Aslan: 'That excitement, that's what's enabled us to keep pushing forward'

Irish Daily Mirror

11-07-2025

Almost four decades after their first single, Aslan guitarist Billy McGuinness says the legendary rock band is feeling the same buzz they did in 1986 as their latest single drops.
The outfit's newest single, A Hand To Hold, is out now, their second release from their upcoming album and the latest to feature vocals from new singer Lee Tomkins.
The single, which will be played live for the first time in Perth tonight as Aslan kick off their Australian tour, follows from their rockier hit Hear Your Call, which dropped in March. This latest track, Aslan say, 'shows a different side' to the iconic band.
'There's nervousness, we're excited,' long standing Aslan guitarist Billy McGuinness told the Star's Scene ahead of the release of their latest single, A Hand To Hold.
'And the only way, the way we test out music is, you play in front of a live audience, and that gives you so much. So there is an excitement there, we're going to be performing it in Lynott's in Perth, which is the first gig.
'I can't wait to hear how it goes down. We're very proud of the track. It's showing a different side of Aslan to Hear Your Call.
'Hear Your Call had the Aslan sound, and you kind of knew it was Aslan. With this track, a few people that I played it to, (I asked them) 'Who do you think this band is?'
'They're going, 'Geez, I haven't a clue'. And I think that's great, because it's different. And my, in my opinion, different is good'.
He added: 'It's in your head, and it's catchy. I think it's showing Aslan's pop sensibilities, if that makes sense? Hear Your Call was a real rock song. But Hand To Hold is showing a poppier side of Aslan, which I think is great.'
Aslan's new singer Lee Tomkins added: 'It's something Aslan hasn't done, a happy, happy poppy song, which Aslan hasn't done in a long, long time.
'So it's to show that side again, to show the fans that they can still do that type of thing, happy sing along. Enjoy yourself. Everyone clapping along. That's what it's made for. It's a sing along song'.
Billy said the new single deals with life and how sometimes people can feel like nothing is going their way - like there's "A Devil in Heaven and a God in Hell."
'It's like what we say in the song,' Billy said. 'Some days it feels like there's a devil in heaven and a god in hell, because nothing is going right for you, and you get down.
'But the song is uplifting, as it's saying no matter what shit you're going through, there is someone there that can help you, that can hold your hands and make the day better, you know? There's a positivity in the song.'
'It's about bringing people together, basically, that's what the song is about,' Lee added.
'And to get people together, singing along, clapping along. It's just people enjoying themselves and taking a break from the crap that's going on in life, when they can just come to a gig, whatever it may be, for two hours, sing along, forget about life and enjoy themselves.'
Billy said the excitement the band felt waiting to hear their first single, This Is, is still felt 40 years later. 'We're as excited about it,' the guitarist shared.
'Like we're over 40 years doing this and I remember back in 1986 when we released our first single This Is and the excitement of waiting to hear it on the radio or waiting to play it live, that hasn't changed.
'Fast forward 40 years, and we've still, I'm dying to hear it on the radio, and what do people think of it and dying to play it live.
'And I think that's a great thing, that we haven't lost that excitement or drive or buzz.
'When Lee came in, one thing that we didn't know at the time. We were just listening to him singing, but we didn't know that he was such a brilliant songwriter as well in his own right.
'So with him, with the guitar, and then you have Joe, who was one of the main songwriters with Aslan as well.
'So when you have Lee hooking up with Joe, it's different, it's fuzzy, it's exciting.
'And for a band that's going over 40 years, to have that excitement, I think it that's what's enabled us to keep pushing forward, because the day when we decide we don't get excited about music. Plus we're really enjoying it. I have to say, the fun we're having, the fun is back!'
Aslan's iconic frontman Christy Dignam passed away just over two years ago, on June 13, 2023. Billy says the band still honour his legacy at every show.
'It happens at every gig,' Billy said. 'This Is, Lee will. Lee will always do a bit of a spiel about Christy. And if it's not This Is, it could be Crazy World, but he's mentioned at every gig.
'Look, what can you say? Do you know what I mean? He's gone. Life goes on, music goes on, and that's it. But we do mention him at every gig'.
Aslan's latest single A Hand To Hold is out now on all streaming platforms. Aslan kick off their Australian tour tonight, before returning to Europe to play a string of UK and Irish dates later in the year.