Destination known

Only Real’s debut album will soundtrack your summer, meet its maker and cop his hip-pop now
By Alex James Taylor | Music | 30 March 2015
Above:

Only Real

Top image: Only Real

With Only Real’s debut album, Jerk At The End Of The Line, the laid-back cheeky chappy has repaid the hype that has been heaped at his doorstep. Out this week, the inherently catchy album bubbles and fizzes like that satisfying carbon ‘phsst’ of an ice cold can being cracked open in the sun’s blaze.

We first clocked Only Real (a.k.a. West Londoner Niall Galvin) in Issue 11 and got a ripper playlist out of it in the process (no really, it’s about all we listened to last summer). A year on, the cap-clad Generation Z maverick spins tales of blissful youth, painting an impressionistic picture of sun bleached joie de vivre, part gutter reality, part romantic fantasy. There are deftly crafted hits here, but the twelve tracks work best careening into each other, each so densely packed with imagery that it takes time to unpick it all.

A 90s nostalgia runs deep in Only Real’s aesthetic, from his Britpop-esque lyrics to the DIY, VHS music videos, and yet his approach feels fresh and as authentic as his moniker implies. This 23-year-old troubadour might be conscious of history, but he doesn’t feel its weight; styles are pilfered and metabolised with ease. It’s the sound of a radio station you wish existed: a rag-bag of ska, hip hop, drum ‘n’ bass and vocal interludes sequenced to flow like a mixtape.

If you’re not already, get acquainted. This colourful debut is the perfect introduction to a songwriter set to soundtrack many summers to come.

Alex James Taylor: Your debut album Jerk At The End Of The Line is already receiving a lot of attention, do you feel like people are experiencing your music on a larger level now?
Niall Galvin: Yeah it feels like a lot of new people are getting on to Only Real at the moment, I guess album reviews hold quite a lot of power with that and they’re going really well, luckily!

AJT: Where did the name Jerk At The End Of The Line come from?
NG: I was on the tube home with my friend an he mentioned it to me and it really stuck in my head as a phrase or saying, I kept thinking about it for months. there are a few ways its relevant to me and my album, like how I live near the end of my tube line and the self deprecating tone to it, generally I just thought it sounded cool to be honest.

AJT: You recorded the record in Atlanta, right? How was it working over in the US, had you been there much before?
NG: I had been there a few times when I was younger but that was the first time doing anything music related. It was absolutely amazing, it felt so exciting to be there for my music and then the stuff we started making was really really cool which gave me such a push on. Being in Atlanta on my own was great as it separated me from everything else, I was focused purely on what I was making with Ben [Allen, who produced the album with Dan Carey].

AJT: You recorded a lot of early demos at home by yourself, how was the transition to working in a studio with a producer? Were you nervous about losing that aspect of control?
NG: It was something that I was really hesitant about and something that I took a lot of getting used to. But what I realised is that when I found the right producers it suddenly felt very natural and I was loving the development they were adding so I was eager to do more with them. It is obviously important to keep that DIY spirit and to bring things on in the right ways but without messing up the vibe. That was something that took a lot of experimenting with, but Ben and Dan really got it and felt the same.

AJT: Can you tell me a little about your song writing process, do you sit down and think, ‘I’m going to try write some lyrics now’, or do you just sort of write little bits all the time and then go back to them?
NG: It’s a bit of both, I’m always writing little bits and bobs on the move and then sometimes I sit down and write. It’s handy to have little four bar lyrics that can fill the end of a verse or something though.

AJT: And you’ve just been on tour in the US, how was it?
NG: I just got back from SXSW in Austin, Texas which was absolutely amazing, it was so much fun and so intense. It was really cool to play all these shows and it really felt like I was winning people over who hadn’t heard Only Real before which is a really rewarding feeling. The food has been amazing too of course!

AJT: Do you notice any particular differences between UK and US audiences?
NG: Not really in ways that I can generalise, it’s more just a difference between nighttime crowds and daytime crowds – nighttime crowds are more likely to breakdance.

AJT: What are you currently listening to on tour?
NG: We listen to some pretty weird stuff in the van like the Grandstand Theme Tune comes on quite a lot. We’re also all in to psychedelic guitar stuff so that keeps us all happy.

AJT: Do you remember what first turned you on to music? Your music is a real eclectic blend of different genres, was there a certain band/ singer who really influenced you?
NG: There wasn’t really one, I really liked Oasis when I was younger and rappers like Nas and Big L were some of my first musical experiences when I was a young teenager. Before that I only really listened to UK garage in bowling alleys, you know?

AJT: You direct or co-direct all your own videos, is film a big interest of yours?
NG: It’s been something I’ve really enjoyed doing and it helps keep them stay in the right lane, although the last few I have found directors I trust enough to let them take control. I really like film, I love Wes Anderson, Harmony Korine and Paul Thomas Anderson.

AJT: You previously released your EP on Luv Luv Luv Records, and now you’re signed to EMI, how did it all come about?
NG: I was talking to virgin EMI for a long time before I signed to them, I wanted to make sure it felt right before making the commitment of my debut album deal so I took my time with it. It’s cool though they’ve enabled me to do things like going to Atlanta which is great.

AJT: Finally, how did you come to use the moniker Only Real, did you ever consider using your own name? Why not?
NG: I’m not really sure, I think Only Real just suits what I’m doing more, if I could change my actual name to Only Real maybe that would solve this.

Jerk At The End Of The Line is out now via Virgin EMI. Only Real plays 30th April at 100 Club, Oxford Street, London. Buy tickets here

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