS has finally taken up the pen and the result is one of her finest albums yet. SIOBHAN LONG journeys to New York to meet the reluctant songwriter.
Having had his fill of Eurovision and being ripped-off on the Irish circuit, Louis Walsh went for broke with the boys who would be boyzone. Now he can afford to speak his mind. JOE JACKSON is all ears.
Having had his fill of Eurovision and being ripped-off on the Irish circuit, louis walsH went for broke with the boys who would be boyzone. Now he can afford to speak his mind. JOE JACKSON is all ears.
With his upcoming concert in Poulaphouca marking his solo Irish debut, it s been all too easy in the recent past to overlook Bob Geldof s standing as a musical and lyrical artist. The lines connecting the youthful Dun Laoghaire blues and Dylan aficionado with the creator of The Vegetarians Of Love are rarely traced in media-bytes that prefer to concentrate on Modest Bob, Live Aid Bob and Saint Bob. Here, Bill Graham, who knew the schoolboy, takes musician Bob on a freewheeling trip from then to now.
Moby Comes Out To Play
IT S NOT often a Grammy nominee saunters into the Hot Press offices in the midst of the controlled explosion that is production weekend. But then, Moby s one of those freaks of nature a pop star who seems interested in what goes on around him rather than employing people to block it out.
With his upcoming concert in Poulaphouca marking his solo Irish debut, it's been all too easy in the recent past to overlook Bob Geldof's standing as a musical and lyrical artist. The lines connecting the youthful Dun Laoghaire blues and Dylan aficionado with the creator of The Vegetarians Of Love are rarely traced in media-bytes that prefer to concentrate on Modest Bob, Live Aid Bob and Saint Bob. Here, Bill Graham, who knew the schoolboy, takes musician Bob on a freewheeling trip from then to now.
With his upcoming concert in Poulaphouca marking his solo Irish debut, it's been all too easy in the recent past to overlook Bob Geldof's standing as a musical and lyrical artist. The lines connecting the youthful Dun Laoghaire blues and Dylan aficionado with the creator of The Vegetarians Of Love are rarely traced in media-bytes that prefer to concentrate on Modest Bob, Live Aid Bob and Saint Bob. Here, Bill Graham, who knew the schoolboy, takes musician Bob on a freewheeling trip from then to now.
Has Madonna become the immaterial girl? Or will the Re-invention tour re-establish her as the foremost female icon on the planet? On the eve of her first ever Irish appearance at Slane, Peter Murphy takes a look at the strange twist the Queen of Pop’s career has taken – and how she is now fighting back, for all she’s worth.
The Walls are about to embark on their most extensive Irish tour yet, including their biggest Dublin gig to date at the Ambassador and may be about to finally break the bank
The Walls are about to embark on their most extensive Irish tour yet, including their biggest Dublin gig to date at the ambassador and may be about to finally break the bank
As his singular contribution to the birthday party, guest writer Elvis Costello offers a handful of stories from his ten years on the beat, which serve to illustrate why, in his own words, “I’d rather be a folk music fan than a teen idol.”
Niall Stokes: As a band you took more responsibility with In Blue you have a greater level of input into the production and so on. Was that a strain when you were doing it?
Twelve months ago The Cranberries were unknown outside of the hippest rock circles, now with the platinum success of Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? they stand as the first Irish band to genuinely crack America since U2.
Much of the media attention given to them has focussed on Dolores O'Riordan, a singer whose unique approach to her craft underlines the defiantly independent path the group has trodden all the way to the top of the Billboard charts. Here she talks to JOE JACKSON about what by any standards has been a perfect year. .
Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison and Lewis Carrol may all be touchstones for the muse of sinÉad lohan, but this is one talented and increasingly successful singer-songwriter who definitely does things her way. joe jackson meets a self-confessed "spacer".
Pix: Mick Quinn
Why are the Spice Girls animals ? Why would Crispian Kula Shaker benefit from a hefty spell of National Service? And why should you never trust a hippy? These are just some of the burning issues that Dr. Alex Paterson of The Orb would like to address. Oh yeah, and he also talks about his band s ace new album Orblivion, as well as his exotic, not to say erotic, yesteryear escapades on the road with LL Cool J and Motvrhead. Our man with the shiny black Panasonic tape recorder: jonathan o brien.
Confronted by an autobiography with a dual narrator, Joe Jackson asks the real Ray Davies to stand up and testify on homosexuality, marriage, groupies, the essence of Kinkdom – and the true story of Lola.
