2006 - February - 27 Revving it Up in NYC BEING fed a steady diet of MTV in my youth, a time when MTV actually played music videos, has made me a sucker for the same DIY, intelligent power pop that launched the careers of Elvis Costello and the Police. Right now, there is no one doing power pop in Ireland as good as The Revs. This trio from Donegal has only played a few select industry scout gigs here in the States, but they will part of the impressive lineup at the Craic Fest in Manhattan that includes Mundy and the Walls. “For the Revs, we have been getting 200 new members on our site without being out there doing gigs,” says drummer Rory Gallagher of the buzz the band is garnering as it makes its way over here next month. “America seems to be pretty similar to across the world. With Irish crowds they always seem a bit more drunk and mad, especially college gigs. People are a bit more standoffish and listen. They want to make up their mind. We did a few gigs in Irish bars in New York City and Boston. It’s a fantastic buzz.” The band will be here to find a home for their excellent new CD, The Revs. “We did a lot of experimentation on our last album, Suck,” Gallagher says. “On that album, we basically wanted to put as many different kind of music down as possible. We were listening to Beach Boys and Jethro Tull and DeBussey, whatever we liked. Hardcore rave was in there as well. “We’re not told what to do from an A&R person, so we took advantage of that freedom. It did confuse people because it was hard to categorize. “On this new CD, we just wanted to use raw elements. We wanted something like a with the Revs/with the Beatles kind of thing. The early Police did that very well. Early U2 had no overdubs, and it was very exciting. You can’t fill holes with little sounds, so it is tougher in a way.” Gallagher says the record took six months to write and 18 days to record, which probably explains the nervous, rushed energy throughout. On “Give Me Something to Believe” they sing, “Oh my Lord I just can’t smile/my lips are way to dry/oh my Lord I just can’t hear your voice, it’s just too weak,” in a plea for divine intervention. With its urgent drum beat and clanging guitar, “Time Is Slipping” should get the crowd buzzing when they play Sin-e as part of the Craic Fest. The record is more focused than the expansive Suck, and that has a lot to do with how it was made. “We are huge fans of the band Cardigans, so we were psyched when we heard their studio in Sweden was available,” explains Gallagher. “It was great and productive because it was so cold outside and removed from the city, so we just stayed there and worked. If you recorded in Ibiza, I don’t think we would have gotten anything done.”