Irish indie-rock quintet Friendmaker presents vibrant sophomore single 'Weird'. Watch the art-inspired video

"Holds great promise... catchy and colorful, yet comfortably on the reflective end of the spectrum, their personalities percolating through this stunning creation" ~ The Record Stache

"Clever blend of pop smarts and folk authenticity, the balance between the gentle hook and subtle harmony" ~ Big Takeover Magazine

"Alt folk sound with a rock edge to its energy and enterprise, a presence and prowess... a rousing and impacting encounter" ~ Ringmaster Review

"Cinematic catharsis that glides on the waves of neo-folk and ebbs and flows towards the shores of orchestral pop... whilst peering on the horizon of baroque rock" ~ The Manc Review

Irish indie alt-rock band Friendmaker presents ‘Weird’, the second single from their forthcoming debut album. Musically, this deliberately repetitive ear worm subtly changes on each refrain, reflecting the abstractions of dreamlike repetition. With audio samples of Swiss psychoanalyst Carl Jung’s dream theory bookending the piece, this is three minutes of rhythmic indie rock with hooky melodies and pounding choruses.

This release also includes a previously unreleased B-side called ‘Leaky Mick and Vinny P the Talker’. On both tracks, Marron’s endearing storytelling approach and insightful lyrics blend with a rich soundtrack of carefully crafted folk-tinged indie rock.

A five-piece fronted by singer, songwriter and producer David Marron (Sanzkrit, Somefinn), Friendmaker hails from Carrickmacross (County Monaghan). Marron (vocals and guitar) is joined by Maolíosa McMahon (vocals and keys), Paul Finn (guitar and vocals), Paul Markey (bass) and Fintan Marron (drums).

Last month, the band released their debut single 'You, Me and Everything Else', an endearing and reflective folk song that wilfully loses itself to a darker undertow - the pause before a new chapter and love beyond the initial spark and the early excitement. The new release sees the band up the energy with their indie rock influences on show.

Speaking on the new release ‘Weird’, songwriter David Marron says, "Lyrically, the song searches for meaning in a recurring dream, examining the semi-consciousness experienced between waking and sleeping, specifically the changeover between abstraction and lucidity and asks why the events of a dream often stay with us beyond slumber, dictating our conscious mood as if rooted in reality? Do we pay enough attention to the foreshadowing presented in our recurring dreams? And can we afford to ignore a subconscious that consistently throws up a repeated story line?"

The accompanying video takes its cues from the artwork of the De Stijl movement. Like the works of Mondrian and Van Doesburg, the video attempts to distill its subject matter to the very simplest form. The minimalistic primary colours of DeStijl are gone. Refined further to a monochromatic palette that basks in its own absurdity. A fragmented surrealism unfolds to the song’s rhythmic patterns attempting to smother the viewer in what could and should be a straight forward performance video. A suffocating truncation of half shots and obscured movements creates any perceptual discomfort.

Marron, who also created this video, notes, "I wanted the viewer to feel uneasy, almost frustrated by not seeing the whole picture. As close as I could get to creating that confused dreamlike experience.”

After Marron's previous band Sanzkrit ground to a halt, Marron found himself trying to fill a void by playing guitar in a few bands DJing, doing graphic design for bands and running an Arts Festival. Even though he was keeping busy in creative fields, he felt he was still ignoring a big and important part of himself. He notes, "Music was solely personal therapy for dealing with difficulty. It wasn’t something I really felt like sharing at that time.”

On April 21st, ‘Weird’ will be released via the band's own imprint House of Strange Vinyl and will be available everywhere digitally, including Bandcamp, where 'You, Me & Everything Else' can also be found.

CREDITS
Written by David Marron
David Marron - vocals, guitar
Maolíosa McMahon - vocals, keyboards
Paul Finn - guitar, vocals
Paul Markey - bass
Fintan Marron - drums
Recorded and produced by David Marron at Samhlaíocht Studio, Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan.
Additional recording, production and mixing by Darren Clarke
Mastering by Peter Montgomery
Video & Artwork by David Marron


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Ireland's Friendmaker presents uplifting debut single 'You, Me and Everything Else'

"A band that holds great promise, we hope that will folks will look back on this single a decade from now, marking Friendmaker's big splash onto the music scene. It's catchy and colorful, yet comfortably on the reflective end of the spectrum, their personalities percolating through this stunning creation" ~ The Record Stache

From the Irish borderlands emerges Friendmaker, a five-piece indie alt-folk pop-rock band, fronted by singer, songwriter and producer David Marron (Sanzkrit, Somefinn). Their debut single 'You, Me and Everything Else' will be released on March 3. This endearing and infectious indie-folk offering is accompanied by a stark meaningful video with cinematography by Darren Finn and Fiona Marron and choreography by Orla Sheridan and Paige Cunningham.

