THE PERFECT SKINS  

Hailing from a town called Portlaoise in the Midlands of Ireland, Perfect Skins came together in 1998 with a view to writing and recording albums together. After getting a set together the four-piece started gigging around the country. Their ability to turn their gigs into a party atmosphere quickly earned them a loyal fanbase which grew as they toured the country.

 In 2004 they released their debut self-produced and financed album 'Superhero' which received many fine reviews as did their live shows. The lead single from the album 'Come Together' reached no.26 in the Irish charts and received considerable Irish airplay. The band also made a number of appearances on national television. The album was voted 'Best Album' by new artist in the 'Irish Indie Out There Awards'.

 The band set about writing the follow up album in 2006. All gigs and public appearances were kept to a minimum for the last two years to allow them more time to fine tune their latest offering and it has paid off. The songs on the new album " A reconstructed view" are well crafted and given the optimal musical accompaniment.

 Lots of things have changed in the Perfect Skins camp since with new arrivals of the human kind competing for centre stage. It can’t be easy holding down day jobs to make ends meet and trying at the same time to create a seminal piece of work but the Skins are probably luckier than most having the luxury of their own recording studio.

 Talking to band member Dick Duff however one could detect an eagerness to get back to the live circuit and give these new songs the full live treatment as the Skins do best. And getting out there and playing live is the icing on the cake for the band. Although they may have many hours on their respective clocks having existed in many previous incarnations including the Mere Mortals and the Products there is still a youthful enthusiasm and indomitable spirit and eagerness to succeed.

 However success will be on their own terms as the Skins maintain control of their destiny handling all aspects of the business from recording to distribution. Their “can do” attitude means website design, myspace pages, band posters etc are tasks that they willingly take on board.

 One wonders what drives these four Skins then to continue in the music business but spend a little time in their company and you are struck by their sense of humour and self depreciation. Reports of their annual mystery tour confirms that a sense of fun comes high on their agenda.

 The title of the Skins new album is “A Reconstructed View. Twelve original songs penned by the band have made it on to the album. This new album sees the Skins explore new territory in terms of sound and lyrical content.

 There is an honesty and integrity to this offering that seeps into your being and grows in stature with repeated listens. It’s never easy to cultivate new ground and the Skins should be commended for sticking to the task. A quick look at the song titles gives you an indication of the topics being explored here and while serious issues of loneliness, homelessness and exploits of the mind are grappled with the upbeat nature of the music leaves you in a positive and uplifted mood.

 THE EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

1. What made you decide to form a band tell us a bit about your history to date ?

Perfect Skins came together in 1998. Brian had been living in Prague playing solo gigs around Germany and the Czech Republic. When he returned to Ireland, Ollie, Dick and Eamon were looking for a vocalist for their band 'The Mere Mortals'. After a couple of jamming sessions a chemistry between the 'four skins' was evident. Because the style and sound were very different to what Brian and The Mere Mortals had been doing, a new name was decided upon.

2. Who or what are your influences ?

There's a diverse range of musical influences in the band. From Joy Division, The Clash to Pink Floyd, Neil Young

The band have always kept an open musical mind. We always took the approach of not modeling our sound too much on specific artists. I think after playing together for 10 years you begin to form your own sound.

3. What modern artists do you like?

There's lots to choose from these days. Some great bands around at the minute. Interpol, Elbow,  The Kings of Leon, Mercury Rev are a few names that come to mind.

4. Where did the name come from  ?

From the Loyd Cole song Perfect Skin.

5. What inspires you to write your music/lyrics ?

Two writers in the band. Most of our songs come from real life issues. Sometimes they are personal, sometimes from an other persons viewpoint. I think the most important thing with lyrics is to keep them honest.  

6. Name your all time fave track by another band/artist ?

Way too many to single out one and they change from a day to day basis.

Some favourites are;

Brian:

Games Without Frontiers (Peter Gabriel), Paranoid Anderoid (Radiohead), Wish You Were Here(Pink Floyd), At the Edge (Stiff Little Fingers), Bank Robber(The Clash), Down in the Tube Station (The Jam)

Dick: Stagerlee (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds), Heaven Up Here (Echo & the Bunnymen)

7.  What sort of sound can we expect from your forthcoming album ?

Very Guitar based. Tight drum and bass lines. We also use samples/loops, pianos, analogue keyboards. Whatever the song calls for.  It's a nice big production.

8. What are your ambitions for your music. Where do you see yourself in 5 years ?

Our ambition always was to make albums and we're doing that. I feel privalaged that we have access to our own studio. This is our second album and it's a huge improvement production-wise over our first one. I can see that five years down the road we'll be making even better albums and hopefully we'll have more listeners wanting to hear what we have to offer.

9. How would you describe your music and what genre do you think it fits into ?

I suppose it fits into the indie genre. That term is very broad these days. So lets make up a new one. (Post rural indie). We could be the Godfathers....

10.  Where was your new material recorded and who was producing ?

All the material was recorded at Ollie's recording studio (guitar player) and produced by myself.

Because we were doing it in our spare time, the project did tend to drag out. The advantages were that we made an album on our terms and finished it the way wanted it.

11. What's the music scene like in Ireland at present ?

The music is very healthy in Ireland at the moment.

A lot of great singer/songwriter artists around. And a lot of great bands around such as Ham Sandwich, The Flaws, The Blizzards.

I think artist such as The Frames and Damien Rice have set the path for artists to consider releasing albums independently. Unfortunately the Irish national radio stations are not very supportive to Irish artists. You really have to get out and see live gigs to introduce yourself to new acts over here.

 12. Who are the members and what do they all do and play ?

Brian O'Mahoney (Vocals/Guitars)

Ollie Plunkett (Guitars)

Eamon Duff (Bass Guitar)

Dick Duff (Drums)

13. In the U.K music and food has combined with celebrity rock and pop stars now appearing and cooking on TV food shows.

Please can you give us your favourite recipe ?

Perfect Skin Stew

Serves:  4

Method:

Walk down to your local Tesco or Lidl

Purchase 1 onion, 1 carrot,  as much diced beef as you can afford, a bag of spuds, (otherwise known as potatoes), oxo and one can of guinness,

Cut up ingredients, throw into a slow cooker (available from Argos and other leading electrical stores)

Add some water, add can of guinness.

Make sure slow cooker is set to on and plugged in.

Leave to cook for majority of the day leaving you free to watch wonderful daytime television.