Peter Twomey
Web Editor
Peter Twomey
Web Editor
With a name as ambitious as ‘The Brilliant Things’, one could be forgiven for expecting a lot from this group of Irish born newcomers. Fortunately, if power-packed rock inspired pop is your forte, then The Brilliant Things are just as good as their self-assured title suggests and, having just released their self-titled debut with Universal, the future is looking rose-y for these cocksure hopefuls.
Considering each band member’s rich experience in the music industry, this question isn’t as easy as it is for other bands, but how did The Brilliant Things come to be?
Maria Junior: It was just Greg and myself a few years ago and, to cut a long story short, as we started doing gigs and stuff, we were kind of synth duo. We were trying to be the Pet Shop Boys, but that didn’t really work because we’re rockers at heart… well wannabe rockers at least. So then Greg asked Jeff, because Jeff is his cousin, and Gregg also asked Mia, whom he knew from working with in RTÉ and it’s kind of cool to have a girl bass player and here we are today, that’s how it all happened.
Jeff: The Brilliant things, in its current form, have been together for 3 years but it still feels fresh between all of us.
Given the fact that you all have such varied backgrounds working with different musicians and bands, has that had a positive affect on The Brilliant Things or is there tension over whose method and technique is best?
Jeff: Definitely positive, because you’re bringing everything you know into the band. Sometimes if its somewhat raw it might take a bit longer but when everyone know what they’re doing it makes things a lot easier.
Marie Junior: The main thing is that we all respect each other for what each person’s role in the band is. For example, if Jeff has a good drum beat we just go with it and look to build from it.
Jeff: I mean, sometimes there might be some difference of opinion, but no one’s ever going ‘I hate that guy’ or ‘She’s a shit singer!’
You said earlier that The Brilliant Things were once strongly influenced by the Pet Shop Boys. Who is your main influence now?
Marie Junior: Well as the time we wanted to sound like them, but now we’re trying to be a bit more individual. We’re a lot more rock-y now and there’s such a wide variety of bands to pick from in that genre, as well as pop and classical, that it is impossible to pick just one or two bands as an influence.
What would you consider TBT’s unique selling point? What makes you stand out from other pop-rock bands?
Marie Junior: First off, the fact that we’re a band and that we’re fronted by a girl. Right now it’s mainly just singers in the X Factor mold, and because we all play instruments.
Jeff: When it come to the songs, Greg he writes pop songs but in a dark way. There’s a bit of colour to it also that’s really optimistic too, it’s a difficult one to explain.
Where do you see yourselves this time next year?
Jeff: Huge!
Marie Junior: A few Brit awards, MTV awards, nothing too big.
Jeff: Just touring, that’s why we do this, we love touring. Just playing live. We’ve done Oxegen, Reading and Leeds, Isle of White, and lots of gigs around Ireland.
And which has been your favourite gig to date?
Jeff: I’d say the first year in Oxegen where we played the Main Stage. We had the full Artane brass band, all 82 of them up on the stage.
Marie Junior: The first year in the Isle of White was amazing too. We were really new to touring and we played to 6,000 or 8,000. We were first on at 12 so we assumed no one would be there, but we looked out of the curtain and we thought ‘…oh crap’, but we really pulled it off. People were singing the first verse because they had heard the first one and it was really an amazing experience.
What would you consider The Brilliant Thing’s biggest achievement to date?
Marie Junior: Just getting the album done.
Jeff: Just to say ‘This is our album, we’ve made this collection of music.’ It took a long time to make and we recorded in various places starting in LA and moving on to places like Gross Lodge and Wind Mill.
Marie Junior: It was a timely process, about 2 years in total. We had to go back and forth, we never actually properly finished it in one place.
Jeff: Songs were recorded, and then re-recorded, and then
Re-re-recorded!
Marie Junior: My voice has completely changed since then and we’ve grown more as a band. Right now I’m extremely proud of what we have worked so hard to make.
The Brilliant Things self titled debut album is out now.
