TV People’s latest single Time Eats Up couldn’t resonate more in these uncertain times.
It was written during frontman Paul Donohoe’s six month period of unemployment as he dealt with the isolation and the “idle state of existence” that comes with it.
Right now, we’re going through our own period of isolation as the world tackles the coronavirus pandemic head-on with widespread lockdowns.
Time is, literally, being eaten up while we wait for better days.
But for Paul, it marked a poignant new chapter in his life. He was let go from his job the day the rising Dublin four-piece played their first gig.
Post punk outfit TV People are another sterling addition to the thriving Irish indie scene, which has seen acts like Fontaines D.C., Girl Band, The Murder Capital, Sinead O’Brien and Just Mustard explode to widespread attention in recent years.
Their intense, meandering guitar-driven sound conjures a thrilling, claustrophobic energy that builds throughout, eventually piercing through to brighter soundscapes in the form of cascading crescendos.
The sprawling atmosphere conjured by in singles Kitchen Sinking and Time Eats Up evoke the early genius of post-punk revivalists Interpol.
Dan Doherty at Darklands Audio, the Dublin recording studio behind the powerfully raw early singles from Fontaines D.C., added gritty texture to Time Eats Up in mixing before it was mastered by Christian Wright at world famous Abbey Road Studios.
And with new releases on the horizon in 2020, TV People need to be firmly on your radar.
Daily Star Online got on the phone to Paul during lockdown in his native Ireland to talk about the band’s early days, their releases so far, and hopes to take their captivating sound to UK stages.
Hi Paul, how are you dealing with these weird times? How are you keeping yourself occupied?
"Before we got put into lockdown I travelled home to visit the folks. I'm stuck back here for a while.
"We’ve been keeping very busy. It’s a great opportunity to get a bit of writing done. We were busy at the end of last year gigging around Dublin so it’s been beneficial in getting stuff done. We were due to record there before all this madness started but it’s been building up even more.
"We’ve been tracking everything on the laptops, using Logic, sending tracks over and back. It’s been interesting way to write. It’s not our usual way. You have to keep busy every way you can."
How’s the past year been for you guys before this happened?
"Since the end of February when things started slowing down, it’s been pretty much a year since we played our first gig as the band.
"Before that we all did a few gigs here and there in smaller projects, but nothing too serious.
"It’s been a dream year. We’ve got to play so many gigs and momentum has been picking up very fast, which we’re obviously very grateful for.
"A year ago at our first gig there was an open mic type thing for bands – we got to play three songs. I don’t even know if we had three full songs at the time. The second we played that gig a fire got lit under us. We got completely hooked to gigging and started taking everything we could."
Was that the goal when TV People started out?
"It was kind of organic. I’ve known Bren (Clarke), the drummer, for a couple of years. We used to meet up, have a couple of beers, play a couple of tunes, but it was not anything serious. We were just messing around, hanging out.
"Rob (Kavanagh), who plays bass, started in the past year. Everything just clicked really quickly. It’s like something changed. We started writing stuff we were happy with.
"Once you have a couple of songs under your belt that you’re proud of, you want to show them off at gigs. Once that starts building up you find it hard to pull yourself away from it."
Have you found yourself gigging around Dublin or have you pushed out further?
"We haven’t been out further yet but we were looking at trying to do that this year with an action plan.
"We were trying to give it a kick in the arse, so to speak. Obviously it’s been slowed down a bit with the on-going situation.
"We are going to have a couple of releases ready to go once we’re in normality again and straight back to gigging."
What’s the reception been like from audiences at your shows? Have you noticed a build up in crowds as you’ve progressed?
"Absolutely. We started out doing the small shows. They were fun in their own way. You meet a lot of eclectic characters.
"We would have been dragging along five of our mates to come along and see us to kind and fill it out a bit.
"Once you do a few of them, you are asked to do a few support slots. We’ve been very lucky in terms of bigger acts showing us support. One support we had early on that helped getting that exposure in Dublin was with Twisted Wheel.
"We had a few nice ones through a few Dublin people seeing us. Then we went on seeing more and more people, seeing the same heads at your gigs, coming up to you saying they really like the tunes and stuff. It’s been very exciting. Nothing I would have planned for but nothing to complain about."
What’s the scene like in Dublin? It seems like there has been a big explosion of bands emerging from Ireland in the last few years.
"There has definitely always been an exciting music scene in Ireland. Over the past couple of years there have been a few bands that have got widespread attention in the UK and further afield.
"There’s more of a spotlight on Dublin at the moment. It’s an amazing scene to be in. There’s diverse music and exciting bands, doing new and unique things. It’s great when you see them on the way up.
