Introducing: Former Monarchs
Posted on 28th May 11 by Mike McGrath Bryan | 
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Cork alt-rock lads Former Monarchs had a few words for Drop-d.ie before their EP launch this evening. Check it out!
For those who don’t know, how did you start?
Jon and Barry’s band (The Avalanche Effect) had finished, and we were looking for something to do to counteract the boredom! We invited Damien from Burn Us Both to play with us and after about 6 months we asked Kev (also from Burn Us Both) to join. Once we got the vocals working thing’s started coming together!
Influences, musical and non-musical?
The biggest influences on the band have been Danish trio Marvins Revolt, British band Reuben, and Foals. Smaller underground English bands such as Blakfish and Tubelord have influenced our attitude towards playing and recording music greatly as well. Non-musically speaking, we all enjoy a nice cup of coffee and the Sunday Times.
The new E.P. release is tonight, any word on how’s it been received? How do ye feel about it yourselves?
So far, the reaction has been pretty positive, especially in a live setting! It’s been great finding our single being mentioned on various blogs, and it’s mostly kind words. It’s great to get our name out there anyway! Personally we’re quite happy with the recording, it’s our first recording with this band proper, and it serves as a nice introduction to us at least!
My Friend Has No Job touches on a very sensitive nerve for a lot of people right now, was that the intention? To get people agitated and thinking in terms of overcoming the current situation?
It’s impossible for us to ignore the current situation in this country, and we write about what we know. The recession is affecting everyone our age, and a lot of our friends have been forced to leave home. We weren’t trying to get people agitated and thinking, at least not consciously, we just wanted to write about something that was important to us. If it does make people think and react then all the better!
As has been discussed in the past here on the D, it’s often thought that Cork plays second fiddle to Dublin, Belfast, etc. in terms of musical prominence, which couldn’t be further from the truth. How do you feel, has Cork been overlooked?
I don’t think Cork has been overlooked, but naturally it will play second fiddle to places like Dublin and Belfast, simple due to sheer size. Belfast and Dublin scenes are incredibly consistent in terms of quality, where as the Cork scene ebbs and flows a bit more. There are loads of great bands all around the country who work incredibly hard, Cork included, and have gotten the recognition they deserve internationally. That said the reason any of us are in this band is because of Cork bands like Waiting Room, Rest and Jezery, and the Cork scene will continue to inspire people to play as well.
What are people to expect from a performance of yours?
Two lads with a microphone mocking Barry. And maybe a few energetic tunes in between.
Best moment in the band’s lifetime so far?
There have genuinely been so many great moments in the short 6 months we’ve been playing that it’s really hard to pick one! We’ve gotten to play with some of our favourite bands, such as And So I Watch You From Afar, and we got to go on tour with &U&I from England. That’s definitely a highlight as we are all big fans of their old band Blakfish.
Who do you like in Irish music at the moment? Anyone in particular you’d like to share a stage with?
BATS, And So I Watch You From Afar, Overhead the Albatross, Enemies and Fred are all really exciting Irish bands, and are all incredibly diverse. If there was any band we could play with though, it would be the Redneck Manifesto. They are legends in Ireland and it’d be fantastic to play with them!
What have you got in store for 2011?
We have shows all around Ireland booked in the coming weeks to support the ep, and we’ll be doing another few Irish tours in the coming months! We’re also organising an English tour for the end of the summer. Hopefully we’ll have an album written and ready to record by Christmas! Ondryland, who are based in both England and Ireland now, have been incredibly helpful with getting us shows so far, so hopefully we’ll be able to sort out a lot more together!
End-of interview hypothetical: which superpower would ye prefer? Invincibility or invisibility?
Kev and Barry want to be invisible, while Damien and Jon want invincibility! A fight to the death to decide seems pointless as half of us would be indestructible, but it’d certainly be entertaining to watch!
Former Monarchs launch their new EP, The Wisdom of Crowds, tonight at The Crane Lane Theatre.
My Friend has no job by Former Monarchs
Tags: Cork, Crane Lane Theatre, Former Monarchs, ondryland, The Wisdom of Crowds
