Republic of Loose were an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band from

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. Formed in 2001, the band formerly consisted of lead vocalist

Mick Pyro Michael Tierney, better known as Mick Pyro, is an Irish musician. He is best known as the frontman of the Dublin funk rock band Republic of Loose. He has also participated in other independent work with fellow Irish and international musicians a ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

ist and vocalist Benjamin Loose,

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

Deco, guitarists and vocalists Dave Pyro and Brez and

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

and

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

Coz Noelen. With a self-described musical style of "the stuff your dad likes", the band signed to

Big Cat Records Big Cat Records is a British independent record label. It launched around 1990 and originally specialized in industrial and noise-rock releases. Big Cat operated a US office in New York City for a few years. Integrated with V2 Records in 1996, ...

in 2003, recording their debut album ''

This is the Tomb of the Juice This may refer to: * ''This'', the singular proximal demonstrative pronoun Places * This, or ''Thinis'', an ancient city in Upper Egypt * This, Ardennes, a commune in France People with the surname * Hervé This, French culinary chemist Arts, ...

'' which was released in 2004. They were named "Hope for 2004" at the 2004 Meteor Awards. In 2005, the singles "Comeback Girl" and "You Know It" received significant airplay on Irish radio. Republic of Loose's second album ''

Aaagh! ''Aaagh!'' is the second album by the Irish funk-rock band Republic of Loose. It was released on 7 April 2006. At a cost of €70,000 to make, it was their most expensive album to date. ''Sunday Tribune'' journalist Una Mullally called it "one ...

'', released in April 2006, reached number two in the

Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA). The charts were previously compiled on behalf of IRMA by Chart-Track, and have been compiled by the ...

, achieving platinum sales and a

Choice Music Prize The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to the best album from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish pa ...

nomination in the process. It spawned several more successful singles, including "Break" which achieved notoriety in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

where a radio station banned it following complaints regarding its allegedly explicit lyrics. '' Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil'', Republic of Loose's third album, was released in 2008. That album produced their highest chart performer to date, "

The Steady Song "The Steady Song" is a 2008 single by the Irish musical ensemble Republic of Loose featuring Isabel Reyes-Feeney. It features on the album '' Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil''. When released as a single on 20 June. it spent a total of ...

", which peaked at number twelve and stayed in the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

for thirteen weeks. ''

Bounce at the Devil ''Bounce at the Devil (or volume 5 Johnny Defeats Satan)'' is the fourth studio album by Dublin band Republic of Loose. It was released on October 8, 2010, on Fish don't fear nets records. It was recorded at Wrightway Studios in Baltimore, Maryl ...

'', the band's fourth album, was released in 2010. Having earned the admiration of several musicians, including members of

Snow Patrol Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish–Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in 1994 in Dundee, Scotland. They consist of Gary Lightbody (vocals, guitar), Nathan Connolly (guitar, backing vocals), Paul Wilson (musician), Paul Wilson (bass guitar, ...

and U2, as well as

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor on 8 December 1966; ) is an Irish singer-songwriter. Her debut album, ''The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and charted internationally. Her second album, ''I Do Not Want What ...

—with whom they recorded, released and performed a duet at the

2008 Meteor Awards The 2008 Meteor Music Awards ceremony was held in the RDS, Dublin, on Friday, 15 February 2008. Nineteen awards were presented. It was the eighth edition of the Republic of Ireland's national music awards. The event was later broadcast on RTÉ Tw ...

—the band have had their music played on radio stations in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' placed them at number thirty-seven in a list of "The 50 Best Irish Acts Right Now" published in April 2009, referring to them as "one of Ireland's most original bands" led by "the gruff singer with the extraordinary soul voice ..simultaneously channelling the spirits of

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

and

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

in one fell swoop." Aside from U2 and

Bell X1 The Bell X-1 (Bell Model 44) is a rocket engine–powered aircraft, designated originally as the XS-1, and was a joint National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics–U.S. Army Air Forces–U.S. Air Force supersonic research project built by Bel ...

, they are the Irish band with the most airplay in their native country. In August 2014, vocalist Mick Pyro confirmed that the band had split.

History

Formation

Mick Pyro performed with self-described "rubbish rock bands" for several years before the formation of The Republic of Loose. During this time, he was, according to himself, "depressed out of my brains" and listened to artists such as

Manic Street Preachers Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (musician ...

