Wexford Indie folk act The Ocelots have released their new single, Australia, with their second album, Everything, When Said Slowly, to follow on 7 February. We asked them the BIG questions . . .
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The Ocelots are twin brothers Ashley and Brandon Watson from Wexford, now residing in Leipzig, Germany. After releasing their first EP, Till We Get There, they spent the following years backpacking which became extensive touring, playing shows and festivals around Europe and Australia.
Their debut album, Started to Wonder, was released In March 2020 and in November 2023, after a successful Kickstarter campaign, The Ocelots returned to Ireland to record Everything, When Said Slowly.
Speaking about Australia, which touches on themes of migration, they say, "We tried to capture that feeling of leaving and dealing with the self-adjustment involved.
"A certain apathy you grow to those you love around you when you know all you want to do is move. In our pursuit of writing something honest and cathartic, we created something many people can relate to."
NEXT MONTH
— Whelan's (@whelanslive) January 14, 2025
Folk rock duo, @theocelotsmusic, will headline Whelan's, Dublin, on Friday, 14th February 2025, in celebration of their upcoming new album "Everything, When Said Slowly"https://t.co/BQipvKayeY@singularartists
Recorded at Orphan Recording Studios in their hometown Wexford, the duo's new album explores themes of" Irish migration, the perception of time, love, and the simple joys of cycling".
"The title Everything, When Said Slowly is a response from an old Irish man’s perspective on people leaving our hometown of Wexford over the years past," the brothers say.
"He said it was a very long time since they left, but not much time if you said it fast. I found it wonderful and profound, but also deeply moving and fitting for the album’s sentiment.
"How time flies or drags depending on what you’re experiencing, especially when it’s time in a place you said goodbye to."
To celebrate the launch of the album, The Ocelots will perform live shows across Ireland, The UK, and Germany.
See them at: The Jeremy Hynes Room - Wexford Opera House, 7 February. The Seantí - Waterford, 8 February. The Black Gate - Galway, 12 February. The Commercial - Limerick, 13 February. Whelan’s - Dublin, 14 February. The Duncairn - Belfast, 15 February. Sandinos – Derry, 16 February, 16 February. Music in the Park - Kenmare, 20 February. Coughlan’s - Cork 21 February. Levis’s bar - Ballydehob, 22 February. Prim’s Bookshop – Kinsale, 23 February.
Tell us three things about yourself . . .
Brandon: I have never been on a horse. I once walked off stage mid-Blackbird at a Beatles tribute night because I was so nervous playing the guitar. One time at a show in regional Italy in 2018 I performed as our own support act with my shirt on backwards playing 25 minutes of Radiohead covers
How would you describe your music?
Ashley: Our music is essentially pop music but shaded with the palette of alternative folk rock.
Who are your musical inspirations?
Brandon: Sigur Rós, Midlake, and Twain.
What was the first gig you ever went to?
Ashley: Theresa and the Stars in Freddies Pub, Screen, Wexford.
What was the first record you ever bought?
Brandon: It was either Busted’s debut, Brian MacFadden’s single release of Real to Me or Now That's What I Call Music! 61.
What’s your favourite song right now?
Ashley: 1959 by Hamilton Leithauser.
Favourite lyric of all time?
Brandon: "She lifted up her wings, I guess that this must be the place" - Talking Heads with the best title drop that gives me goosebumps immediately.
If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Ashley: State of the Art - Pilot Whale. It seemed to capture me at a perfect time in my teenage years and its perfectly melancholic and full of heart.
Where can people find your music/more information?
Brandon: Our music can be mostly found online searching The Ocelots into any streaming platform, or you can purchase our music on Bandcamp. More information can be found on our website theocelots.com including tour dates of where we play around in Ireland.
Alan Corr
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