Technology is setting the pace in the musical instrument and equipment market of the ’90s, with one great leap forward following another, and the musican reaping the benefits in terms of a vastly increased range of product choices. But it’s a difficult market for retailers nonetheless, with the level of investment and exposure rising all the time. Report: Colm O’Hare
On the eve of the release of their latest album, Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill shoot the breeze about on-the-road partying and incorporating non-folk influences into their songbook
In the magical, wind-swept landscape of Ireland's remote north-west the cameras roll as U2's Bono and Maire of Clannad make the video for their collaborative single "In A Lifetime". Bill Graham joins the entourage at work and at play and talks to the main protagonists.
The wild rise and fall of the coke-snorting, heavy boozing, rampantly horny music biz mogul who knew Dylan, Jagger, Jackson, Springsteen and Streisand better than most. And now he’s ready to tell all.
You wanted the best, you got GENE SIMMONS. Here, the motormouth frontman of KISS, the world s greatest showband, talks about sex and women at length (quelle surprise), discusses his Jewish heritage, explains why Kierkegaard and Nietzsche obviously never got laid, and announces to an increasingly bemused JOE JACKSON that he Gene, that is possesses the world s smallest penis.
With Thin Lizzy now officially a thing of the past, Philip Lynott is preparing to start anew with Grand Slam. At this transitional point in his public career Tony Clayton-Lea sought out the private Lynott to ask him his views on a wide range of issues including music, politics, religion, sex, drugs, Ireland, parenthood and rock'n'roll stardom. The result is probably the frankest and most revealing interview Philip Lynott has ever given.
Live on your TV and your wireless, 2TV will be broadcasting all summer long. JACKIE HAYDEN goes behind the scenes on the show that shakes up Sunday mornings.
Defecating lemurs, exploding dogs, dirty movies, alien abduction and, of course, the longest feet in pop. it can all only mean that Gruff Rhys & Co. are back.
Joe Jackson sneaks a peek at Wayne Studer’s new book Rock On The Wild Side, which gender-bends its way through three decades of gay imagery in rock music from Jimi Hendrix’ first kiss to George Michael’s shuttlecock.
It's Christmas, 1997 is drawing to a close and Noel Gallagher is in suitably reflective mood. "I can't be bothered writing music anymore", says the Oasis mainman before telling Stuart Clark precisely what he thinks of Liam, Meg, Sinéad O'Connor, that cunt Mick Jagger and England's chances of lifting the World Cup.
It s re-introductions all round, as the Starman embarks on a hazardous solo mission. Stuart Bailie records him taking one giant leap for a man.
The Starman walks into a public bar in Chorlton and looks for a quiet spot. The old regulars at the back are nudging each other. They re sure that they recognise the face
and the style of a traveller who s been all the way up there and back.
Mark McClelland was a feature and music writer for Cork's Evening Echo for four years. Here, he presents his top ten most significant musical acts to emerge from Cork.
PHIL COULTER is far from the muzak-producing bore of caricature. Here, he talks to JOE JACKSON about family tragedy, northern politics, drink binges, having songs covered by Elvis and his experiences working with stars like Van Morrison, Siniad O Connor and Luke Kelly. Portraits: MYLES CLAFFEY
The idea for Home, an album of Irish songs, has been on the agenda for The Corrs for a number of years. But its release marks an important stage in the evolution not just of the band, but of lead singer Andrea Corr – who has been exploring new ways of expressing herself as an artist with increasing poise and confidence.
WILLIAM GIBSON is no ordinary science-fiction writer. Aside from coining such essential nineties' terms as Cyberspace and Cyberpunk, his work has also influenced everyone from computer hackers to scientists developing virtual reality technology. In the rock world, he's regarded as a visionary and artists as diverse as U2, Billy Idol and The Rolling Stones have all claimed inspiration from his novels. Interview: Liam Fay. Cyberpics: Cathal Dawson.
With his new album sex, age and death in the shops, BOB GELDOF, songwriter and performer, is back in our midst. but after the traumatic personal events of the last five years - events which inform the songs on the new record - the private man is arguably under scrutiny as never before. In this heartfelt, eloquent and, at times, angry interview with JOE JACKSON, Geldof talks about the loss of Paula Yates, the death of Michael Hutchence and his own painful journey back to happiness
One of the most disturbing developments in the Middle East over the past number of years has been the rising number of female suicide bombers. Colm O’Hare talks to Barbara Victor, the pulitzer prize-nominated journalist who examines this alarming trend in a compelling new book, Army of Roses.
