New York, NY (Top40 Charts) DUBLIN band
Bell X1 have a new single & video "The Lobster" out today. The video directed by Allyn Quigley features Irish Actors Liz Fitzgibbon and Kieran Roche and, like the track, takes its cues from Jean Paul Sartre's infamously bad mescaline trip in the 1930's. The video was filmed on Dublin's Waterloo Road.
Frontman and co-founder Paul Noonan explains, "The song is I suppose a plea for comeuppance for the assholic behavior of our current crop of political "strongmen", and their appeal to the worst in us humans - that they may be tormented by their dick-swinging deeds. The reference to Sartre and his bad flashbacks is maybe unfair - I don't think he was a dick, the poor unfortunate. But it did give us the chance to make a Lobster suit…"
Allyn Quigley explains further: "We spoke about Jean-Paul Sarte, lobsters, populist strongmen and reaping what you sow. What resulted was this - a bizarre, post-date marshmallow test scenario that allowed us to play with the surreal nature of the lyrics in a really fun and farcical way.
"Sometimes we've maybe been a little unsubtle about going for the emotional jugular," says Paul Noonan "Where it becomes a little obvious and you're telegraphing the emotions through the music. But eight records deep, we're older men, and I think it's more powerful when done with a bit more subtlety and grace."
He's reflecting on "Light My Way," the expansive closer of Merciful Hour, the band's first record since 2016's Arms. Paul recalls crafting that song, which was inspired by his work in music therapy, working with people living with dementia: "I had one client, and I remember talking to him one day, and he used to know the names of birds by their song," Noonan says.
"It was one of the things he lost. He was making a joke of it: He no longer remembered their names, but that's OK because they never knew his. The song was written from the point of view of someone going through that, maybe."
The album runs the gamut of moods, from that track's stark funkiness through the epic earnestness of "Light My Way," its twists and turns interwoven through a deliberate blend of "the strings and the machines." "We didn't want to be too purist, but we wanted the strings to be a thread running through the record," Noonan says.
"Some of the songs have been around for years, and some were born during the process of making the record. It's something we often struggle with: making a coherent record, because stylistically our records tend to be all over the shop."The centerpiece could be the soulful, falsetto-laced "Bridge and Tunnel," featuring a string arrangement inspired by Van Dyke Parks' work.
"The fact that we've all managed to carve out enough head and heart space for the band to make yet another offering," Noonan says, "I see that space as a merciful hour. I'm very grateful and humbled and moved by the fact that we've done this. There's something merciful about it — as harsh as the world is, the fact is that we've battled what we've had to contend with and created this sense of safety and containment and mutual love. There's a resilience there that I'm really proud of."
Bell X1 is an Irish band, the members of which are Paul Noonan, Dave Geraghty and Dominic Phillips. Formed in 1999, they have released 8 studio albums, 4 of which having been nominated for the Choice
Music Prize.
Over the past 2 decades they have become somewhat of a national treasure, and are recognized as one of Ireland's most popular live performers. They are known for their versatile musical palette, lyrical dexterity and catalog of popular singles. Their albums vary in sound and style, their range taking in pop, alternative, indie, hard rock, post-punk, acoustic, lo-fi, folk-rock, ballad, synth-pop, new wave and electronica.
