Haven’t heard of modernlove.? Well, we sure have. They’re a four-piece band from a small town named Drogheda in Ireland, consisting of singer Barry Lally (vocals/guitar), Daniel Rooney (bass), Graham Fagen (guitar), and Cian McClusky (drums), and they’re all childhood friends. Their music is for fans of Pale Waves and Inhaler (another Irish quartet making headlines). Their sweet dance-pop melodies mixed with electronic and pop-rock influences create the best music. You can be sad, happy, dance, scream, or cry to any of their songs. There’s a range of songs for every emotion, but they still capture the ethereal dance-pop wave that has been flooding the alternative music scene.
‘Only Ever Only You’
‘Only Ever Only You’ reminds us of early All-American Rejects, with a heavy pop-punk introduction before melting into their signature melodic dance-pop chorus. The guitar riff is contagious, an earworm, as Lally’s vocals capture every little bit of your attention possible. The lyrics hit home, talking about a doomed relationship that cannot be saved, loving someone who may not love you in return, and feeling as if you’ve given everything and gotten nothing in return. Now, arguably, the best part of the song is towards the end when you get a half-time breakdown that you don’t quite expect based on their previous tracks like ‘Follow You’ and ‘Don’t Wanna’ off their second EP, Oh My Mind. It’s refreshing and exciting.
‘Take Me Far Away,’ ‘until my heart stops beating’
The last four-song releases from modernlove. have truly shown that they’re finding their own sound. We could hear the heavy The 1975 influence in their first EP, monochrome blue, released in 2021, but as they’ve made new music, their sound has developed to really be modernlove. They go through a number of genres: emo, pop-punk, pop-rock, dance, and pop… They don’t stick to one genre, which is becoming a common characteristic in successful modern bands. ‘Take Me Far Away’ is an incredible ballad that we’ve definitely sung along to a little too passionately. The early pop-punk/pop-rock influence of the band is most prevalent in this song, as if they’re almost announcing that they’re taking more genres and melding them together. The feeling of sadness, of being emo, in ‘Take Me Far Away’ makes it one of our faves. ‘until my heart stops beating’ is moody, upbeat, dance-pop, and ethereal, but dark at the same time. It’s a lower tone for the band, showing more range. The bass pumps throughout the song and Lally’s low vocals are almost hypnotic.
modernlove. has been ‘Only Ever Only You’ for us at The Honey Pop for a while. They’re an act to watch, and they are progressing fast. Have another modernlove. song that made you fall in love with them? Tweet us at @thehoneypop and let us know!
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