Celebrating 45 years of a 45 rpm
The band are marking the 45th anniversary of Teenage Kicks with a series of shows in the UK in September and October
with special guests The Rezillos, Neville Staple and the Tom Robinson Band. See live shows page for details.
It means ‘the tree’ …..
Our lead guitarist Damian has a solo record out.
an crann is a wonderful collection of new music, available now.
”If someone listened to this record without knowing anything about me, they’d probably never guess that I started life in a punk band. I unashamedly wanted to present instrumental pieces that are emotional, evocative and personal and offer to the listener textures and layers of musicthat can be melodic, childlike and even melancholic at times.
There’s obviously Irish folk traditional influences as well as French, Japanese, American and British. I’m playing virtually all the instruments myself, with added percussion on a couple of songs. It was recorded mainly at home over the last couple of years in the loft of our house on a laptop with an array of instruments such as electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, bass, organ, vibraphone, toy marimba and glockenspiel, melodica, mouth organ, squeezebox, kalimba, bells and various percussion and human voices.”
The Carrellines returned
Paul and Billy revisited their musical past with a special show in Sandinos, along with founding members of the band Damien Duffy and Aidan Breslin.
Here’s what Paul told Malcolm Wyatt about the reunion
“We’ve been threatening – not publicly, mind – each other to do this for 30 years. Now we’re dealing with the reality of the fact that we haven’t rehearsed and don’t know the songs anymore, everybody’s kind of terrified!
Aidan and Damien are kind of the organisers, getting the tickets and social media together. And it’s all a pathetic display of denial – we don’t want to face the fact that we’ve got to get together, stand in a room and actually play these songs. But we really need to get the finger out, get that organised … because winter is coming.”
Malcolm : I was listening back to your single, ‘Bridesmaids Never Brides’, and it incorporates a mighty sound, with a lot going on. It sounds fresh, a cracking song. What surprises me is that if I hadn’t seen 1990 on the label, I’d have assumed it would be commemorating its 40th anniversary now. It sounds like it was from a different era.
“It kind of was really. It is kind of an Eighties thing. It came out in 1990 but we were an Eighties band, 100%, and were all big fans of synth. We didn’t really have an idea what we wanted to say, but what we eventually became was a synth-rock band … a bit closer to New Order than maybe Erasure … put it that way.”
Malcolm : Although listening back I was kind of getting classic – and I mean pre-big hits – Simple Minds, OMD, even Heaven 17
“Very much, and Aidan and Damian are huge Simple Minds fans, and I’m a big OMD fan. In fact, Andy McCluskey and I are mates now, which is kind of surreal. I love OMD, and Simple Minds as well. I got into them after the fact but love those first five or six Simple Minds records. Yeah, that would definitely be a big influence. Well spotted, hopefully a bit less bombastic than the way that turned out with Simple Minds, but definitely an influence.”
Sympathy For The Power Cut
Video courtesy of Axel Scheele.
People saying nice things about us
Thank you to Lois at Mojo for her kind words.
And thank you to those people of good taste who are responsible for these reviews, too.
Edd Jupp at God Is In The TV click here
Sonic Abuse click here
Phil Newall at Louder Than War click here
Andy Thorley at Maximum Volume Music click here
Punk Rocker click here
Whisperin and Hollerin click here
THE UNDERTONES ANNOUNCE NEW COMPILATION LP
‘DIG WHAT YOU NEED’
The band are delighted to announce a new compilation LP Dig What You Need (The best of the ‘Reformation Years’ so far)
Here’s Damian …….
"So dig this: Thrill Me, Oh Please, I'm Recommending Me, Dig Yourself Deep, Here Comes The Rain …. all firm favourites in an Undertones set list these days, songs penned by John O’Neill and Mickey Bradley. So it's a no brainer, really, that these songs (and more) should finally be included on a compilation taken from the two albums we've recorded with Paul. Even better is the fact we got producer/mixing maestro Paul Tipler to remix them with fresh ears and make them sound even better than the originals. Add to that the wonderful packaging and sleeve design courtesy of Bruce and Mary from Arthole and, lo and behold, we have a sonically cohesive bunch of nuggets waiting to be rediscovered all over again. So dig this compilation, my friends - you know you won’t be disappointed".
