"Kilkenny's a small medieval town with a population of ten to fifteen thousand, but it's weird - it's grown up on a steady diet of noisy guitar bands. There are a lot of people here big into the Dischord label. Kilkenny has kind of a hardcore music scene." - Cormac Battle
Two different towns. One's for the tourists.
The other's for the powerful, menacing, headstrong, music of KERBDOG, a quartet that draws upon a variety of influences - from metal to punk to pop and more - to produce its own brand of propulsive sonics.
"This town is pretty heavily influenced by underground music," explains Cormac Battle, the group's 21-year-old frontman. "For instance, our bass player's favorite band these days is Sebadoh (the Amherst, Mass. - based subterranean trio)."
This burly quartet's choice in cover material, exhibited by its two UK only singles, is distinctly influenced by mid 80's American independent rock, as KERBDOG's recorded Husker Du's "New Day Rising", Big Black's "Kerosene", and a track by Pailhead, the collaborative meeting of Fugazi's Ian MacKaye and Ministry's Al Jourgenson. (True to national roots, KERBDOG has also recorded a ripping version of Stiff Little Fingers' snarling punk anthem, "Suspect Device".)
Combining this healthy appreciation of post-punk ancestry with its own ebullient and menacing force, KERBDOG's self titled debut is a confidently powerful effort. From the roiling rhythms of "End of Green" to the metallic surging of "Dead Anyway" to the sensual guitar riffing of "Clock", KERBDOG is relentlessly assertive.
KERBDOG's members all grew up as mates in Kilkenny, although the band formed at college in Dublin. College didn't work out for Battle, who failed his first year. "Two of us were doing a business/marketing kind of thing," he scoffs, "which is all a lot of bullshit in the end, so we were delighted to able to get out of it."
After nearly two years of refining material ("As bands do, we had to write our crap songs," Battle confesses, "then get rid of them.") KERBDOG's late 1992 demo won them a contract from Phonogram Records.
Recently named Top 5 Best New Band in both Kerrang's and Raw's Reader Polls, KERBDOG has already proven its live show on tours with metal driven The Almighty and Countrymen Therapy?. Battle comments, "We seem to do pretty well in the indie/alternative camp and the metal camp as well. It's pretty handy that way." Raw readers agreed, voting KERBDOG one of 1993's Top 10 live acts.
The group, all BMX bicycle enthusiasts who borrowed their name from a Southern California BMX club (The Curb Dogs) made one more nod Stateside - for producer Jack Endino. Seattle's most known sonic architect (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney), Endino precisely captured KERBDOG's turbulent missives without any ego at all. "We thought he might have an ego after all the bands he's worked with," Battle says, "but he was just as into the recording as we were. He was so easy to work with."
Americans, meet your kindred souls. KERBDOG has landed.....
One of Ireland's most delightful towns, Kilkenny is packed with history, and its medieval heritage is particularly well preserved. The beautiful countryside around Kilkenny makes it an excellent touring base. -- Fodor's Exploring Ireland
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