With their biggest dates ever in Ireland looming, LIAM MACKEY dips into voluminous hotpress archives and selects a small sample of what the paper said about U2 over the years
In a world exclusive interview, Morrissey sets the record straight on sex, religion, politics, David Bowie and his Irish heritage, and casts a Trinny & Susannah-esque eye over Brian Cowen
Following the huge commercial success of Set List and ‘Fake’, The Frames look poised to ascend to rock’s premier league with the upcoming worldwide release of the Burn The Maps album. Kim Porcelli joins the band on the day of their triumphant show at Marlay Park to discuss the pros and cons of pop-stardom, the departure of dave odlum, the abiding influence of mic christopher, and the challenge of creating their most eagerly anticipated record yet.
After a lengthy silence, TRICKY is back with an impressively upbeat new album. But the man himself still insists on going against the grain. Here he talks about his aversion to celebrityhood, his dislike of the music biz, his fondness for Bryan Adams and Bono, and how he copes with the terrible burden of having hundreds of women who want to have sex with him. Interview: OLAF TYARANSEN
STEPHEN RYAN has made his songwriting reputation on the byways rather than the highways. Now, with a new REVENANTS album finally on release, he takes NICK KELLY on a trip off the beaten track. Pics: Bernard Walsh.
Formerly, by his own admission, a perfectionist, an arch-worrier and an all-round uptight individual, Paul Brady is slowly but surely learning how to relax. As his Full Moon album rises, John Waters takes a long, close look at Paul Brady in a new light.
Best known for his Irish Times column An Irishman s Diary, KEVIN MYERS has been denounced as arrogant, bigoted, pompous and prejudiced. And those are just the people who like his witty writing! On the occasion of the publication of a collection of his writings, the journalist they either love or loathe talks to JOE JACKSON about class, prostitution, drugs, relationships, the North, Mary Ellen Synon and more. Photography: CATHAL DAWSON
Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden? It doesn t get much
better than this. JOE JACKSON goes
backstage for a brief but revealing encounter with Joni and, from a vantage point to die for, finds two 60s legends who can still send shivers up the spine at the end of the millennium.
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
The drink, the drugs, the fights, the sex, the loves, the hates, the hits and the Taoiseach's daughter - here are Ireland's most successful boy band as you've never heard them before.
Hearing their confessions: Joe Jackson
He’s the joker in the Irish music pack, a working class hero who has at once conquered and subverted the mainstream. For his first album in six years JERRY FISH and his MUDBUG CLUB have also roped in some top-tier collaborators including rockabilly queen Imelda May and Carol Keogh.
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.
Ahead of their Slane appearance, Adam Duritz of The Counting Crows spills the beans on everything from the inspiration behind his songwriting to Gemma Hayes
Johnny Ray invented rock ’n’ roll. Elvis Presley marked the beginning of the downfall of popular music. The Beatles only ever wrote one great song. Cranky stuff maybe, but when the speaker is Tony Bennett – the man Sinatra called “The best singer in the business” – you have to listen. Joe Jackson does and, in this exclusive interview, hears how a Jewish-Italian New York kid grew up to be a musical legend, a respected painter and a man who, at 67, can still kick ’90s rock off MTV.
With her new volume of autobiography, AGNES BERNELLE has turned the spotlight away from the stage and onto her own life illuminating both the happier and dark chapters of a turbulent personal story. Interview: JOE JACKSON. Pix: COLM HENRY
What on earth is milky-white, squeaky-clean, God-fearin PAT BOONE doing,
wearing leather
and studs and singing heavy metal anthems? JOE JACKSON delves behind the year s most bizarre comeback to extract a rare and fascinating interview with a man who once alienated rockers and now finds himself ostracised by Christians.
At the end of an exciting, painful and earthshaking year, Bono reflects on the political and the personal – from drop the debt, September 11, Afghanistan and Genoa to the death of his father Bob, the birth of his son John and the enduring friendship which underpins U2’s music and career. Interview: Niall Stokes
[this interview originally appeared in the spectacular Hot Press Annual 2002 - used in the pictures below - a very limited number of this unique collectors item will shortly be on sale - email u2@hotpress.ie to reserve a copy]
Once a rock’n’roll performer in his youth, CONOR McPHERSON has now graduated into one of Ireland’s brightest theatrical and literary talents. Still only in his mid-20s, he’s already written the screenplay of the acclaimed Irish thriller I Went Down, as well as several acclaimed plays, This Limetree Bower and his latest effort The Weir. Here, he talks to JOE JACKSON about the mixed reception he’s received from Irish theatre critics, and the influence of rock music on his work.
