On Our Radar Q&A - Sick Love: "We had a lot of pent-up energy and aggression, so we were raring to go..."

What’s the story behind ‘Sucka’?
It was one of the first songs we wrote after lockdown. We had a lot of pent-up energy and aggression, so we were raring to go, and that comes across in the music. It’s a song about self-empowerment and standing up for yourself and knowing what you’re worth. Be you, don’t listen to what people have to say about you, just do your thing.

What prompted the band’s name change to Sick Love?
We used to be called Submotion ages ago, but once we released ‘Gun In Your Pocket’, we knew we’d outgrown the name. When we became Sick Love in 2018, we had a new sound  and knew we were onto something. We got more opportunities then, so a name change made sense. It was from a Red Hot Chili Peppers song – we wanted a new name that was snappy and fun. I saw the song on a playlist, and it fits what our music is about.

Who are your big musical influences?
We’re into a lot of ‘90s stuff like No Doubt and Garbage. Another of my favourites is Blondie, I love Debbie Harry. On the singer-songwriter side, I take a lot of inspiration from Marina and the Diamonds and Regina Spektor. The lads like a lot of classic rock as well – Queens Of The Stone Age, Thin Lizzy. We’ve got a cool blend.

Who’s a current Irish artist you can’t stop listening to?
One of the bands we’ve looked up to for a long time is Fangclub. We supported them when we started out, and they have that ‘90s feel we love. Another act we really like is Blood Donor. We were big fans of Otherkin when they were going, and now Luke Reilly performs as Blood Donor. His music is really cool.

‘Sucka’ is out now, on Paragon Records.

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