Toy Soldier Toy Soldier’s band progression to date has, arguably, come in reverse. The trio made inroads into the notoriously hard-to-crack American scene way back in 2010, appearing on the compilation album ‘Cafe Groove’. Shortly afterwards, the young act found themselves half way around the world in Los Angeles to promote early single Climbing Trees. Having cut their teeth in a handful of notable L.A. venues, however, the electro-rock youngsters’ success close to home has been a little harder to come by, and eventually arrived through less conventional routes.

Perhaps the band’s stand out asset when it comes to live performances is the exceptional vocals from Fionnuala Curran, a soaring yet delicate falsetto that adds real depth to the sound. It shows huge self-awareness, then, when her musical partners Cian Walsh and Fergal McCarthy own up to going out looking for just such a vocal in the band’s early days. “Toy Soldier met with Fergal and I jamming some acoustic stuff I had written a few years back,” Walsh recalls. “As our sound progressed we felt that a female vocal would really suit where we were going, so we put feelers out. Fionnuala heard that we were looking for a singer through a mutual friend, so she came along to try out.   “As soon as she walked into the room we knew we had the right person. We all just seemed to click like we had been friends for a long time. I think this chemistry was apparent from our very first live shows together.”

The sound, in turn, has evolved to suit Fionnuala. Gone are the days of mellow electro-acoustic set ups, such as the stunning pub performance on 2011’s Other Voices music trail down in Dingle. In their place are heavier, dancier genre fusions. “We started as an electro-acoustic two piece, with myself and Fergal laying down the grooves,” Walsh continues. “Our sound quickly started to become more rocky and electric guitar based as we began to find our feet. Once Fionnuala came on board we felt that finally we had all the sonic ingredients in place.  After some months of writing and recording, the hybrid dance rock sound that we now embrace began to emerge.”

The second album will see the completion of the cycle: while Walsh came into the band laden with song ideas for the debut record, its forthcoming follow up had a far more organic construction. “When we initially started jamming I had written a lot of songs, which I brought to the table,” he explains. “We would give them the Toy Soldier makeover as we jammed them out in the practice room and in taking them into the studio, our producer Ciaran O’ Shea would get the best out of the arrangements. “Our first album was done in this way.  I would write the song and record a basic demo.  We would work on the dynamics in the jam room and finally we would take the songs to the studio to record proper. For our second album we have started to collaborate much more in the writing process.

A typical writing session would consist of Fergal and I laying down a groove, a riff and a chord progression whilst Fi would improvise lyrics and a melody on top.  Once a song would start to emerge, then we would each voice our suggestions and spend time working on the arrangement.” Early successes have led to a geographical divide in how Toy Soldier spend their time. While still based in Cork  “We find Cork to be a suitable creative hub for us. Our jam room is in Middleton in East Cork and it provides us a comfortable space for writing and generally hatching our plans.” – Walsh  Dublin has become a business hub for the trio, while the American journey still seems to be rolling on.

“The music scene in Cork seems pretty healthy at the minute,” Walsh argues. “Venues like Crane Lane, Cyprus Avenue and the Pavilion all play their part in supporting local talent. Equally, from very early days we had our sights set on the US.  We basically were able to line up a promoter who booked us a few shows, and we went and played them. “It really is as simple as that. The best thing about America is that no matter who you are you are given a chance. We played the Viper Room on our first tour and were able to garner some heavyweight industry interest, which was all very exciting for us.”

Closer to home, Munster Rugby have also played a major role in getting Toy Soldier out there. The use of new single Animal as run out music at Thomond Park has opened up a new audience, and came out of the blue, as Walsh explains. “Somebody from the Munster organisation called us up at the start of the season saying that they really liked Animal and asked if it was okay if they suggested it as the official run-on song for the season. “Naturally we were more then happy, and a few weeks later I was watching a game on Sky and there it was for the world to hear! Ha ha! Yeah, the Munster thing has definitely turned a lot of people, who may not otherwise have heard of us, onto the band. “Being honest we spend pretty much all of our time on music which leaves little room for sporting interest of any kind, but we have a casual interest!  Hearing Animal played to 30,000 people in Thomond Park was pretty surreal.”

Alongside a growing musical status, Toy Soldier have also been progressing artistically. Their Facebook page is dominated by a brooding, almost gothic get-up, or snaps of the trio posing in aged military outfits. It’s got the air of a highly professional branding job, but actually comes direct from the band themselves. “We feel that a bands image needs to be right for the sound,” Walsh argues. “One should compliment the other.  Imagine going to see Prince wearing an Adidas track suit and trainers. I don’t think so. We put a lot of thought into our video and photo shoots. Everything we do needs to be right for our sound. The video for ‘Animal’ is really going to be a proper visual statement.”

Despite the image-conscious angle, the ‘Love Buzz’ EP, due shortly, is going for a heavy focus on atmospherics; specifically targeting the club scene. “The ‘Love Buzz’ EP came together very naturally,” Walsh explains. “It features some bangin remixes, a couple of dancey covers and an extended mix of Animal. It definitely showcases the clubby side of what we do. The next step is to focus on our upcoming Irish dates and then it’s off to the UK for a tour in April.   “We hope to continue writing, recording and playing shows for as long as possible, and to as many people as we can.  If we can avoid stopping in Betty Ford along the way then all the better!”

The package is in place, and Toy Soldier’s recognition keeps rolling in from the most unlikely of sources. Things, it seems, are all set to come together perfectly.