Rock and roll at its heart is all about the chemistry between friends, a shared love of a favourite record that shaped lives and thinking, of cranking amps and pounding drums, that creates a camaraderie that goes beyond a normal friendship. All from that pivotal sound. This is true of Almera, and that unmistakeable chemistry can be heard on new single ‘Weapons’. A driving slice of indie rock that recalls the 2000’s indie sleaze of New York darlings The Strokes by way of London’s shambolic kings, The Libertines.
The band have the iconic Dublin venue, and music hub, of Whelans to thank for their formation. Brian (vocals/guitar) sent up a flare in the form of slapping up a bass players wanted sticker, this caught the eye of Ciarán (bass). Having success with this, Brian took the same approach to flesh out the rest of the band and over time Zach(lead guitar) and Aaron(drums) joined. Soon the band were arguing at practice between songs about which Strokes album was best. With each pulling for their own favourite, that record that set them on the path and ultimately brought them together. The band pull their name from ‘Hardy Bucks’, an Irish comedy series, which Nissan than unduly syphoned off for their own purposes. Looking to reclaim the name as their own, Almera arrive with their flag in the moon debut single ‘Weapons’.
Coming in at under 3 minutes runtime, ‘Weapons’ wastes no time in hitting us with hooks. An intro guitar line that would have Jonny Marr taking notice gives way to a staccato verse, so that every guitar stab and snare hit feels like an exclamation mark. Brian vents his considerable spleen about a messy situationship all masked by an infectious earworm melody with words being spat down the microphone, the wound obviously hasn’t been healed by time. The song was originally penned when Brian was 18, however, in todays world where love is a disposable dating app profile swipe away, it feels even more poignant. Technology brings us together, but drives divides between us. The syncopated drums and bass that provide the heart beat to the verses, drive and push the chorus, feeling like they’ve got their friends back as much as their simply playing their instruments. The lead guitar wails along throughout the song, tastefully placed in the mix, as the song reaches its end a flurry of notes erupts for the guitar and takes us home. Its hard to tell if it’s the result of many cigarettes smoked to the tab or a production choice but the distortion on Brians voice accentuates the attitude of the track.
When Brian wrote the track, it was like the song was being given to him, channelling whatever force, the song was done in 15 minutes. Brain found the vocal melody recorded on his phone after it had presented itself in a dream. He’s quick to point out that despite him being the primary songwriter, the songs don’t become fully realised until he brings them to the band, collectively bringing their hammers to the anvil.
To capture the attitude and intent of the song the band turned to Mick of Trackmix Studios. The production built around bottling that (seemingly) effortless New York cool sound. With the drums setting the scene for the rest of the track. As the band layered on guitars, the track started to take shape and the sound became more and more Almera. The video for the track was shot and edited by close friend Josh Henvey. Opting to remove any bells or whistles the band wanted to capture the energy and essence of the track. The art work came in a spare of the moment flash, shot at Dollymount beach, the band slapped guts on a post-it on the dashboard, a reference to a song lyric ‘spilling my guts on the dashboard’. Effortless cool.
Almera enter the Irish music scene knowing exactly who they are, what their sound is and where they want to go. There’s so much attitude in the track, by at the centre of it is a lot of heart. Pouring themselves into the music and wringing emotion out in every note and chord, ‘Weapons’ heralds Almera as a vital voice in Irish music.
Almera – Weapons (Spotify Link)