GROUPON GUIDE TO CHICAGO

Kodaline’s Rock Anthems Channel Coldplay (But Not "World of Warcraft")

BY: Emily Wachowiak |Mar 5, 2014
Kodaline’s Rock Anthems Channel Coldplay (But Not Topping the Irish charts is just deja vu for this Dublin-based band, who recently reinvented themselves with a heartfelt album and viral video.  If Kodaline’s In a Perfect World sounds pretty polished for a debut LP, it might be because its members have been making music together since their teen years. In 2007, childhood friends Steve Garrigan and Mark Prendergast scored a No. 1 hit on the Irish Singles Chart with "Give Me a Minute, a song recorded under the name 21 Demands. The duo turned away from fame to attend college , emerging four years later with two more bandmates—Vinny May and Jason Boland—and an increased penchant for guitar-driven rock songs about youthful romance and heartbreak. Their rebirth also came with a new name: Kodaline, a made-up word they'd later find out they share with a player's level 90 druid in World of Warcraft. Kodaline’s soaring melodies and anthemic choruses have drawn numerous comparisons to the Coldplay hits of yesteryear, and will likely be rattling arena rafters before too much longer. Though they may share a similar sound, the band plans to be way more prolific than their British counterparts. With their current songs featured on Grey’s Anatomy and Catfish, they claim to already have enough material for a follow-up to their 2013 debut. Until that time comes, the band plans to lean into a hectic tour schedule that takes them to Australia, Luxembourg, and Italy in the coming months. While they may not be World of Warcraft fans, they're definitely good at the Internet; the buzzed-about video for their hit single "All I Want" comes off as a charming, if unlikely, cross between Beauty and the Beast, The Office, and an Upworthy article. Kodaline is scheduled to play a sold-out show at the Bottom Lounge (1375 W. Lake St.) on Friday, March 7.  Photo provided by Revere / RCA