Caoi de Barra releases her debut album’s first single ‘Loneliness, What Is This?’ today.
It’s the clearest statement yet of where she’s headed after a decade with Wyvern Lingo, after last year’s tour and the debut Treehouse EP from 2023.
‘Loneliness, What Is This?’ is a song of restless intent, of an indie-folk persuasion about “how your feeling about your own reality is warped by the people who aren’t in it” – a precise and slightly unsettling way of describing loneliness that suits the song’s energy.
It was Recorded at Hellfire Studios in Dublin, co-produced by de Barra, Joe McGrath and Caoimhe Hopkinson (Allison Russell, Shawn James), and mixed by John ‘Spud’ Murphy (Lankum, ØXN). Fiddle from Ultan O’Brien completes a production that feels rooted and contemporary at the same time.
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De Barra spent a decade with Wyvern Lingo – two Top 10 albums, an RTÉ Choice Music Prize nomination – before stepping out under her own name and doing things characteristically on her own terms, including two solo tours of Ireland powered by 125cc scooters. She’s also been building a parallel career as a drummer and vocalist, touring internationally with Allison Russell, Wallis Bird and Westerman, and playing Glastonbury, Newport Folk Festival and Later with Jools Holland along the way.
This September she joins selected dates of Wallis Bird’s European tour as a solo support act, performing her own material alongside her role in Wallis’ band. Her June 11th headline show at Prachtwerk in Berlin will feature a full band setup as Caoi de Barra and The Girlfriend Experience – with Wallis Bird on drums, which is a lineup worth travelling for.
Tour dates:
- Wednesday June 11th – Prachtwerk, Berlin (headline, Caoi de Barra and The Girlfriend Experience, support from Marlais)
- September 2nd-13th – Support on Wallis Bird European tour (dates at wallisbird.com/live)
‘Loneliness, What Is This?’ is out now
Caoi on Instagram / Youtube / Tik Tok / Bandcamp
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
