Out of their Schull

The personnel may be the same but there’s far more than just a name change between Blotooth and Juno Falls. Where the former Phantom FM favourites were all about loud, shouty choruses and exuberant indie pop, Juno Falls’ debut album, Starlight Drive, is gentler, acoustic-based and more “natural”, according to Myles O’Reilly, singer and guitarist, Dara Diffily, bassist, and David Shakespeare, drums.

Up until a little over a year ago, the trio were plying their musical trade as the aforementioned Blotooth, whose ‘Give Up Your Day Job’ and ‘Leather Tassles’ singles had struck a chord with Ireland’s punk-loving youth. But when they relocated to Schull in West Cork to record an album with Herbie Macken (whose previous credits include Neil Finn’s solo work), it all changed. Why?
“It was a songwriting thing, really,” Myles opines. “With Blotooth, our way of writing was really anal, concentrating on every track, looking at the monitors while we were playing the instruments, and that influenced the way the band sounded. When we went to Schull, we weren’t expecting the change, but it turned out to be so different. In Schull, we constructed every song in about an hour, and then I was told to go off for a walk and write the lyrics in half an hour. We then recorded the song in a couple of takes.”
“I think Blotooth songs were very thought-out, whereas Juno Falls’ music seems to come more naturally,” Dara joins in. “There’s no worrying about whether people are going to like it, whereas with Blotooth, every last note was dissected.”
“We used to spend ages thinking of the right chord to hit the chorus with,” Myles agrees with a rueful smile.
“There was no way we could have recorded the Blotooth songs in Schull,” interjects David. “It just wasn’t the right environment, but it was a perfect environment to let our imagination run free. It was a huge learning experience for us because we’d never worked that way before.”
The band are quick to pass much of the credit for the album on to producer, Herbie Macken, who they feel changed them as musicians and songwriters.
“I think Herbie saw that we had a lot of potential, but as Blotooth we were trying too hard,” notes David. “But Starlight Drive is a very honest record.”
Myles agrees. “Herbie was always talking about honesty. If I tried to be impressive with a falsetto or a vibrato, he’d step in, telling me I sounded like a trumpet or something,” the singer laughs. “He really put us in our place, but in a great way.”
The end result, Starlight Drive, has been garnering superb reviews and has also seen the band reach a brand new audience. Perhaps most importantly, the band themselves adore it. “I love it because it’s the kind of music that I have in my record collection, which I never did with Blotooth,” admits Myles. Since its release, Juno Falls have taken on two new members, Conal Doyle (guitar) and Keith Lawless (keyboards). Becoming a five-piece has, they feel, added immeasurably to their live show.
“We have four harmonies now as a live band and we reckon that’s a large part of what hooks people’s ears,” Myles enthuses. “We feel that we can have people walking out of our gigs going ‘wow’.”
The Irish public will have plenty of chances to be wowed this summer. Juno Falls have a plethora of dates organised all over the country, from mid-May to early July, and they’re really looking forward to it.
“This is basically about going back to grass-roots and putting the work in,” smiles David, “sitting on a bus, going from town to town and building up a fanbase.”
“Once they’ve heard the album, people will realise that when they come to see us it’s not going to be about beating our guitars, but I’m really looking forward to it,” Myles notes. “We’re all willing to work seven days a week. It really is a case of going back to basics. I just wish we were all 19 again.”