We asked Wyvern Lingo 5 questions when they entered the 2011 Rising Stars…
Q. 1 Where are you from?
All three of us are from Bray, and proud of it
Q. 2 What are your influences?
Our influences range from artists like Simon and Garfunkel , Joni Mitchell and Fleetwood Mac to Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Queen, Rory Gallagher, Thin Lizzy to singers like Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, as well as more modern artists like Janelle Monae and Jeff Buckley.
Q.3 What is your song writing process?
Generally one of us (most of the time the one who sings the lead in it) will come to the group with the bones of a song written, then the three of us will work on it together on each of our instruments and add harmonies etc. Other times one of us might have a riff or chord progression and someone else will have lyrics that suit it and we all build on the song from there.
Q. 4 What is your most bizarre gig experience?
When we started playing together we were only fifteen, so the only gigs we could play at the time were all ages gigs that were generally dominated by young, male heavy metal bands. At one particular gig we walked into the band room, and started to put on our make up when we realised that we were being stared out of it by about 20 angry looking long haired metal heads. Luckily, Saoirse was (and still is) a huge Metallica fan, which enabled us to break through the awkwardness with a common interest. Most of them were actually lovely, and were quite open minded to our music. Looking back, they were probably just as afraid of us as we were of them.
Q. 5 If you could share the stage with anyone, who would it be and why?
Fleetwood Mac. Firstly, because we are all huge fans, and draw a lot from their use of harmonies. We love the sheer passion they put into each song, and how different they are to other bands. What we really admire about them is the fact that their sound is so unique and recognisable but each song of theirs is so different from the next. They have no one lead singer, like ourselves, so each member brings something different with each song they sing. Secondly, because (unlike most of our influences) they are all still alive and by some miraculous stroke of luck they might see this and make it come true…
In their own words…
Karen Cowley (piano, vocals) Saoirse Duane (guitar, vocals) and Caoimhe Barry (percussion, vocals) make up Wyvern Lingo. Hailing from Bray, these three ladies started writing together in 2007. The trio spent the first few years developing their song writing abilities and performing around their hometown. After playing summer festivals such as Knockanstockan and Gateways in 2010, they have spent the last year performing as much as possible around Dublin city, while each of them also experiencing their first year in college. They used this year as an opportunity to build their sound and performance, constantly trying to take their music to new depths. The genre of Wyvern Lingo is hard to define. The acoustic guitar suggests a folk element, while the electric piano and percussion adds to the texture, implying a heavier sound. The bongos and cajon provide the energy which lift the music out of the singer songwriter category. But it’s their “soulful, powerful vocals and harmonies” that add a bluesy twist to it all. While their style cannot be defined outright, what can be said without hesitation is that Wyvern Lingo add something different to the Irish music scene. Highlight’s of the last year for them include supporting Julliet Turner in the Mermaid Theatre, and recording their EP. They have spent the last few months recording and will be releasing the EP on the 3rd of June in The Grand Social in Dublin.
