The Script are all over local radio and the Australian music charts, and soon the lads from Dublin will be here in the flesh. I chatted with Mark Sheehan ahead of the band’s September tour.
You’ve only recently visited Australia for some shows, yet you’re about to tour here again in September. What keeps you coming back?
What can I say? We’re suckers for the Aussies. We love it there. Aside from the band, Dan [O’Donoghue] and I have been there a few times travelling around a little. We LOVED it. Plus your beer is good!
You’re playing some small theatres while you’re here, yet back home you’ve been performing in stadiums. How do those intimate shows compare to the much larger ones?
I prefer them to be honest. The stadiums are very surreal and the shock settles in after you’re off stage … very annoying. But the smaller shows is where we are from and I find the atmosphere is always electric. We’re on top of the audience. God help them!
I’ve got tickets to your Sydney concert. What can I expect when I see you guys live?
Nakedness! No, I lie. We would clear the building out if we did that. Maybe I’ve just started an idea for last call in bars throughout the world: show them naked Script pictures and clear the shop. We like to call our live shows our time off because no one bothers us up there. It’s the reason why we’re in it so we really savour that and play the best we can. Our shows are high energy, so if the audience is any good then we just excel. It’s a reciprocal energy, so audience and band feed off each other so to speak. This is what we live for.
I noticed you’ve got a few days between shows on your Australian tour schedule. Are you planning on doing any sightseeing? Is there anything you hope to do during your stay?
You see, I love this sort of stuff because that’s the nice public diary, but if you looked at mine you would see that “time off” means promo. I doubt the Aussie record label will let us off too lightly. We will see every available hour there’s gone … puff! We shall sneak something in though.
What’s life like on The Script tour bus?
Like a mobile Irish Pub, a free house and all are welcome.
Your singles and debut album have exploded here. Did that sort of international success take you by surprise?
Yes totally. You never know and your expectations can’t be high. Either your music connects or it doesn’t, no real in between. So we just came to Australia last year to try create awareness for our music and this is the final result. Our Aussie label is so passionate about the band that while we’re away they just kept chipping away. It’s a true testament to their hard work. We’re always just happy to be employed, so it’s always a shocker when we get told how well things are going for us. You really can’t dream dreams like this.
How does it feel to have people connecting to your songs all the way on the other side of the world?
Unreal. To think we wrote this record in a little shed at my house in Dublin to this. Its mind blowing stuff. What trips me out the most is to think there is a person at home alone listening to us right now. Maybe it’s the soundtrack to their current problems but man, they chose us to play. Now that’s nuts. Especially since I’m a music fan and I do that with my music collection.
Your debut album has found a permanent home in my stereo. What are you listening to at the moment?
Thanks a million, I’m glad you like it. It was a labor of love. I’m loving a US artist Called Citizen Cope. He’s hot! Check him out.
You started your career in the boy band MyTown. How do you feel looking back on that time?
I think it was paramount in the overall scheme of my career. We learned the ins and outs of the industry and now I can apply them to my current career. But like anything we did when we were kids, I look back on photos etc. and think what the F!@£$%K was I wearing? But I do that with my old holiday photos so I’m not sure if I just hate whatever fashion trends I was going through when I was young. I think everyone is like that though.
I hear that you’re going to be supporting U2 later this month. Is there any bigger honour for an Irish band?
I really don’t think so, it’s the defo biggest. Even the fact that U2 know of The Script blows our little oul brains … really! We may need a diaper sponsor for that one.
And finally, do you have a message for your Australian fans?
Yes, thanks so much for your support. I know we’re a new band, but we believe we have so much to offer in today’s music climate, and believe that if you come to one show for one night we will convert you. Our music came from a very deep place and I think given a chance you will relate. See yis on the road or in a pub near you!
Image used with permission from Total Assault