Rubyhorse

Rubyhorse at the Whitaker Center

by Lisa Hummel

They are Rubyhorse and they are slowly but surely taking the music world by storm. Friends since youth, the five members of the Irish import — singer Dave Farrell, keyboard player Owen Fegan, drummer Gordon Ashe, guitarist Joe Philpott, and bassist Decky Lucey — have been blessed with a fine dose of self-belief — and a heavy dose of musical talent to back it up.

The band left their home in Cork, Ireland for the United States some four years ago with the hopes of breaking into the industry. And they have never looked back. From their adopted hometown of Boston, Rubyhorse frontman Farrell says that while leaving the comforts of Ireland was difficult, it was a necessary means to an end for the group.

“Was it scary? Really, it was kind of like an adventure from the start. I think looking back on it now it was a crazy thing to do because we had no record deal, we had no money, we didn’t know anyone over here. And we were 22. But [life in the U.S.] has been amazing. We had released an independent album in Ireland and we had done as much as we thought we could do there — there’s not much of an infrastructure in the way of record companies — so we decided to pack our bags and come to the states and see how we survived over here. So the five of us and one crew member packed everything into six gear bags and jumped on a plane and came over and we haven’t looked back since.”

Indeed, the band does nothing but look ahead — and, if their past is any indication, the future seems very bright. In the four years the band has been stateside, they have been winners at the Boston Music Awards, the center of a highly-tauted record label bidding war, and just recently accomplished a feat never before done by an unsigned band, reaching number one on the MP3 charts with their current single, “PunchDrunk” from the independent release, How Far Have You Come? And, in “PunchDrunk” they have also achieved a milestone that no doubt has many a band drooling — that track features a guitar segment performed by George Harrison of The Beatles. “It’s amazing, it was just the biggest honor that any of us have gotten, really,” said Farrell of Harrison’s involvement. “To get a compliment or an endorsement from one of The Beatles is the ultimate, I would think, to any band … we were just blown away.”

More than just success, though, the past four years in the States have been a learning experience, teaching the members of Rubyhorse how to deal with fame — and how to deal with the ups and downs of the often unstable recording industry. While the band is currently undergoing the finalization of a deal with a major label, they are not naiive to the business side of things — they’ve been down that road before. Soon after Rubyhorse broke onto the Boston music scene, industry professionals were on their trail, wooing them with offers and deals. Eventually, the group signed with Interscope, recorded an album, and then promptly found themselves in the middle of a corporate merger. Unhappy, the band had the contract dissolved, never saw the release of their album, and was left to pick up the pieces, which was just as much of a blessing as it was a setback, said Farrell. “It was tough, but I think that the record that we’ve just recorded now [the aforementioned How Far Have You Come?] would not be the same record had we not gone through all that … It was a good thing that we had to get there and start over again from scratch.”

Which is precisely why the band is taking it one day at a time on this go-round, with Farrell quickly dismissing talk of being “Ireland’s next supergroup” and the like as little more than projected banter. “We don’t care too much about that,” he said. “We’ve always dreamed of being an international band, that’s why we kind of made the sacrifices to come to America and kind of cut ties with family and friends back there — because we’ve always had this self-belief. There’s no pressure that comes with that hype.”

“We’re very straight-up and very honest about what we do and I think people who have gotten to know the band can appreciate and respect that,” continued Farrell. “That’s more important to us than any kind of hype because hype comes very quickly as well as it goes very quickly, that’s probably the most valuable lesson that we’ve learned here. Because two years ago, after going through that whole bidding war and seeing how quickly you can be built up and then seeing the other side of it and how quickly people can forget about you and not take your calls.”

More than just a business commodity, however, Rubyhorse is in it for the long haul, choosing to worry less about corporate thinking and more about the music. “We’ve been doing this for nearly half of our lives now and we could never imagine doing anything else,” related Farrell. “We just love — I’m speaking for all of us when I say this — love to be just making music that we’re happy with and be on the road touring with people. I couldn’t imagine settling down now.”

“The most important thing for us is being out on the road and touring and having that live experience with the crowd,” said Farrell. “We view this record as being one hopefully in a whole catalogue of records.” In fact, the band has been gathering material for upcoming albums, but first, according to Farrell, they want to make sure that How Far Have We Come? reaches as many listeners as possible. And, to do so, the band is embarking on a tour of the country; they are stopping in Harrisburg at Whitaker Center, opening for the band Indigenous. “We want to get this record to as many people as we can in America,” he said. “We want to do this record justice so in order for that to happen we want to make sure that as many people in this country have the opportunity to hear it and make up their own minds.”

With a new contract on the horizon, a single featuring George Harrison, and a great belief in the fact that their talent will continue to open doors for them, there is no doubt that Rubyhorse will someday be a household name. But until then, Farrell and company are happy that they are able to play the music they love in the country they now call home. “From start to finish, the whole thing is just an experience. It’s reaching people, making a connection with people, that’s the magic of music and that’s why we’re all in this,” he said. “We’ve met such characters and seen such amazing things over the last four years, it’s been a hell of an education.”

Indigenous with special guest Rubyhorse will be at Whitaker Center’s Sunoco Performance Theater on February 21 at 7:30 p.m. For tickets and information, call THE BOX at 214-ARTS.