THE DEAD FLAGS

"You can't throw a brick in this town without knocking half a dozen identi-kit indie bands on the back of the head. Standing apart from the parade of Interpol soundalikes are The Dead Flags, three Sligo transplants who tout such intriguing influences as Nick Cave, Eels and - in a diverting veer off the alt.pop road-map - Violent Femmes. This isn't just a case of talking a good game, either - having reformed 12 months ago after a brief hiatus, the Flags are currently at work on a debut album with no less a figure than local counter-culture godfather Karl Odlum (last seen strumming a guitar on Gemma Hayes' sweetly woozy Hollow of Morning LP). In tandem with their studio work they've also been assidiously courting a grass-roots following. Selected for last spring's 2FM 2MORO 2OUR, a jaunt around the country's entry level provincial venues, they follow in the steps of high achievers like Ham Sandwich and Concerto For Constantine. Such has been their progress, it's likely we'll hear a great deal more from these noirish hopefuls in the months ahead. Just one quibble: a name like The Dead Flags is more suggestive of a hardcore post-punk crew than a group of gloomy romantics. Fingers crossed this doesn't stifle their potential. Tonight's show marks the launch of debut single O My Love! O My God!!"
-Eamon de Paor - METRO (circ. 76,142) - 11/08/08

Just in time to reinforce the Blizzards' assault on miserable music comes The Dead Flags.

With a similar spritely disposition, the Dublin trio are releasing the energetic O My Love! O My God!! today.

Produced by Karl Odlum, the man behind albums by Ham Sandwich and The Aftermath, it's a whirlwind of frantic pop punk.

The group - Billy Fitzgerald, Kevin Lowery and Dave Power - will be a hit with those who like the zany pop of The Blizzards' Trouble or The Knack's My Sharona.

The harmonies and virulently catchy hook will see to that!

They're touring to support the release, so catch 'em if you can at Zavvi, Sligo at 5pm today, The Chasin' Bull, Bundoran, tonight, Tower Records, Dublin at 5pm on Monday or Whelan's, Dublin the same night.

- O My Love! O My God!! is out today"

Shilpa Ganatra - THE IRISH DAILY STAR (circ. 104,000) - 08/08/08

"With the impossibly upbeat, handclaps and harmonies opening and lines like "we were doing the no pants dance", The Dead Flags seem determined to have us grinning like village idiots. This track has pierced the Irish music charts and it's easy to see why. It's gleeful stuff, with zesty ditty 'O My Love! O My God!!' echoing the bubblegum punk-pop of Black Lips. B-side 'How Long' exhibits an entirely different facet of the Dublin-based band's character. The boisterous energy is replaced by sad-eyed earnestness. A sweet lament for the one that got away, the song hums with tender charm, the guitar ripe as a harvest of painful memories. Bruised, battered and quite beautiful." - AU Magazine (circ. 12000) - Sept 08

Hailing from Sligo but based in Dublin, this Karl Odlum-produced outfit suggest they're angling for the position of Ireland's answer to They Might Be Giants, with their frantic, ska-influenced rhythms and happy-go-lucky, boy-meets-girl storytelling. It may not be quite what the masses are clamouring for right now, but they do what they do incredibly well.

-Stephen Errity - HOT PRESS Magazine (circ. 20000) - 27/08/08

Unusual sound going on here, but satisfying it is indeed.

I love the bass line and the well timed drums.

It's almost a Klaxons sound, but done in a far more musical way. The vocal is utterly crazy, a la The Sparks or Talking Heads and is amazingly effective.

The Hammond keys work very well and it's great because they appear too rarely in songs these days. The track jinks about and then settles into a great, locomotive beat. And then jinks off again..!

And then it's back to the main theme of fast drums, eerie, menacing falsettos, competent bass and a generally superb track.

To a man, the job is done with consummate professionalism and so who can argue with that?

There's even a fuckin' croon in there, towards then end!

Mixing or production issues? Nah.

Reminds me of:
Madness, Talking Heads, The Sparks, The Pixies, The Monkees, Police, Klaxons, Beach Boys
Score:
9/10
In a sentence:
A truly fantastic tune, packed with energy and all round brilliance.
Atheist: M.
- Living Atheist (myspace.com/livingatheist)

THE DEAD FLAGS are currently recording with Karl Odlum. 'O My Love! O My God!!' is a Jam-style raucous rocker with a fine stadium chant chorus and terrific life-affirming vocals throughout, not to mention a great sense of fun and irreverence.

'I Can't Be Held Responsible' is driven by a stirring Hammond organ sound and effective stop-start arrangement and squeaky vocals. 'Here Be Love' is stunning and startling from soup to nuts.

The Dead Flags are not just good, they're irritatingly good. Your Daddies died in the punk wars for this.

-Jackie Hayden - HOT PRESS Magazine (circ. 20000) - 21/05/08

"The songs typify the magnificently mature sound of The Dead Flags. The musicianship of the members is topped by Fitzgerald’s incredible singing display, which, as anyone will testify is a classic rock-star voice.

The songs themselves are the equivalent of the darkest black comedy, retaining a sense of humour amid the despair of love lost, destroyed or unnoticed."

-Robert Cullen - The Weekender (circ. 8,316)