IT’s little more than a year since their debut album came out, but Fontaines D.C.’s lives are unrecognizable from the scrappy newcomers that began 2019. That album, Dogrel, was universally acclaimed and landed top 10 chart positions on both sides of the Irish Sea. Upon its release, they were playing pubs in their native Dublin; their last show before the lockdown was to a sold-out Brixton Academy. Anticipation was at boiling point for their follow-up album, A Hero’s Death. They narrowly lost a chart battle for the #1 slot to Taylor Swift, despite lacking Swift’s enormous PR muscle and being unable to do any promotional gigs. It’s hard to avoid clichés about whirlwinds and rollercoasters to describe such a rapid rise to stardom, but as guitarists, Carlos O’Connell and Conor Curley (known to all by his surname) told us, it wasn’t easy to get here.
A Hero’s Death is a moody album, written by a band struggling with sudden success. “I think on this record we were all in a pretty bad place writing it,” explains Carlos. “We were touring loads, and far away from people we love and home. Our lives just changed really quickly. We went from being a band around town, and we were excited about everything we did but no one else was, to suddenly everyone was excited about it. We were flooded in with shows non-stop. We all became kind of sheltered and didn’t talk about how we were feeling about it.”
This story is from the October 2020 edition of Total Guitar.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 2020 edition of Total Guitar.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Ihsahn – "Extreme music lends itself well to experimental arrangements"
In an extraordinary double album, former Emperor guitarist Ihsahn delivers new material in two contrasting versions: metal and orchestral. "It was a perfect match," he says, “because my guitar had the same tuning as the cellos!"
Rosie Frater Taylor – "I Love Guitarists That Started in Jazz but Moved Into Pop"
It's a bold claim, but one that we're prepared to make: there is no other guitarist in the UK right now who sounds quite like Rosie Frater-Taylor.
DIRTY SOUND MAGNET
Swiss psychedelic trio Dirty Sound Magnet have created a unique racket that's both thrillingly expansive and potently evocative.
ELECTRO-HARMONIX PICO POG
You should be familiar with the Electro-Harmonix POG- it's the Polyphonic Octave Generator that set the standard for multistring, multi-octave layering and has graced the pedalboards of legends ranging from Jack White to Joe Satriani.
BOSS KATANA AIR EX
More Air, vicar? Boss pump up their popular wireless desktop amp
FGN BOUNDARY ILIAD BIL2MHS
With Japanese quality and top tones, could this be your next T-style?
THE 2024 GUITAR WORKOUT
Smash your new year guitar goals with our 30-day technical workout
"TAPPING IS THE MOST-USED WEAPON IN MY ARSENAL!"
Jon Gomm's tips for getting more out of your acoustic guitar
"THE BEST GUITAR SOLO IS A SONG WITHIN A SONG"
Ace Frehley: the guitar hero of KISS, and an influence for Tom Morello, Dimebag and many more
"THE SIMPLE PARTS ARE THE HARDEST TO GET RIGHT”
Lzzy Hale's recipe for meaty arena rock and killer tone