Derry - Donegal band Tomcat talk music, politics and first single success

They recently released their first single on Spotify, titled ‘It’s Not Always Gonna Be Like This’, hitting 4000 listens, with a live performance at Bennigan’s bar to propel it even further.

The group is composed of Niamh O’Raw and Emer McLaughlin from Donegal, and Jason Feenan and Liam Bradley from Derry.

The Journal sat down to chat with ‘TOMCAT’ to get an insight into who they are.

If you never heard of TOMCAT before they describe themselves as: “Gothic indie pop on the rocks. Most of all we want to put on a fun show, and a safe space for everyone. We would like each show to reach that sweet spot between joy and escapism and reflecting real life, music is a wonderful way to do that.”

With their single launch at Bennigan’s they had this to say: “We had a blast. We had support from the incredible ‘Tessio’ and ‘Pilosa’. It was a really proud night for us as a band getting to celebrate our debut single, the crowd were beautiful, and we had a Canadian tuxedo dress code which was mega.”

Talking about nerves before going onstage TOMCAT said: “The two minutes before going on stage is normally when it hits, but as soon as we’re plugged in and making noise it’s usually all good, nerves can be a good tailwind!”

A band releasing their first song can be an exciting time, and TOMCAT talked us through how it came together: “Our first single ‘It’s Not Always Gonna Be Like This’ came out December of last year, we recorded it with Matthew Crossan in Derry and had the track mixed by Liam Craig. It came together over a series of voice notes in 2022, when we were all emerging from the pandemic, and life was starting to take its old shape again, but simultaneously nothing was the same. It’s a bit of a love letter to that time, it’s about growing up I suppose.

“It felt like a really organic recording experience, we took our time and tried to preserve a vulnerability in the final track, which I think we achieved.”

4000 listens is impressive for a band’s first single. TOMCAT had this to say on it’s success: “Yes! We are delighted. As an independent band it’s been amazing to watch the streams grow, and even better to see the song resonate with our audience. It means the world to us and we’re so grateful to everyone who has streamed, shared, or saved the song.”

Blending music tastes is what makes each band unique. On their musical influences, Emer said: “I think we all have some shared favourites (Hole, No Doubt, Le Tigre) but we also all bring different influences in terms of taste. Niamh is a huge pop/indie rock fan, Emer is an avant pop/new wave fan, Liam has a shoe gaze soft spot and Jason is an extremely mixed bag!

“I think it’s exciting when we come together with our different influences because it helps us to compliment each others writing styles, for example I may come with a melody and Niamh adds a riff that I never would have thought of, or vice versa with a bass line. It keeps things interesting to have so many different ideas and influences."

TOMCAT intend on playing at Gigs for Palestine, a fundraiser gig, alongside a list of other Derry and North bands. They have also played at Femme Sesh. “We were fortunate to be involved with some incredible lineups over the last year, but nights like Femme Sesh and Gig For Gaza have been some of our personal highlights for sure. The ticket sales went directly to feeding and providing medical care to the people of Palestine. We want to do as much as we can to support the Palestinian cause.”

As newcomers on the Derry and North music scene TOMCAT said: “We love the music scene here, it’s very inclusive and there is so much talent. We’re constantly inspired by our peers (artists such as Tramp, Roe, Reevah, Stout Talk) who are killing it. I think it’s an incredibly exciting time to be a musician in this part of the world. There’s a lot to say and it takes a village but our experience has been overwhelmingly positive thus far.”

Keeping on politics it often finds its way into all parts of ourselves, so is TOMCAT a political band? “It’s a strange kind of ‘label’ to be placed under because we just write our songs and they happen to touch upon political subjects like the housing crisis or women’s rights, but we’re only writing from our personal experience about the realities of being who we are and where we’re from. Life is always political and music is always going to reflect that,” they said.

Coming up with a band name is something everyone has done, this is how TOMCAT got theirs: "It actually came from one of (Emer’s) earliest memories of a tom cat who came into the garden of her childhood home and began to attack her own pets. It’s a kind of visceral memory that has always stuck with her and we felt that it suited the punk aspect of our music.”

So looking into the future this is what we can expect from TOMCAT: “Going forward, world domination!

“For now though we will be releasing our second single very soon, and will follow up with our debut EP at the end of the summer. We look forward to festival season, many more gigs and hopefully an Irish tour before the end of the year,” said TOMCAT.

You can catch TOMCAT live at the Gigs for Palestine event at The Elk Complex in Antrim, or listen to their single on Spotify and find their social media here.