John Walshe talks to Irish rugby captain and Munster stalwart Keith Wood ahead of the most important game in Munster s history, and hears his views on the media, sex before a game and his love for bellybuttons and pregnant women.
Pictures: DECLAN ENGLISH
Falling in love not only altered David Kitt’s heart but helped reshape his musical vision. Olaf Tyaransen visits his home cum studio and hears about the family affair that is his new album and how meeting Poppy reawakened his love of pop. all this and why the son of a Minister opposes the smoking ban! Photography Roger Woolman.
The latest wave of right-wing attacks on US musicians is likely to have a knock-on effect here, with the words and actions of our own artists coming under increased scrutiny. In a special hotpress report, Ed Power enlists the help of Marilyn Manson and a number of major Irish players to pick his way through the censorship minefield.
This is THE CHIEFTAINS as you've never encountered them before - more like mad, trad and dangerous to know than the grand-daddies of Irish traditional music. Smoking dope with Philip Lynott! Busting muscles through wild sex! Yes, it's the bits that aren't in the official biography. But, soft, not a word to Paddy, OK? Part One of an exclusive two-part interview. By JOE JACKSON.
Meeting the Pope, marriage to the Taoiseach’s daughter, the trouble with relationships, why they couldn’t have a hit with Bono, bad language on kids’ telly, golf in drugs out, Louis’ biggest lie and other tales from the lives of Westlife.
A special interview from the Hot Press archives, first published in 1985: Minister for Women's Affairs Nuala Fennell talks feminism, sex and contraception with HP editor Niall Stokes.
Niall Stokes draws on his best-selling book Into The Heart: The Stories Behind The Songs Of U2 to offer a unique insight into the way in which some of the greatest songs in the history of popular music came into being.
It’s a rare thing indeed to hear an Irish lesbian speak openly and frankly about her life, lusts and loves. Gay writer, EMMA DONOGHUE, however, is one of the first of a new and more confident generation. At twenty-four, she has already produced a prodigious body of work ranging from drama to cultural history to her just-published first novel, Stir Fry. In the process, she has emerged as a proud and powerful voice for hundreds of young lesbians in this country. Interview: LIAM FAY. Pix: COLM HENRY
So this is Christmas and what have we done... As U2 prepare to enter the final yearof the decade, Bono devotes a long night at his home in Dublin to reflecting on his life, his music and U2's extraordinary career to date. Interview: Liam Mackey
They love Ireland and Ireland loves them. As the Arcade Fire ramp up for world domination, the band talk about love, death, war and making music in churches.
After being a magnet for A&R men during the 80s, Dublin has recently developed into something of an underachiever. The city may have the second biggest growth-rate in Europe but there are a hell of a lot of gigs and records that simply aren t selling. peter murphy casts a critical ear over the capital s music scene and decides that what s required is a full-scale artistic enema.
By popular demand, ULRIKA JONSSON is coming back to Belfast to co-host this year's heineken-hot press awards. olaf tyaransen meets up with television's Golden Girl and hears about the world of the small screen, the men in her life, the poet behind the party animal, tabloid intrusion and the importance of Van Morrison in keeping her head straight.
U2 are about to unleash their new album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. The world’s media are descending on Dublin. And Bono is back at the punch-bag, getting into fighting shape before the shit storm really explodes. The gloves are off. He’s got work to do. And he’s going to do it. Words Stuart Clark, additional reporting by Niall Stokes.
A special report on the arts in Northern Ireland which is alive and rocking with the whole gamut of cultural activity. Here James Elliott and Margaret F. Grundy give the lowdown on the province’s artistic and creative hub.
One of the government’s most vocal and effective critics, Labour leader Pat Rabbitte could well be the next Tánaiste. He talks about iPods, happiness, gay marriage, breaking the law - and Enda Kenny’s hairdo.
History is likely to remember FW de KLERK as the man whose most significant political accomplishment ensured his own political downfall. Peter Murphy meets the last South African President to hold power in the era of apartheid. Pic: COLM HENRY.
CORONATION STREET. It s an
institution. So who wants to live in an institution? Well - there s Ken Barlow, Vera Duckworth, Deirdre, Fiona . . . you know them all, don t you? Be
honest! ANDY DARLINGTON visits
the Street of Dreams, and finds out that it s real!
