FEATURE: Spotlight: Ailbhe Reddy — Music Musings & Such

FEATURE:

Spotlight

Ailbhe Reddy

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NOT that I will make this all about nationality…

but there are so many great acts coming from E.I.R.E. Ailbhe Reddy is one such artist, and contemporaries such as Pillow Queens, The Murder Capital, and Fontaines D.C. are producing some of the best music of the moment. Dublin, especially, is a hotbed for music talent, and I hope that the media spends more time investigating the city – as opposed to concentrating on the U.K. I have been conscious of Reddy’s music for a few years now, and I have watched her rise and grow; hearing these great songs come out and seeing her fan numbers rise. Personal History is her debut album, and one can preorder it now. Due for release on 2nd October, it is going to be one of those albums that we will look back on years from now; an artist who will be established and playing big festivals before long! I love the cover for Personal History, and everything about Reddy’s music captures the eye and heart. I will move on soon, but this article from Consequence of Sound reveals more about the album release and a brilliant new single, Between Your Teeth:

“Dublin songwriter Ailbhe Reddy has announced her debut album Personal History. To herald that October 2nd release, she has shared the new single “Between Your Teeth”.

Reddy first burst onto the scene in 2016 with her propulsive, folk-inflected EP Hollowed Out Sea. She has a rich alto voice, equally adept at conversational lyrics and soaring, aching hooks. Personal History was produced by Erland Cooper and Tommy McLaughlin, and recorded at Attica Audio Studios in Donegal, Ireland. So far, both of the singles — “Time Differences”, and now “Between Your Teeth” — are concerned with different kinds of emotional distance. Her latest offering finds her probing at a recalcitrant partner, wanting “Just to hear you speak/ The words between your teeth.”

As she explained in a statement, “Between Your Teeth” is about the feelings that aren’t expressed. She said,

“It’s about the frustration of being unable to communicate in a relationship. Both people hold things back because they either don’t want, or don’t know, how to express themselves. While traveling alone, I always spent a lot of time thinking too much about past conversations and wondering what words were being held back between another person’s teeth”.

BBC Radio 6 Music have been playing Reddy’s track, Time Difference, a lot, and that is a big achievement. Not that I solely rely on the station when it comes to my musical discoveries, but I know how chuffed Reddy is to be included in their playlist. It is a fantastic song and, on 2nd October, make sure you grab a copy of Personal History! I will flip forward to now with regards interviews, but I want to bring in an interview from Other Voices from 2017, as that is when I discovered Ailbhe Reddy - and I love to see where artists started and how they have progressed since:

“Ailbhe Reddy has fast emerged as one of the most promising young songwriters in Ireland today. Writing with an emotional honesty and attention to detail that suggests great things to come, the Dublin songstress won the popular vote and was viewer's choice to appear at this year's Other Voices in the IMRO Other Room. Picked as one of Nialler9's 'Artist To Love' for 2017, Ailbhe has one EP under her belt, 'Hollowed Out Seat', which has been streamed over one million times on Spotify.

How long have you been writing songs?

I’ve been writing songs since I first started playing guitar at age 12. Those songs were confined to my room until I finally worked up the courage to start playing gigs when I left college.

What initially inspired you to make music?

I grew up in a family that loved music, my older siblings and my mum would have always played an eclectic mix of songs in the car and around the house. My mum would have had us listening to more traditional singer-songwriters like Leonard Cohen, Don McClean, Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel etc. My older sisters would have provided me with my taste for more contemporary music like Jeff Buckley, Nirvana, and Fiona Apple. I think that mix really put a focus on lyrics for me. Ever since those car journeys home from school I’ve been inspired to get my thoughts and emotions across to others through music.

Do you worry about revealing too much in songs?

I used to, but people seem to really connect to the honesty so that has eased any fears I used to have. I think people hear what they want within a song, so no matter how personal it is to you, people make it personal to themselves in a different way. There is always a universal theme that people can connect to”.

I really love Ailbhe Reddy’s music, and I think she stands out in a sea of promising singer-songwriters. It has been a busy and varied year in music in spite of everything, and I can see the Reddy going very far. I did say how I was going to grab from an interview from this year but, actually, I have been thinking about my early point regarding Ireland and the music community there.

When Reddy spoke with District Magazine in 2018, she was asked about Irish music and, as has been debated for years, whether the country supports its artists enough to keep them – as opposed them leaving and setting up in London:

“Would you like to weigh in on the ‘Ireland doesn’t support it’s creatives, so they’re all leaving’ argument that we hear all too often these days? Why do you think this is? Do festivals like Hard Working Class Heroes help combat it?

I think that criticism is levelled towards the lack of funding for modern music from the Department of Culture. It’s also a criticism that isn’t just from creatives, but plenty of young people in other fields too. Rent is impossible in Dublin (yet we need to be in Dublin to avail of opportunities), creative spaces are few and far between. There’s not a lot of support for young Irish people in general, and it’s even worse for creatives as they are often going down the road less travelled.

You mentioned before in an interview that the Irish music community is quite tight-knit, and I can imagine that’s definitely true for the more intimate genres of indie and folk music. Have you been finding that overseas too?

It seems to be similar in different cities, that artists within communities band together and help each other out and tour together. I suppose it’s essential as a DIY movement grows within the indie music sphere and artists move away from the traditional label structure in favour of self-releasing and promoting. It’s certainly important to be able to ask for advice and support from peers who are doing the same thing”.

I will actually wrap things up in a minute because I think, so far, we have learned a lot about Ailbhe Reddy, and her debut album is definitely going to make an impression! I do hope that she gets to play widely next year, and I will come and see her if she comes to London. It is hard to put into words exactly what makes Reddy such a wonderful talent and popular songwriter. Her lyrics are at once personal and, at other times, they seem to speak to us all. She has a gorgeous way with words, and her voice carries so many layers and emotions. I cannot wait for Personal History to come out, and I know Reddy will be taking these songs to the people in 2021. She is a sensational talent, so make sure you follow her on social media and go and investigate her music. There are, as I said, a lot of great artists out there right now who are making music of the highest order but, if you want to get behind an artist who has the ability, stamina and originality to go a very long way, then I would direct you…