. Experiencing what he termed "a huge metaphysical overturning of my value system", Pyro had developed a fascination with musicians such as

and

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

, or "the stuff your Dad likes". This change of musical interest prompted him to create Johnny Pyro, an alter-ego, who, according to Pyro, "disassociated himself from the normal lifestyle of an Irish bourgeois kid". This alter-ego would later develop into Johnny Pyro And The Rock Coma (Mick Pyro, Dave Pyro, Coz Noleon, Mark Dennehy and Emmet Cole). The band recorded an EP, which featured four of the songs that later appeared on the Republic of Loose's first album, 'This Is The Tomb Of The Juice.' Following the departure of guitarist Emmet Cole (who wrote the song "Black Bread") and bassist Mark Dennehey
To Texas and Ringsend
" respectively, Johnny Pyro and Rock Coma split. About a year later the Republic of Loose was formed. Benjamin Loose studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

before performing in a country band with Mick Pyro. Dave Pyro used to play guitar with Brez and Deco joined them to play keys. The name Republic of Loose was settled upon in 2001 when Dave and Mick, combined with Brez, Deco, Coz Noleon, who had been Mick's schoolfriend, and Benjamin Loose.

''This is the Tomb of the Juice''

Republic of Loose, Guilfest 2004 (11861201353)

The band's break, according to Mick Pyro, came as a result of ten days recording time they won in "some competition or something, some fucking battle of the bands". In 2003, Republic of Loose signed to

. The single "Girl I'm Gonna Fuck You Up", released in late 2003, was largely ignored by daytime radio in Ireland, with Mick Pyro commenting in an early ''

Hot Press ''Hot Press'' is a fortnightly music and politics magazine based in Dublin, Ireland, founded in June 1977. The magazine has been edited since its inception by Niall Stokes. History ''Hot Press'' was founded in June 1977 by Niall Stokes, who co ...

'' interview: "We were never going to be the type of band that

Larry Gogan Larry is a masculine given name in English, derived from Lawrence or Laurence. It can be a shortened form of those names. Larry may refer to the following: People Arts and entertainment * Larry D. Alexander, American artist/writer *Larry Boone ...

Ian Dempsey Ian Dempsey (born 16 January 1961) is an Irish presenter of television and breakfast radio. He is the long-running presenter of the breakfast show on Today FM, self-titled ''The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show'', which runs from 6-9 am each weekday. ...

would play anyway, regardless of the lyric". The band's debut album, ''

'', was partially recorded in the ten days studio time they had won in the aforementioned competition. ''This is the Tomb of the Juice'' was recorded in 2003 then released in 2004. 2004 was also the year in which Republic of Loose débuted at

Oxegen Oxegen was a music festival in Ireland, first held from 2004–2011 as a rock and pop festival and again in 2013 with dance and chart acts only. The event was regularly cited as Ireland's biggest music festival, and, by 2009, it was being ci ...

(on the New Band Stage), a festival at which they have since regularly performed. Singles "Comeback Girl" and "You Know It" were released in July and October 2005 respectively, both achieving significant airplay on Irish radio and entering the top thirty of the Irish Singles Chart. By 2006 the band had toured Ireland, the United Kingdom, where they performed at festivals such as

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

and

T in the Park T in the Park festival was a major Scottish music festival that was held annually from 1994 to 2016. It was named after its main sponsor, Tennents. The event was held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire, until 1996. It then moved to the disused ...

, and France, where they performed at Furia Sound Festival,

Nice Jazz Festival The Nice Jazz Festival (, ), held annually since 1948 in Nice, on the French Riviera, is "the first jazz festival of international significance." At the inaugural festival, Louis Armstrong and his All Stars were the headliners. Frommer's calls it ...

and Les Transmusicales. They also performed alongside veteran rock band

Lir Lir or Ler (meaning "Sea" in Old Irish; ''Ler'' and ''Lir'' are the nominative and genitive forms, respectively) is a sea god in Irish mythology. His name suggests that he is a personification of the sea, rather than a distinct deity. He is na ...

Vicar Street Vicar Street is a concert, performing arts centre and events venue in Dublin, Ireland. Located on Thomas Street, Dublin 8, Vicar Street has capacity for 1,050 people for seated performances and 1,500 people for standing gigs. The venue is owne ...

in January 2006.

''Aaagh!''

At a cost of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

70,000 to make, the band's second album, ''

'' was released in 2006. ''

Sunday Tribune The ''Sunday Tribune'' was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tab ...

