Homecoming gig for Galway band riding the crest of a wave

Fittingly for a band called the Clockworks, it looks like it’s time to shine – and the Galway quartet are set to have plenty to celebrate by the time they play an eagerly awaited homecoming gig later in the year.

Friends since their schooldays, the Loughrea-based foursome are made up of London-born lead singer James McGregor, guitarist and backing vocalist Sean Connelly, drummer Damien Greaney, and bassist Tom Freeman.

BY DANIELLE HOLIAN

James and Sean originally played music together for fun, putting music to James’ lyrics in Sean’s shed. Damien joined as drummer and – have seen different bassists come and go – they met Tom in 2017 through the Galway music scene.

“Home for the band as a whole is Galway city, in the sense that it’s where we’ve always had our base, and where we met Tom,” say the lads.

James graduated from NUIG with a BA in English and Philosophy – a degree that has clear benefits for his songwriting.

“I think most people would say the best way to learn to write well is to read as much as possible, and to read diversely

“I think studying English showed me loads of writing that I love, and loads of writing that I really dislike, and so that definitely helps with knowing what and how I want to write myself,” he says.

That said, the writing process is different each time the quartet come together.

“James carries a little notebook with him and writes songs about situations and emotions that relate to him, our group and people we know.

“These words and ideas are brought to the rehearsal room where the four of us work on the song until we’re all happy with every second of it.

“In the rehearsal room, some songs have taken an hour and others have taken six months. There’s no telling.”

Damien took a trial and error approach to college.

“I went from doing a course that I hated, to working a job that I hated to playing music which I loved,” he explains.

“So, I definitely made the right decision. It’s not always easy and it’s not always fun but I’ve never once thought it was a mistake.”

Sean, on the other hand, had a tunnel vision as far back as he can remember; he always knew music was a passion and something he wanted to pursue.

“I always knew I wanted to play music as a career, right the through school. Well, that or be a professional footballer… but I just wasn’t good enough for that so I stuck with the guitar,” he jokes.

Tom, who is a recent graduate from NUIG, bumped into the band around the music scene in Galway. “We chatted a few times, and then Sean asked me to come for a jam. The rest is history.”

And because they all basically grew up in Galway, the west is a strong part of their influence – but not in terms of musical trends.

“Because the scene in Galway is relatively small, there are no trends in music here. There’s no expectation on bands to sound like the latest thing.

“This is great because every band is free to take influence from different places, and this actually makes Galway’s small scene really interesting.”

They’ve toured Ireland, England as well as heading over to Canada to represent Ireland at Indie Week in Toronto last year for the title of ‘Best of the Fest’.

They have been gigging with their music rather than flooding the internet with new releases that may be dismissed in an era that constantly needs to be seen and heard.

With their head-banging indie-rock tunes the quartet are creating a distinctive identity across the nation with their act, compared to doing all they can for short-term fortune and fame.

Their storytelling, tongue-in-cheek, cohesive unit that provokes danceability blending humour and talent with their sharp observations, blunt and gritty instrumental, and classical drumming beats, they showcase their need to stray away from standard music on the radio nowadays.

Combined with blissful angst, attitude and frustration that brings their opinions front and centre, rather than staying in a mainstream line with an instant sense of originality.

They have been travelling as a band with their original material gaining a larger audience across the globe at the moment.

“The reception since bringing out our single Rumours in the Stockroom has been amazing; it has over 30,000 streams on Spotify. Wherever we play there are people who know the song and sing it when we play, which is a great feeling.”

And they have gone from support slots to headliners – and now selling out shows.

They have played Electric Picnic, Dublin’s Workman’s Club, and Whelan’s, Galway’s The Loft, Roisin Dubh, An Pucan’s Fever Pitch Festival, The Black Gate Cultural Centre, as well as shows in London.

But the Clockworks’ ‘this is it’ moment was at a recent rehearsal where they worked four brand-new songs into their set.

“We really feel like we’ve found our sound, and can’t wait to play the new set at our headline gig in the Roisin Dubh on October 13.”

For the Roisin show, fans can expect a ‘brand-new set with some brand-new songs, and the same old Clockworks.’

Since their debut Girls Like You, lyrically their music has evolved in a sense that “the songs are still coming from a similar place: it’s always been vital for us as a band for the songs to be honest, and to focus on topics that matter.”

And fundamentally the band are clear about their mission.

“To write honest songs that you can dance and sing along to, but that ultimately have something real to say and a reason to be.

“If someone came up to us and said that they had been inspired to form a band based on listening to our music…that would be an amazing feeling.”

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