First Class & Coach - Neon Hip (single)
Formed in 2017 by Reuben Maher (guitars, keys, vox) , Jonathan Parson (bass), Geraldine Thomas (vox) and Andrew McNeilage (drums) - their early gigs fused hard-edged guitar sounds with ambient keys, digital samples, and dance rhythms. These formative shows led the band towards honing their sound - immediate, distorted guitar hooks, driving bass lines, muscular drums and uncompromising vocals, delivered in both English and German.
The band enlisted Tony Maimone (Pere Ubu) of StudioG in Brooklyn to produce their debut album. They recorded in Monique Studios in Middleton, Cork. ‘The Truth About Honey’ was released on February 14th 2020 on vinyl, CD & Digital and received favourable reviews in both the Irish and German press. Among them, Dan Hegarty (RTE2fm) named ‘The Truth About Honey’ in his Top 5 Irish Albums of 2020. With the advent of a global pandemic, live tour plans were shelved, yet the band continued to write new material, resulting in recording their second album in Black Box Studios, France - with Tony Maimone again at the controls.
Neon Hip is the second single and title track from their highly anticipated forthcoming album, which is out later this year. The band’s second offering since teaming up with Cork independent label FIFA Records
is the perfect follow up to the widely acclaimed ‘My Oh My’ which fully justified their ‘One’s to Watch’ tag and caught the attention of radio, both in Ireland and further afield. ‘Neon Hip’ is immediately catchy with a striking vocal interchange that evolves as the track continues, making it float along whilst drawing the listener in, but underneath you are always aware of FC&C's trademark sonic textures and intensity. ‘Neon Hip’ hypothetically questions a friend’s decision to move far away to the west coast of the US, despite the fact that he has already moved there, lived, and indeed, died there - a place in which he never wanted to die.
As described by songwriter Reuben, “I guess it’s a conversation with a dead man… a little too late, perhaps”. “The verses are my conversation with him, and the choruses sung by Gerri are a condemnation of LA. The dreamy guitar outro echoes my drive leaving town, knowing you’re not returning any time soon or ever likely to see your friend again” continues Maher.