'' journalist

Una Mullally Una Mullally is an Irish journalist and broadcaster from Dublin. She is a columnist with ''The Irish Times''. Background Mullally grew-up in Deansgrange in South County Dublin and attended Coláiste Íosagáin where she was head girl in her fina ...

called it "one of the most original and progressive Irish albums ever made". ''Aaagh!'' reached number two in the

, going platinum in the process, received regular airplay on Irish radio and produced five singles, including "The Idiots", a song about Mick Pyro's former girlfriend which also features her on vocals. "Break", a top ten single in Ireland and top forty single in

, was temporarily banned by South African radio station

5fm 5FM is a South African FM radio station that follows a Top 40 music format and is owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), South Africa's public broadcaster. SABC announced the appointment of Mr. JD Mostert as Business Mana ...

when a female DJ declared on air that it promoted

anal sex Anal sex or anal intercourse is generally the insertion and thrusting of the erect penis into a person's anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex information, anpage 118for information about the clitoris. ...

without

contraception Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

, a comment which led to several complaints from listeners. The band's 2006 summer tour included a performance where fans danced outside despite "the lashing rain" at

Oxegen 2006 Oxegen 2006 was the third Oxegen festival to take place, following the dissolution of its predecessor Witnness in 2004. It took place on the weekend of Saturday, 8 July and Sunday, 9 July at Punchestown Racecourse near Naas in County Kildare, ...

, with the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

''s Larissa Nolan saying "their scheduling on the main stage was a testament to just how big their army of fans is", and

Castlepalooza Castlepalooza was an annual Irish independent music & Arts Festival, held at Charleville Castle in Tullamore, County Offaly. The festival began in 2005 and was held annually until 2019. The 2006 festival was described by ''Hot Press'' as a "b ...

. In 2007, Republic of Loose performed at several festivals in Ireland and the United Kingdom, including

Reading and Leeds Festivals The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...

Cois Fharraige (, lit. "Beside the Sea"/ "Seaside"), previously spelled , is a coastal area west of Galway city, where the Irish language is the predominant language (a ). It stretches from , , to . There are between 8,000 and 9,000 people living in this ar ...

and a headline slot at

Indie-pendence INDIEPENDENCE is a festival "weekender" which takes place on the outskirts of Mitchelstown in northern County Cork, typically on the August Bank Holiday weekend. The festival features a variety of artists as well as comedy, spoken word, a small ...

. ''Aaagh!'' was released in the United Kingdom on 15 October 2007. In January 2008, Republic of Loose were one of the acts who recorded "

The Ballad of Ronnie Drew "The Ballad of Ronnie Drew" is a single by U2, The Dubliners, Kíla and A Band of Bowsies. The single was recorded as a charitable project, with proceeds going to the Irish Cancer Society - owing to Ronnie Drew's cancer condition.

" at Dublin's

Windmill Lane Studios Windmill Lane Recording Studios (earlier Windmill Lane Studios) is a recording studio in Dublin, Ireland. It was originally opened in 1978 by Brian Masterson and James Morris in premises at 22 Windmill Lane, and it subsequently relocated to its cu ...

; the sessions led to a meeting with

, with whom the band recorded and released a duet which was then performed live at the

the following month.

''Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil''

On 27 March 2008, Republic of Loose announced the track list and title for their third album. '' Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil'' was released in May 2008, featuring contributions from Sinéad O'Connor, rapper

Styles P David R. Styles (born November 28, 1974), better known by his stage name Styles P (also known mononymously as Styles), is an American rapper, best known as a member of hip hop group the Lox, alongside childhood friends Sheek Louch and Jadakiss. ...

and hip hoppers Millionaire Boyz. In the run-up to the release, the band uploaded free downloadable songs to their MySpace profile, including

b-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

, live tracks and songs from ''Aaagh!''. ''Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil'' spent more than three months in the top thirty of the

, spawning the successful singles, "

I Like Music "I Like Music" is a 2008 single by the Irish musical ensemble Republic of Loose. It features on the album '' Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil'', being the first single released from it. The band performed it on ''The Once a Week Show'' on ...

" and "

", the latter their highest chart performer to date, having peaked at number twelve and stayed in the charts for thirteen weeks. Mick Pyro has described ''Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil'' as the first album the band feel proud of. In support of the album's release, the band embarked on a small national tour and received an invitation to perform a sell-out month-long residency at The Dublin Academy for four consecutive Fridays, thus ending their habit of playing Dublin only once per year. This involved two-hour sets featuring new material and duets with Sinéad O'Connor—on her song "

Nothing Compares 2 U "Nothing Compares 2 U" is a song written and composed by Prince for his side project, The Family; the song featured on their eponymous 1985 debut album. The song features lyrics exploring feelings of longing from the point of view of an abando ...

