Earlier this year, Dublin-based Melts released their second album Field Theory. A more conceptual and expansive effort than debut Maelstrom; frontman Eoin Kenny’s lyrics examine life, love, death and loss through a scientific, relativist lens while musically the band delve further into the synth-led, atmospheric side of their sound. Read our review here.

With the band primed to embark on a domestic tour, we catch up with keyboardist Robbie Brady, who is quick to point out how the approach differed from the latest album to it’s predecessor. He describes Maelstrom as a collection of tunes—a raw, live recording of their initial batch of music.

"It was the first kind of batch of stuff that we done, we went in, we rattled it out, all live, everything like that. Some of the stuff was written before I joined the band, so obviously there was no keys. The latter half of the writing of Maelstrom, was where the sound started to take shape. And then, in between recording, anything we were working on was just kind of expanding more and more, different sequence ideas, different synth ideas, everything like that.”

As they moved forward, their sound began to evolve. “We were just a bit bit more open to ideas. I was getting more into Patrick Cowley, Harold Groskopf, these more minimal electronic artists from Germany, just kind of slightly getting a little bit more complex with sequences and stuff like that. I’ve always been a Tangerine Dream fan, New Order as well. Gaz (drummer) listens to a lot of Slift and psych bands around at the moment, he hears beats in these songs and tries to bring in those elements. Eoin’s a big Aphex Twin fan – where his vocals come from on that note, I don’t know, and Hugh? I don’t know.”

The transition to a broader sound was evident in their album, Field Theory. The band grappled with their evolving identity, questioning, "What is our sound?" Yet this exploration led to a development album with varied styles.

"It was more of a development album than anything," Robbie explains. "To be honest, some of the tracks where we thought ‘’I don’t know whether that’s gonna work’ have become the best live vehicles and have started to steer our vision in a way for our next record. ‘Main Sequence’ is pretty nice. I didn't think we were ever going to play it live. ‘Wilding’ has always gone down pretty well the last while.”

In discussing how Field Theory differs from their previous work, Robbie reflects on the tendency to be pigeonholed into genres.

"I don't hear the elements of post-punk in it at all," he asserts. The band found themselves classified as post-punk, a label that felt simplistic given their diverse influences and sound. “When Gaz and Hugh formed the band, their idea was the kind of minimal repetition, Krautrock that we’re all fans of. It can be annoying, being pigeonholed into a genre. Our elements come from so many different places.”

The recording of Field Theory was marked by a sense of urgency and spontaneity. The band had a rough start, with some tracks being written in the studio. "We were extremely unprepared," Robbie admits. "We literally only had a certain amount of songs."

Robbie would explain that the opportunity to work with the Fuzz Club label would see the band work under duress to get the album over the line. Despite the rush, the album captured their live energy well, thanks in part to their collaboration with producer, Daniel Fox (Gilla Band), who helped them harness their expansive sound. The group chose to work in Black Mountain in Dundalk. Of the collaboration, Robbie says “he really knows to capture big sounds, and there's a lot of shit going on, he was able to capture that.”

Reflecting on the reception of the album, they note that it was generally well-received. "We never, ever, when we set out to do this, saw success," says Robbie, all too aware of his band’s niche audience. Yet the band are satisfied with the band’s underground status it has been received. "We're fairly happy with the way it was received," he concludes.

Now, the band is gearing up for a tour across Ireland in support of the album. Robbie is excited to hit the road "We’re really excited to play the new album to an Irish crowd," he expresses, “obviously looking forward to the Button Factory, Mike the Pies is always good.”

As they prepare for their upcoming tour, the band is also focused on writing new material and planning their next steps. "We're currently kind of stuck into writing the new album, and once the new tour is over in February, we’ll be getting that together. And hopefully that'll be out as quick as we cut the other one out."

Melts upcoming live shows:

Coughlan’s, Cork - 19 September

Mike the Pies, Listowel - 20 September

Kasbah Social Club, Limerick - 21 September,

Ulster Sports Hall, Belfast - 27 September

Button Factory, Dublin - 28 September.

Tickets are on sale here.