Pale Lanterns left quite an impression on us when they appeared on our radar earlier this year. The Darragh Donnelly fronted four piece dazzled us with the enchanting alt folk of single ‘In the Dark We Are’ and subsequently walked away as winners of our Kickstart competition in 2018.
The main prize of Kickstart is of course a single recording and after a busy year, the band entered Start Together studios to lay down their newest single, ‘Driftwood‘. Beautifully cinematic and typically introspective in its outlook, ‘Driftwood’ offers further evidence that Donnelly is a gifted lyricist and songwriter.
“As a result of winning Chordblossom’s Kickstart competition and with the help and funding of Help Musicians NI we headed into Start Together Studios Belfast to lay down the tracks for our most recent single “Driftwood”. Having used the studio before to record our single “In the Dark We Are”, we were already comfortable with the setting and were excited to get started. Our bass player, Carl Small (Audio Engineer) who works regularly in the Start Together studio, was on hand to record the track. As this was the first occasion where Pale Lanterns were recording as a full band, it was an enlightening experience stepping on each others toes but working out all the knots that come with creating a new piece of music.
‘Driftwood’, is based around the metaphor of identity, that a persons identity can be as strongly rooted as a great Oak and seemingly unshakable, but through events that we have no control over, breakups, deaths i.e. the ocean or a storm can uproot a persons sense of safety and pull them out of the land that they were in. Only to be left afloat and drifting in an endless pushing and pulling of the tides or just life, with no control.
The song works its way to a mainly large instrumental end in a way to symbolize the eruption of a situation. I usually fill my songs with stacks of deeply personal but totally hidden meanings. Its like encoding a diary and giving it out to the public. Where as ‘Monstera’ is to date the most open song I have, where the meaning is just laid bare, about losing someone and only having the memories left, but even that is better than not having them.
We are already planning for 2019 with a music video early in the next year followed by a new EP around March time. If you want to catch us live, our next gig is in Portrush on the 17th November with Atlantic Sessions.”
We would like to take this opportunity to thank Help Musicians NI for their support throughout the competition, to Shizznigh Promotions for helping organise the showcase gig and of course to all the organisations donating their time and energy to offer our winner the awesome prizes below:-
► Professional Career Advice – Courtesy of Third Bar Artist Development
► Single Recording – Courtesy of Start Together Studios
► Video for your Single – Courtesy of Empty Horoscope Media
► Festival Slot – Courtesy of Stendhal Festival of Art
► Festival Slot – Courtesy of Sunflowerfest
► Festival Slot – Courtesy of Atlantic Sessions
► One Month PR – Courtesy of Lemon PR
► First Play of your Single – Courtesy of Electric Mainline
►Music Industry Contacts – Courtesy of The Unsigned Guide
► Professional Photoshoot – Courtesy of Conor Kerr Photography
► Single Launch Gig in Belfast – Courtesy of Chordblossom
► Support Slot in Portrush – Courtesy of Atlantic Live Lounge
► Support Slot in Derry/Londonderry – Courtesy of Bennigans Introducing
► Support Slot in Omagh – Courtesy of HenCav Events
► Support Slot in Bangor – Courtesy of Goat’s Toe
