First Cuts: The Rags, Deep Throat, The October Country, The Future

The Rags have joined forces as a sextet of individuals drawn from several Dublin bands, with the traditional rock line-up plus Ledge on samples. The craftily-titled ‘Dandy Lines’ features impassioned vocals on top of an urgent, chugging, chord-dominated guitar base. But the song barely develops and badly needs a killer hook. ‘Pistols’ is more seductive and introspective, with great vocals from Danny Rag. It builds well in a beguiling 6/4 time, but the band’s apparent aversion to hooky choruses suggests that therapy might soon be required. ‘Parsnips’ is excellent, doing good business at the atmospheric samples counter. It has decent harmonies, and is a mite U2-meet-Aslan, with the guitar(s) especially doing the biz. All in all, The Rags trade in a sturdy sound and can fashion good performances, but the songs aren’t quite dripping with hit potential. Getting from The Rags to the riches might not be impossible, but it’ll be hard work unless they shape up in the chorus lines.

Listening to Deep Throat was like The Commitments had never happened way back before time began. Backed by a competent band with a sluggish keyboard player, vocalist Benny Grant wallies his way Andrew Strong-style through some light soul pop covers, including Clarence Carter’s ‘Patches’, Bobby Bloom’s ‘Montego Bay’ and Solomon Burke’s ‘Everybody Needs Somebody To Love’. It’s all done in what to me sounds like note-for-note copies of the originals but with Grant getting distressingly overwrought at times. Why?

Deep Throat pale particularly when compared to the highly inventive The October Country from Letterkenny. Ok, sometimes TOC overdose on the “we’re really mad bastards, us” front, with a pretentiously long CD title, but at least they’re exploring what can be done their own way rather than taking the obvious route or merely following the formula. Influences come from Beck, Pavement, Zappa and the god-awful Bonnie ‘I’m No Prince’ Billy. ‘Dragons And Dinosaurs’ opens with a hint of indie country-rock, lots of noisy guitars for the sheer joy of it. Whilst the truly brilliant ‘Haunting The Ghosts’ leads off with a so-solid bass line, before gradually building into a glorious Beach Boys-style pocket symphony. The October Country might be the first band manufactured exclusively for Donal Dineen’s playlist. But can they do it live? We’ll see.

Next up are Galway trio The Future, who feature acclaimed Spanish singer Sonia Dominguez Ziegler on vocals. Ziegler has an accomplished vocal style that has jazz and folk overtones, and she’s ably accompanied by guitarist and songwriter Raynerioes Oisin Browne and drummer Keith Horan. ‘Wait’ sounds like it might do nicely in a live situation, but for contemporary demo purposes it lacks focus and the kind of clearly distincta arrangement that radio heads will be able to follow. ‘Where Are Your Wings?’ is the perfect antidote to those reservations. This is my song of the week because Ziegler gives it space to breathe rather than strangling it with her undoubted talent. I’ve heard The Future and they most certainly have a great deal of potential.