Kieran McGuinness of Delorentos on the band’s busy summer
Interview Owen Sweeney
At the end of the month, the gates of Westport House will once again open for the Westport Festival of Music and Food, allowing thousands of concert goers to soak up the sounds, and hopefully the sun, in the historic building’s beautiful grounds.
At the end of the month, the gates of Westport House will once again open for the Westport Festival of Music and Food, allowing thousands of concert goers to soak up the sounds, and hopefully the sun, in the historic building’s beautiful grounds.
Topping the bill on Saturday is festival veteran Christy Moore and his long-time playing partner Declan Sinnott; Elvis Costello and the Imposters will close the show on Sunday. It may be cliché to say to that there is something for everyone at this year’s festival, but if the official website is anything to go by, the music, live cooking demonstrations and comedy on offer will be enough to satisfy the ears and paletes of even the most diversified crowd.
Possibly the most exciting aspect of this year’s festival is the introduction of the Róisín Dubh Stage. Curated by the men and women responsible for the successful Galway music venue of the same name, the eclectic stage will feature such heavyweights of the modern music scene as Le Galaxie (headlining the stage on the Saturday), The Funeral Suits, Daithí, Elaine Mai, Squarehead, Kid Karate, Spook of the Thirteenth Lock and Sleep Thieves.
Possibly the most exciting aspect of this year’s festival is the introduction of the Róisín Dubh Stage. Curated by the men and women responsible for the successful Galway music venue of the same name, the eclectic stage will feature such heavyweights of the modern music scene as Le Galaxie (headlining the stage on the Saturday), The Funeral Suits, Daithí, Elaine Mai, Squarehead, Kid Karate, Spook of the Thirteenth Lock and Sleep Thieves.
Delorentos headline the Róisín Dubh stage on Sunday night. Since winning the 2012 Meteor Choice Music Prize for Irish Album of the Year for ‘Little Sparks’, the alternative rock band from north Co Dublin has been busy playing international gigs, such as the South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival in Texas, showcases in Russia and various other concerts around Europe. Westport will be one of the group’s few Irish stops this summer.
Michael Stipe of REM once said, “There was before Losing my Religion and after Losing my Religion” – referring to that moment of mainstream recognition that propelled the band to new heights. Has the Choice Music Prize acted as the same sort of catalyst for Delorentos? Guitarist and vocalist Kieran McGuinness (pictured on left), sees the band’s defining moment at a different point in the timeline.
“For us it’s actually simpler than that, there’s before we broke up and everything after we got back together. Everything before we broke up was great for us and worked out well, but we weren’t as focused, and I don’t think we worked as hard as we work now. So that was kind of how it was going in to the first album. I think we were looking for the wrong things and we were young and stupid as well. We’re still stupid according to Ro,” says Kieran.
“For us it’s actually simpler than that, there’s before we broke up and everything after we got back together. Everything before we broke up was great for us and worked out well, but we weren’t as focused, and I don’t think we worked as hard as we work now. So that was kind of how it was going in to the first album. I think we were looking for the wrong things and we were young and stupid as well. We’re still stupid according to Ro,” says Kieran.
Like Kieran, fellow band members Rónán Yourell (or Ro), Níal Conlan and Ross McCormick believe that if you can be good in Ireland, you can be good anywhere. Perhaps one of the hardest-working bands in the country, Delorentos control their own artwork, merchandise and business decisions – and that’s all before the band lock themselves away to create their carefully crafted songs. Everyone in the group is fully invested in the band and gives everything to sustain it, even if this means being ‘fairly bread-lined for a part of our lives while we are doing this’, says Keiran.
Summer 2013 was meant to be a quiet one for the band before they went into hibernation to work on their fourth album. However, their calendar has slowly filled one date at a time. Their summer schedule now includes festival headline slots, shows in Dublin’s famous Vicar Street and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to support The Boss, Bruce Springsteen.
“This is the summer of the Bruce Springsteen warm-up day. Isn’t that one of those things that’s just absolutely amazing? So looking forward to that. You can’t help but be a Bruce fan; he absolutely permeates everything. Ro is a huge fan. He used to wear sleeveless T-shirts for the ‘You Can Make Sound’ album, and he wore them for the whole of that album campaign, as a reference to Bruce,” says Kieran.
The lads come across as quite grounded individuals with a strong work ethic. So, do they indulge in any of the stereotypical rock-star behaviour, like asking for outrageous band riders – the backstage hospitality wish lists that can separate the megalomaniacs from those living in reality?
“Photographs of women from every continent and life-size statues of Elvis,” jokes Kieran. “It’s pretty straight forward to be honest: beer, crisps, sandwiches and water. We played with a band who at every gig wanted a shrine to David Hasselhoff and in some cases the venue had in fact made it for them. I feel bad about making someone do something like that.”
Delorentos’ energetic set will no doubt prove one the highlights of the festival at Westport House. No doubt the stately 18th-century venue will be happy to lay on the beer and crisps – and maybe even a sandwich or two.
Delorentos’ energetic set will no doubt prove one the highlights of the festival at Westport House. No doubt the stately 18th-century venue will be happy to lay on the beer and crisps – and maybe even a sandwich or two.
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