Dispelling the myth that you only get one chance at making it, Only Rivals are an Irish pop punk quartet who are making the most of their second bite of the cherry. Having built up cult status as Home Star Runner the band split in 2010 only to return last summer with a new name and a more mature sound. We caught up with bassist Sean Reid to see how the comeback is going and what the band has been up to this year.
“It’s been crazy. In January we went on a club tour with Max Raptor. We’ve also released an EP which has gotten awesome press coverage in Rock Sound and Kerrang, getting really good reviews. And obviously the tour with All Time Low and Tonight Alive was insane.”
Though Home Star Runner achieved a considerable amount of success, they split after a period of stagnation. The band feels they’re better prepared this time around.
“I was sixteen when Home Star started. There’s more life experience this time; a few of us have travelled, I’ve gone back to college and got my degree. It all reflects in the music. I also think when we were younger we wrote music to sound like our favourite band. Now that we are older, we have the confidence to write music we want.”
They are certainly garnering a lot of positive press and with so much momentum at the moment the next few months for the band are going to be pivotal. They aren’t resting on their laurels though with a busy summer schedule on the horizon.
“We’re touring the UK in May with Decades as well as playing a headlining show at the Academy 2 in Dublin on May 15th. There will be several other festival appearances announced in the coming weeks too. After that, we will be back in the UK in November touring with New Found Glory as part of the Pop Punk’s Not Dead Tour.”
The forthcoming tour with New Found Glory offers the band the chance to go on the road with one of their biggest influences, something Sean feels very passionate about.
“I worshipped them when I grew up. They were the band, it was them and Blink [182]. They were the two bands that changed my life when I was twelve/thirteen. To have the opportunity to go on tour with some of your heroes is a pretty incredible experience.”
In between all their forthcoming touring, the band also plan on spending the next few months working on new material.
“We plan on doing a lot of writing. Hopefully we can have the album written by the end of summer. At the moment though there is no plan in terms of releasing anything. There’s a possibility of a single being thrown out but this year has been based on touring.”
Only Rivals play The Academy 2 on May 15th with support coming from Red Enemy and Watch The Sky. Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.ie