Groove Tube with Cian O’Connell

For a period of time over Covid, The Opacas had never met each other in person. The project began as a means for the band’s members to get back into playing music and, as co-founder Pat Boyle describes it, make use of the latent talent that was robbed of work during the lockdowns.

Officially a four-piece that stretches to five in a live setting, the Americana group have pieced together an impressive eight singles since their formation.

Their ninth, Rainbow Cloud, is set for release on January 19 – a date which also marks their headline gig at The Loft Venue in Seven on Bridge Street.

Tickets for the showcase, which includes Eoin Dolan, Bríd Kenny and Synergy on its bill, are available online for €10.

Performing alongside Pat is Steve Talbot, Peter Tobin, Mike McLoughlin and Joe Treacy, who fills in on lead guitar for Leeds-based instrumentalist Mark Raynor.

Anyone familiar with the music videos The Opacas have brought out to date will know that the group have built on a core philosophy of having fun.

Pat explains that the band’s origin aligns with that mentality.

“We’re just reliving the dream, really,” he admits. “We’re all too old for this. We’re in our fifties – we’ve got mortgages, dogs, cats, wives. This is just about having craic.

“I work in telecoms and I had a project going on in the UK, and there were three of us working very closely together. I got a call from one of them on Halloween in 2019 but it ended up being his wife telling me Damon had passed away in his sleep. He was my age, and it was absolutely out of the blue.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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