Hot Gear: Break it up

Tallaght-based three-piece Bipolar Empire have deservedly been on top of the ones-to-watch list for some time now and look well primed to take it to the next level. Together since the summer of 2007 they’ve gigged incessantly to huge acclaim – their brand of guitar-based indie pop/rock striking a chord with audiences everywhere. The lads have just returned from the US where they played a handful of dates as well as recording their soon-to-be-released debut album in Los Angeles with legendary producer Pat McCarthy of REM and Madonna fame.

Bipolar Empire are Shane O’Reilly (vocals/guitar), Joe Lavine (bass/backing vocals) and Calz (drums). With their straightforward, no-nonsense approach to writing and playing their attitude to their chosen instruments and gear is, not surprisingly, all about keeping it simple. Guitarist Shane plays a Gretsch, which as he explains he found after much trial and error.
“I was looking for a guitar that felt good to play so I tried out about twenty altogether including Gibsons and Fenders,” he says. “This is the nicest one I’ve found to date - I’m not even sure what model it is. But it’s a bit like one Johnny Marr plays and he’s a big influence on me. I like that fresh, bright sound and there’s a hint of harp about them in the sound. I especially like it with a little distortion mixed in.”
He runs it through a Fender Deluxe Amp which he prefers to a Marshall which he’s also tried in the past.
“It’s more direct and more percussive. They’re small but they’re really heavy, being a valve amp. They need time to warm up too which gives them a nice warm tone.”
O’Reilly started playing guitar when he was twelve but maintains that a later stint busking on the streets of Dublin was where he learned most of his chops.
“I did it for years and I think it was a big help,” he reflects. “It was good for stretching your vocals, as well as improving your guitar playing. I was always trying to learn Beatles, Radiohead, Nirvana and Green Day songs. I used to play a lot of older stuff which probably influenced the way I write now.”
Shane also plays acoustic guitar on some songs and his Stateside trip yielded something of a bargain.
“Yeah, I got a Fender acoustic in a pawn shop there for $200. It sounds great and I’ve been using it a lot lately.”
Bassist Joe mainly uses a Fender Jazz with a Trace Elliot and an Ampeg rig but he has ambitions towards higher things.
“I’m playing a Music Man at the moment which I have on loan and it’s absolutely brilliant, lovely to play. I really want to buy it but they’re pricey and I don’t think our manager will come up with the readies so easily (laughs). But I’m happy with the Fender for the moment – I use a little booster pedal to bring it up during the chorus and the tuner.”
Originally a guitarist, he switched to bass through necessity rather than choice.
“No-one in my previous band wanted to play the bass so I took it up. The bass is harder to master but easy to play if you know what I mean. I look to people like John Paul Jones and John Deacon out of Queen, though McCartney and Brian Wilson are two great players that people often forget about.”
Drummer Calz has been bashing the skins since he was 14 or 15 and is proud of the fact that he’s totally self-taught.
“I actually learned by watching a lot of drummers on video and YouTube and copying them. It’s better that way – you get to invent who you are, whereas if you get lessons you just become someone’s shadow and you could end up copying them without meaning to.”
He concedes that he hits the skins hard and causes a bit of damage in the process.
“I would break four sticks per gig,” he laughs. “They’re ridiculously expensive: that’s 20 quid. I’ve smashed cymbals and snares in the past too. I’ve got two kits at the moment – a Pearl Master Custom which is an ocean sparkle blue which looks great, and a PDP 805 which is jet black. I use them both.”
His advice to young aspiring drummers is simple: “Piss off as many of your neighbours as you can – those drums are made to be hit, so whack them!”