Dan O’Mahony had many roles to perform other than that of a musician from Orange County. As a songwriter, author, singer, traveler, activist, and journalist, O’Mahony had the form of resume that many artists would crave. As someone who sang for venerated hardcore music bands in Orange County, such as Shiner’s Club, O’Mahony’s lyrics against domestic abuse, self-destruction, war, and homophobia set a high bar.
In 2019, Brad Logan interviewed O’Mahony for OC Weekly. At the time, Logan thought that the musician was depending on foundation grants, residuals, or record label funding as a source of income. However, Logan did not ask the musician what he had as a job when away from the road. During the interview, Logan asked the musician some questions, including things regarding his life. Here are some excerpts of the interview, which happened around when Shiner’s Club released its first full-length long play entitled ‘Can’t Have Nice Things’.
O’Mahony On Who He Was And Why He Did What He Did
Introducing himself as Dan O’Mahony, the musician said that he was unsure how to explain the reason for doing what he did back then. O’Mahony sang for Californian hardcore bands for a long time. O’Mahony stated that when he did not sing for those bands, he was not happy about it. On the other hand, when he did it, O’Mahony said, he was of a sounder mind than when he was not doing it.
As for O’Mahony, almost every musician would say that they did it due to a political agenda or to let the demons out. However, according to O’Mahony, if one had music in them, they would perhaps not function at their maximum capacity if they did not sing.
O’Mahony On Whether Paid His Bills
Being part of a band cost O’Mahony a lot more as compared to what it made him, due to recording. As per O’Mahony, a band almost gave its merchandise away as it really enjoyed doing it. Even as O’Mahony was selling the most products he ever traded, he hardly ever performed with guarantees. Therefore, O’Mahony had not considered music a way of paying his bills. Even as he made more money than ever before, O’Mahony fell well short of a six-figure earning.
Interestingly, O’Mahony even worked in bars for twenty years. While O’Mahony had a bit of passion for his job, it was not an impetus in his life. At the time of the interview, O’Mahony managed bars and worked for a store chain with a nationally-known imprint. Therefore, he went to work, daily, knowing that anything about him was not reflected in something happening at his job.
As for O’Mahony, it was acceptable to be an individual who managed a restaurant, sodomized a chicken, or sold beer and made about five million dollars per year. It was what his store did even as he was not present there.
O’Mahony On A Future Without Playing Music
O’Mahony stated that people discussed whether one would become too old to play music or not. As for O’Mahony, everyone expected jazz musicians and blues guys to become old. Once, he witnessed Ella Fitzgerald’s Hollywood Bowl performance some years before her death. As per O’Mahony, it was way cooler than witnessing the same singer’s 1958 performance. O’Mahony added that an aging punk rock musician had some magic and beauty.
O’Mahony thought that two things would serve underground music and punk rock music well, comprising the following.
- Dismissing a notion demanding that punk rock music and underground music be a form of youth culture since only those who were alive in its first generation best understood its aspects somewhat.
- The second thing was that just the past was valid.
As for O’Mahony, a few of the most impressive music came out of the musicians who traveled the most and came out to naive people in a dangerous or difficult environment, who only started singing. According to some people, underground music was just for youngsters or was only valid when it was old. According to O’Mahony, those notions were mutually nonsense.