bands who got record deals and were never heard from again (1 Viewer)

[Alan Latchley]

I think Republic of Loose could be a decent band if they got a decent producer in and decided just what they want to be. That 'Argh' album sounded like absolute muck, and whoever decided to put in those hilarious 'skits' needs to be flushed down one of Doran's toilets, espeicially the 'intro' one. I can't listen top the album anymore coz of that bullscutter. ROL are a decent enough live act and if they got that energy down on tape they could have a hope of making it outside of Ireland.

Not that they will though...

I think the age-old "search for a new U2" has forever blighted the chances of any Irish band making it abroad, especially those signed in Ireland by one of the Irish subsideries of the majors. Look at the amount of past examples - they're literally falling out of the trees there's that many of them mentioned on the last 20 pages here, and they're just the relatively recent ones. It seems the bands signed are bigged up here, massaged into self-dellusioned world beaters, then promised that world (often via a repackaged version of their debut album) and then they are promptly ko'd after one or, in Bellx1's case, two rounds.

It's funny that the only original sounding band mentioned on the last 20 pages - Watercress - never sought, nor wished to seek, the services of a major label, and never signed to one, yet they seemed to be the only one for whom Thumped posters have any fond memories.

 

[d.o.b]

A guy I know was drinking with one of the Republic of Loose guys

Theyre seen as a relatively successful band- 2 Irish number ones in 2005 ( i think)

Anyway at about 10:30 the Republic.. guy gets up to leave because his " ma only gave him 20 quid to go out tonight"

dizzy heights eh?

my ma has stopped giving me 20 quid to go out. so now i borrow off friends instead. this makes me feel - amongst other things - relatively successful.

 

[evil bandit]

There was a spate of them after u2 went into uber drive in the late 80's wasn't there, most of them were on the last Tom Dunne greatest Irish singles ever thing

The Blades
The Golden Horde
Something Happens
A House
Those lads that sang Arc Light
An Emotional Fish
Sultans of Ping

Othe rones that spring to mind are
Cassious Hits
Mellotron
Blink
Bleu or blue or blu
Brando
Mainline
and eh whatever happened to Mic Christopher ??

 

[Dr Winston Umbogo]

so there you have it folks, music doesn't pay off in the long run. so get your filthy lazy arses down to the job centre and give something back to the man.

 

[RED(tape)MENACE]

ROL are a decent enough live act and if they got that energy down on tape they could have a hope of making it outside of Ireland.

To my ears, that last album was an attempt to evacuate anything resembling 'live' and 'energy' to make it sound like everything else on FM104.

 

[Alan Latchley]

Back to the drawing board so. To these ears it sounded like it was recorded inside a Coke can.

 

[ITalkShite]

This whole thread should be repackaged into a Wikipedia article with a list of all the bands mentioned; along the lines of en.wikipedia.org/You_are_dooooooomed

It's funny that the only original sounding band mentioned on the last 20 pages - Watercress - never sought, nor wished to seek, the services of a major label, and never signed to one, yet they seemed to be the only one for whom Thumped posters have any fond memories.

Yep. Maybe the example of people like this (and TRM, Dudleys, etc.) might (eventually) start seeping down to the level of 15-year-old kids, so that they never bother with the bullshit in the first place. One day, one day...

 

[Flux]

I never heard of Watercress before today.

 

[Pantone247]

The Golden Horde
Something Happens
A House
Those lads that sang Arc Light
An Emotional Fish
Sultans of Ping
Blink

Again you couldn't really say that many of these were "never heard from again" A House released 3 or 4 albums that ranged from "deadly" to "shit" and had Endless Art in heavy rotation on MTV, Emotional Fish had 3 (???) records, Sultans of Ping did the business in Japan and only lost when they became "Sultans" and wanted to be taken seriously, Blink had two records on a major and as much MTV as they wanted at the time

Even the Golden Horde, Fat Lady Sings and Something Happens mean something to yr average music fan, if only cause Tom Dunne won't go home and leave us alone

It has to be said in hindsight the early 90's were a good time for Irish bands, what is it that happened that most of them put out awful awful awful records as the decade progressed (David Couse, I'm looking at you)

 

[Pantone247]

I never heard of Watercress before today.

