Dali Wags

They just played their first Dublin headline show in Whelan’s, they have a blinding performance at last year’s Hard Working Class Heroes Festival under their belt, and now Kilkenny alt-rockers Dali’s latest single is gathering momentum on airwaves across the country. How To Play Guitar manuals have never had such a good endorsement.

Late starter Deirdre Doyle picked up the guitar for the first time at the age of 18. “I was listening to music in a friend’s house and found it really frustrating that I couldn’t play along with the songs,” she says. “I begged my brother Seán to teach me but he wouldn’t. So I got one of those How To Play Guitar books.”
And the rest, as they say, is history. When it came to choosing a career, front-woman Deirdre and sibling bandmate Seán had a multitude of talents to choose from, with a clan of artists on one side of the family and a clan of musicians on the other.
With such a strong artistic presence at home, is Deirdre a devout follower of fashion? “Not really,” she shrugs, “my sisters are, but being a musician, I have very little money for it.”
That’s not to say that the girl doesn’t have style. Deirdre describes her look as simple pieces matched with stand-out accessories. “My style is casual. I go for unique items that everyone else wouldn’t have, something a bit different... I shop all over the place, going to random shops at random times when I happen to have the money.”
The gravel-voiced songstress knows the power of an attention-grabbing look under the spotlight. “I definitely make more of an effort on stage,” she says. “I think it’s really important to look different from how you would usually look, and from the people that you’re playing for. Unfortunately, image is very important in this industry.”
While Deirdre takes her on-stage attire very seriously, the same can’t be said for another member of the Thomastown foursome. “Micky, the bass player, has to be told not to wear certain things,” she confesses. “He had one t-shirt with ‘cool fucker’ written on it that we wouldn’t let him wear, and another with a picture of a dog licking his behind that said ‘I can’t believe it’s not butter’. He actually wore that one, though!”
As part of an unsigned band still gigging their way to acclaim, Deirdre has had to find resourceful ways of updating her wardrobe. “I was at a clothes swap at a friend’s house recently,” she says, “I arrived with the biggest bag of stuff! But it was great, I got a few lovely things.”
Currently working on material for a solo album and juggling Dali with another band, The White Lions, Deirdre has always given priority to her music. “I worked as a PE teacher for a while but it just wasn’t for me, I couldn’t handle the crowd control element,” she laughs.
Presumably the congregation in the sports hall was tougher than a packed house at Whelan’s.

Dali play the Button Factory on July 17. Their single ‘Think Before You Think’ is out now.