First Class And Coach

"UTTERLY OUTSTANDING" - BBC Sounds

'West Cork's best-kept musical secret" - The Irish Times

"Suavely walking the line between The Velvet Underground and The Fall” - Nick Kelly, Broadsheet.ie
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FC&C is Reuben Maher (guitars, keys), Geraldine Thomas (vocals), Jonathan Parson (bass) and Andrew McNeilage (drums).

All members live locally in Ballydehob, West Cork. Reuben returned to Ireland from a long period in New York, having played in numerous bands in the alt-rock scene there. Geraldine is originally from Germany and settled in West Cork. She has written for many years and performed in various guises in that time. Jonathan’s art-school training has informed the band’s visual language and includes projections for live shows. Jonathan and Andrew are each local to Ballydehob - both had played in various band projects prior to forming FC&C. Andrew is a graduate of the BIMM Institute, Dublin.

The band came together in 2018 – Reuben invited Geri to bring her poetry and writing to a session with Jonathan and Andrew, and the music instantly stimulated a response, some early tracks came together rapidly – emerging seemingly fully formed.

Early shows in the bars and venues of West Cork cemented the band’s sound – melding soaring, angular, textured guitars with a muscular rhythm section, Geri’s vocals completed a sound that evokes the art-rock bands that proved so influential in decades past – Sonic Youth, Velvet Underground, Pixies, The Fall.

The debut album ‘The Truth About Honey’ was recorded in 2019 by Christian Best with Tony Maimone (Pere-Ubu) of Studio-G (Brooklyn) producing. Tracked in two days, the record captured the feel of the band and it’s live sound, and received critical acclaim in Ireland and Germany.

Despite Covid-era restrictions, the 2nd album ‘Neon Hip’ was recorded in France at Black Box Studios, again with Tony Maimone at the controls. Released April 2023 on FIFA Records. This record further enhanced the bands sound and won resounding praise.

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PRESS & REVIEWS

"Geraldine Thomas fronts this west Cork rock outfit with a wail to rival the Kills' Alison Mosshart. Squalling, distorted guitars mark a blistering opening salvo, before aggression and attitude give way to atmosphere"
Steve Cummins, The Sunday Times

“Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant"
"One of the best albums I’ve heard this year”
Dan Hegarty, 2FM

"First Class & Coach deliver a 'sack-strong' debut... gripping and engaging... it does not contain a single weak song. 9/10"
Wolfgang Kausch, musikalisch.de

“This record has skate, has filth, has dope, has sex"
Ralv Milberg, Die Nerven

“The globally diverse punk-psyche-post-rock quartet FC&C put down an equally impressive album as Velvet Underground in their unusual, sympathetically unfinished ‘Banana’ debut album” (Translated from German) MusikReviews.de