Hello folks! It’s been a long time since we checked in with y’all so we figured that we’d let you know what we’ve been up to in the past month or so.

 

Erm, let me think there was… ah, no, that happened over a month ago.  Maybe the thing with the…?  no wait, that was a dream.  OK so the truth is there hasn’t been an awful lot going on because we decided to take a little bit of a break after the IMRO showcase while we all rested up after the huge amount of work that went into the album recording and single launch.  Rory has been sunning himself in Mexico, Scott has been devoting his free time to his other passion, caring for the elderly, Raymie is busy with a new addition to his family, Chris was last seen in the Congo trying to buy himself a wife and steve has spent 30 days in a ditch at the bottom of the Ormeau Road making what he calls ‘modern art’ out of discarded cigarette butts and dead birds and shouting incoherently at passers by.

 

But our break is almost over now and we’ve bathed Steve in disinfectant and are beginning to discuss getting back out there and more importantly, the release of the album. We’ll be racking up the gigs again from June and hopefully debuting some new material so look out for us!

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Arrrghh!! I can't believe there hasn’t been a blog about this already. Tomorrow, yes tomorrow!! Is one of the biggest events we've ever planned, our single launch at the Stiff Kitten.

Radio stations across the UK have been plugging it, posters are up all over Belfast and we've deployed Raymie with one of those promotional Segways to roam around Belfast shouting "Sparks Fly!!"  "Stiff kitten!!" (which reminds us we must post his bail in time for tomorrow).

The amazing Pocket Promise have their keyboards primed and ready for warming your cockles with their beautiful songs, Skruff have been polishing their barnets for the past week and preparing their high energy riffage and we've been sitting huddled over our amplifiers practicing solos bass runs and drum fills so that we can put on the best show we've ever played.

it's going to be amazing, and in something that must be a first in Sparks Fly history , Steve has even promised to stay off the glue until the end of our performance.

The Plastic Rose guys will be in charge of the tunage afterwards and we will be milling around getting as plastered as we possibly can so we can drag our favorite photographer Matt Patton up to dance to whatever madness they bring to the proceedings. Look out for Chris, he'll be the one doing the Saturday Night fever dance thinking he looks cool.

So come down, there'll be singles for sale and lots of shenanigans!

short and sweet

2 free tickets for the single launch up for grabs, head over to

http://www.bruisedfruitpromotions.com/newsitem.php?id=134&PHPSESSID=af625a5202b595a274477fe4ea6cdc04

new video coming soon!!!!

The IMRO Showcase Tour, established in 1992, Ireland’s most established new band showcase has provided a live platform for scores of emerging Irish music talent over the years. Recent acts to have featured include Fight Like Apes, Oppenheimer, Delorentos and The Flaws to name a few.

The tour will feature ten live shows in venues across Ireland including Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Galway and Dundalk. The gigs will run through March and April. A ‘Best of Showcase’ gig will take place in Dublin in early May. In all, forty-five bands will be chosen to perform.

The Belfast show will take place in Katy Dalys and the Limelight on Thurs 2nd April and the lineup so far is

Push Borders
Panama Kings
Sparks Fly
The Jane Bradfords
Kowalski
The Benjamins
John Shelly And The Creatures
Yes Cadets

We cant fucking wait!!

Just a quick update with an interview and a review of yesterdays show at the Speakeasy.  Both by photographers oddly:

ANIMAL DISCO

By Matthew Alexander Patton

When your interview is punctuated by Fleet Foxes flowing out of the P.A mid discussion and the (albeit welcome) interruption by the editor of this ‘zine no less, shouting “I need your journalism!”, you do start to wonder - just what do Belfast rockers Sparks Fly make of all this…
 

“…I‘ll buy you copy as a present and let you listen to it.”

Charming.

Relaxed yet serious about their music - Rory, Scott, Steve, Raimi and the absent (due to injury) Chris have steadily grown as a band since coming together, gaining local fans quickly before seeing success on a larger scale - winning a Battle of the Bands competition, and being called to Dublin last Summer for HWCH.

    “Hard Working Class Heroes was brilliant, we had been going less than a year whenever we got asked to do that so that was a big deal for us. The whole event itself was just phenomenal. We are in Start Together (Studio) with Ben at the minute. We were in two weeks ago, recording our new single ‘Creatures’ which is going to be out on the 30th of March via worldwide digital download - iTunes, Tunecore, TxtaTrack all that, and we have the single launch party on the 25th of March, in the Stiff Kitten.”

Certainly, Sparks Fly’s fortune is not hollow. Their distinct, powerful sound manages to be light on the ears rather than heavy - reminiscent of bands like the Manic Street Preachers, echoing their familiar vocals and accessible riffs. Being a fellow Manics fan, Steve took that as a compliment (and I kept my teeth) whilst Rory and Scott took the discussion in a more technical direction.

“I would agree with that to an extent. There’s a certain chord progression with the Manic Street Preachers - it tends to be E Major to A Minor for any of you buffs - and I like that sort of Major/Minor sound. In the studio recently, everybody was chipping in. We all know exactly what we want to sound like, and because there are three guitars in the band there’s a lot of arranging to be done. A reference I heard the other day actually was Queens Of The Stone Age and I wasn’t really happy about that…”

“…we’re a bit slower, deliberate and…melodic. All three guitars are doing three completely different things, but they all compliment each other. We have three guitarists…so it is always going to be a big sound.”

With catchy, open lyrics such as “I like the way a song takes you elsewhere…” (from Save Some For Me) complimented by detailed, paced arrangements it is hard not to think of them as major festival material, - not headlining, but in a cult spot with a dedicated fan base. Their music is a reminder of just how much I enjoy that bright style of rock, which isn’t heavy but still has more than enough body behind it to sate your hunger for heavier fare.

As the chat turns towards Kings Of Leon, LastFM profiles and thoughtful insights into the merits of Agadoo, the last words must go to bassist Steve.

    “…we have a particularly attractive bass player.”
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RADAR LIVE - Sparks Fly The Varionis and Patiosounds

By Ronan McGrade


The Speakeasy in Queens has been a mixed bag for me in the past because on my last visit the organisers were running round telling audience members to be quiet because the singer couldn't concentrate - a wee bit strange, do you not agree, for a live music venue serving buckets of beer to very thirsty students?!

Thankfully last night proved a very different experience with some great tunes, great beer and all the cheering your lungs could handle permitted!  First to the stage were Sparks Fly.  In the past they have been described as "a harmony driven breath of fresh air", but even that statement doesn't do them justice.  They are an intelligent band who's songwriting and arrangements are very deliberate - each song is cared for from conception right through to completion like a child being nurtured - and this is very clear in the finished product.  The brightness of their songs could put a smile on the sourest of faces in these recessionary times.


Next up were The Varionis.  They sang, they swaggered... they failed to convince me.  Mediocre songs and mop-top haircuts might have worked for Oasis but these lads have a way to go yet.

Finishing off the night were Patiosounds.  This was the first time I have seen them live and they certainly did not disappoint.  Pounding indie rock was on the menu for the evening and the rapidly swelling crowd hadn't eaten for a week.  Their set was made up of driving tunes, including the fantastic Cicero Tale, with a sexy little slow number thrown in the middle, no doubt aimed at the lovely ladies in the venue!  It was a very confident performance from a talented band to watch out for.

With quality acts like these on the rise it is a very exciting time in the N.Ireland music scene.  Is it coincidence that the two stand out bands from last night had Fermanagh men in them?*


*Please note Sparks Fly in no way endorse the use of Fermanagh men in stand out bands of any type without first consulting your doctor