Interview: Ros Madigan

Soldiers Can’t Dance are certainly making a name for themselves as a very promising and hard working band in this vibrant Irish music scene. With an exciting 2012 to look forward to, make it your business to go and check these guys out and you can see their upcoming gigs below the interview. I caught up with Conor from the band for a little chat.

GoldenPlec: What Irish acts are circulating your tape-deck at the minute?

Soldiers Can’t Dance: General Fiasco, ASIWYFA, The Redneck Manifesto, Toby Kaar.

GoldenPlec: Many up and coming artists now release their EP’s/first releases for free, what’s your feeling on free releases?

SCD: Free releases are good. When no one knows your band in the beginning more people will listen to a track if it’s free. I think a lot more new bands are releasing their first tracks free and it definitely builds a fanbase quicker.

GoldenPlec: Do you think the media, newspapers, radio, tv in this country supply enough avenues for music to strive in Ireland?

SCD: A lot of it is to do with who you know. I’m hearing more Irish music on the radio in the last year which is good. “Ceol ar an imeall” and “Other Voices” are great for showcasing new talent, but I do think more could be done to promote up and coming Irish acts.

GoldenPlec: You supported Bipolar Empire and ASIWYFA in your first year together, how did you get that gig and did that act as motivation to go forward?

SCD: We won a voting competition to support ASIWYFA and our manager sorted out the Bipolar gig. Those gigs motivated us to work harder at our music, especially after seeing ASIWYFA. They are ridiculously good live.

GoldenPlec: You guys only formed in 2010, yet you have gigged in and around everywhere. What have been your gig highlights in your short band history?

SCD: Supporting ‘ASIWYFA’, ‘Jape’ and ‘Bipolar Empire’ were great gigs because you’re guaranteed a crowd and supporting a big act. Our own gigs are getting more and more fun seeing people we don’t know singing along. There have been so many highlights in such a short time.

GoldenPlec: You guys obviously can see the importance in Social Media in order for band promotion as I can see you have a facebook, twitter, breaking tunes acc, boards.ie posts etc etc. Why do you think social media is becoming more prevalent for upcoming artists?

SCD: People rely on social media for new music, so its the best place for upcoming artists to get exposure and build a fanbase. There are so many online sources to showcase your music, by taking advantage of them you’re bound to get some exposure. With downloading having become so popular, social media and the internet in general have become an invaluable source of ensuring our music reaches a wide and varied audience.

GoldenPlec: Irish music in the past few years has been accused of not pushing the boundaries and owing a lot to successful music in England/USA as influences, how do you guys aim to keep your music fresh?

SCD: We’ve all different influences, so once the song is done it’s nothing like it started in our heads. Each of us have our own ideas of how the next song should sound, we never rely purely on one influence. We’re always thinking of how to sound different and its always fun trying out and creating new ideas.

GoldenPlec: Most bands in Ireland unfortunately have to keep their bands as part time jobs and can’t commit 100% to it due to economic pressure and the lack of assistance to creative industries. Are you guys in college or working and how do you guys balance, practice, promotion, gigs, writing?

SCD: We’re all out of college, so any time not working a part time job is spent rehearsing/ gigging. Our manager does the promotion side of things. The three of us are always busy writing new techniques and thinking up new ideas for songs. We’re very lucky to have a practice space so close to us, there’s always time to practice, even by ourselves.

GoldenPlec: You have been together only a short time, how would you say your sound has changed in that small period, if at all?

SCD: We’re all quite new to our instruments so as we’re figuring out new ideas with them our sound will have changed since we started. I think we’ve gotten a heavier sound in the last few months, our newer songs are faster, and have been going down well live so i’m happy. We do one acoustic song as well now which is a nice break for Luke and James!

GoldenPlec: What’s next for Soldiers Can’t Dance?

SCD: Gig as much as possible. There’s loads coming up in March so its going to be a busy month. We’re playing along side “The Kanyu Tree” for rag week on the 29th of February which should be fun. We got announced to play Vantastival in May and hopefully we’ll be recording soon as well. I think we’re all just very excited for 2012!

The guys recently performed for one of Ireland’s most promising live music YouTube shows – The Best Kept Secret –

Check the guys out in a venue near you:

Wednesday February 29th – Main Stage UL Charity Week – Doors 5pm

Friday March 2nd – Late Lounge Kill – SUAS fundraiser – Doors 8 pm

Wednesday March 7th – Monroes, Galway – Doors 9.15pm

Friday March 9th – Musicmaker Social Night, Mercantile – Doors 9.30pm

Saturday March 16th – Love Music Hate Racism Event, Sweeneys – Doors 9.30pm

Saturday March 24th – Headline, The Mezz – Doors 9.30pm

April 6th – Great Friday Festival Limerick

April 13 – Cygnet Lane – Navan – Doors 9.00pm

April 22nd – Voodoo Live Sessions – Letterkenny, Donegal – Doors 9.00pm