"—and

Damien Dempsey Damien Dempsey (born 9 June 1975) is an Irish singer and songwriter who mixes traditional Irish folk contemporary lyrics that deliver social and political commentaries on Irish society. Damien sings in his native, working class accent in the Eng ...

—on the

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or some ...

song "

Dancing in the Moonlight "Dancing in the Moonlight" is a song written by Sherman Kelly, originally recorded in 1970 by Kelly's band Boffalongo, and then a hit single by King Harvest in 1972, reaching number 5 in Canada and number 13 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 200 ...

". The Academy residency led to a Meteor Award nomination for Best Irish Live Performance the following year and they would return for another performance at the same venue that September. A

couple Couple or couples may refer to : Basic meaning *Couple (app), a mobile app which provides a mobile messaging service for two people *Couple (mechanics), a system of forces with a resultant moment but no resultant force *Couple (relationship), tw ...

were

engaged An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

as part of a

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

television series prior to the Sunday evening appearance of Republic of Loose on the O2 Stage at

Oxegen 2008 Oxegen '08 was the fifth Oxegen festival to take place, following the dissolution of its predecessor Witnness in 2004. It took place on the weekend of Friday 11 July, Saturday 12 July and Sunday 13 July at Punchestown Racecourse near Naas in Cou ...

— a performance which also featured collaborator Styles P— whilst the band also performed for several journalists backstage. They performed a

DJ set A DJ mix or DJ mixset is a sequence of musical tracks typically mixed together to appear as one continuous track. DJ mixes are usually performed using a DJ mixer and multiple sounds sources, such as turntables, CD players, digital audio players ...

at Castlepalooza before headlining

Solas Festival Solas Festival is an annual music festival, held in Scotland, since 2010. The festival also comprises elements of poetry, art, politics, dance, philosophy and literature. Described as a "wee Woodstock," the festival is associated with Creative S ...

on 17 August 2008. Republic of Loose featured on

Today FM Today FM is an Irish national commercial FM radio station, owned and operated by Bauer Audio Ireland Limited. Broadcasting since 17 March 1997, it broadcasts mostly music, with a daily news and current affairs programme. Today FM holds a lic ...

's ''

The Ray D'Arcy Show ''The Ray D'Arcy Show'' is the title given to two differing versions of a radio programme hosted by Ray D'Arcy, originally broadcast on Irish commercial radio station Today FM from the late 1990s until 2014 before transferring in February 2015 t ...

''s charity album '' Even Better Than the Disco Thing'' released in December 2008, finishing off the year with three shows in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

. Republic of Loose were one of several acts to perform

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s at a show in The Academy titled "Inspirations", held in honour of the actor

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...

's Irish charity in February 2009. In June 2009, the band were part of a collaboration of musicians calling themselves The Troublemakers who recorded a cover version of the

Horslips Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band that compose, arrange and perform songs frequently inspired by traditional Irish airs, jigs and Reel (dance), reels. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of tradit ...

song "

Trouble with a Capital T Trouble may refer to: Film and television * ''Trouble'' (1922 film), an American silent comedy-drama film directed by Albert Austin * ''Trouble'' (1933 film), a British comedy film * ''Trouble'' (1977 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Trouble'' ...

" for charity. The recording session was part of ''

The Raw Sessions ''The Raw Sessions'' (also known as ''The Raw Sessions with Sony Ericsson'') was an Irish interactive music television programme broadcast on RTÉ Two in 2009. The country's first ever rockumentary series, it wad presented by Dez Ryan and follo ...

'' and the song was performed by The Troublemakers on '' The Late Late Show''. The band performed on the Heineken Green Spheres Stage at

Oxegen 2009 Oxegen 2009 was the sixth Oxegen festival to take place since 2004. It took place on the weekend of Friday 10 July, Saturday, 11 July and Sunday, 12 July at Punchestown Racecourse near Naas in County Kildare, Ireland. Kings of Leon, Snow Patro ...

before supporting U2 during one of their

U2 360° Tour The U2 360° Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Staged in support of the group's 2009 album ''No Line on the Horizon'', the tour visited stadiums from 2009 through 2011. The concerts featured the band playing "in the round" ...

concert dates at

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...

in July 2009. Republic of Loose participated in the international celebration of the 250th birthday of

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...