Rabble-rousing controversialist and after hours man, sure. But one time devoted mass goer who now drinks once or twice a month and finds Stringfellows seedy? Welcome to the other side of Eamon Dunphy.
Irish acts have always excelled at blowing hot and cold, but they've never been too good at playing it cool, never had the kind of urban avant-garage tradition that fosters a Sonic Youth or a Pere Ubu.
JJ72 FANS DESPERATE for new material will be pleased, nay, thrilled to hear that the band are making a number of exclusives available through their .com website.
Here comes the moment we’ve all been anticipating for the last four years, and the really good news is that the return of the mighty Spiritualized is one to relish.
Studt has an agreeable voice and a burdgeoning songwriting talent but, as with Lavigne, the problem is that there are so many hands involved with the album’s writing and production that it’s hard to work out where the Studt ends and the corporate machine begins.
Hailing Annie Berge-Strand, a Norwegian former DJ and sometime Royksopp collaborator, as the saviour of sussed chart music is possibly an unfair prognosis. Yet halfway through Anniemal, her cheeky and eloquent debut, you almost start to believe it.
The sub-title says it all. You really couldn't sum up Alan McGee's arrogant revisionism of British music in the last fifteen or so years in a better and more overblown phrase. Despite the illusions of grandeur, there is no denying Creation's mighty influence.
Pop fans d’un certain age will remember the jolt: the electrifying shock of the new, followed by the realisation that nothing will ever be the same again.
Simple Minds will be teaming up with OMD, special guests on their current tour, to perform a cover version of Kraftwerk's 'Neon Lights' during their Graffiti Soul shows later this year.
National Prayer Breakfast’s decision to abbreviate their moniker to the snappier, more minimal NPB is indicative of a newly streamlined groove machine.
"And the sweetest sounds that you've not found are waiting there beneath the clouds." In cold print that might read like some sad-o, hippy-dippy sentiment but just listen to it radiating from the speakers as 'Plenty Times' kicks off The Frank and Walters' third album.
Regarded by many as The Beatles’ finest work, and coming a mere eight months after the superb Rubber Soul, their seventh album Revolver was light years further on in terms of musical innovation, paving the way for the acid- and meditation-fuelled psychedelia to come, and pioneering lyrical invention that thrashed the conventions of the pop song.
Us (and it must be said, what a hackneyed, brilliant title) is a poignant little gem of a record, powered by enough gorgeous hooks and melodic tricks to, partially, confirm MacIntyre’s reputation as a Pro Tools Brian Wilson.
Katy Perry's second album offers minimal creativity or originality, but there are several likeable tracks – despite their turgid, juvenile and bordering-on-offensive lyrical content.
Remember when drum ‘n’ bass was going to be the new pop? When Roni Size and Reprazent won the Mercury Prize and pundits declared that it was time to usher in a brand-new era?
It’s official 1988 was a great year for music because it finally returned guitar-based pop to the chars where it belongs. Forget the turgid (Fl Acid House invasion which was merely a minimalist retread of early ’70s disco (what’s the betting on House Sucks badges in ’89?).
The intended blend of pop roots, Memphis soul and country rock works, but they are not afraid of adding some sonic experimentation to what is, essentially, a simple and direct approach.
Most artists who do the 360 degrees re-invention thing just get laughed at - but Luke Haines's vicarious volte face has the Bowie-esque stamp of genius about it.
Bristol duo Day One are the latest proteges of the ever-expanding Massive Attack/Wild Bunch circle. Signed by none other than 3D himself, 'Ordinary Man' represents a far sunnier take on the dark, moody soundscapes of trip-hop.
After eighteen years in the business, the majority of which were spent wandering in the wilderness, The Waterboys are back with their first album proper since ’88’s Room To Roam.
You can see it in their eyes. In their minds, Five are a hard rocking, hard rapping, street gang. In reality, though, they’re more likely to be interviewed by some stuffed animal than hang with the lads in the hood.
They are the basis for some of the most iconic images in rock. Now, for two days they will be on exhibition at the RDS in Dublin, as part of The Music Show.
Trading on your old reputation and banging out the hits is one thing, but venturing back into the studio to resurrect your career as recording artists? Surely that way lies madness.
The continuing trend for celebrity compilations continues. Turin Brakes’ foray into the field is billed as a DJ set but is really merely a beautifully packaged mix tape.
The Point is stuffed with row upon row of kids with glow sticks, light up bunny ears, pop corn and hassled-looking parents. They’re waiting for the Sugababes. And waiting. And waiting.
