Hello from Ireland!

A great welcome to all the viewers of “Rockville CA” from me, Rocky O’Reilly.

I play in Oppenheimer, a two-piece band from Belfast.

Late last year we took a 12 hour flight to Los Angeles from Dublin to play on “Rockville CA.” We filmed very early in the morning; I think it was about 9 AM. We hadn’t been to bed in three days! We’d played two concerts on our way from Belfast, and we felt nowhere near as attractive or presentable as the beautiful extras that were filling the Echoplex before we played.

Like every American audience that we’ve been lucky enough to play to in our many months of shows in your massive country, the people were warm, funny, interactive and welcoming to our funny accents and short pop songs.

Oppenheimer started in 2004 in a spare room in my house. We’d talked and toyed with the idea of starting a band with loads of synthesizers, bleeps and blips, and as many interesting noises as possible. We drank a lot of beer one night while watching the band The Album Leaf in a small bar near our houses. At some point during the set, we finally decided, “We can do that,” and so Oppenheimer began.

Before long, we were signed to Bar/None records from New Jersey. We were invited to play at festivals, go on tours and play shows with bands like The Bravery, Hot Chip, The Chalets, Ash, Tilly & The Wall and They Might Be Giants.

The four years since we started have been a whirlwind of crazy nights, long days and unbelievable events. Some of our favorite memories (spending 110 days living in a splitter van) while touring around the United States include watching deer run alongside us in Montana; celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with 10,000 “Irish” people in Austin, Texas; and being informed by a police officer that “fireworks are illegal in the state of New Jersey” after getting a bit too excitable with explosives on the beach in Atlantic City. These beautiful and surreal experiences have changed the people we are while touring from state to state, time and time again.

2009 has already been an incredible year for us. We’ve just completed a tour with OK Go and we’re returning for a series of shows with The Presidents of the United States of America on the East Coast in the second half of April. Between tours, we’ve been writing and starting to record songs for our third album. It’s the most exciting part of being in Oppenheimer for me, layering ideas and creating new songs. With each album we try to develop everything that we are, and this time we’re getting the chance to try completely new things; from heavier and faster songs, to rap and eight minute epics!

All the while I try to make as many fun videos as possible: Check our website and MySpace pages for “Attacks of the airhorn” on unsuspecting sound men and “ROCKENHEIMER, the directors cut,” the instrumental power rock band documentary that changed the face of music as we know it, and other crazy moments from our time on tour.

When not on tour or writing songs with Shaun, I spend a lot of time recording other Irish artists at my studio in Belfast.

We have an incredibly healthy music scene for a very small country. Belfast is filled with talented songwriters and musicians, and we all like to help each other out as much as possible. It’s a unique and fulfilling atmosphere in which to live and create.

Lately I’ve been enjoying watching all the “Tremors” and “Child’s Play movies,” and planning on making low budget sequels with my friends. If anyone has any creepy dolls or giant worms they want to donate, please get it touch!

Please feel free to stop by and stalk us on MySpace, Facebook or our website!

MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/oppenheimer
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Oppenheimer/28802850124?ref=ts
Website: http://www.oppenheimermusic.co.uk/

Rocky.