"You come across a band from Dublin or Dundalk and you get to see them in the next couple of months gigging around. It’s a very nice scene in terms of most are very helpful to each other."
Are you aspiring to that to get over to the UK market?
"We’d like to go over and play because the UK has such a rich history of brilliant guitar music.
"We’ve all grown up listening to UK bands and loving them. It’s a great scene and great people who support guitar bands. It would be great to go over to play and for the experience getting over. We’d have to play it by ear. If anyone has a couch for us and a venue we’d be over in a heartbeat."
Your latest release Time Eats Up came out in March. What's it about?
"It’s fairly fitting for the present. The lyrics I write, I keep them on me for when it’s appropriate.
"I wrote a lot of it last year. There was six months when I was out of a job. I was let go from my job the day we played our first gig. It was a fitting transition. I had plenty of free time to be dedicating to music.
"It was written about that period of time. Sitting in your house every day when people are out and doing stuff, having a load of money, and you’re just kind of stuck in this setting that never really changes.
"The feeling is that it’s very liberating to make music and do whatever you want but it was the sense that each passing day seem to get more and more sinister and your own mental thought process of how time was ticking on gets more and more negative. It’s accurate to the current situation for people being boxed in."
Your previous release was Kitchen Sinking. Was that one you had in the bag before Time Eats Up?
"We actually recorded at the same time. Time Eats Up was one we wanted a garage rock sound. We ended up writing Kitchen Sinking in five hours. We were actually delighted with it. It was very improvisational, it came in the moment.
"Writing everything loose and experimenting with ideas. I was still coming up with guitar lines in the studio while we were tracking."
Do you think that’s the best way of producing material, just going with it and seeing what happens?
"I definitely think so. We’ve had times in the past where if you have an idea and if you're kind of focused on the small details for so long, going over and over, it loses magic. The band loses that kind of attachment for the song, both when you’re playing it live or when you recording in the studio. It’s not going to have the same feel to it.
"We very much run with things and you get to that point where we think this is 'absolutely s***', so we scrap it completely and start fresh with something new. A lot of our songs start through jamming."
It was mixed at Dublin's Darklands with Dan Doherty. What does he bring to the table?
"We were very lucky when we went into the studio with Dan. We’d only been in the studio once before.
"We weren’t very firm in what our vision for the track was. Dan's ethos is that he likes to leave it rough around the edges where it’s appropriate. He's really good at getting the best tracking and sound out of you.
"We had a great experience with him. We’re heading back in with him to record our next two singles – he’s very positive and a real nice guy."
Early Fontaines D.C. tracks were recorded there too. Were you a fan of that as a band?
"We like their sound a lot. They have that dark, rocky sound. It’s the type of music we listen to. We’ve been big fans of their stuff, it’s good see them doing so well. They’ve got plenty in them, they’re going to keep building and building."
Are you inspired by any bands or artists? Do you all listen to the same sort of stuff?
"It’s fairly diverse across the board. Myself, Len and Bren, a lot of bands our age we love. The Strokes and Interpol, the early noughties garage rock revival. That was heavily influenced on our music.
"Rob came in and he’s influenced by the post-punk bass lines, the intricate sprawling melodic bass lines, taking influences from Idles but not necessarily by intention but the Pixies have crept in.
"Generally we just try and go with the flow. We jam and it comes organically. We don’t go out and say we’re going to write a song like this song by a band we like. I suppose you’re subconsciously influenced all the time."
You’ve mentioned a couple of tracks coming up, have you got plans for an EP?
"It’s definitely something we’d be excited to do. The way it’s working for us, the second we have a bit of cash in hand we go into record. We wouldn’t be necessarily having the money to go in and record a load of tracks at once. Whenever we get tracks we’re so excited to get them out.
"We'd definitely like to something a bit more long form. We have a good few tracks that might be appropriate for a single."
What can we expect from the material coming out soon?
"It’s going to be a little bit different. Obviously in the same realm. One of the tracks is more similar to Kitchen Sinking but introducing a bit more melody.
"Another one is very different to the others, much more experimental in song structure. More ethereal, more repetitive. It’s exciting, hopefully we can get them out there soon."
What are you hoping for in the next 12 months?
"We’re looking forward to getting back on the horse. We have headliner in Dublin, which is making the whole self isolation thing a bit more bearable.
"That’s on October 24. We will be doing a lot more writing in the next couple of months and then exploding out the gate.
"Maybe a double A side because there’s been a bit of a drought. Lots more gigging, travelling a bit further afield. See some other places playing the music and keep on growing it and keep on having fun."
