Schtum style defies soft pop image

Published: Friday, March 1, 1996

By Sona Stepanian

Daily Bruin Contributor

Do not accuse the members of the Irish band Schtum of always walking around unhappy.

Although the songs off their new album, "Grow," come across as very opinionated and powerful, the band tries to maintain a distance not from happiness but from the soft, candy-coated pop sound which seem to be working for so many current bands.

"We don't think that people should just be unhappy," says singer-songwriter Christian McNeill with a laugh. "There just are a lot of bands out there that pretend to be happy pop bands and we don't like that."

The members of Schtum seem to like live performances quite a bit. Along with McNeill, guitarist Ivan Birthistle, bassist James Cunningham and drummer Rory McCarron are currently on a worldwide tour in support of "Grow," and will be playing at Westwood Plaza today at noon and at the Dragonfly this evening.

"It (touring) gets tiring and you basically have no private life, but we're definitely a touring band," says McNeill. Schtum's touring schedule has taken the band far away from their home in Derry, Ireland. But McNeill admits that he enjoys performing in America more. "There is a larger pool of fans to draw from in America," he says.

Back home, Schtum's relentless desire for playing live gigs rallied a great deal of support for their 1994 independently released EP, "Digging Holes," and their fan base has been steadily growing ever since.

On "Grow," the band's aggressive guitar-driven rage comes through. The album's title track has tinges of punk mixed in with relentless guitar rhythms, and hints of rap are heard echoing through "Space."

Whether or not Schtum shoots up the music charts does not seem to be the first thing on McNeill's mind. "That whole rock star image is bullshit," he says. "We are just regular looking people who want to make music."

CONCERT: Schtum plays at noon today at Westwood Plaza. Free food will be provided.Comments to webmaster@db.asucla.ucla.edu