I caught up with new Irish band N.O.A.H. to talk about their debut single ‘Shine’, their step away from their previous band Electric Shore and the exciting new songs the band have yet to release.
N.O.A.H is comprised of three lifelong friends, Ryan Hill: Lead Vocalists and Guitarist, Adam Rooney: Bass Guitarist and Ronan Hynes Drummer.The band was formed in January 2020, after they decided to reform their previous musical endeavour, Electric Shore.
Ronan : “ We were doing okay with Electric Shore, as far as how we started and, you know, there was only so many years we could keep on doing the same thing over and over again, and get the same results. Then we came across our manager, who took us on as a new project. We decided what better way to start, then to start, completely fresh again with a brand new idea and leave Electric Shore, where it is. So, it was basically just something new and it worked out best for the three of us anyway because it gave new life into the music that we were doing. So, yeah, it was literally a case that we just decided, new name, new music and see where it takes us.”
“In regards to Electric Shore we were trying to push for that cinematic sound and stuff like that, but as we developed and worked with more synthy stuff, that really helped us along the way. We have our grips now as far as musicianship, you know. We have improved as well on the actual instruments. We have improved on our songwriting as well, I think that really helps. Electric Shore was pushing to go for that but now I think N.O.A.H has nailed that.. on the head “
The band got their name N.O.A.H. from the biblical story of ‘Noah and the Ark’, its not exactly a religious reference but an expression for new beginnings
Adam : “I don’t think we’re religious in the slightest. It was more related to the idea of starting again. Sort of taking stock of what we’ve done and it just felt right and was nice and short. It summarized what we wanted to do.”
Ronan : “I suppose, when you put it in imagery, Electric Shore was the flood and we wanted to get away from it and start again. So, I suppose that ties in as well.”
N.O.A.H have released their new single ‘Shine’. It’s a powerful adrenaline-inducing number which races with an urgency reminiscent of The Killers with blistering guitars, driving bass and punchy drums. The band recorded the track during lockdown.
Adam : “ We wrote the song in probably about February or March, which is like the first few weeks in lockdown and as we were saying, we developed new ways of writing so, as the nature of lockdown was, we weren’t together in the same rooms, we weren’t writing the way we would have. So, a lot of it was sending stuff back and forwards and then from there we recorded it in July and, yeah, that was that. “
Ronan : “I found that when it came down to the lyric writing as well I think for all of us it was so strange because you’re obviously, in lockdown, all on your own, but then, it’s mad, even through our rough demos they illustrate the idea of freedom and stuff like that and coming away from the isolation side of things. So it had a big impact on the actual lyric writing as well you know.”
I wondered with the new style and name did the band approach their songwriting and composition process differently
Ronan: “It generally depends on the song really. There’s some songs where the music is formed well beforehand, and then there’s others where we sit down and try to work out a melody or one of us comes up with a melody to use and we take it from there.“
Adam: “ Yeah the way we write music is generally sporadic and we don’t like to put too much pressure on it so whatever happens happens, just once a good song is produced in the end ”
The band have all been to college and studied music which has helped them with the theory side of the music industry however they don’t consider it essential for an artist to do.
Ryan “ Well for myself I went to BIMM. It’s hard to tell, they do a lot of stuff. I think to be honest, and this is me speaking from my own point of view. I do think that we probably learned more from the three of us working together then, like I said, I’ve probably learned in college. But I suppose when it comes to the performance side of things, playing live and stuff, it did give you that extra confidence from studying in college and doing performance and the overall being comfortable with your instruments and stuff like that. I just think I’d probably learn more being with the two lads, you know, “
Ronan : “ Yeah I don’t think anyone can teach you how to be creative, or they can’t teach you how to be friends in a band or anything like that. So that’s self taught, and as Ryan said to implementing certain techniques, or theoretical things can help “
I wondered what the band have in store for us as they unleash their new tunes into the world
Adam ; “ They’re all a little bit different, different sounds and that. That was the beauty about lockdown as well, it was a case that you wouldn’t get a song like ‘Shine’ if we weren’t separated but it just allowed us to experiment a lot more with different ways of doing stuff and helped us adapt basically to a pretty awkward situation. But yeah, every song we make is always trying to push ourselves a bit further in our own sounds. So, hopefully, anything that we release in the future will show that, you know, you might get a more rocky guitar vibe off some songs, a more dancey vibe off others and then atmospheric and cinematic with others. We do try hard to not pigeon hole ourselves into one specific genre or sound. “
Ronan : “Yeah, we’re planning on doing freshers weeks throughout the rest of 2020 so it’s more of an online stream, just to help the student bodies within each university around the country and engage with the students and it’d be a good way to, I suppose, create an audience because we are a brand new band so we’re still trying to push our name out there, so right now that’s it and then for the new year, it’s very hard to say. We’ve been in contact with multiple bookers in different venues and we’ve had gigs that were planned and unfortunately were not able to go ahead. It’s just the nature of the lockdown itself. But all we can do now is look a month to two months ahead, and plan for what we can and try not to get too lost in next year because it’s all up in the air.”
Ryan : “ We have an official video, being setup at the moment so it all depends on how far the actual song goes on its own, and then we’ll decide which way, we’re going to work the video or what day to release the videos as well “
‘Shine’ is an ambitious new single boasting arena sized choruses, dynamic energy and a tight blistering wall of sound. N.O.A.H have created a powerful sound brimming with energy which showcases their deft musicianship and musical growth. I’m looking forward to future releases, if ‘Shine’ is anything to go by, then we are all in for a treat. Talking to the guys it is easy to see how much passion they have for their craft. They are ones to keep an eye on for sure.
Stream ‘Shine’ below
Author : Danu
