by Danielle Holian
For our readers, please describe your musical background.
(Seán) I knew I wanted to be a musician from an early age. Everything else in my life always took the back seat. The music my Dad listened to when I was growing up definitely influenced me in a very positive way. From Bruce Springsteen to The Verve, there was always good music floating around our house.
(James) Music was always on in my house, and my parents always thought of it as a huge part of their lives, so I guess that trickled down to me. I went through phases of only liking rap, then only dance, then only metal.. and then I woke up. Music’s always been a constantly important thing to me, though.
(Damian) I’m a bit of a late bloomer. I used to be one of those “I like everything except country” types but since I started playing I realised music is more than just the thing you throw on in the background while you water your daisies.
(Diarmuid) I come from a long line of non-musicians. I bought a Led Zeppelin CD when I was 14 and I’ve been obsessed with music (by that I mean bass) ever since.
Why did you choose ‘The Clockworks’ as the band’s name?
We think ‘A Clockwork Orange’ was the movie of a generation. We want to be the band of a generation, while paying tribute to Kubrick.
Who or what are your influences? And why are you attracted to British bands as opposed to Irish and American bands?
We’ve loads of influences really. I think British bands like The Clash, The Smiths, Arctic Monkeys make real music with a real purpose. A lot of band’s here go for more show-band style entertainment, actually, that goes for band’s everywhere these days. Some American acts are great, though, The Strokes, Rage Against The Machine, Bob Dylan, Gill Scott-Heron are some of the best there are.
How has Galway and the West of Ireland influenced your sound?
Well all the songs are about growing up in Galway, so that’s definitely an influence. Because it’s a small city, it’s also got a small music scene and I think that helped us in a roundabout way in that there’s no prescribed genre, style or sound that you need to make to fit in here. We’ve been to bigger cities, even in Ireland and England, and you can see that a fashion has taken hold and they all sound the same and they all dress the same and they all have the same hair and stuff. I think it’s kind of liberating to not have any of that here. Galway’s too small to set trends so we can all choose our own sound. I don’t know any two decent bands in Galway that sound similar.
Where can people view your music?
The usual suspects; Spotify, iTunes, Soundcloud, Deezer, YouTube.
What can we expect from your debut EP?
It will be like our two singles, but with more songs.
What is your songwriting process like?
James usually scribbles words down in a little book he carries with him night and day. Sometimes he’ll come to rehearsal with an idea he had that day, other times he’ll say he had this idea a few years back but only now thinks it’s ready. At that stage he presents us with the bones of a song; words & general melody. From there we usually float our own ideas on our respective instruments, and after a lot of scrutiny we usually end up with a Clockworks tune.
Why do you write songs about everyday life?
Because that’s what we know. Anything else would be faking, and muso’s can sniff fakers out like a stink-bomb in an elevator. There are enough bands singing “ooh baby won’t you just come on down” already. People can’t relate to that.
Does it specifically have to be Glastonbury you headline? And what’s the attraction to it?
Glasto has been the dream from Day 1. When we were playing to literally 2 people (our parents) in the worst “venue” you could possibly imagine, we closed our eyes and visualised that Pyramid Stage. It’s stuck with us and has since become a symbol of motivation within the band. We can’t wait to play it. I suppose the attraction simply came from watching our favourite bands play it over the years. Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, Oasis, Radiohead.. who wouldn’t aspire to be on that level?
Any last words?
We’re here to make Indie great again.
The ModernRetro Magazine 