Formed in Dublin in late 2011, noisy indie rock quartet Girl Band changed their name to Gilla Band and quickly caused a stir in the blogosphere with their debut single, "In My Head," which appeared as a free download in April 2012. With influences ranging from Nirvana to Queens of the Stone Age to mclusky, the four-piece of Dara Kiely (vocals), Alan Duggan (guitar), Daniel Fox (bass), and Adam Faulkner (drums) went about playing shows around Ireland and making an EP. Recorded live and produced by the band, France 98 was available in a limited run of 300 12" vinyl through Any Other City and included the infectious groove of "You're a Dog." Following this, Gilla Band recorded a cover of techno artist Blawan's "Why They Hide Their Bodies Under My Garage?," which furthered their reputation and expanded their fan base, setting them up for a handful of U.K. live dates in April 2013.

A few limited 7" singles appeared on Any Other City in 2014. Tracks from these singles, as well as the band's Blawan cover, were given wider release in 2015 on The Early Years, Gilla Band's debut EP for Rough Trade (which ironically did not include any material from their earliest releases from 2012). Holding Hands with Jamie, the group's self-produced debut album, landed on Rough Trade in September 2015. In the summer of 2016, they abruptly canceled all further tour dates, citing health reasons. The band went conspicuously silent online, leading many to believe they had split up. However, in 2019 the group unexpectedly announced another album, The Talkies, which they had been secretly recording at Ballintubbert House on the outskirts of Dublin. Gilla Band's first concert album, Live at Vicar St., arrived in 2020. It was recorded over two nights in 2019 at the famed Dublin venue. ~ Daniel Clancy, Rovi