Cathal Coughlan: Search & Destroy

“Ouevre”

Cathal would not be amused

FUCK

BREAKING: The death has been announced of Cathal Coughlan, the Cork music legend who fronted such acts as Microdisney and Fatima Mansions... more to follow pic.twitter.com/ktq2Udl36x

— Irish Examiner Arts & Culture (@IEArtsCulture) May 23, 2022

This is such a colossal fucking bummer

Are you fucking kidding me? Just when he was having a creative resurgence??!!! Goddamn it!

'long illness...'

Looking back at some of those Telefis promo shots, he does look pretty drawn :(

Ah that sucks. That Telefis album was good stuff. Viva Dead Ponies forever.

Grim news. Didn't realise he was ill. Sad I never saw him live - I nearly did once but my potential companion wasn't into the idea of going. That great interview upthread is no longer online but there's the archive.org version of it here:

https://web.archive.org/web/20210331161410/https://www.15questions.net/interview/fifteen-questions-interview-cathal-coughlan-microdisney/page-1/

I always meant to his explore his work beyond my much-listened CD single of The Loyaliser (apparently not one of his most admired songs, but I think it's fun?)

Really sad. He’d had a great year and it’s well worth checking out now.

never really got deeply into him but was very fond of Only Losers Take The Bus at the time. Probably should listen to Black River Falls again. Anyways RIP.

RIP - Been bumming about this today. Loved Fatima Mansions output, and really enjoyed 'Song of Co-Aklan' last year and the follow-up EP. He had such a unique voice.

Recall being absolutely transfixed by / petrified of ranting bug-eyed Cathal as a callow teen at an (amazing) fatima mansions show in the mists of early 90s. The Astoria perhaps. Then, years later, being blown away by a Microdisney mixtape donated by a friend and feeling ridiculous for not having traced the thread back. The Co-Aklan stuff really does sound great. A wonderfully rich voice and what presence.

Been listening to this over and over today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO-bptqk4Dk

The new Telefis album is my favorite new release this year, it's a wonderful electro funk post punk melange.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UExXyZXeZFk

This track feels particularly special today.

Song of Co-Aklan is a great album, front to back. I wonder what “St Well-being Axe” (fantastic track) is about, now that I’m paying closer attention to the lyrics today.

Cathal's lyrics are always near inscrutable but in an appealing way.

Man, Microdisney and Fatima Mansions were some incredible bands. I’ve been obsessively listening to Cathal since his passing. Treasure after treasure.

I listened to the entire Fatima catalog after he died, such an incredible vision. The last album is still my favorite.

Such a combination of hooks and vitriol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQHUH3cgw-4

I was trying to describe Microdisney to somebody yesterday and I said "it's like OMD if the lead singer wanted to beat you up"

I was late (five years ago?) to discovering Cathal and co.'s music but I adore it

Fatima’s are where I underestimated him. I long thought they were just a super-edgy practical joke essentially. Their albums are incredible, mostly. Lots of rough stuff, sure. I think they could’ve caught on. I don’t know what they didn’t.

I recall they landed an opening slot for U2 in Rome around '92 and Cathal antagonized the crowd by miming the use of a Pope John Paul II figurine as a butt plug, or something like that. God bless him! But a good indication they were never headed toward mass acceptance.

I bought all the Fatima Mansions records, and saw them live at least once, but they somehow never really clicked with me. I don't think I've listened to them since last century! I missed the world weary melancholy and subtlety of Microdisney - although that had pretty much gone by the last album - and I always felt like he trying a bit too hard.

Another reason to feel queasy about U2, associating themselves with cooler support bands who all go on to have a miserable time, when they should have just gotten Del Amitri.

For every “Angel’s Delight,” there’s a “Mr Baby” or “You’re a Rose,” and I admire that Cathal really didn’t have “edgy” at the top of his mind. The albums work. He was ok sounding out of time, even kind of uncool.

Angels Delight’s feeling particularly meaningful to me lately; tbh.

Keep getting the urge to yell “burn the bailiff” lately. Something about life these days, yknow.

Details on the new Telefis, and a new song:

https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2022/0708/1309013-watch-cathal-coughlans-last-music-with-telefis/

It will be a wonderful final statement.

His cynicism used to get to me a little, but I’m finding listening to his voice quite emotional lately. I don’t think I’d truly realized what a magnificent voice this man had. I almost think it was too good for some of the music at times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0cY02mgzOw

A truly astonishing man.

https://www.roughtrade.com/gb/telefis/a-do

Telefís, the groundbreaking collaboration between two Irish iconoclasts, revered singer-songwriter Cathal Coughlan and world-renowned producer Garret "Jacknife" Lee, release their second album a Dó (number two). Following the release of a hAon (number one) in March 2022, Cathal and Jacknife continued to work on music and completed the record at the end of Spring. Then sadly Cathal Coughlan died on May 18th. Their debut album a hAon was widely acclaimed by the UK and Irish press and received national radio play on 6Music, Radio X, RTE, Newstalk, and dozens of other outlets. The album playfully dissected the early days of Irish society in the TV era through a prism of electronic dance music, drawing on what they saw as a 'corrosive nostalgia'. It also paid homage to their musical heroes of the punk and post-punk era. Kraftwerk fighting with The Human League for a parking spot on Capel Street. But amongst the muscular beats and distressed synth stabs there were also strange ballads, haunting melodies and somber reflections. a Dó continues to broaden these sonic horizons and opens up the band's output to outside collaborators. We have guest appearances from Cathal's longtime friend and Microdisney co-founder and High Llamas main man Sean O'Hagan on the first single "Space Is Us", Echo and The Bunnymen's Will Sergeant guests on two tracks, legendary Mancunians A Certain Ratio on another. The inimitable Jah Wobble also contributes bass smarts following his dub odyssey with the band on their single "Falun Gong Dancer" earlier this year. This album will stand testament to the ingenuity of Cathal Coughlan, one of Ireland's most revered singer-songwriters, lyricists, commentators and polymaths. RIP.

https://telefis.bandcamp.com/track/space-is-us-with-sean-o-hagan

Fun track

New album, "A Dó", is out, and it's every bit as wonderful as the first one. RIP Cathal, I'll miss your brilliant observations and powerful bile.

One of the greatest to ever do it, and he went out on such a high. I urge anyone passing by to revisit this man's awesome discography. It's better than you think/remember, and he stayed fresh, poignant to the end, while writing some immense hooks. A Do is a tremendous send-off.

New album, "A Dó", is out, and it's every bit as wonderful as the first one. RIP Cathal, I'll miss your brilliant observations and powerful bile.

While I enjoyed A Haon, A Do is even better. It's an instant classic, fully formed. The electronics and vocoders attempt to dull Cathal, but they can't. He's too powerful. He was a force of nature.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpMDxhvsaE0

this one got me to well up. :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kghIF5j2d

Such a consistent songwriter.

Can someone confirm how he pronounced his name? I've heard it many different ways but not from the man himself.

Blah Blah.

The guy pronounces it correctly at the start of this interview.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6coKZJYz-wM

Around the first anniversary of the death of Cork music legend Cathal Coughlan, his Microdisney bandmate Sean O'Hagan recalls the heady days of the Leeside music scene in the 1980s.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-41136259.html