Another outstanding debut EP from a new Irish band.
DIVIL are not your average new band. There is prior involvement within the Irish music scene. Bassist Conor Cusack is well known. He manages Saint Sister and Morgana, is closely involved with Ireland Music Week, and runs Merchy Christmas, a platform for new artists. The band were all friends at primary school but fell out of touch. They reunited after a decade apart at the funeral of singer Danny Dempsey McMahon’s father. They sang “The Rocky Road to Dublin” in the evening and knew it was time to start playing together again. Then there was more bad news. Conor was diagnosed with cancer a month after the funeral. Since then a GoFundMe for Conor raised over 100,000 euros, allowing him to go to Belgium for a pioneering procedure that would not have been possible a few years back.
The three tracks on this EP are all excellent. ‘Thanks A Million’ kicks it off with an utterly classic sounding bit of indie guitar. The singing is both tuneful, yet lived in and full of character. The music video was shot at their old school that bought them all together.
Second track ‘Orangutan’ picks straight up and carries on with the brilliance.
Third and final track, ‘Chewing Gum’ is new to this release. The drum sound across these three tracks is huge, a real bouncing percussive blast. McMahon’s vocals are excellent, hints of Joe Talbot of Idles but with more Irish originality. Jocelyn Vance’s guitar playing is strong throughout. As long as Conor Cusack’s health permits it this is a band with a very bright future. They have an intuitive understanding forged through shared history and shared trauma.
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