‘You, Me & Everything Else’ is a reflective folk meandering that wilfully loses itself to a darker undertow. It is a moment in thought. The pause before a new chapter. A love song about the other love, the one they don’t write about. A love beyond the initial spark and the early excitement. A love that requires you to reveal more of yourself than just the curated ideal. A love that invites you to learn more of self and asks you to lay bare your innermost truths. Will they still like the real you? Will you?

Hailing from Carrickmacross in Monaghan County, near the border with Northern Ireland, Marron (vocals and guitar) is joined by Maolíosa McMahon (vocals and keys), Paul Finn (guitar and vocals), Paul Markey (bass) and Fintan Marron(drums). Friendmaker combines Marron’s endearing storytelling approach and insightful lyrics with a rich soundtrack of carefully crafted folk-tinged indie rock.

"We like creating songs where every note and every lyric is carefully considered, but we also like embracing the accidental stuff. We like to make songs that have a familiar warmth before bringing the listener with us to darker places. Then we use melody and humour to keep the listener there forever! Ha! but yeah we’re just a rock band making the kind of music we would want to listen to. We live for those floaty moments when a song begins to magic into life," says David Marron.

After Marron's previous band Sanzkrit ground to a halt, Marron found himself trying to fill a void by playing guitar in a few bandss DJing, doing graphic design for bands and running an Arts Festival. Even though he was keeping busy in creative fields, he felt he was still ignoring a big and important part of himself. He notes, "Music was solely personal therapy for dealing with difficulty. It wasn’t something I really felt like sharing at that time.”

For David and Friendmaker, it would take a global pandemic and an unsold car to get back on track, diving deeper into music with the isolation of the lockdowns spurring him to be more social in his creativity. But he was also faced with a fateful choice: "In early 2020, I had saved a few quid to upgrade my car. If lockdown hadn’t happened, I definitely would’ve changed my car and I don’t think any of this new material would exist. Thankfully the money I had saved for a car was instead invested in proper recording equipment and so, over six months, I built a studio and began writing and recording. New ideas flowed seamlessly. The new environment was inspiring and the songs kept coming. I was writing the best music I had ever written and you’ll be glad to know my car is still hanging on too, but just.”

On the video, Marron notes, "I used the lyrical themes as a jumping-off point for a tangential narrative. We’re introduced to a confused character, confronted by two temptress figures inspired by the Selkies & Sirens of Celtic Folklore. In this context, they represent opposing poles of thought, the left brain, the right brain, certainty and doubt, the proverbial two paths. Our character is drawn to sea as his mind dances in thought between harmony and chaos. He seeks control of the inner turmoil and through that journey realises as he nears his point of breaking that it is the very obsession of control that errs his equilibrium and that it is in the actual relinquishment of authority that he finds an inner peace….. for now anyway. At the end we leave our protagonist where we first met him. He knows similar difficulties may lie ahead but experience will leave him better prepared for battle.”

On March 3rd, ‘You, Me & Everything Else’ will be released via the band's own imprint House of Strange Vinyl and will be available everywhere digitally, including Bandcamp.

CREDITS
Written by David Marron
David Marron - vocals, guitar
Maolíosa McMahon - vocals, keyboards
Paul Finn - guitar, vocals
Paul Markey - bass
Fintan Marron - drums
Recorded and produced by David Marron at Samhlaíocht Studio, Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan.
Additional recording, production and mixing by Darren Clarke
Mastering by Peter Montgomery
Artwork design by David Marron, Photography by Fintan Marron
Video written, directed & edited By David Marron
Cameras, cinematography & additional direction By Darren Finn & Fiona Marron
Choreography by Orla Sheridan & Paige Cunningham

Keep up with Friendmaker
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