DELUSH: "You’re always telling yourself that you’re worth it. But when you get that outside confirmation, it’s fuel"

DELUSH are a cocky, loud and excitable breath of fresh air. It’s no shock their name is inspired by Hardy Bucks. The 19-24 year olds are full of one-liners and jokey insults when they saunter into the Hot Press offices.

“Massive balls,” quips drummer Keeghan Farrel, explaining the source of their confidence.

“Confidence is a necessary part of it,” agrees singer Scott Leigh. “If you don’t believe in yourself it won’t work.”

“The music’s good too,” adds Sean Corcoran, lead guitarist.

That wasn’t always the case. DELUSH came out of Old Bawn, Tallaght, in “dribs and drabs.”

“Me and Scott were doing music for years,” says Sean. “He kept wanting to do gigs but I was saying we had to wait. Eventually we started doing open mics.”

“Those days were gas,” nods the singer. “You’d spend three hours listening to slam poets before you got to do your three minutes.”

Bassist Aaron Walsh Maguire (he’s the quiet one), from Castlecomer, was recruited by Scott at the restaurant they worked at. They quickly ditched the slam poets, with their first proper gig as a four-piece being an Aslan support in The Academy.

“Their professionalism stood out, they have it locked down,” says Scott of the experience. “There’s no stress. They’re just organised. Their stage presence is calm and confident. It’s another day in the office for them.”

“Keeghan saved us,” he continues, smiling at his bushy-haired bandmate. “Our first drummer dropped out two weeks before. Keego learned the whole set in a week, it was insane.”

DELUSH have ridden the momentum since. Scott cites recording sessions in London as the moment things “clicked”, while the grapevine says they’ve been attracting interest and investment from industry figures.

“I’d love a few more quid,” Scott laughs.

“He was late to the interview because he was in a dole queue,” Sean jibes, pointing towards Keeghan.

“It puts a bit more pep in your step,” continues Scott, refocusing on the industry attention.

“You’re always telling yourself that you’re worth it. But when you get that outside confirmation, it’s fuel. You’re not floating around in the ether anymore. You never know who’s gonna be at a show, so the set always has to be tip-top.”

Delush. Photo: Abigail Ring.

The hype stems from the sound. Keeghan and Sean describe it as “loud” and “pretty fucking loud” respectively. It’s a fair assessment, as are comparisons to Arctic Monkeys and Kings Of Leon, thanks to the dirty guitar melodies and catchy choruses.

“Our inspirations come from abroad,” explains Sean. “Now there’s a bit of an Irish revival, but when we were growing up, no one we knew had even touched a guitar. Me and Scott found the other three rejects in the local area and played with them for a while.”

“I do the bulk of the writing, and I like to do it on my own,” says Scott. “I start with melody and then some arrangement ideas. I’ll bring it to the lads and it’s a free for all from there.”

One such concoction is ‘Got Sick’, a gritty, Oasis-tinged romper about Scott’s ordeals with alcohol in college.

“I’ve had my battles. I’m three and a bit years off the stuff now,” he says candidly. “‘Got Sick’ was actually about a night out in Maynooth. I literally got sick on my jeans. I was told by the bouncer I was too drunk. I told him I was grand, and the minute he walked away I stood up from the table and projectiled.

“It’s a light-hearted song, but it is so blasé because everyone’s attitude is so blasé. The underlying truth is that it’s a problem.”

Scott dips his quill into social commentary too. ‘Famous’ is a noisy, scathing track about social media grifters. Its inspiration is rooted in the songwriter’s time as a chef at such Michelin-starred eateries as Jordnaer in Copenhagen.

“‘Famous’ is about how the bar of what qualifies for talent has been completely eradicated,” he explains.  “Anyone with a phone can throw stuff on the internet without any merit. It’s the culture’s fault. We told everyone that’s what you needed to be someone.

“It’s made a mockery of people making real attempts at creating. I was a chef and now I make cooking content. That’s where it comes from – knowing the graft that some people are putting into whatever they’re creating.”

Lazy art and content overload don’t look like they’re going anywhere, thanks to the proliferation of artificial intelligence.

“What I don’t like about AI is that it’s a contradiction of your own humanity,” says Scott. “Engaging and enjoying AI content means you’re a programme. You’re letting someone click buttons to make you happy. There’s no soul or deeper humanity.”

DELISH won’t be hitting up ChatGPT any time soon. There’s plenty of writing being done and the new stuff, they say, is “the bollocks”.

“It’s flowing like water,” says Keeghan. “There’s a new song each jam session”

“It’s being busy that’s making it go,” observes Scott. “You’re in flow state all the time. Because you only have so much time, you’re straight into it.”

As well as an album or two, the band have international tours and a Hot Press cover in their sights. In the more immediate future, they’re itching to play Electric Picnic, where they’ll be rocking Fishtown during their second-ever festival appearance.

“When we found out we were playing it, we were fucking ecstatic,” says Scott. “I always wanted to go, but said I’ll wait till I play it for the first time.”

• Delush play Fish Town at Electric Picnic on Saturday, August 30.