Red Queen Contest has an exciting few months ahead of them. With their debut single Before It Gets Old just released and their self-titled debut album due for release this month most bands might be content. Not Red Queen Contest. They have announced a string of dates all across Ireland during October.
For anyone that might not be up to date on the career of R.Q.C they are a four piece from Meath comprising of Cormac O’ Keeffe (guitar,vocals), Paul Clarke (guitar,vocals,synths), Paddy Smyth (bass), Baz Fitzgerald (drums, percussion).
Paul and Cormac developed a songwriting relationship after spending the summer together in Crete playing in a local bar. Having not known each other beforehand they were well in sync after playing alongside each other six times a week as a two piece; something that really pushed their stamina to the limit. “By the time we came home we were really good friends and had learnt a lot about playing and singing together,” Cormac told Goldenplec.
In their youth they had experimented with writing songs. On their arrivial back from Crete they began to take things far more serious and formed a band. “We were called The Dolldrums. Along with Baz, R.Q.C’s drummer, and another good mate Kev Mulvey on bass. This is where we got a taste for being in a proper band. We practised and gigged a lot, eventually releasing two E.P’s. Paddy joined the band the week before we recorded the second EP, after Kev moved on to other things.”
Fastforward to 2009 and after a sold out gig in Whelans the band decided to part ways. “Although the camaraderie in the band was really good at this point, we felt we needed to develop a more mature sound. The song-writing process was the first thing to change,” he said. Instead of Paul or Cormac penning the songs it now became a more collaborative effort for the band.
Along with a new sound they also decided on a pretty unique name. Cormac explains: “We decided to change the name of the band to reflect the new direction and thus, Red Queen Contest was born. It’s a tough one to describe, but here goes. I was reading ‘Shantaram’ by Gregory David Roberts at the time and the phrase popped up. It’s a medical term to describe how the body and an infection are in a battle to out-do each other. The infection is constantly finding new ways to attack, and the body new ways to defend itself. They are locked in this contest. The term is derived from the ‘Red Queen’ in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass’.”
Conversation turns towards talk of the ‘purple patch’ in Irish music today and all the fantastic new acts coming through. “It does seem to be in a really healthy place,” Cormac said. “I think the new O Emperor album is one of the best Irish releases in a long time. There are really lush arrangements and the album feels like a journey when you listen to it as a whole. The Lost Brothers, Villagers and Delorentos are other favourites. On the live scene bands like Le Galexie, A.S.I.W.Y.F.A and Cast of Cheers are all mind blowing.”
With their self-titled debut album coming out in October Cormac jumps at the chance to tell the world about it. “When we started out writing the album, it was cold. There was snow everywhere and for a week or so people mostly stayed indoors. It was quiet about the place, dark and eerie. We sort of snuck off to the studio in Oldcastle with a few germs of songs and a vague notion that we wanted to take our sound in a new direction. The only thing we were certain about was that we wanted to write a full album; a distinctive body of work to put out, if that’s not too pretentious.
“The first song we wrote was called Itchin’. It’s a tense, aggressive song. It didn’t end up on the final cut of the album but it set the tone in a way. It was always cold, always dark out, the country obviously fucked and with us personally, there was always some pressure or other. Writing the songs and recording was cathartic so we spent as much time in the studio as we could and the songs grew. That sense of tension permeates through the album”
Throughout the album writing process 19 of the songs they had were trimmed own to 10. A difficult task according to Cormac. “The making of the album was a real learning curve for us, testing what works and more importantly what doesn’t. I’d say, of the songs that didn’t make the album, we may revisit 2 or 3 of them. That said, there are so many fresh ideas for songs that we will be addressing before we look back at older stuff.”
Adrian Garry (who has worked with Delorentos and Bell X1 in the past) produced the album for R.Q.C. “Our relationship with Aido has developed very organically. We were initially his guinea pigs for his day job as a lecturer in The Temple Bar Sound Training Centre. He needed a band to come in and record with his students and a friend put us in touch with him. I think a mutual respect for each other’s talents happened at this stage.
“When he told us that he and his friend had just finished building a studio in their hometown, Oldcastle, I think we all knew that we’d be the first band to record there. We went through a good few months of pre-production in our rehearsal space in Navan. By the time we went to record we were very comfortable with each other so it never really felt like pressure.”
While making the album R.Q.C worked with a range of different musicians; a brave move for a debut album. But Cormac didn’t see it that way. “Most of the album is the sound of the four of us in a room. However, there were two songs, Rabbits’ Feet and Bee Stings which we felt needed to be given the ‘epic treatment’. I think Bee Stings in particular lends itself to the use of strings and brass. I suppose James Bond theme songs were an inspiration for this track. Also there’s a nod and a wink to Navan’s former 007, Pierce Brosnan.
“We have Cora Venus Lunny and Kate Ellis to thank for the strings, while Kevin Kelleher and Liam McCabe provided the brass. I don’t think it was brave on our behalf, I just think we were very lucky that these musicians were willing to get involved and help us realise the sound we wanted on these tracks.”
With a month long tour around Ireland coming up things look bring for R.Q.C as we talk about plans for the future. “Obviously on the tour we’ll be showcasing songs from the album but there will be some surprises too,” Cormac said. “We’re beavering away at the minute in the rehearsal room. Our live set is pretty high octane. For this tour we really want to put on a show and make an impact in the venues we’re visiting. As for the next twelve months we really want to push this album,” he added.
There are murmurings about a UK release for the album but, whatever happens, Red Queen Contest are already looking towards the next album; hoping to put some meat on the bones of the ideas they already have.
Red Queen Contest are playing a whole host of gigs around Ireland in October.
Catch them in;
Dolans, Limerick –Thursday October 17th, 2013
Album launch at The Academy 2, Friday October 18th, 2013
Cypress Avenue, Cork- Saturday October 19th, 2013.
Number 1, Mullingar- Thursday October 24th, 2013
Green Room Live, Letterkenny, Donegal- Friday October 25th,2013
Murphy’s, Waterford-Thursday October 31st, 2013