From Molly Malone To Lady Liberty

The Script Arrive In New York

By Mike Fitzpatrick

When The Script's self-titled album (it was called 'The Script', hence the whole 'self-titled'' thing) hit number one in the UK charts back in August, the young Dublin act joined the ranks of other acclaimed Irish artists such as Thin Lizzy, The Pogues, Westlife, Boyzone, Enya, Gilbert O'Sullivan and, em, Val Doonican, as they made a musical splash across the water from their homeland.

When that same album returned to the top spot after Christmas, knocking none other than the all-conquering Kings of Leon from the coveted peak position, well, maybe that was just showing off (it finished the year as the 12th best-selling album of the year in Britain).

Time will tell whether the hot young trio of Danny O'Donoghue, Mark Sheehan and Glen Power will develop the staying power to be up there with U2 and Van Morrison, enjoy briefer moments of glory as did The Corrs and The Cranberries, or not quite make it out of the 'most promising' category, such as former bright young things, Cactus World News, Power of Dreams, That Petrol Emotion, A House, The Stunning, and a seemingly never-ending succession of acclaimed Irish acts, which promised so much, before fizzling out into mediocrity on the way to obscurity.

The latter acts however, for the most part all failed to cause much of a ripple in the often-cruel, occasionally-rewarding, British music scene, whereas The Script have already developed a formidable fan-base, thanks to their tireless touring, and an ever-increasing audience, due in no small part to the popularity of their three singles to date, 'We Cry', 'The Man Who Can't Be Moved' and 'Break Even'.

With success in Ireland and the UK already accomplished, The Script travel to the US this week, for a one-off show on Saint Patrick's night at The Highline Ballroom (431 West 16th Street), to be followed some weeks afterwards by a series of dates with young British singer (and Grammy-winner) Adele.

VH1 has chosen them as an act whom 'You Oughta Know', and their music is also appearing in hit US shows, ''Ghost Whisperer', 'Sober House' and NBC's 'Today Show'.

Having first gotten together in Dublin as part of an act back in 1996 called My Town, vocalist/keyboardist O'Donoghue and guitarist/vocalist Sheehan joined forces with drummer friend Glen Power to form The Script some years back, after they'd lived and worked in the music business in the US for some years, seemingly biding their time before planning their initial triumphant attack on the pop scene.

Their time, it appears, has come, and with the likes of Bell X1, Republic of Loose, The Frames and The Script leading the so-called emerald assault it's not such a bad time for Irish music.

The Irish Examiner caught up with Mark Sheehan last week, prior to his flying to New York for the enormously anticipated Saint Patrick's night gig, where he was only too pleased to chat about the album, the tour and being followed around Dublin by gangs of adoring kids.

Mike Fitzpatrick: How did The Script first get together?
Mark Sheehan: We always like to say that the condom broke in the music industry, and that The Script were formed by a f***in' accident, you know?!
It was one of those things, me and Danny were living in LA, producing and writing, and Glen came over for a holiday.
It was honestly just a jam session, we wrote about four songs, and one of the first ones we wrote was 'Before the Worst'.
So, we took these songs to a friend of mine, who was a producer, and he had a (small) label, and he said "Great f***in' band, what are you called", and I was like "Ehhhh"!
So, it was really just one of those things, we just kind of jumped on it because we were all broke and decided to make a record!

MF: In terms of the band's success, 2008 was a pretty good year, what are you hoping for in the coming twelve months?
MS: You know, we're hoping for more of the same really, but we're realists really, and we know that it's a very fickle industry, so we just have to keep working hard, you know.
Every show we're doing seems to be getting a little bit bigger and our tours are, you know, the fact that we're out on our own now, they've upgraded a little, we''re just noticing all those positive signs, and we're just really hoping that it keeps growing, you know, that'd be great.

MF: Given the competition out there, did the album's success in the UK surprise you. It got to number one twice, didn't it?
MS: Yeah, it got to number one when it was released in August, and it jumped back there over the Christmas period.

MF: What other artists style do you think The Script's most resembles?
MS: Hmm, it's hard to say, The Police probably, I mean, what we do with modern music is very reminiscent of The Police.
What they would have approached back then, was the reggae thing, that's what was bubbling up underground at the time.
Where we've tapped into the reggae and the hip-hop scene, is probably what they would have done had they been emerging now.
It's very similar in my opinion. Also, David Bowie springs to mind, purely because of his versatility. He never settled on one genre, and we come from a generation where we don't believe in genres.

