Holding on for 2moro

In the old days all radio was live. The band was live, the advertisements were performed live, sound-effects were live. Pre-recording things were seen as cheating – lying even. So it’s nice that for a while in Studio One of the Radio Centre, RTÉ returned to old-fashioned principles for the launch of the 2FM 2moro 2our. Live on Jenny Huston’s The Waiting Room, each of the bands is to play a tune amidst Jenny’s normal setlist, followed by an interview upstairs in the regular studio.

Yes, 2FM has organised another big tour of the country, MC-ed by some of their all-star DJs – Rick O’Shea, Jenny Huston, Jenny Greene, Ruth Scott, Cormac Battle and Dan Hegarty. They will all broadcast their shows from different points on the tour and each gig will also be opened by a local band (who can apply via the 2FM website). But that’s all a month and a half away. Right now the acts – the indie-poptastic Ham Sandwich, rocking supergroup Concerto For Constantine and bluesy quirktronica maven David Geraghty, gather and mingle with friends, crew and liggers (like myself) around a table of canapés and wine.
In the middle of the room a full backline has been set-up waiting to be played.
Before long the disembodied voice of Jenny Huston announces Ham Sandwich, who are (by now) standing patiently ready to rock. They launch into ‘...Click Click Boom’, a monster song sung with cool energy by Niamh Farrell. The 2FM 2moro 2our will be Ham Sandwich’s biggest tour to date, and their co-vocalist and guitarist Podge McNamee is blown away by the perks.
“I told my folks we were on a big worldwide tour of Ireland on a double-decker bus and they were already impressed with that,” he says. “What I didn’t realise was that we were to be staying in all these 4 and 5 star hotels! I thought we were sleeping on the bus. What’s going on? They might even have orange juice and breakfast. Some of these hotels have full-on health spas. I’ll be getting mud baths. I’m telling you, it’s not what we’re used to.”
Everyone is curious about Concerto For Constantine. They’re an indie supergroup featuring the mighty lungs of JJ72 frontman Mark Greaney, ex-Turn and Idlewild bassist Gavin Fox, and drummer Binzer who has played with The Frames, Bell X1, Mundy, Halite and, well, everyone. They've had a total of three practices. When they launch into ‘Heat’, which was recorded for the third unreleased JJ72 album, Studio One starts to shake. It isn’t rock. It’s ROCK. Everyone’s hair is standing on end.
“My monumental bands are the Manics, Nirvana and the Pumpkins – powerful rock music,” explains Mark Greaney calmly as I comb my hair down. “I don’t want to slag off other bands, but I can’t take any more of that chop-chop-chop Franz Ferdinand sound that everyone seems to be doing. We just want a bit of power.”
After his performance, Mark goes to do his interview with Jenny. Niamh from Ham Sandwich is somewhat starstruck.
“It’s bizarre,” she coos. “I used to be a huge fan of JJ72 – an absolutely massive fan. I remember I made my school band do a cover of ‘Oxygen’ with me singing. It’s weird to be touring with Mark, but it’s nice. It’s weird how things come around.”
The headline act for the tour is Bell X1’s David Geraghty, whose album of folksy, electronic rock was a breath of fresh air when it was released last month. He pounds the piano and sings ‘Kaleidoscope’ with dirty-throated soul. He’s really looking forward to the tour.
“It’s always cool to do these things with other bands and see how they do it,” he enthuses, “And you can learn new strategies and tactics for getting on with each other... Or annoying the shit out of each other!”
Thus far, however, there are no soap opera shenanigans. For some inter-band fisticuffs, somebody’s ‘drug-hell’, or what-goes-on-tour-stays-on-tour-sex, it’s probably best to catch them somewhere in the middle of the tour, which runs from November 15 to 25.

The 2FM 2moro 2our kicks off in the Sky Venue, Portlaoise on November 15 and culminates in an all-ages show in The Village, Dublin on November 25.