Released on Dimple Disc records 11th March 2022.
PERFORMING TEENAGE KICKS FOR BBC TV ‘NORTHERN IRELAND ONSCREEN’
We went to the great venue The Dockers Club in Belfast to play Teenage Kicks for the cameras, to mark the Terri Hooley biopic ‘Good Vibrations’.
Still available to see on iPlayer here
Photo - Eamon Durey
BABY SHAKES
Unable to play any live live shows with The Undertones Damian and Billy have been busy working with US band Baby Shakes releasing a blistering ‘glam rock’ version of Damian O’Neill’s brilliant ‘Sweet 'n' Sour’. The B side is an Undertones track Really Really (see video here)and this has been given a similar treatment. The vinyl single comes in 4 colours, magenta, silver, crystal & black and is released on Damian’s own Dimple Discs label.
For more information visit: https://www.damian-oneill.com/
DAMIAN O’NEILL AND THE MONOTONES
Refit Revise Reprise, the brand new album from Damian O'Neill, is now available from all good record shops, iTunes and Amazon
You can watch the Sweet ‘n Sour video here or listen on Spotify
Comprising of 12 tracks recorded at home and at Press Play Studios in South London. Co-produced, engineered and mixed by Damian, Andy Ramsay (ex Stereolab) and Paul Tipler with musical contributions from Sean O’Hagan (The High Llamas) amongst others. There’s some old, new, borrowed and blue on this record. You’ll hear new songs and instrumental tracks that are guaranteed to thrill and melt your heart plus Damian’s delved into his musical past and revamped selected self penned Undertones/That Petrol Emotion songs too. It’s Glam/Stomp/Dreamy Pop with a cascade of guitars, vibes, organ, bells and whistles.
The Mickey Bradley Record Show
Mickey presents a weekly two hour radio show every Friday evening between 7:30 and 9:30 pm on BBC Radio Ulster 94.5 FM or online at bbc.co.uk/radioulster.
A MESSAGE FROM MICHAEL BRADLEY
Hello, Michael Bradley here.
I've written a book which is now available.
It's a dark thriller which exposes the corruption at the very heart of our society.
No it's not.
It's my account of being in The Undertones, from first hanging around in O'Neill's house to the break up with Feargal in 1983.
I've called it Teenage Kicks : My Life As An Undertone, getting in quick before anyone else uses that title. Like Stephen King.
My older brother Martin has read it and gives it his approval.
I hope you like it.
If you go to any of the forthcoming Undertones shows, you will not be asked questions about what was in it.
Cheerio
Michael
You can hear Michael talking about the book here.
Damian O'Neill released a solo single on 10th November 2014.
'Trapped in a cage' c/w 'Love Makes The World Go Round' on 7" vinyl only on Overground Records is a limited edition of 500 copies. (cat. no. Over 140). Both songs are selected from 'Re-energize' a musical play written by renowned Belfast playwright Gary Mitchell. Music by Damian with lyrics by Gary.
'Re-energize' was commissioned by Derry’s Playhouse Theatre for Derry City of Culture 2013 and was performed there and at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast.
Damian: "Re-energize is a gritty play about 4 downtrodden individuals from Belfast who, now middle aged and on hard times, decide against all the odds to reform their old punk band and in effect get a 'second chance'. Initially John and I were commissioned to write 8 pieces of music to lyrics by Gary Mitchell to be performed by the actors live on stage. John wrote 3 songs, I wrote 4 and we co-wrote one. The songs went down really well so I decided to take things further and record 5 of the songs myself in a studio playing everything apart from the drums. I think the 2 songs on the single turned out best."
Follow Paul on Spotify here
The Paul McLoone Show