Glasgowbury-centric Interview with Michael in today’s Irish News:
Co Antrim rock legends Therapy? top the bill at the Glasgowbury Music Festival tomorrow. David Roy spoke to bassist Michael McKeegan about making their Glasgowbury debut, his ideal festival line-up and how Therapy? have mastered the fine art of entertaining crowds in muddy fields over the past 22 years.
TOMORROW night’s appearance at the Glasgowbury Music Festival will be a landmark gig for Therapy?.
Given that the Eagle’s Rock Valley event is the north’s annual celebration of homegrown up and coming independent bands and artists, it’s somehow appropriate that Glasgowbury is providing the veteran Northern Irish rockers’ with their first ever top billing at any festival.
After all, there might not even be a Glasgowbury without Therapy?. The Larne/Ballyclare bred act flew the flag for Irish alternative rock during the early 1990s with hit independent releases Babyteeth and Pleasure Death before 1994’s top five bothering A&M release Troublegum made them regulars on Top of The Pops.
Having thus paved the way for one of Northern Ireland’s other big indie successes, Ash, their impact on local music can not be overstated.
Many of the young rock bands taking to the various stages at the festival tomorrow will have grown up listening to Therapy?’s distinctive punk metal clatter, while pretty much every artist on the bill can take heart in the fact the trio made a career out of doing their own thing.
Naturally, Therapy? are very much looking forward to their festival headlining appearance, as bassist Michael ‘The Evil Priest’ McKeegan explains.
“I can’t wait,” he enthuses. “We did play one of the Custom House Square gigs in Belfast a couple of years ago, but this real ‘you’re in a field in the middle of nowhere’ stuff. It’s a proper festival, with all the attendant carnage and good fun that comes with that.”
As veterans of the festival ‘circuit’ from the days of Feile and Tripp To Tipp, The Reading Festival in its pre-Carling days and the legendary Donnington Monsters of Rock (now rebranded as Download) to contemporary events like Sonisphere, Therapy? are well versed in winning over non-partisan punters stood knee deep in mud.
“We even played biker festivals on the back of lorries in Waterford and that kind of thing,” remembers McKeegan of the band’s early outdoor outings.
“It was all very anarchic and fun. Tripp to Tipp and the like were great for us because there wasn’t a real festival culture in Ireland until then, other than Slane and a few one day things.
“Going all the way down to Tipperary was like travelling to the other side of the world and some of the bills were really quite eclectic. I remember Simply Red, Iggy Pop and then a lot of the younger Irish bands like us all playing on the same bill.”
As for his favourite festival memories, there’s been a couple of stand out moments for McKeegan over the years.
“The first time we played Monsters of Rock was a big one for me,” he says. “I’d always enjoyed reading all the gossip about WASP and Motley Crue being out of control at it in Kerrang! but never had the chance to go myself.
“Reading 1992 (when Nirvana headlined) was another fun one as well because all our favourite American bands were on the bill, some of whom we already knew from touring together.”
However, despite being on friendly first name terms with some of Therapy?’s fellow festival turns, McKeegan admits to being lost for words on at least one occasion.
“The first time I met John Peel was at the backstage urinals,” he cringes. “He was a massive influence and very supportive of our first few indie releases, but it was just the wrong moment to start a conversation.”
As for Glasgowbury, it’s been a long time coming for Therapy?, as the bassist explains.
“We’d wanted to play Glasgowbury in previous years,” reveals McKeegan, “but it just hadn’t been possible for one reason or another. This time we were like, right we’re definitely doing it, let’s get everything in place - and then we found out Neil wouldn’t be available.”
Thus, McKeegan and singer/guitarist Andy Cairns will be joined at Glasgowbury by stand-in drummer Alan Lynn from Belfast rockers, LaFaro. He’s been temporarily filling in for regular sticksman Neil ‘Super’ Cooper at the band’s last couple of live engagements in Europe.
Given the unconventional drum parts which form the backbeat to much of Therapy?’s music, incredibly it only took three rehearsals to get Alan up to speed.
“Obviously Alan’s a great drummer, but he was a lot more prepared than we could have hoped for,” explains McKeegan.
“He’d actually learned these spontaneous jams we do in the live versions of a couple of songs to the bar - which is insane! But we’ve actually decided to go back to the studio versions for these shows and start from there.”
As well as highlights from the band’s excellent current LP, A Brief Crack of Light, fans can expect to hear a broad overview of Therapy?’s 13 album strong career - though it seems aficionados of their earliest work might well be in for a treat.
“We’re actually playing quite a few older songs we haven’t played in a while, old-school Babyteeth type stuff,” reveals the bassist. “That’s a part of our career that Alan feels really comfortable with, so he’s really got them nailed.”
Of course, for every grizzled T? head screaming along to every song at tomorrow’s show, there will be two or three wide-eyed Therapy? virgins experiencing the band live for the first time.
“That’s what I like about festivals,” says McKeegan. “There’s always a couple of bands you catch by pure chance that who really knock you out, even though you’ve maybe never even heard of them before.
“We’re lucky because we’ve got a lot of back catalogue that most people will know at least a few songs from, even if they might not have the latest album.
“There’s nothing worse than seeing a band headlining at a festival who only have one hit. I’ve seen bands start and finish their sets with the same song because it’s the only one people know, which is kind of a wee bit desperate.”
When asked to pick his dream Therapy? curated festival line-up (“Larne Metal Fest - coming next year!” jokes McKeegan), the Therapy? man settles on a nicely eclectic bill.
“Well, we’d be there - but we’d play first so we could hang about and see the other bands,” he muses. “I’d put LaFaro on. Both their albums are great and they’ve been really cool with us borrowing Alan too, they’re really sound guys.
“Jesus Lizard would have to play, another great live band - really powerful. I wouldn’t mind Thin Lizzy on there as well. I’ve seen them a few times with Ricky Warwick and they really do a fantastic respectful job.
“Then probably someone like the Prodigy. We played with them recently in Bucharest and it was amazing - really full of fire and sonically unbelievable. I’ve never heard sub bass like it.”
There could be a few additions yet to that dream line-up, as McKeegan intends to check out as many Glasgowbury acts as possible tomorrow.
“I’d like to see VerseChorusVerse, who I’ve heard good things about,” he says. “As far as I know that’s just him and his guitar, which is always interesting at a festival.
“If you get that right, you can make a big impression, whereas normally people think it’s all about the louder you play and the louder you can shout.
“Funnily enough, the two best festival sets I ever saw were Johnny Cash acoustic and The Ramones, which are probably the two extremes of how to do a festival really well. I like to think Therapy? are somewhere in the middle.”
* Therapy?, Glasgowbury, Saturday July 21, Eagles’ Rock Valley, Draperstown. Full info at Glasgowbury.com.
