Popical Island have been a boutique purveyor of finely distilled and perfectly formed irish music over the last five years. Started up by members of Groom, The Yeh Deadlies and Land Lovers , it's given some of the best music to emerge from Ireland ever since it's inception.

Back in 2012, rather unannounced, arrived the 'Whip Crack Away' EP from Skelocrats. This Popical Island supergroup  nonchalantly produced a collection of whimsical fuzzy guitar rock tunes that tickled the ears and mind. Skelocrats eventually followed it with the equally fine 'Hot Yoga EP', and released both together as their greatest hits 'The Complete Skelocrats'. For most bands announcing your greatest hits is the end of the road, but this was only the beginning.

Consisting of Padraig Cooney, Paddy Hanna, Bronwyn Murphy-White and Mike Stevens, they've already provided a glimpse of what was to come when they dropped Lyin Eyes a few months ago. Less rough around the edges than anything of the first collection of songs, it still has lost none of the groups ubiquitous charm and zest. Ahead of the release Padraig Cooney took time to speak to GoldenPlec about the new album Bella Bella.

The incomplete skelocrats

Cooney admitted that it was always the plan for Skelocrats to release second album and this was not a one off project. It's one that fills more than a single need and not just from a writing perspective "Skelocrats has a useful character of its own, it has generated a lot of song ideas for me and, just as important, it's a lot of fun when we practice."

While the debut album began life as two separate EP's it was never going to be the case for 'Bella Bella'  "It was developed as an album from the start, for one. Initially, I intended for it to be a more laid-back affair than the first record but that didn't really pan out overall. There is more full-band involvement. The first album was 80% me at home, whereas this time there is varied input in the writing and performing. We recorded some songs together with Mark Chester in the Pop Inn, Mike plays a lot of guitar, Bronwyn contributed a lot of vocals, along with some bass and keyboards, and Paddy plays drums on nearly all the songs. It's still not a traditional band-in-a-room album but it is a collaboration of sorts. It sounds better because I didn't mix it myself. There's a little less of the gratuitous/stylised fuzz and echo."

The initial purpose of Skelocrats was to find an outlet for some songs that didn't fit Cooney's first band Land Lovers. When you sit down and listen to the music from the two bands there is a distinct difference. But because you're in two bands , does that necessarily mean you write specifically for one or the other at any given time.  For Cooney it's more a case of writing and see what emerges. "Almost all my songs come from little bits and pieces I sing into my phone during the day, so I rarely sit down with an empty mind and try to write a song. I'm usually developing an existing idea. It generally seems clear to me which idea should be allocated to which band, though there are times of confusion, no doubt. A loose rule of thumb is the simpler the idea, the more likely it is to be a Skelocrats song."

Taking that simple initial idea and turning it into the finished deal isn't an exact science, otherwise you'll be stuck like Father's Ted and Dougal late into the night trying to get My Lovely Horse sounding right. "Well you could keep tweaking forever but you have to decide that a song sounds acceptable at some stage. Some songs fall into place a lot quicker in a mix than others, for all the mysterious reasons of musical dynamics. On this record, for example, Zirconium Heart needed a few revisions for poor old Mark Chester, while I think Lyin' Eyes all came together very quickly."

 

The simpler the idea, the more likely it is to be a Skelocrats song.

Democrat, Autocrat or Skelocrat

Devoting time between two bands is a delicate balancing act. Not only is there the challenge of splitting creative energy into separate projects, but also that of maintaining the dynamic between two sets of band members. The latter certainly isn't an issue for Skelocrats, especially with several different song writers in the band. "It's acknowledged that we're singing from the same or compatible hymn sheets, that's why we're in Skelocrats together. So, happily, this isn't an issue for us."

The approach to both bands differs for Cooney. "Land Lovers is more of a regular going concern: we have set practice days and it has never officially been on a break since 2008. Skelocrats is something that takes my focus when the time comes. That's not to say I take it less seriously than Land Lovers, it's just a different beast, prone to hibernation. But, like the bears of Atlantis, it writes while it hibernates, it's not just asleep." 

Skelocrats are't averse to tunes about the whimsical and the off-beat. Songs about fighting mystery opponents in Templeogue get mixed with the political motivations of what a Skelocrat is. "Skelocrats advance the cause of the dead. It's all explained in the song Skelocrats in Heaven (off The Complete Skelocrats)."  As an album 'Bella Bella' is no different and contains a song called Laura Dolan. When asked if Laura Dolan is a real person, Cooney elaborated: "According to Mike Stevens, who didn't write the song, it's about a guy who works in a visa office dealing with a woman's applications and falling in love with her all the while. I like that interpretation."

While it's perhaps too early to say if there will be a follow up to Bella Bella, Cooney isn't ruling it out entirely either "I've got a Land Lovers album to record and the others have their own stuff to do. We haven't talked about it yet. Let's see how it pans out." 

You can catch Skelocrats at upcoming dates and venues :

6 April, Belfast w/ Sea Pinks and Women’s Christmas

17 April, Bello Bar, Dublin (Bella Bella launch party with Ginnels and Switzerland)

9 May, Sweeney’s, Dublin w/ Cruising and Cave Ghosts

14 May, Roisin Dubh, Galway w/ Paddy Hanna