Changing Track

By Joe Kavanagh

Image can mean everything in the world of music. The correct suffusion of image and music is the stuff that record deals are made of as bands and labels struggle to find that all important edge that will separate them from the crowd. Sometimes, however, a band can become a slave of their own image, unable to remove themselves from the preconceived perceptions of a public who expect them to behave in a certain way simply because of their image. Changing an image can be difficult and, often times, the simplest way to change is to blow it up and start again, as one of Ireland's most exciting rock bands is now discovering.

Formed at the end of 2003, Mainline was the brainchild of brothers Neil (guitar/vox), Conor (bass) and Daniel Paxton (drums/vox), in addition to lifelong friends, Scott Glennon (guitar), Patrick McHugh (guitar) and Jeff McDonald (keys). Dedicated and determined, they nonetheless found life in a Dublin garage band to be difficult, not least because club music ruled the roost throughout Ireland, making it difficult for bands to find venues or audiences. The experience created an almost siege-like mentality in the band, shared by the likes of fellow Dublin acts, The Mighty Stef, The Things and Humanzi, who all banded together to form their own mini-scene inside Dublin's notoriously cliquish music community. In fact, this new breed of Dublin band not only viewed the club scene with utter contempt, but they also trained their ire upon the so-called "Whelan's set" amongst the Dublin community. Named after the venue/bar where they regularly congregated, the loosely affiliated group centered around Glen Hansard's band, The Frames, and included figures such as Damien Rice, Paddy Casey and a host of other Dublin musicians, artisans and hangers-on. In many people's eyes (not least some of their own), they were the ruling class of the island's music scene, with the Frames in particular enjoying a decade or more as the dominant musical force on the island. Their music was safe, inoffensive and so pervasive that by the early Noughties, the vast majority of original bands on the island sounded a lot like The Frames or one of their cohorts. Earned or not, this ubiquity, coupled with the success they enjoyed and their perceived smugness meant that the Whelan's set were viewed with sheer contempt by many on the Irish underground. Mainline initially viewed themselves as the anti-Frames, unconcerned with commercial pandering and determined to make something that ruffled feathers as easily as it pricked up ears. In an early interview, Daniel declared to national Irish radio station that Mainline's mission statement was to "rid the Irish airwaves of mediocre singer-songwriters and pissy-windy guitar bands", which was a thinly veiled attack on the singer/songwriter scene of which Irish music buyers became so enamored with a couple of years back. Inspired by the likes of Spaceman 3, Neu, Nick Cave and Velvet Underground, Mainline were an altogether darker prospect than anything the island was used to seeing and within weeks of gigging the band had already become a talking point on the national underground music scene. Clad from head to toe in black leather and standing six strong on the stage, Mainline looked like a band that had just crawled out of a back alley for a knife-fight, which also serves to describe their music in a sense. Always looking for an edge, Daniel claims: "With every show we do, we want there to be a sense of occasion, We're looking at bettering it every time. It doesn't hurt anyone more than us when something goes wrong." Even the name was chosen simply because it fitted with their sleazy, drug-inspired sound.

One of their favorite moments occurred when they were called upon to serve as support act for their own idols: Primal Scream. After finishing their opening set, the members of Mainline walked offstage to a standing ovation and high-fives from the members of Primal Scream, a moment they still treasure dearly.

All was not perfect, however, as those interviewing them sometimes began to describe a wariness that seemed to be pervading the band as their career stalled a little. Unwilling to compromise their ideals, they failed to achieve the essential balance between retaining full control of all aspects of their destiny and ensuring that they met the commercial considerations required to continue their odyssey. Some questioned the music, wondering whether Mainline had done quite enough to crawl out from under their influences and NME, perhaps unfairly, described them as the "Bejaysus And Mary Chain." By last year, it was becoming increasingly clear that the band's 'moment' had passed.

A couple of months back, the band underwent some changes, not least in a musical sense, and emerged from the chrysalis of Mainline as The Brothers Movement. Aside from the new moniker, the band has also blossomed into something that is at once more commercial without relinquishing any of their edginess. Like some blissed out version of The Verve, their sound has become warmer, bigger and imminently more capable of turning heads. The music and image have now molded into something that looks and sounds less manufactured.

The Irish music industry has also taken notice, with IMRO adding the band to their recent Best Of Irish Rock Showcase, which is considered to be the platform for emerging Irish talent. With an album already rumored to be in the bag and ready to go, The Brothers Movement are one of the few Irish acts genuinely capable of breaking through in an international sense.