Soda Blonde: are an alt-pop band from Dublin, Ireland.
Interview conducted on April 22, 2021
By Dan Locke
Faye O’Rourke of Soda Blonde: ‘Walking away from Little Green Cars was extremely difficult. ‘ The last time we talked with Faye O’Rourke and Adam O’Regan was two years ago in Kilkenny
You are from Dublin. What is your upbringing?
I’m an only child from a middle-class background. Bit spoiled. I grew up in the suburbs, were I learned to drive and shop lift. Kept up the driving, gave up the shoplifting.
How did you discover music?
Through my parents and watching MTV
How did you start to write music?
When I was 13, I started hanging out with Adam. He had already started to write and record music and I thought it was extraordinary that somebody our age was doing that. It inspired me to pick up the guitar and write my first song. It wasn’t half bad so I kept going.
How did you get your first guitar, and do you still have it?
I got my first guitar at 13 as a Christmas present from my parents. I still have it.
What is your guitar of choice now? Year, make and model?
I’m no guitar nerd but I like my Martin. I have a vintage 1964 Fender Music Master that I’m also pretty attached to. I’m happy with what I’ve got.
How did you start Little Green Cars at 16?
I was originally a fan of the band before joining. I still have a Little Green Cars t-shirt I made back in the day. The guys heard me sing one night at a party and asked me to join the band.
In 2013 you performed at SXSW, Lollapalooza, Coachella and Osheaga Music & Arts Festival. How was that year for you?
A blur.
Why did you decide to start Soda Blonde?
Because we had more music to make.
Describe your music.
Incredible
What was your first performance of Soda Blonde like?
Our first performance as Soda Blonde was nuts. We sold out the venue overnight.
What makes a good songwriter?
Someone who can let go when they write
What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
First Song I wrote was called ‘Georgie Porgie’ and Adam recorded it when we were 14.
What is the process of writing your music?
Usually, I write a song on either the guitar or piano. Then I bring it to the guys and we start knocking out different arrangements together. However, this pandemic has challenged us to switch up that processes. We’ve discovered that we can work remotely and layer a track as we send it from member to member. It’s pretty cool knowing that we can arrange music in a few different ways.
Who came up with the idea for the video “Love Me World”?
I want to say Adam although I can’t really remember.
Tell me about your new album “Small Talk” which is going to be released on July 9th?
Small Talk touches on many things: on indulging in the darkness- while also trying to derive some meaning from it; on my (hopefully behind me) crippling dependency on alcohol; on having no degree; on multiple relationships sabotages and letting my parents down. It’s about looking for resolution and revolution in sex and politics. It’s about being abused mentally and physically by the people you love the most, and in turn, abusing the people who love you. It’s about my first heartbreak at 14, how it’s still intrinsically a part of me, and the shame and embarrassment that it brings. It’s about having something you thought was a sure thing, like your career, ripped out from underneath you. It’s also about the idea of optical virtue over the reality of how we treat those around us. Overall, Small Talk is the work of a band. We’ve created a world – my insecurities just live inside it. Sonically we’ve explored our own personal nostalgia while striving for a sound that we haven’t heard before.
You are creating 2 new music videos at once. Tell me about making them and which songs they will be?
To be honest it was an incredibly arduous task. With level 5 restrictions and a teeny budget, I think we’ve pulled off something extraordinary. We’re fortunate enough to have a great team of talented friends who help us bring our visions to life. The videos will be for Small Talk and In the Heat of the Night.
What is your favorite track on your album?
My favourite track on the album at the moment is a song called I Still Have Feelings For You. But it changes all the time
How was your RTE Concert Orchestra performance?
Shit scary but exhilarating
What have you been doing with your self-quarantine?
I’ve been having a blast with my partner and bringing this album together.
The British government, buoyed by early good news on a brisk roll-out of vaccinations in the UK, set out a roadmap that, as things stand, would see the reopening of large music events in the UK, with no audience limit, on June 21. Live Nation and its subsidiary, Festival Republic, didn’t hang about after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made this announcement on Monday (February 22). The companies quickly announced that their Reading & Leeds festival – an annual fest taking place across two locations in the UK with a combined capacity of around 180,000 – would be going ahead between August 27 and 29 this year, and that tickets were on sale. With this announcement Live Nation; USA wants to following the lead of Live Nation: UK. If this happen and live concert start happening this summer, would you be up to playing live shows again and under want precautions, would you like to have in place?
I will perform under whatever precautions are deemed appropriate by the respective government. It’s not up to me to dictate what people can and cannot do. I’m dying to perform live, and I will do so in whatever capacity that I can.
