Poor Creature (Lankum/Landless) announce album on Rough Trade imprint River Lea
Poor Creature is Ruth Clinton, Cormac MacDiarmada and John Dermody, who are all members of other bands – Landless and Lankum respectively.
John Dermody was also drummer with The Jimmy Cake, as well as the live drummer for Lankum.
The contemporary Irish folk trio have announced a new album called All Smiles Tonigh to be released on Rough Trade imprint River Lea on July 11th.
It was produced by John ‘Spud’ Murphy.
River Lea is a music label that specializes in British and Irish folk music.
A 7 minute plus lead single ‘The Whole Town Knows’ is out today , along with a video, directed by Ruth Clinton and Cormac MacDiarmada.
“The video was filmed over a number of years, near to and far from our home in the northwest of Ireland. Starring ourselves and many friends, both boxy and round, with special thanks to the pigeons of Sligo”.
Poor Creature play Whelans, Dublin this Friday April 11th, and an instore at Rough Trade East in London on 14 July, Supersonic Festival on 31 August and the Royal Festival Hall, London on 20 September, supporting Lisa O’Neill.
Poor Creature Tour Dates
11 April – Whelans, Dublin
14 July – Rough Trade East Instore, London
31 Aug – Supersonic Festival, Birmingham
20 Sept – Royal Festival Hall, London, supporting Lisa O’Neill
The album will be available on CD, standard black vinyl LP and a special independent record shops DINKED edition neon yellow vinyl LP with lyric booklet and signed print.
1 – Adieu Lovely Eireann
2 – Bury Me Not
3 – The Whole Town Knows
4 – Loreen
5 – An Draighneán Donn
6 – All Smiles Tonight
7 – Hicks’ Farewell
8 – Willie – O
Album pre-order here.
There’s definitely a unifying theme of loss and separation on nearly all the songs on the record. When working on ‘The Whole Town Knows’ (a Ray Lynam & Philomena Begley track), it transformed from a song about cheating hearts to something else. It talks about how we can’t go on living this way, which became a metaphor for the climate crisis and the general destruction of the planet. ‘Lorene’, which Cormac sings solo, is an epistolary tale of missing someone, and the despair of unanswered letters, which channels Chantal Akerman’s News From Home.
Poor Creature’s sound – particularly in the context of contemporary Irish folk – offers something unique. There’s the gauzy, underwater, almost psychedelic seams of ‘Bury Me Not’ and ‘Adieu Lovely Erin’. ‘All Smiles Tonight’ and ‘Hicks’ Farewell’ nod to the influence of American folk/bluegrass acts like Doc Watson and the Louvin Brothers. These shifting sounds are made possible by producer John ‘Spud’ Murphy, who has produced all of Lankum’s albums, and worked with Junior Brother, ØXN, Pretty Happy, Ye Vagabonds as well as the final two albums by The Jimmy Cake, with whom John has played for over 20 years.
“There’s something about the everyday and the fantastical, being entangled, which I think Irish music does so well” explains Ruth. This also sums up All Smiles Tonight, moving through stories and loss and history to create an otherworldly and timeless album for the ages.