MF: Your sound is a little difficult to pin down into any one category, how would you describe it?
MS: I''ve heard it being described as a mixture between Timbaland and U2. We really hated that at the start, because being a band, you tend to try to run away from labels you know?
But I suppose what those people meant was that we're a little bit rock and a little bit R'n'B, and kind of anywhere in between at any time, so, I do agree with that, I think it is a more accurate (description) of the type of band we are.

MF: It's not your first brush with the music world though, how different is it now, from when you and Danny were in My Town?
MS: Well, it was different in that you were kids back then, but you're not anymore, I mean, we're dealing with the same genre-specific issues, you're writing for your genre, it's the same thing really, that''s not all that different. But, you learn a lot, from being out in the world early on, you know what not to do, and that's probably one of the biggest things of all.

MF: The US tour is not your first trip stateside, how have you found American audiences?
MS: Well so far, we've played a great show in Los Angeles, and another great one in New York, and both went down extremely well.
We've got a huge following online when it comes to America, there's a lot of people who hear of us from MySpace in America and so on, but I think this is the first time that we're really going to be out there touring and doing it every night out there, so you know, I'll read the comments then, but generally, it's been brilliant up to now.

MF: You and Danny have a background in production, is that something you've retained as the band's career has begun to flourish, or do you prefer to stick to making music?
MS: Yes, that's what we focused on in America for so long. We were trying to write and produce, we weren't really trying to do the band thing anymore. We were trying to just get out there and pay the bills, and we ended up working with a lot of artists, and alongside a lot of producers which kept the life going for a while.

MF: You're based in London now, but you grew up in Dublin's inner city, has your upbringing been a major influence on your songwriting?
MS: Yes, we're based in London now. I suppose, when we've got songs like 'We Cry' for example, which is about walking down James's Street, in Dublin, it's kinda, you know, kind of a social conscience thing, and about people who would be a victim of their environment and so on.
That (song) is very much so about James's Street, and a walk down there. And songs such as 'Before the Worst', which we talk about Grafton Street, and things like that, and the little scraps you''d have with your mot (girlfriend) after a few drinks! So you know, it's just reminiscent of things, and Dublin has shaped us.
Lyrically I think that's who we are, is Dublin, and musically the biggest thing for us is our social conscience, our efforts to write stuff that is particularly about, or has happened in, Dublin.

MF: How does it feel now, to walk the streets of where you grew up?
MS: It's a bit mad, it's like being the pied piper now! There's been a lot of records sold, so we've kids following us with their mobile phones playing 'We Cry'! So, it's just a little bit mad, you know. It's strange though, to be back in your old area.

MF: You'll be touring with Adele in the coming months, tell us about that?
MS: Yes, well, we kick off on Paddy's Day in New York, with our own show, then shortly after that we jump onto the tour with Adele, which will go all round the country, which we're really excited about obviously.
She's getting all this attention now, with the Grammies, which doesn't do us any bad at all, being on tour with her!

MF: You also worked with Pharrell Williams aand ODB?
MS: Well, that's gotten a little twisted. I know Pharrell, I know him through producing, and we've also got some mutual friends, but me and him have never really worked together. He's given me music to write on, and I never bothered my ass doing it purely because it was too advanced for me, I think, at the time.
I did get to go in the studio and hang out while he was doing the ODB thing, but I wasn't really working there, more a fly on the wall type thing.

MF:You're playing New York City on Saint Patrick's night, excited?
MS: Yes, it's going to be a huge one for us because, where better to ring in Paddy's Day? We've done it in Ireland every year, it'll be nice to try it in America. I suppose, to do a gig there on that night, will be just mental for us!

MF: How healthy is the Irish music scene nowadays?
MS: I think like any country, (music) sales are suffering, but the funny thing about it is, as musicians we kind of sit at the center of that, the other side of things, the live music is flying, you know, and every show we're doing is going so well, and you know everyone has the f****in' music, so they're definitely getting it from somewhere!
So, at the end of the day, we benefit, either way, when we stand on stage. Because people who love the music tend to come to the shows and so on.

MF: With the band producing such a varied sound, what is it that you listen to?
MS: I'd been stuck into the new Elbow album, I don't know if you've listened to it, 'Seldom Seen Kid', which is a great album. I''ve been really into that. I like a bit of John Mayer. I love Kanye West, Nas, you know, people like that, you know, I like the old hip-hop! I'm dying to get my hands on the new U2 record, I'm dying to hear that!