Apartment 44

With their neoteric pop rock sound backed with a funk rhythm, Apartment 44 brings their fans real to life anecdotes that impact our society today. James Fitzgerald, guitarist of Apartment 44, tells us how the band came together in April 2008. “Well I was working a job that I hated and one day I woke up and…went and did a one year music course in music performance, theory, and production. From there I met Sarah [Finnegan], Wayne [Walsh], and Rob [McHugh]. After we finished the course, Wayne's mate Tim [Sealey] was the final piece of the jigsaw. No School of Rock jokes, please� James said jokingly.

James came up with the band’s name, Apartment 44, based on simple, nostalgia. He explains that “I lived in an apartment in Galway City (44) and when I was there I bought my first piece of recording equipment and laid down the first few experimental tracks.“ In remembrance of where he started, the band’s namesake was born. James continues “it helps really put things into perspective for me, from when I was sad to where I am now, happy.�

James describes that his passion for music is driven by “the simple love of creating it and sharing it with others. You can establish a connection with someone without either of you knowing each other just through a song. That and the love of performing and interaction, great buzz!�

With this passionate connection, Apartment 44 can interact with their fans through their music and in turn learn more about their struggles in society. James relates that recession is a struggle “for everyone not just musicians…and this is where we need music the most. Some of the greatest songs ever were written in times of hardship. This is why lyrics are very important in songs. It doesn't even matter the genre as long as the song communicates well, that's the power of music.�

Apartment 44’s lyrics are truly artistic and in some ways abstract to where the listeners can interpret the song based on how it makes them feel. James agrees “Exactly definitely in Circles…We are fortunate that we have three songwriters in the band but we are all for lyrics.� Tim wrote the lyrics to Circles which is Apartment 44’s debut single released September 2008. James describes the inspiration of Circles as “for Tim, he takes the songs as all the things going round in his head that he sometimes cannot get out either in spoken word or on paper…for me, I always take the messages that we in society are born to make the same mistakes over and over no matter how sophisticated and technologically advanced we get.� A quote from the lyrics states “If we stop looking for answers will the questions disappear?� James explains that “I take it as if we took life less seriously we wouldn't find all these complications.� Though listeners are encouraged to interpret the lyrics in their own way, it is meaningful to know the story behind the writers’ thoughts.

Written by James, My Addiction is Apartment 44’s most recent creation. James describes that “I wrote it as a song to help inspire you to do what you want to do in life and not let other people sidetrack you from it or put you down. Not all addictions are bad. For me it’s my music and my will to succeed. The man and the girl represent the two different aspects of how people can be stuck in a dead end job and when they are forty thinking "why didn't I do this too�… but again a story that you can interpret into your own meaning.�

“Tim wrote the lyrics for Circles but from where he had the song and where we took it musically is truly remarkable,� James admirably describes Apartment 44. “We all had our own input on every aspect. [With] Sarah's intro picking to her background vocals, Rob’s drums, and my guitar, we have an all round package.�

In the near future, Apartment 44 is hoping to release an album. James stated “At the moment, we are concentrating on playing to our fans but we want to get back into the studio. We have so many ideas. It's going to be hard to condense it down to a twelve to thirteen track album. We try to write about songs that impact on today’s society. I think people are losing the ability to communicate.� Apartment 44 currently performs at gigs in Ireland, and hope someday to play at Slane Castle.

A message to Apartment 44’s fans… “Learn an instrument, write some tunes, be yourself, and enjoy it.� - Get out to live music

The Galway based five piece Apartment 44 comprise of vocalists Tim Sealy and Sarah Finnegan, guitarist James Fitzgerald, bassist Wayne Walsh and drummer Rob McHugh; Sealy and Fitzgerald are the unit's main songwriters, with Sealy, Finnegan sharing vocal duties.

The group came together after four of it's members (Finnegan, Fitzgerald, McHugh and Walsh) graduated from Galway music college in April 2008. Sealy completed the line up later that month and Apartment 44 was born!

The idea of the name Apartment 44 emerged from the concept that came together with the aid of songwriter James Fitzgerald, who settled into a bit of a time-warped "Warhol's Factory" concept, in Apartment 44, Galway City, Ireland, where he first laid down some experimental tracks.

Apartment 44 are gearing up to release their eagerly awaited debut single "Circles", recorded with renowned Record Producers Chris O’Brien and Graham Murphy, Circles is a song which probes our own inhibitions and tries to encourage us to learn from our mistakes. All sales from the song have generously been donated to the charity "Preda" in a bid to raise awareness to child slavery and human trafficking into the sex trade in the Philippines. As a result the song has received glowing praises from singer songwriter Damien Dempsey and Hollywood actor and human rights activist Martin Sheen.

Take note, Apartment 44 are indeed a group of neoteric brilliance that will forever become a part of your soul!
- Galway First