I haven't seen the movie which spawned this soundtrack, but the music certainly stands up on its own and should prove another winner for Madonna's Maverick label.
I'd like to introduce, in the newly spot-lit corner, Julian Cope, the man who opens his mouth on behalf of The Teardrop Explodes. Or more specifically, Julian would like to introduce himself as, perhaps the future of rock 'n' roll.
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.
Brazilian contraltos not being exactly ten a penny, Virginia Rodrigues' CD comes as a bit of a surprise. Nas is Rodrigues' second record, a gorgeous, sublime collection of songs from her native Brazil.
NEOSUPERVITAL has taken the music of the 80s as his blueprint, added in a large dollop of tongue-in-cheek humour, mixed in some observations on modern Ireland and garnished it all with a sprinkling of wry irony. And he’s bloody brilliant at it.
Confronted as we are these days by hordes of fame-hunger, toxic, teen princesses – Stefani’s odd-ball, retro-futurist bubblegum pop can be seen as a heartening example of individuality in a field that’s more often creepily exploitative and conformist.
No expense has been spared here. Stages lift and fall, lasers cut through plumes of dry ice, diaphanous movie screens give the impression of 20ft tall gospel singers towering over the crowd.
It's maybe no real shock that 'Freak Like Me' dominates Angels With Dirty Faces. What is more surprising is that the album falls so far short of matching its undoubted highpoint
It’s certainly plain to see how their teaming of sentimental, wide-eyed AOR and neo-trad power choruses is a hit with the audience, and they are indisputably talented, yet there is still something about the Corrs that strikes me as somewhat bloodless. Perhaps it’s me, for I haven’t seen an audience in the Point so animated and enthusiastic in ages.
While Beck Hansen's 'everything including the kitchen sink plughole' approach mightn't be to everyone's taste, you certainly can't accuse the man of ever being boring!
The Polyphonic Spree may have fallen off the map but Swedish 29-piece indie-gospel ensemble I’m From Barcelona are here to fill the football-team shaped void left behind.
The first solo album from ex-Spice Girl Emma Bunton produced one great single in the shape of ‘What Took You So Long’ but the overall consensus was that it sounded, like Emma, very sweet but that, like Emma also, it didn’t have any balls.
It’s been some time since Tara Blaise first came on like a potential star, fronting the EMI-signed Dublin band Kaydee. In the interim, she has worked quietly away, developing her craft as a songwriter and performer – and, last year, guesting as vocalist on John Hughes’ largely instrumental album Wild Ocean. Now, it’s her turn to grab the spotlight and she does it with impressive finesse, emerging as a vocalist to be reckoned with in the process.
Gather round, children, and let me tell you all about The Bird And The Bee. A 30-something, flirtysomething Californian duo, the bird is the angelically voiced Inara George and the bee is multitalented instrumentalist Greg Kurstin.
Despite the pressure of being a pop icon, Enya has developed a signature sound that comes through in this album but in a fresh way, sticking to her musical principles.
Cajun Dance Party, the band most likely to be sent to the headmaster’s office for being too twee, know all about youthful abandon – they're currently studying for their A-Levels.
Occasionally one gets a hardy annual, but 1985 has been more of a hardly annual, than anything. Jazz hardly raised its head above the rafters, and only Wynton Marsalis brought forth a thing of beauty in ‘Hot House Flowers’. Miles Davis got worse, and sadly Philip Larkin, a great jazz critic, died.
For a Scottish band, they have an oddly English feel to them, taken from an obvious love for XTC and Dexy’s Midnight Runners (an influence felt most keenly in the vocals).
Hell’s piss-ripping Munich-based Deejay Gigolo’s label has always looked to sources more diverse than most of the body popping stamps, and their fourth collection proves that they’re still way ahead of the competition.
An Omagh girl of Methodist farming background, with an unassuming determination to match, Juliet Turner has already come some distance from the straightforward and endearingly earnest folk thrust of her roughly recorded debut, Let’s Hear It For Pizza.
Often quite beautiful, yes, and probably perfectly matched to the visuals, but it doesn’t make this an album to which you’ll necessarily want to return to again and again.
ABBA have seldom been acknowledged by those who arbitrate or presume to arbitrate on matters of rock taste. Apart from a brief flirtation about five years ago, rock culture – in as much as the phrase actually signifies anything concrete – has continued to stick them with the legacy of their Eurovision success.
The synth-rock (or electro-indie if you like) bedroom ascetics – who heretofore brought you the charming line “I’m like Stevie Wonder, but I can see things” – have by their own acknowledgement looted the mechanical music museum, spending a lifetime distilling their record collection into manageable, tongue-in-cheek precipitates like whiskey or MSG.
In case you haven’t been monitoring the zeitgeist recently, Lily Allen is the sharp, sassy, 21-year-old daughter of UK comedian Keith Allen, who’s recently become known as the poster-girl for the MySpace generation.
I VE been in Vivienne Westwood s shop in the King s Road in London a few times. There s a very striking architectural feature to the place. It s a simple idea but genuinely original and somewhat startling. The floor is pitched at an angle, as if you re on board a ship that s about to go down, or the building you re in is beginning to implode. The shop is called World s End.
The Duckworth Lewis Method – alias The Divine Comedy’s Neil Hannon and Pugwash mainman Thomas Walsh – chose the Hot Press Yearbook launch to make their live debut.
Supernaut is the latest vehicle for former Blue In Heaven/Blue Angels frontman Shane O’Neill and Into Paradise mainman Dave Long. In many ways, their debut album is like a homage to the almighty guitar, which shapechanges throughout from a shimmer to a swagger, a sparkle to a snarl.
In many ways Microdisney exemplify the difficulties facing any band who feel that they have something valid and non-conformist to say but are also driven by a desire to bring that vision to as wide and diverse an audience as possible. Within those terms of reference, 39 Minutes may be a definitive offering.
Edwyn Collins is one of pop music's nice guys, a solid second-division player that typifies the virtues of consistency and reliability while occasionally displaying flashes of brilliance
Tayto have demanded that Toasted Heretic “withdraw and destroy” their Now In New Nostalgia Flavour compilation, which features a likeness of the crisp company’s ‘Tayto Man’ logo on the cover.
Casting a cold eye on 1986, one must be frank that, although it was a good year, the absolute pinnacles that have marked previous years were absent. Perhaps ‘The Unforgettable Fire’ and ‘Born In The USA’, and their respective tours in 1985, not to mention Live Aid, drained a lot of emotion.
The scene is the Whistle Test Studio, which despite the attempted rejuvenation is still as old and grey as ever. Richard Skinner – a podgy, eager, ageing, red-faced DJ is engaged in a live phone-in with Mark O'Toole, bassist with Pop phenomenon Frankie Go For Broke.
"Its hardly the “revolutionary point of view” that she is laying claim to, but it does sound all the more invigorating coming straight from the lips of the most famous woman in pop"
With characteristic unpredictability, Sinéad has re-emerged after a period in retirement with a Rasta album, in which she covers a collection of her own personal reggae classics.
It s been four years since the last Siniad O Connor album. By any standards, even for a major artist, that s a long time, inevitably heightening speculation about where Siniad s muse was likely to take her.
Rain-soaked lovers; galaxy-straddling astronauts; the dawn's early light; the late night taxi; the broken hearted people; the reawakened dreams; and through it all, casting a warm, twinkling eye from above, the stars. This is Ken Sweeney's world. And it's a wonderful place to be.
1985 has got to remember as the year when one of the most spoiled, wasteful, self-indulgent and ephemeral industries on earth suddenly woke up, not only to the urgent insistence of its conscience within the person of Bob Geldof, but to its power to actually achieve something, (to raise money and thereby save lives), given the right motivation and mechanism.
In Love With Detail is the sound of a band realising their potential. It’s the first truly great Irish album of 2007 and the finest debut from a homegrown act in years.
There seemed to be something distant and pre-occupied about Joan Wasser's banter, full of semi-comprehensible, possibly-stoned babble and peculiar random observations.
BADGER are a recently formed group from Boyle, Co. Roscommon. Lead singer David Coldbeck included, there are four guitarists. The remaining three members are bass, drums and backing vocals.
New York and LA are fine, but nobody throws frilly knickers at you quite like they do in Dublin. Futureheads guitarist Ross Millard talks music and underwear with Phil Udell
It's hard to believe that it's so long since John Fogerty's last album. In the intervening time span, rumour and speculation flared intermittently about a new album in the marking - yet Fogerty, one of rock'n'roll's most tantalisingly enigmatic recluses remained silent.
