Marc Carroll is shouting to be heard above the din at the Falcon, a legendary dive in London s Camden Town, but I have the feeling that if the place was as hushed as a library he d be yelling anyway.
The former Puppy Love Bomb frontman has just finished his second ever gig with the current lineup of his new band, the Hormones. The record company, Richard Branson s recently-formed V2 label, had asked a few journalists over to see the band, the show didn t go well, and Carroll is not a happy fellow.
I m a bit disappointed tonight, he yells. I m a bit disappointed that people came over and it wasn t great. It was too loud on stage. I don t believe in just a loud group, I m not interested in just going uunnkghhh anyone can do that. It was a sloppy gig. I m not making excuses. You can write what you want.
Well, what I want to write is that I like this band. Guitar, bass, drums, three-part harmony vocals, excellent musicianship, good strong songs - including an astonishing little tribute to the Beach Boys entitled Mr Wilson that contrasts oddly with the much heavier debut single, This Is The Sound and a passionate, pugnacious, spleen-filled lead singer and songwriter.
Said singer is clearly in the mood for a rant, so we ll let him at it: I don t like the music scene here. I can t stand being bored, and London gets so boring and stale but having said that, I don t go out, I don t hang around with people, I don t have famous friends. The best way to get successful in England is get yourself a famous girlfriend, or preferably a one-night stand with a member of Elastica, and you re made, you really are made. It s a joke.
I believe in music. Rock n roll is the most honest musical art form there is, and that s been said a million times and I can t think of any other way to put it. You ve got to live it, and I live it. I m probably the worst person to get on with. I m a moody bastard, but at least I can admit it.
It s just the passion I believe in. We get out there and play, and we play like we re about to break up. And that s the way it s going to be, because that s what I look for. I don t believe in doing things by half measures.
But I m over here now, and I m in the best band I ve ever played with. I love Dublin contrary to popular belief, I do, and I miss it dearly, but I don t think I d find the people I really want to work with there. I came over here, and we got our agent, we got a record deal, we got new management, all in the space of a year and a bit. If I d stayed in Dublin it would never have happened.
There s an awful lot of lazy shit going down. People will slag you off or criticise you just because you want to do something. What s wrong with wanting to do what you want? If you won t do it, someone else is going to stamp on you for not doing it, so you might as well do it. I know the score, you know, it s all a game. You ve got to stay above it. The trick is, you re going to be misunderstood, so you have to say to yourself, can I handle this, or do you do a Kurt Cobain. That s the whole thing to me, make it or break it. I go mad sometimes over all this, but I don t give a shit. I just want the passion to stay in everything that we do.
No need to worry on that score, Marc.
This Is The Sound, a four-song EP, will be released on July 21st. There s a fascinating assortment of objects on the cover that s apparently meant to depict the interior landscape of Carroll s mind, and is vaguely amusing to decipher. The band are still at work on their debut album, due out in February or March of next year. They ll be supporting Dinosaur Jr. on their tour in August and there should be an Irish date later this summer. In short, look out for them. n