The Irish singer-songwriter is back with a self-produced new song returning to his acoustic roots.
After a recent Academy Award shortlist for Best Original Song at the Academy Awards in 2023 for his contribution to John Carney’s Flora and Son, Ardiff is set to followup the album Once I Was from the same year.
‘Small Talk’ brings it back to instruments of the stringed variety guitars, banjo, and the South American charango, with Ardiff recording and mixing everything himself, after recording at Yellow Door Studios in Dublin.
“This is the first cut from a collection of songs I’ve been working on over the past few years. It’s also my first time mixing anything on my own, so it’s been a huge learning curve. I wanted to create music that feels more outward-looking, moving away from the introspective themes I’ve explored in the past.”
The video was shot by his former Come On Live Long bandmate Steve Battle who was in South East Asia at the time, and footage of his time there is seen in the video:
Setting off on a 2 month trek around South east Asia in January I packed my camera to capture some moments along the way. When Robert contacted me I was in a hotel room on an island in Southern Cambodia unsure if I had enough footage to sustain a music video. I had captured much of Asian street life along the way but there was something about the dream like state of the night train that grabbed my focus.
As I listened to Small Talk for the first time I was drawn to the rhythmic quality of Robert’s guitar picking and the expansive sound of the banjo which in my mind echoed the movement and chug of the train along the tracks, it’s almost hypnotic.
I wanted the video to be simple but the intention was to try and capture a sense of movement and wonder. Each cut became a reflection of fleeting moments, where time seemed to stretch and bend, much like the seemingly endless tracks ahead. It seemed to sync perfectly with the ethereal melody of the song.
In the end, you end up back where you started but hopefully something inside you has changed. Travel and music both possess an incredible ability to change a person in profound ways. And when we return home, the change is subtle, yet undeniable.
Song Credits:
Robert John Ardiff – Guitar, Vocals, Charango, Synth, Drum
Stu McMahon – Banjo
Louise Gaffney – Guitar, Piano
Produced by Robert John Ardiff
Mastered by Ben Rawlins
Robert John Ardiff gigs
Sofar Sounds Dublin – April 27th
Whelans, Dublin – May 2nd
About Robert John Ardiff:
Robert John Ardiff first garnered attention as a member of the Choice Music Prize-nominated band Come On Live Long. Since embarking on a solo career, Ardiff has released three albums and numerous EPs, earning over 15 million streams on Spotify. He has performed extensively across Ireland and internationally, with appearances at festivals and showcases like Other Voices, MONDO Music Festival in New York, and Ireland Music Week.