Last week in Dublin, a highly ambitious new independent label was launched. LODGE RECORDS will reflect the diverse musical interests of its founder pat dempsey – as well as reflecting a funamental commitment to the song. Report: Colm O’Hare
Even divorced from the poignant circumstances of his death, a Greek tragedy for our time, the essential wonder of Marvin Gaye’s troubled mysticism ensures that What’s Going On, an album first released in 1971, will remain both relevant and thrilling for generations to come
Why the musical legacy bequeathed by Michael Jackson will ultimately outlive and overshadow the huge morass of questions surrounding his life and death...
For connoisseurs of indie music, the Hot Press New Band Stage will provide a weekend-long bonanza. Here, Patrick Freyne selects 10 acts who will grace the stage that are essential viewing.
Elvis was first sighted in a 7-Eleven in central London, sneering at the staff while purchasing cigarettes and condoms, looking for all the world like the new king of rock'n'roll, shabbily dressed and sharp-tongued, a man with a mission. It seems such a long time ago, now.
Does anyone give a toss about Badly Drawn Boy anymore? A lot of people, judging by the sell-out crowd at The Village tonight, though I have to say I’m a little surprised.
Performing in front of a stage set that Cecil B. De Mille would’ve been proud of, it was clear from the off that Britney was just one element (albeit an important one) in what was an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza, almost old-fashioned in concept. Themed around the “Onyx Hotel”, it owed a good deal to the Moulin Rouge movie with hints of Lisa Minnelli’s Cabaret and almost every other classic Hollywood musical of the last 60 years.
To mark the 30th Anniversary of the launch of Hot Press, this issue comes with a free reprint of selected material taken from the magazine's first six months in 1977. It offers a unique insight into what was a seminal moment for Irish music and culture.
Turbulence, the debut album proper from Saucy Monky, is one of those records. It is at once rich, smart, sexy, thrilling, entertaining, diverse and hugely accomplished. It is a great, rock’n’roll record, both playful and deep, its sometimes dark indie heart-core spangled with enough sparks of pop magic to light up the western sky.
The new album from Alison Krauss and Robert Plant (pictured) is one of the folk records of the year. As is Steve Earle’s remarkable ode to his adopted New York.
Pelvis are a band going places. To London for a start, where they are playing every fleapit dive, indie emporium and up-market lounge bar that will have ’em.
The final year of the millennium saw dance music reach to more creative, dizzying heights than before. Digital Beat was there every step of the way. Report: Richard Brophy.
It may not seem as glamorous as appearing on Top of the Pops but it can be a hell of a lot more lucrative. That’s right, publishing is one of the most widely misunderstood and underestimated aspects of the music industry. The message for Irish songwriters: get weaving! There’s classics that need writing . . .
The life and work of Stephen Gately was brilliantly remembered at his funeral service by the members of Boyzone. There is a lesson in this for all of us.
In the new Hot Press, Peter Murphy picks his 20 highlights from the last 35 years of home-grown alternative culture (in strictly chronological order!). Take a look and then have your say on the indie moments that rocked in your lifetime...
Clive Barnes has been trekking across the US for most of January, playing at some pretty tasty venues and bringing his wistful desert-hearted acoustic blues to its spiritual home.
...it was a year like any other year at Féile - except that there were dozens of extra acts on show, on not just two but three stages. There was also the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow, the Chris de Burgh stripper incident, Michael Hutchence dispensing condoms...and a rather loud Little Red Rooster that nearly got itself strangled. And the crack Hot Press team of reporters who attempted to keep up with it all? Words: Bill Graham, Stuart Clark, Tara McCarthy, Lorraine Freeney and Chris Donovan. Pix: Cathal Dawson.
Twelve months ago The Cranberries were unknown outside of the hippest rock circles, now with the platinum success of Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? they stand as the first Irish band to genuinely crack America since U2.-Much of the media attention given to them has focussed on Dolores O’Riordan, a singer whose unique approach to her craft underlines the defiantly independent path the group has trodden all the way to the top of the Billboard charts. Here she talks to JOE JACKSON about what by any standards has been a perfect year. Pix: Michael Quinn.
Lord Laird’s chequered past and unsavoury acquaintances make his criticism of Phil Flynn somewhat strange. Plus: Our columnist recalls a difficult meeting with Van Morrison and explores the origins of the singer’s legendary pugnacity.
Here at Hot Press we like to bring you interviews with the most influential figures of our times. And in Ireland 1999 who is more influential than Ballydung bachelors PODGE and RODGE?
STUART CLARK spoke to the zeitgeist-defining duo about the crucial issues: religion, sex, Mary Black and Jean Butler s minge . Also an entirely unfounded revelation about our esteemed editor. Pics: MICK QUINN.
