There’s a quiet unease abroad in the land. No it’s not the prospect of Jackie Healy-Rae ending up in the post of Minister for Fashion after the General Election, but the citizenry are preparing for something of far greater significance: the second RTÉ 2fm 2moro 2our.
The inaugural event last year having done fine and dandy for all concerned, a second shot was virtually inevitable, and the line-up this time see three of our most dynamic new bands – Messiah J & The Expert, Giveamanakick and The Flaws – taking the stage all over the country. Plus there’s local support acts to add a special home town flavour to every occasion.
2fm’s Jenny Huston will be one of the four comperes for the tour, a task she seems to be anticipating with almost unseemly pleasure. “I was involved last year, but not to the extent I am this time, so I’m really looking forward to it. Much as we all love hearing our favourite new bands on CD, playing live is the real test for any band. I think it’s also important for somebody like me to make contact with bands in the early stages of their careers. It stands to you later, if they know you were interested from the start.”
Indeed, when I put it to her that Irish radio DJs are not generally known for their presence at live gigs by new bands, she agreed, “I’m really puzzled as to why so few Irish radio DJs seem interested in checking out the new bands. It’s something that’s always been important to me, because it’s great to see a band that you saw in the early days, such as Snow Patrol, grow over the years into big acts. It also gives you the chance to get to know them and build a relationship with them that can stand to you in later years.”
RTÉ 2fm DJs, including Huston, Rick O’Shea, Cormac Battle and Dan Hegarty, will broadcast their shows from different points on the tour and MC in the venues, and Steve Ryan, one half of Limerick duo Giveamanakick, was generous in his praise for 2fm, for getting behind the gigs. His attitude suggests that, for these bands, the tour isn’t simply a chance to get out of the house. “We were really chuffed to be picked for the tour and it’s great to get all that support in terms of the publicity they give us. It’s a welcome opportunity to plug our current album We Are The Way Forward, as well as road-testing songs for our next album,” he told hotpress.
But I can’t help wondering if Giveamanakick’s rider conditions insist on a suitable supply of Moro bars? “Of course,” he confesses. “Keith, the other half of the band, is allergic to peanuts, but that’s great for me as I’ll be able to snaffle all the peanuts Moro bars. It doesn’t get any better than this (laughs)!”
Perhaps revealing a slight masochistic streak, Ryan is also looking forward to travelling around Ireland in the same bus as the other two bands with whom he has become quite friendly, since meeting them at the launch gig. “It’ll be different than doing a gig on our own, in that the pressure’s off us in one way and shared around with the other bands – but in another way we have to deliver every single night to justify the faith people have had in us by picking us for this tour.”
As for what messianic message one of those bands, Messiah J & The Expert, might be about to share with the plain people, the Messiah himself claims that all the band want to do is put on “a good energetic show.” Refusing to confirm whether the J in the name refers to Jesus or Judas, the Messiah admits that while on the road he’ll have to make some personal sacrifices, perhaps missing Eastenders as well as the customary peace and quiet of the home front. “But,” he adds hopefully, “I can get back to all that when it’s over. We just love touring and playing as much as we can, so I‘m really looking forward to it, especially as we’ve never done 12 gigs on the trot before. It’ll be really noisy and even wilder than Dickie Rock in The Noggin Inn ‘88!”
Regarding the temptations that life on the rock’n’roll highway inevitably brings, I ask him how he expects to deal with that aspect of touring. “Do you mean temptations like ice-cream? I’ll probably succumb to that one all right, but as I won’t have any money with me I won’t have any problem avoiding anything else that might be on offer,” he reassures me (and his mum!). On a serious level, this series of high-profile gigs, as well as the radio exposure from 2fm, gives Messiah J and The Expert a chance to expose the blend of hip hop and electronica available on their album Now This I Have To Hear and their EP And Another Thing to a far wider audience.
Meanwhile, the Carrickmacross four-piece indie-pop unit The Flaws are the third band on the bill, and they too have a record to promote. As vocalist/guitarist Paul Finn explained, “We have a single called ‘16’ to work on, during the tour. It’s done well with airplay so far, and we want to build on that. But this tour is also a great chance to work with other bands and learn from them. It’s great to see 2fm supporting Irish rock music in such a practical way, especially at a time when there’s so little space for Irish rock music on TV. Apart from Other Voices, which we did last year and really enjoyed, there’s hardly anything else. There’s easily enough good rock music out there to fill a weekly live rock show and the bands on this tour are proof of that.”
That said, The Flaws’ man doesn’t see the tour as merely a chance to plug some product. “We’re all really looking forward to it and while we’ll take it seriously and do the best job we can on one level, we plan to have some fun as well. You couldn’t spend two weeks travelling around Ireland on a bus with these three bands and not expect to have a terrific time,” he promises.
It’s going to be fun, and it’s going to be noisy. Let’s just hope they all get back safely.