The Strypes 'Snapshot'

Enthusiastically cheered on by such musical luminaries as Elton John, Dave Grohl, Jeff Beck, Paul Weller and Jools Holland, The Strypes blazed into 2013 on the back of their aptly titled Young, Gifted & Blue EP (a short, sharp set of four vintage R‘n’B covers). They’ve since rocked the John Peel stage at Glastonbury, sound-tracked an advertisement for Harley Davidson, and are set to embark on a major European stadium tour supporting the Arctic Monkeys. Not bad going for four young guys from Cavan who are not even old enough to legally sink a beer.
So far, so impressive. But is it all hype or have The Strypes – Ross Farrelly (lead vocals/harmonica), Josh McClorey (guitar), Pete O’Hanlon (bass) and Evan Walsh (drums) – actually earned their, um, stripes? Well, let’s get this down for a start: they have an incredibly impressive grasp of how to make a stomping R’n’B noise.
Following in the time-honoured tradition of British blues groups such as the Stones, The Yardbirds and Dr. Feelgood, the band began by playing old Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter and Slim Harpo standards around the pubs, clubs and community halls of Ireland. These old school influences are writ large all over their debut long-player, Snapshot, but they have indisputably made them their own.
Recorded with veteran producer Chris Thomas in just 15 days, Snapshot includes a smattering of covers – including magnificent, blistering takes on Willie Dixon’s ‘You Can’t Judge A Book By Its Cover’ and Muddy Waters ‘Rollin’ And Tumblin’’ – but mostly comprises of their own original material. It’s a measure of just how completely the boys have mastered the genre that you’d be hard pressed to tell what’s what. Jaunty first cut, ‘Blue Collar Jane’, you probably already know, but tracks such as ‘What A Shame’, ‘She’s So Fine’, ‘Angel Eyes’ and ‘What The People Don’t See’ sound like they could just as easily have been written 60 years ago – and are delivered here with the powerful conviction of the truly converted.
They take – and play – their music seriously, but are obviously able to laugh at themselves, too. On ‘Hometown Girls’, Farrelly sings, “But can’t you give me a fix, so I’m craving confidence?/ Well, I reek of sweat and teenage innocence.”
Loud, exuberant, musically commanding and impressively tight, Snapshot captures a young, hugely talented and brilliantly focussed Irish band with an enormous amount of international potential. Bearing in mind that the Rolling Stones’ eponymous debut in 1964 featured far more R‘n’B covers than this, it’s going to be really interesting to see if The Strypes can emulate the latter’s level of success. Tomorrow the world...

Key Track: 'Hometown Girls'