“I never set out to make an ‘80s album,” insists Neosupervital, aka BellX1 drummer Tim O’Donovan. “It’s the decade I grew up in so to me, the way it sounds is the most normal thing in the world. All those sounds are completely natural to me, just like guitar, bass and drums might be to someone else. The first record I ever bought was Jean Michel Jarre’s Greatest Hits when I was seven, so obviously something about synthesisers crept out and said hello to me.”
Say hello the synths certainly did, and more than 20 years later, they haven’t waved goodbye. Neosupervital sounds to this listener almost like an homage to that decade, such is its love of the keyboard and drum machine, allied to tongue-in-cheek social commentary.
“I think The Kinks are the masters of those wry social suburban inanities,” he opines, “but it was Ben Folds who did it for me, with the album Whatever And Ever Amen. It was so groovy, funky and harmony-laden, yet the lyrics were hilarious and made complete sense. That opened my eyes. Before that, lyrics for me were an afterthought: you could be reading the phone book as long as the beat and the melody were good.”
He’s certainly managed to capture a great deal of humour in his songs, from the elitist snobbery of ‘Jazz Fascist’ to the bored rebellion of ‘Alternative Day’, while his almost legendary live shows can turn into an all-inclusive laugh-a-thon.
“Some people don’t know how to take the humour thing,” Tim grins. “I’d never want to be a stand-up comedian but I really enjoy having a bit of a laugh. Sometimes your sense of humour doesn’t click with people, be it on stage or in a pub, but when it does, it creates a lovely atmosphere. But I wouldn’t do the humour if I didn’t think I had the songs to back it up. I’m a fan of the three-and-a-half minute pop song and I think if people can sing along with the chorus, you’re half-way there.”
The aforementioned ‘Jazz Fascist’ is a prime example.
“You tend to condense a few people you’ve met into one song,” he explains. “It’s like drama – life without the boring bits. But I’ve met so many people who’ve come up to me saying they know that guy: I think everyone knows a person like that who dismisses everything they don’t like as rubbish.”
Over the last year, Neosupervital has grown from a solo act into a full band, which adds immeasurably to the live show, where sharp suits, shades and funky dancing are very much the order of the day, and not just for the band.
“We now have full three-part harmonies, keyboards and bass,” Tim enthuses. “When people see one guy on stage, they immediately think ‘novelty’ but hopefully when they see a band, recreating the music with more depth, they will take it for what it is.”
There’s certainly something special about Neosupervital’s gigs, which often end up with a good proportion of the audience joining the band on stage for a full-on dance-off. This inclusiveness is hugely important to Tim.
“Most audiences want to be invited into your world and have some fun with you for that half hour or 50 minutes: they don’t want to be impartial spectators. They want to be involved. When you can leap into the crowd or have the audience coming up on stage, it just becomes a big party.”
That big party is taking to the road later in the year, with a five-date tour of Germany in November, followed by a tour with The Human League in December, taking Neosupervital to the UK, Ireland, Belgium and Holland, following a successful support slot in Vicar St. earlier this year. They won’t, however, be opening for Phil Oakley & Co. in London, as Tim will be occupying the BellX1 drum-stool that night in The Point. It’s going to be a busy end to what has been a great year.
“We fly back from Amsterdam on Christmas Eve,” he says, obviously relishing the prospect. “Hopefully, with big hangovers.”