Around the turn of the dreaded New Millennium, angsty young Dublin trio JJ72 were being touted as where THE serious guitar rock was at. in Joy Division and Nick Drake-obsessed singer/ songwriter MARK GREANEY they had an angelic frontman with cherubic good looks and the voice of a fallen chorister, while bassist Hillary Woods provided the sex Goddess in waiting element and drummer Fergal Matthews drove them on from the rear. When their eponymous debut appeared, the press and - it seemed the public - were there for the taking.
But then, just as it looked like nothing could stop them, it all went scarily pear-shaped. Ambitious second album "I To Sky" struggled in a marketplace obsessed with The Strokes and White Stripes and a punishing tour schedule took its' toll. Around New Year 2003, Hillary Woods jumped ship and it all went ominously quiet.
Finally, over two long years later, signs of life are again apparent in the JJ72 camp, thanks to the release of - first - a download-only single "She's Gone" and now excellent comeback single proper "Coming Home". Hearteningly, it's arguably one of the band's very best songs to date as well.
Naturally, the silence and rumours got too much for W&H and we decided to call Mark Greaney himself to find out what really happened during JJ72'S time in the wilderness. Thankfully, we discover a truly likeable young shaver who is happy to be out of step with the current fads and knows damn well he's about to unleash the best music of his career.
Hiya Mark. The last time I saw you live was a loud and charged evening at Cork's Savoy Centre back in the mists of, ooh, Halloween 2002 on the "I To Sky" tour. Obviously there's been a lot of changes since then, but we need to start at the beginning again here. So tell me - without wanting to get involved in mudslinging - what really happened with Hillary?
"Yeah, God...this seems such a long time ago," sighs Mark.
"Well, that tour you saw us on went on seemingly for ever, though I think it was actually about 3 months in real terms. Everyone was tired when we came off of that and Hillary's heart just wasn't in it, not the way she was to begin with. After Christmas 2002, she'd just had enough basically. She honoured all our commitments and it was all very amicable. She wanted to leave, but didn't want to undermine the band either."
Mark still speaks warmly of Hillary, which make a refreshing change in such situations.
"Yeah, well we're still friends and we all still speak, which is brilliant," he says. "So there you go. There wasn't any big bust-up. Not very rock'n'roll I'm afraid (laughs)."
Makes a nice change, if you ask me. But let's get on with the present. You've get yet another young lady in the band with Sarah Fox on bass. Mark, are you a glutton for punishment? Surely it wasn't coincidental that you'e ended up with a second girl bassist?
"Yeah, it's ironic really," replies Mark, chuckling quietly.
"Myself and Fergal were adamant at the time that NO WAY would we have another girl in the band. I mean, however you slice it, the press will see it as one hot chick for another, right?"
We-ell...
"Yeah, right," Mark guffaws.
"Anyway, we rehearsed five separate guys after Hillary left and they were all lovely fellas, great to go for a drink with as well, but none of them worked with what we were doing. At that stage Ferg and I began to think, 'uh oh, I think we've possibly under-estimated the loss of Hillary.' We spent a while thinking "Oh shit", I'm quite open about that."
"Anyway, at that stage, fate intervened," he continues.
"We went to Whelan's (Dublin venue - ed) one night and Sarah was playing with another band. Ferg and I looked at each other...and poached her, basically (laughs)."
So how has Sarah's arrival altered the dynamic within the band these days?
"She's made quite a difference," says Mark.
"The first album was very much my baby completely, I even played a lot of the stuff on it myself. The second album was very much more the three of us as a band, but it was still very personal to me and it still felt like my band, but in a different way. This time round they're still my songs, but it feels like there's loads more being contributed from both Sarah and Ferg. Though I want to stress I don't mean that with any disrespect to Hillary. It's just different now, y'know."
More pressingly, in rock'n'roll's fickle terms, 2 - 3 years absence from the fray is often enough to sunder all but the hardest and most devoted of bands. Were you concerned that the public might have forgotten about you in the meantime?
"Well, I think we learned a lot from the first album in that respect," says Mark.
"We toured that for years and went to the USA for a protracted spell. Through the gap of us not being in England and Ireland, people began to notice we weren't around and we realised that early on it's dangerous to even be away for a year and come back stronger. I mean, "I To Sky" didn't do anything like as well as the first album and possibly that was a consequence. Sadly, whether you like it or not, people do judge you purely on units. But we didn't have much choice this time. If we were to come back with music that's viable we had to take this time out."
OK, well certainly the new single "Coming Home" is an instantly recognisable JJ72 anthem and I imagine it's already a live favourite. But, hell, Mark, there's some pretty intense lyrics in there, old son. I mean "I will murder men for you...I will dig a grave for you, make that a grave for two". I know we don't expect lightweight trivia from you, but this is heavy shit. Dare I ask was there specific inspiration behind the song?
