• 2017-

  Grian ChattenVocals, accordion

  Carlos O'ConnellGuitar, keyboards, piano

  Conor CurleyGuitar, keyboards, piano

  Conor Deegan IIIBass

  Tom CollDrums
• Fontaines D.C. was formed in Dublin, Ireland, in 2017. The band members - Grian Chatten (vocals), Carlos O'Connell (guitar), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan III (bass), and Tom Coll (drums) - met while attending music college in Dublin. They bonded over a shared love of poetry.
• The first time Grian Chatten wrote a song, he was 9 years old, at a music camp. "We went into little groups, and we had to write a song and perform it at the end of the week," he recalled to Uncut magazine. "And my ma, my da and my granny came to the show."
  
  The song was called "Underestimated Hero" and it's not one he cares to share now. "That is between me and the fireplace," he said.
• "D.C." in their name stands for "Dublin City," reflecting their deep connection to their hometown. The "Fontaines" part was inspired by the character Johnny Fontaine from The Godfather, though the band has admitted they later realized the character's name was spelled differently - it's really Johnny Fontane.
• Although often associated with Dublin, only one of the band members is from the city. Grian Chatten was born in Barrow-in-Furness, England, to an English father and an Irish mother, before moving to Dublin at a young age. Coll, Deegan and Curley all come from other parts of Ireland, and O'Connell grew up in Madrid, Spain.
• The band is heavily influenced by Irish literature and poetry. They've cited writers like James Joyce, W.B. Yeats, and Patrick Kavanagh as significant inspirations.
• Their 2019 debut album, Dogrel, received widespread critical acclaim and was nominated for the Mercury Prize. The album has a raw, energetic sound and sharp lyrics, capturing the essence of modern Dublin.
• All five Fontaines D.C. band members moved to London in the summer of 2020 during the pandemic to pursue their careers and take advantage of the city's music scene.
• Grian Chatten wears blue every single day. "I do just like blue," he told The Irish Times . "I'm kind of one of those people who decides very early on in life what kind of clothes they like. And then that's it, I'm like that's me now."
• Grian Chatten deliberately avoids writing lyrics in anything that feels permanent. He told Later's Jools Holland he likes jotting words down on the most disposable surfaces possible - even toilet paper - because knowing the writing is destined for the bin removes pressure. His thinking is, if you write in a nice notebook or "on a slab of rock," it feels too final, "cast in stone," and can stifle ideas.
• Chatten's earliest lyrics were written at around age 9 and consisted entirely of the line, "I'm running and I'm running and I'm running and I'm running." He still considers it "pretty brilliant."
• Chatten's father incentivized the young Grian to memorize poems by promising packs of football stickers as a reward. Chatten later realized those poems subtly reshaped how he viewed the world, even if, at the time, the stickers were the real motivation.

Comments

More Songfacts:

Dude (Looks Like A Lady)Aerosmith

"Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" by Aerosmith was inspired by Vince Neil from Motley Crue.

Sharp Dressed ManZZ Top

ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man" was the first video that was a sequel. It picked up the storyline of their "Gimme All Your Lovin'" video about a guy who encounters three beautiful women.

Cult of PersonalityLiving Colour

"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour incorporates speeches by John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Who You AreJessie J

Jessie J had a lyric from her song "Who You Are" tattooed on her hip, but she spelled "lose" incorrectly so it reads: "Don't loose who you are in the blur of the stars."

The Long and Winding RoadThe Beatles

"The Long and Winding Road" became The Beatles' last US #1 song on June 13, 1970.

Hey Ya!OutKast

Andre 3000 played all the instruments on Outkast's "Hey Ya" except bass. Aaron Mills from Cameo played that.

Editor's Picks

Randy HouserSongwriter Interviews

The "How Country Feels" singer talks Skynyrd and songwriting.

Jonathan Cain of JourneySongwriter Interviews

Cain talks about the divine inspirations for "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Faithfully."

Sarah BrightmanSongwriter Interviews

One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.

Justin Hayward of The Moody BluesSongwriter Interviews

Justin wrote the classic "Nights In White Satin," but his fondest musical memories are from a different decade.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside StorySong Writing

The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film.

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."