If you were in a rural RTC college in the mid 90s they'd come play your rag week/freshers week/whatever week and get wrecked every year like clock work. Lovely fellas if a wee bit "raggle taggle" in their ways

 

[Alan Latchley]

If you were in a rural RTC college in the mid 90s they'd come play your rag week/freshers week/whatever week and get wrecked every year like clock work. Lovely fellas if a wee bit "raggle taggle" in their ways

Brilliant summary. Someone put that up on wikipedia.

 

[Pantone247]

Brilliant summary. Someone put that up on wikipedia.

Tell you what though, first year I was in Athlone RTC rag week Scheer came on the Heineken Roller Coaster Tour with Watercress and probably two other hopefulls, deadly stuff a real live proper 4AD band, in your college, for cheap, just like the adverts in the NME!!!

After that for the following 3 years Abbaesque or the other band that were the guys from Abbaesque but did "glam rock" covers instead were booked... fucking travesty... Tellingly Fanning still compared the whole fiasco... Like watching everything you held dear about Irish Rock die in front of you

 

[billygannon]

Tell you what though, first year I was in Athlone RTC rag week Scheer came on the Heineken Roller Coaster Tour with Watercress and probably two other hopefulls, deadly stuff a real live proper 4AD band, in your college, for cheap, just like the adverts in the NME!!!

After that for the following 3 years Abbaesque or the other band that were the guys from Abbaesque but did "glam rock" covers instead were booked... fucking travesty... Tellingly Fanning still compared the whole fiasco... Like watching everything you held dear about Irish Rock die in front of you

All those memories flooding back. I took the Scheer and Schtum albums out of of my local library.
Watercress were a laugh then. They're really nice guys.

Weren't Revelino on the bill as well?


You're thinking of the Glam Tarts - who were shit. I think co.uk were on a bill during that time too. They were shit as well.

Someone mentioned Backwater earlier. They were alright. I remember seeing them support Sebadoh - or, at least, I think they did. Some English magazine had them on a free promo CD. The magazine went downhill quickly.

 

[Mitchum]

Well, I for one had completely forgotten about Scheer. Ah the Proustian rush etc. Whatabout Chimera? Similar to Scheer, possibly less polished and got a few write-ups in the Melody Maker and a deal with One Little Indian. Or The Honey Thieves...even back in the day their main-man's Iggy-lite antics were embarrasing but leather trousers with brown suede cowboy boots were never gonna work. I saw them play that last ever gig in the New Inn on Kevin St when the cream of the Irish scene turned up. Mr. Big and The Forget Me Nots were particularly gruesome, Shake were mildly interesting (later to become Rollerskate Skinny) and The Golden Horde knew the game was up. Only Whipping Boy came away with any credit from that night. Real menace & ear-shattering volume. They were good when they were young.

 

[Pantone247]

Weren't Revelino on the bill as well?

that's it!

another cracking band

that was 10 years ago this summer

!zed

 

[Alan Latchley]

Whatever became of the Heineken Rollercoaster gigs? There was a good buzz around the town whenever those were in college, or should that be the other way around?

 

[billygannon]

that's it!

another cracking band

that was 10 years ago this summer

!zed

It is. Fuck.

Ah - those backwater colleges. I tried showing where Maynooth was on Google Maps to my other half.
Here she was showing me the metropolis of Leeds with its backstreets and boulevards. And here was I showing her some fields and a street.

 

[avernus]

I found Maynooth to be quite a pretty town. I guess that's why I dropped out.

 

[billygannon]

I found Maynooth to be quite a pretty town. I guess that's why I dropped out.

Carton Court at three in the morning is not pretty. Neither is the Leinster Arms at eleven.

It's a shit-hole. With mud. And wannabe priests. Best place to go to college really.

 

[Pantone247]

Whatever became of the Heineken Rollercoaster gigs? There was a good buzz around the town whenever those were in college, or should that be the other way around?

They were run up until maybe 4 years ago, Turn, Woodstar and someone else if I recall correctly... I guess there's no money, and no real interest from students in going to gigs I guess, Heineken can "expose" themselves to the same demographic with Oxegen

It's a shame there isn't a "touring circuit" of student union type music society people around the colleges of Ireland like there seems to be in the UK