Bipolar Empire to test the waters at Galway gig

The Groove Tube with Jimi McDonnell

Guinness Live returns to Galway’s Latin Quarter on Thursday next, September 26, and runs until Saturday, September 28. There will be free shows from The Complete Stone Roses, Kila, Simon and Oscar from Ocean Colour Scene and a DJ set from Snow Patrol. On Saturday, September 28, Bipolar Empire play the King’s Head.

The young Dublin based band are currently working on their second LP, the follow up to 2011’s Feel That You Own It. The band’s as-yet untitled sophomore effort was recorded in Metropolis Studios in London.

“It was quite an exciting place to go, we were fortunate to record there,” says Callum McAdam, Bipolar Empire’s gregarious drummer. “Freddie Mercury’s piano is in there, Cream used to do a bit of recording there – our bass player [Joe Leech] is a massive Cream fan. I think the Stone Roses did an album there; the Black Keys did some mixing there.”

Bipolar Empire’s line-up is completed by leadsinger and guitarist Shane O’Reilly and Mark McGuire  on guitar/vocals. What were the quartet’s aims for this record?

“We’re looking to have a more mature sound,” says Callum. “We did the first album quite young – not as young as The Strypes! – but we didn’t know exactly what we were doing. For the second album, we had more control in the studio.”

“We went in with the songs, and the producer we worked with came up with some harmonising ideas. Joe and me went in on the first day on drums and bass, and knocked out the 10 songs on the album in 5 and a half hours.”

Since they released their debut, Bipolar Empire have played in Europe, the UK and Brazil. Callum feels this experience has benefited the band.

“We’ve had so many years of gigging and festivals and playing in different countries that we’ve got better at our instruments,” he says. “I think we had more technique to give to the recording process, rather than just going in and recording songs we’d written in a shed the year previous.”

“It was a more mature approach to recording, which I think we all needed to feel good about all the work we’ve put in over the last couple of years.”

Bipolar Empire spent six months living in London and make regular trips to the English capital. Their drummer enjoys the buzz of the place.

“I think London is an amazing place,” Cal says. “We have a lot of mates over there; we’re really good friends with Morrissey & Marshall, they’re a two-piece acoustic act, and the lads play a little bit them.”

“We’d walk around Camden and get merrily drunk; there’s a great music scene. In Ireland, it’s a shame because there’s so many great bands and not as many people giving a shit. But over there, there’s more people approaching you and going out and listening to your music, getting involved. It can be tougher, because there’s so many bands doing the same thing as you, but a lot of it is being in the right place at the right time.”

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune