When the news came through that N.I. sleaze rockers, Million $ Reload, were calling it a day, I was more than a little downcast. In my humble opinion M$R were one of the best bands to come out of these islands and their debut album ‘Anthems of a Degeneration’ is right up there with my favourite debut albums of all time. Thankfully though, my disappointment was short lived. This was more a case of ‘the king is dead, long live the king’, because what the guys had decided to do was to reinvent themselves with a slightly different sound. They could have kept the name and use the reputation it had, but I think the choice they made was the smarter and more honest one.
The name they chose was Blackwater Conspiracy. Now, we all know how many rock bands there are out there with ‘black’ in their name. So many in fact, that I sometimes get them confused. But the ‘blackwater’ in their moniker comes from the River Blackwater the winds through the countryside of their native Tyrone, so that part of their name makes perfect sense. The ‘conspiracy’ part of their name is slightly more mysterious, though maybe it is an subconscious homage to The Black Crowes (there we go with the black theme again) and one of their most famous songs. Who know? Anyway, Phil Conalane and the boys are back in town with Kevin Brennan on keys to give the band that little bit more of a pure blues, rock n roll feel. ‘The Monday Club’ showcases their sound perfectly and the video (by Tiarnen Larkin Productions) is a lot of fun.
