With Dani Larkin’s Next of Kin tour kicking off, it’s the perfect opportunity to experience one of the most holistic and expansive albums to come out of Northern Ireland in years.
I’m listening on the first sunny day after the long dreary winter we’ve experienced, and the album seems to mirror that same shift in feeling. The battle of hope and reflection is so apparent within her melodies; an atmosphere that can bring you to tears, while also giving you a quiet strength for the future.
Dani’s music seems to look so outwardly on the world with an understanding that almost feels spiritual. She seems to sing about life from above the trials and tribulations, not ignoring them, but marking them through the process of universal storytelling. The pagan phrase Idir dhá saol – between two worlds, seems particularly fitting.
‘She moved through the fair’ captures this quality perfectly. The track gives us a beautiful 7-minute soundscape exploring a simple allegory that hides a plethora of meanings, a song that shares the same sense that it should be passed down generations, as traditional folktales would be.
Storytelling is key to Next of Kin which unfolds like a triptych of work. It seems to begin with the innocence of childhood and mythology, moving into the joyful exploration of life and opportunity, (creating almost a bridge within an album) and then rejoicing with understanding and community in the final part. The two beautiful versions of Caledonia and Danny Boy, both hope filled songs that look to a bright future, bring a resolution and a path to continue in.
There are layers to Next of Kin that I don’t think we can fully comprehend – and perhaps that’s the point. The album reads like a life in music, an incredible feat for an artist so early in her career. Given this, there is no surprise Dani Larkin has earned so much praise from established Irish artists. She writes and performs with a confidence and wisdom far beyond her years on the scene.
Seeing her on this tour, particularly in such intimate venues across Ireland and the UK would be one of those rare opportunities to say you were there before the masses catch on.