—known as

Arthur's Day Arthur's Day was an annual series of music events worldwide, originally organised by Diageo in 2009 to promote the 250th anniversary of its Guinness brewing company. It was named after the founder of Guinness brewing, Arthur Guinness. The 20 ...

— which took place on 24 September 2009.

''Bounce at the Devil''

In 2009 Brez and Deco left the band and were replaced by Da'Rock and Da'ragh. July 2010, Republic of Loose returned to

. Their fourth album, ''

'', was released later that year and led to an appearance on ''The Late Late Show''. The album, recorded in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, "blends a myriad of influences -- from plastic soul to the sort of 'big hair' rock of the 80s", according to ''Irish Independent'' reviewer John Meagher. ''

Entertainment.ie ''Entertainment.ie'' is an Irish web company based in Dublin. The company provides news and reviews of programs and films for TV and the cinema. It also provides information on upcoming comedy, comedies, festivals, theater shows and music in Ir ...

''s Jenny Mulligan describes it as good craic but occasionally bordering on obnoxious.

Influences, praise and style

Republic of Loose's genre has been defined by various sources as

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

R'n'B Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

, pop,

and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

. They are influenced by acts such as

Bobby Brown Robert Barisford Brown (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started h ...

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

Howlin' Wolf Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910January 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer and guitarist. He is regarded as one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. Over a four-decade care ...

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

and

. They perform as a six-piece band complete with backing singers. The chant, "Loose! Loose Loose!", is commonly heard from the crowd during their performances. Republic of Loose have earned the admiration of several musicians.

called them the "best band in Ireland" after performing alongside them.

, in an

e-mail Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" meant ...

to the ''

'', asked to become a member of what she described as "simply the best Irish band ever".

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...

has described them as "sophisticated soul bootboys", "trailblazers" and proclaimed that "the Celtic Twilight turned into Celtic soul with

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

, then Republic of Loose grabbed the

Celtic Tiger The "Celtic Tiger" ( ga, An Tíogar Ceilteach) is a term referring to the economy of the Republic of Ireland, economy of Ireland from the mid-1990s to the late 2000s, a period of rapid real economic growth fuelled by foreign direct investment. ...

by the tail, swung it around their heads and threw it out the window into the cosmos".

Gary Lightbody Gareth John Lightbody (born 15 June 1976) is a Northern Irish singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the alternative rock band Snow Patrol. He has also founded the musical supergroups The ...

, who called them "the best band in the country this year 007and for many years to come". Snow Patrol have also remixed "Comeback Girl". Praise has come from other musicians too, including

Jake Shears Jake Shears (born October 3, 1978) is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as the male lead singer of pop-rock band Scissor Sisters. Early life Shears was born in Mesa, Arizona, the son of an entrepreneur father and a Baptist moth ...

Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters were an American pop rock band formed in 2001. Its members include Jake Shears and Ana Matronic as vocalists, Babydaddy as multi-instrumentalist, Del Marquis as lead guitar/bassist, and Randy Real (who replaced Paddy Boom) as dr ...

. Marcus Russell, manager of

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

, is reported as having called Republic of Loose the "most exciting new band" since Oasis. Novelist

Irvine Welsh Irvine Welsh (born 27 September 1958) is a Scottish novelist, playwright and short story writer. His 1993 novel '' Trainspotting'' was made into a film of the same name. He has also written plays and screenplays, and directed several short fil ...

has referred to "Comeback Girl" as "one of the greatest songs ever recorded". Actress

Mischa Barton Mischa Anne Marsden Barton (born 24 January 1986) is a British-American film, television, and stage actress. She began her career on the stage, appearing in Tony Kushner's ''Slavs!'' and took the lead in James Lapine's '' Twelve Dreams'' at Ne ...

is also a fan. Paul Lester, writing in

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

newspaper ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' in July 2007, described Republic of Loose as an "Irish OutKast" to be filed next to Danny Wilson,

Hall & Oates Daryl Hall and John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, are an American pop rock duo formed in Philadelphia in 1970. Daryl Hall is generally the lead vocalist; John Oates primarily plays electric guitar and provides backing vocals. The two ...

and

N.E.R.D N.E.R.D. (stylized as N⋆E⋆R⋆D and N.E.R.D, a backronym of No-one Ever Really Dies) is an American hip hop and rock band, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1999. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo were signed by Teddy Riley (producer), Ted ...

and least likely to be compared to

The Pogues The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse". T ...

. John Meagher, writing in the ''

'' in April 2008, said the band were "out of step entirely with prevailing trends ..almost like they stopped listening to music after hearing the young

and early

Dexys Midnight Runners Dexys Midnight Runners (currently officially Dexys, their former nickname, styled without an apostrophe) are an English pop rock band from Birmingham, with soul influences, who achieved major commercial success in the early to mid-1980s. They a ...

". Vocalist Mick Pyro has commented that there are very few musicians performing "authentic modern soul" and that the band's aim is to "combine the energy of the

New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved much commercial succe ...

with the funk and soul qualities of

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

". When writing a piece on

The Script The Script are an Irish rock band formed in 2001 in Dublin, consisting of lead vocalist and keyboardist Danny O'Donoghue, lead guitarist Mark Sheehan, and drummer Glen Power. The band moved to London after signing to Sony Label Group imprint ...

in August 2008, Brian Boyd of ''The Irish Times'' claimed that they were "as un-Irish sounding as The Republic of Loose ".Direct link to view quote
/ref> Internationally, they have established fan bases in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and have achieved regular airplay on

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

radio in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, as well as

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Bunim/Murray Productions Bunim/Murray Productions is an entertainment production company based out of Glendale, California, and is considered a pioneer in the reality television genre. It is best known for ''The Real World'', ''Road Rules'', ''Bad Girls Club''. Mary-Ell ...

has licensed their music for use on American television. They have, however, refused several indie contracts in the United States.

Discography

Albums

Singles

From "This Is The Tomb of the Juice" *''Girl I'm Gonna Fuck You Up'' *''Hold Up'' *''Tell More Lies'' From "Aaagh!" *''Comeback Girl (IRE #19)'' *''You Know It (IRE #22)'' *''Shame (IRE #20)'' *''Break / The Translation (IRE #29)'' *''The Idiots'' From "Vol IV: Johnny Pyro and the Dance of Evil" *''

(IRE #41)'' *''

(IRE #12)'' *''The Ritual'' *''Awful Cold'' From "Bounce At the Devil" *''The Man'' *''99 (feat. Bo Starks)'' *''The Blah Bounce'' Non-album singles *''They Pay For Love'' (2012) *''Thinking of You'' (2013) IRE #16 *''The Punishment'' (2013)

Awards

Choice Music Prize

Republic of Loose's second album ''Aaagh!'' was nominated for the

, an award won by

The Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and ...

for the album ''

Victory for the Comic Muse ''Victory for the Comic Muse'' is the ninth studio album by Irish chamber pop band the Divine Comedy, released in 2006 by EMI. The title derives from the E.M. Forster book ''A Room with a View'' ("I have won a great victory for the comic muse") ...

''. The band performed at the award ceremony in

on 28 February 2007. Surprise was expressed within the industry when they were not nominated again for the 2009 award. , - , 2007 , , ''

'' , , Irish Album of the Year 2006 , , , -

Meteor Music Awards

Republic of Loose won the Hope for 2004 award at the 2004 Meteor Awards. They were nominated in the Best Irish Band category at 2007 Meteor Awards. Republic of Loose were nominated in the Best Irish Band and Best Irish Live Performance categories at the

2009 Meteor Awards The 2009 Meteor Music Awards ceremony took place on 17 March 2009 in the Royal Dublin Society, RDS, Dublin. It was the ninth edition of Republic of Ireland, Ireland's national music awards. The event was recorded and it aired on RTÉ Two on 18 Mar ...

. They lost to

and

The Blizzards The Blizzards are an Irish band from Mullingar in County Westmeath. They were formed by Niall Breslin in late 2004, and also feature Dec Murphy (drums), Justin Ryan, Anthony Doran, Louize Carroll (bass) and Aidan Lynch (keyboards). They have a ...

in those respective categories. In addition to this, they have performed at both the

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

and

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

awards ceremonies, the latter of which involved a duet with

on the

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

song "We People Who Are Darker Than Blue". , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, , Republic of Loose , , Hope for 2004 , , , - ,

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, , Republic of Loose , , Best Irish Band , , , - ,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, , Republic of Loose , , Best Irish Band , , , - , 2009 , , The Academy , , Best Irish Live Performance , , , -

References

External links

Republic of Loose
— Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Republic Of Loose Irish rock music groups Musical groups established in 2001 Musical groups from Dublin (city)