For The Guggenheim Grotto, there have been a number of lucky breaks that have given them the impetus to record and release their excellent debut album, Waltzing Alone.
“I suppose one of the big things has been the mention Damien Rice gave us in a tiny little piece in Mojo magazine,” says Kevin May, the group’s chief songwriter and frontman.
“He was asked to pick five songs he thought people should listen to. One of them was our song, ‘A Lifetime In Heat’. It was in there with a Leonard Cohen song.”
As a result, hundreds of Rice fans in the US downloaded the track from the band’s website. “That was a huge morale boost. Just even people getting back to us and saying they loved the music,” he says.
May’s will be a name familiar to those who have monitored the Irish singer/songwriter scene over the last number of years.
He first cropped up on Songs From A Small Room, a compilation album marking the end of the singer/songwriter sessions at Dublin’s International Bar, the venue where Damien Rice, Damien Dempsey, Paddy Casey and Declan O’Rourke cut their teeth.
Mixing with more established performers helped May develop as a writer.
“It’s the validation thing," he explains. "You go along to that, and you do your thing and maybe Damien Dempsey will say ‘Jesus, I like that song Kevin’. It’s a very small thing but it's encouragement.”
May opted out of the singer/songwriter path, choosing instead to build a band around the ideas in his head. Bassist Mick Lynch became his writing partner, and three years ago The Guggenheim Grotto were born. Financial constraints and a desire to experiment put paid to any notions of entering a studio and working to a deadline. The trio threw cables throughout their Dublin flats and recorded when they could. Unusually, they kept their live performances to a minimum. As a result, Waltzing Alone has arrived somewhat out of nowhere.
“We did put out an EP,” offers May, “Gigging was also something we tried, but it’s quite difficult." Doubtless, it would seem frustrating and quite risky to spend three years recording an album without building a fan base to support it.
“It was frustrating I have to say,” says May. “I’d never do an album quite like that again. It was very frustrating having to count on each other to be free. I’d love to have a record deal, and work with producers that might be able to steer us in wild and wonderful directions, instead of having to re-invent the wheel ourselves, but that’s how it is.”
Radio, notably 2FM, has picked up on current single, ‘Told You So’. Play-listed by the station, it has become something of a fixture, in particular on the The Larry Gogan Show .
“We didn’t expect to get so much mainstream radio play, and that’s done a lot for us,” notes May with a smile. “I don’t know if it’s because it’s a great single. I think it’s just luck to be honest. I mean there are fantastic bands like The Walls who struggle to get radio play. So I think we’re just lucky. The Gods are smiling on us.”
Recalling artists as diverse as Evan Dando, Marvin Gaye and Tom Waits, Waltzing Alone makes for a cohesive yet varied record. The presentation is something special too. There are extensive sleeve notes and even an interesting foreword on the subject of MP3s and the packaging of records.
“We wanted to make something special, so as to mark the amount of care and attention which went into the record,” says May. “The foreword was just something I came across. I thought it was a nice idea to stick it in.”
Commercial success would be welcome, but May isn’t counting on it. “It would be great to draw a huge audience, but even if one person falls in love with the album then I guess that’s good enough. Validation, you see!”