True Delusion

Keeping on a recent theme of music of edge of americana rock. A bit of blues rock here, all the way from Co. Cork. True Delusion are a now sadly departed delta-blues band from Co. Cork

The band started out in 2002 with some jamming sessions progressing into a covers band until the sound of True Delusion came forward. Made up of brothers Mike and Damian Byrne with Chris Noonan on guitars and Brendan Clancy on vocals, they have been described before (by whom I'm not sure) as Tom Waits meets Thin Lizzy. And that description is not far off.

The band recorded their first ep in 2005 which was unreleased. While still gigging during this time, the band got the chance to record a full album in 2008 after winning free studio time from a (I'm guessing) Battle of the Bands competition. That was just the beginning. The recording of the album sounds like a small ordeal for the lads. It appears to have taken about ten months to get the whole album done. It's an interesting story of musical stubbornness, determination to make that album. You can read about those tribulations here. All of the tracks featured here come from the product of those ten-eleven months of hard work.

The track "Dark Rider", I presume the lead single off the album, has a nice, atmospheric video for it that fits the theme of the song perfectly. This is a fine fusion of desert rock and blues. Starting off with that spooky harmonica, leading into that lazy guitar riff, the song seems the perfect accompaniment to flying on the road under a full moon.

The band showed some great potential with this album. The songs "Magic Wheelbarrow" and "Sweeper" feel like the soundtrack to wandering alone in the hot, baked desert. Full of sharp guitar bursts, mixed with the backing of the heavy rhythm section,the song conjure a dark, moody place. The breakdown in "Sweeper" is particularly enjoyable.

"Knock on D Door" is another particular favourite of mine. Starting off sounding like a traditional Irish ballad, it morphs into a sort of Celtic rock meets southern rock riffs. Imagine if Lynyrd Skynyrd were from cork and listened to a lot of Planxty in their youth.

Sadly little is mentioned of what happened to the band after the album. I've had trouble finding any information on them. Sort of reminds me of those famous rumours about Ram Jam who recorded "Black Betty". About them appearing to record one track and then disappearing again. I'm sure it wasn’t quite like that for True Delusion.

I have hosted the tracks featured on my own Soundcloud for you listening pleasure and as is it is the easiest access to the songs. The bebo site (remember that place?) has the tracks available for you to download. The band have their own official website and as they have, I think, disbanded, their social media output is a bit 2006 but have a gawk at the Myspace anyway.

If you do happen to have any information about True Delusion or what the lads are at now, please feel free to comment below.