Lord Jane‘s emergence at their first live show back in March seems no time ago. With debut single ‘I Did It To Myself’ and further shows following swiftly on, the band quickly built excitement around their buzzing alt-rock. The five-piece, fronted by vocalist Clodágh May alongside members of Mob Wife, Ferals and more, release their debut EP Tullips on Friday with the fourth & final track of the same name dropping at the same time. ‘Tullips’ like those singles before it showcases the band’s tight sound with inventive guitar parts, tying the EP together with lyrics about breaking free from “the mental chains we impose on ourselves”.
The band launch the single this Saturday in Ulster Sports Club, while we’re excited to have them on our next GIFTED bill on 17 October.
Just ahead of the release we asked the band to give us a peek into the influences behind their alt-rock sound.
Frightened Rabbit – The Modern Leper
It’s raw and honest, compiling complicated feelings with such clarity.
Scott Hutchinson was an incredible lyricist and singer. He had a capacity to be vulnerable and express difficult emotions through his music, with both heartache and humour. He did so in such an unflinching manner, exemplifying that there is a power in sharing those experiences with others. Darkness isn’t linear and we love how this song and many of FR songs wrap such vivid detail lyrically around hooks, upbeat rhythms and Scott’s beautiful melodies. Coming from heavy bands sonically in the past, this band was one of the examples of how we wanted to be heavy in our delivery, not with distortion, but with the intent and feeling behind what we do.
Foals – Balloons
When Sam and Dylan first got together to riff about and begin what consequently led to Lord Jane, we had many artists we mutually love and share with one another, but Foals was a common example of how they would frisbee grooves back and forth and feel compelled to instil a feeling and urge to ‘dance’ within the music and not shy away from hooks. Jack Bevan’s drumming has imprinted itself on Dylan’s love of drums over the years. This track is a great example of locking into a groove and just making the listener bop their head consistently.
Delta Sleep – El Pastor
This is lush with its sparkly intertwining guitar parts. Mainly light overdriven tones with the use of reverb and octave pedals. Any heavier guitar parts are used sparingly to create a bigger impact when needed. The dynamics of Delta Sleep have had a huge impression on our taste, and the dynamics of this song exemplify those qualities.
Ben Howard – I Forget Where We Were
Ben Howard has been an inspiration through many aspects of the band, with this song highlighting dynamic peaks and lows. Our guitarist Sam plays much of our material through open tunings, and Ben Howard is certainly one of the many artists who has had an imprint on his and Aidan’s style. This song in particular with its beautiful shimmering reverb, tonally melancholic with emotive lyricism.
Death Cab for Cutie – Transatlanticism
The transition between ‘Tiny Vessels’ to ‘Transatlanticism’ is gorgeous and a stand-out on what is a beautiful album from a favourite of ours. Ben Gibbard is able to lyrically paint the feelings of distance between two people. Collectively they show the ability to not rush sections, but really sit and build dynamically to make the pay-off cathartic in such an evocative track. The layers underneath of the piano from the beginning is the exact layer of detail that makes this song even greater, something that this band exemplifies and inspires us to do the same.
Jeff Buckley – Lover, You Should’ve Come Over
In the beginnings of Lord Jane, Jeff Buckley’s imprint on our own taste had often been shared among everyone and how we wanted to approach our work, often playing song from the album ‘Grace’ at the end of a night in the studio and driving in the car. An incredible raw talent, an excellent guitar player and an impeccable voice. This song beautifully builds, releasing his capacity to emote vocally in despair, coinciding with the dynamics of instrumentation.
Hayley Williams – Crystal Clear
A trailblazer, inspiring many, including our vocalist, Clodágh. Hayley Williams has such a presence on stage and an amazing vocal range that is used dynamically throughout her work. A beautiful way to close off this album, this song is reflective and gives a power to take control over life, not to live in fear.
Pinegrove – Rings
This song captures the raw and confessional quality that this band absolutely nails. The interplay between the jangly guitars and understated rhythm section creates a sense of forward motion, but with a contemplative, almost meditative quality. This balance of introspection and momentum is something that resonates with us, as it reminds us how music can express personal growth while driving the listener forward.
Foals – Inhaler
This song brings many of us back to the time we first started listening heavily to Foals. Guitars go from percussive dynamically to huge and lush. This style of song immediately perked our ears when we heard it and wanted more. We love this band’s approach and growth over the years from their grooviest to their most melancholic and atmospheric work.
And So I Watch You From Afar – The Voiceless
The playlist wouldn’t be complete without mentioning ASIWYFA. A band from the coast, like several of us. A band we’ve seen many times and have been instilled on our musical palette from the moment we dived into music. I (Dylan) remember being at The Brawl back in Portrush when I first started playing drums, holding guitarist Sam on my shoulders, as he held the net hanging from the ceiling roof in the small overflowing room of The Atlantic, bouncing, head-banging and sweating. It was electric and seeing that band perform solidified that this is exactly what we want to do, this is how music should move people live. This song captures the dynamics and emotive quality this band can evoke.
Radiohead – All I Need
Haunting and beautiful. The rhythmic dissonance adds a sense of unpredictability to the feel of this song, a dissociated effect between drum and bass in moments, in an otherwise simple arrangement, which goes hand in hand with the relationship dynamic sung about in the song. We often discuss ourselves within tracks how the instrumentation can overt, contrast or at times be a subtle nod to the lyrics and narrative playing out, whether that be with rhythm and percussion details or collectively.
Playlist:
