Heathers blazing

Ellie and Louise MacNamara, the twins behind Heathers, sat their Leaving Certificate a year ago. Since then, their lives have changed beyond recognition. They’ve toured the United States, released an acclaimed debut album, Here, Not There and have a cameo on the forthcoming Super Extra Bonus Party record (unbelievably, Louise has managed to squeeze in a music technology course in NUI Maynooth, too ).

“Two years ago we wouldn’t have expected to be in a band. It’s not something that we planned to do,” Ellie reflects. “It feels crazy, like a whirlwind. We’re so happy and grateful that everything has gone so well.”
The biggest challenge? Completing secondary school and going to third level while progressing their music careers.
“It’s kind of hard going from school and taking that step into college and having to do all of the music stuff as well. Everything has been changing in almost two separate parts of our lives.”
They’ve been likened to the Indigo Girls, alt.rock pairing Tegan and Sara – twins like them – and even one of the world’s most famous musical partnerships, Simon and Garfunkel.
And while Ellie ‘fesses up to the Simon and Garfunkel influence, she and her sister are baffled by the Indigo Girls and Tegan and Sara comparisons.
“We hadn’t even heard of Tegan and Sara until we had about 90% of Here, Not There written,” she insists, “and I still haven’t managed to listen to Indigo Girls yet!”
Their second US tour with cult Florida folk-punks, Ghost Mice, kicks off on June 4 in Chicago and runs for the rest of the month along the east coast. Being away from home for so long, Ellie says the support of family and friends is important. Their dad even has a ‘Heathers Archive’ containing every column inch of coverage the girls have had.
Still, their lives aren’t quite as glamorous as you might imagine. On extended tours, in particular, homesickness can set in.
“Some of our friends are going to be in the States during the summer so hopefully we’ll get to meet. It’s really nice when you see a familiar face. A 30-day tour sounds long – but it feels even longer when you’re actually out there on the road.”
Since finishing the pesky Leaving Cert, Ellie says they’ve had the opportunity to focus on new material, which they hope to release before the end of the year.
“Musically, we’ve been really busy,” she enthuses. “There’s a lot more pressure since the last album. We’ve been doing a lot of writing. The new stuff is a little bit different to the older stuff. Which it should be given everything we’ve experienced over the past year.”

Here, Not There is out now on Hide Away Records. Hear tracks on www.myspace.com/heatherswhatsyourdamage.