"Oh yeah, there was and she was a bitch," he laughs uproariously.
" I mean, I suppose there is a sort of perverse misogyny in there, though that's not intentional. It's more...unconditional love and being desperate for someone to want you like them. Then, when it doesn't work out and you get let down, you think "Fuck her! I don't need her!" but of course you're kidding yourself. But it's about not getting back what you put in and what you expect, I suppose."
He pauses for a moment and concludes:
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"Odysseus came to mind at the time, though the reality's probably a skinny white boy from Dublin's north side (laughs)."
Who can he be referring to, readers? But let's delve a little deeper into this here new album while we're at it. I've only heard "She's Gone" and "Coming Home" to date, but are they indicative of the new material?
"Well, "Coming Home" I'm proud of and it's a good, warped pop song, though while I don't want to shoot down our own material, "She's Gone" was more a case of needing to throw something out for people waiting for something new from us. It's competent, but not a lot more in my mind. "Coming Home" I do like a lot and we've a new song that's gonna be as big as "Oxygen", it's called "Radio". Our new album was actually finished in April, but it got tangled up in the business end of things," he finishes sourly.
What, 'your album's been put back'...that kinda thing?
"Yeah," confirms Mark. "We've had problems with Sony/ BMG. The guy wo signed us in 1999 got fired from his job and as a result, our album got put back in the queue.
Regardless of your pedigree, such stories are commonplace these days. But let's try to avoid 'biz speak' and talk about more artistic concerns. What are the major themes behind the songs on the forthcoming album?
"Sorry," says Mark. "I get a bit uptight about this because the album's been sitting there smiling at us for several months and it inds me up sometimes. But there are several songs that really stand out for me. "Radio", I mentioned a little earlier and it's very JJ72, typically epic. "Take From Me" is very much a nod to Joy Division/ New Order, it's rooted in that kind of sound, and I can't deny those influences, those bands have been the biggest heroes to me. "Take From Me" actually reminds me a little of "Long Way South" from the first album actually. There are some weirder things on there too..."Nothing In This World", for one... but's it's quite poppy, too, that might surprise some people."
Yes indeed, not least because "I To Sky" was such an ambitious record, full of grandeur, which possibly put some people off with hindsight. For all that, I like it, but how do you feel about the album yourself now that the dust has settled? At the time, critics read a lot into the religious imagery involved and your Jesuit school upbringing. Is that something you've tried to leave behind with the new album?
"I dunno, not really, no, " Mark considers. " I mean, I don't feel it's something that needs putting to bed. For me, making a record and touring it is a way of putting an issue to bed in my head anyway. And I'm still really proud of "I To Sky". Yes, it was essentially about my upbringing and that formative time of my life and that's part of me. Even now, there are songs - like "Sinking" for example - that I still can hardly believe I wrote and I'm totally proud of them. It's true that I'm less intense now, though, and maybe more relaxed. I think that's coming out in the lyrics more now. I don't analyse every single thing so much."
Of course you've been out road-testing the new material a fair bit of late, not least with a stint opening for Garbage. Having been in a successful band for a number of years, how did you take to opening up for another band and how did their audience take to you?
"Well, it's important to shed egos where this is concerned," replies Mark, very reasonably.
"I mean, I'm under no illusions that some things have changed. I mean, when we toured "I To Sky" we sold out two consecutive nights at London's Kentish Town Forum, whereas this time we're playing to smaller venues and building it up again. I've actually no problem with it, we've done great supports before, things like U2 at Slane Castle. Actually, the thing I like about supports is that we can steal fans. Besides, this is the best JJ72 ever and live we're really cooking. With supports we can be crafty bastards and mould our set for specific occasions."
Sounds like you've got ye olde 'tricky third album comeback scenario' well sorted, Mark. But finally, let's consider the current landscape you're attempting to survive and thrive in. There's been a huge rise in quirky, post-punk influenced bands such as Maximo Park, The Futureheads and (stretching a point) Bloc Party of late. Do JJ72 feel like outsiders these days?
"Yeah, well we do feel like outsiders," says Mark, quite openly.
"But then, even when "I To Sky" was released we saw the landscape had changed considerably from the way it was in 2000. In 2002 it was all The Vines, The White Stripes and The Strokes and we were seen as an acquired taste even then. Besides, these things are very cyclical and people are always after a new high or whatever. I mean, I like a number of the new bands out there, but it's bands like Muse we tend to look to. They're epic as epic can be and they've achieved longevity on their own terms. That's what we're about."
"Besides," he finishes, "I certainly wouldn't want to stop now. It should be illegal the amount of fun we're having in the band these days."
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