You might have heard of the pair that founded Poor Creature, one of the most exciting bands in Ireland, in a time when the country is literally brimming with unique talent.
Lankum are a force to be reckoned with, celebrated with near universal acclaim, unless you are Irish Independent journalist and nested clown John Burns, the only civilian I’ve ever seen go to bat for a bank like Barclays.
Not contented with literally changing the landscape of folk music and redefining ancient traditions, the people who make up its number have branched out and revolutionized whatever genre they have dipped a toe into, be it the harrowing grandeur of Ian Lynch’s One Leg, One Eye or bona fide supergroup ØXN, which sees Radie Peat join the gothic majesty that is Katie Kim, and Ellie Myler and John ‘Spud’ Murphy of experimentalists, Percolator.
Landless too are breaking ground. Genuine reverence has found the group in the international press, off the back of one of the most astounding records this listener has ever heard in ‘Lúireach’ .
Ruth Clinton and Cormac Diarmada, alongside drummer John Dermody [The Jimmy Cake], are weaving something truly special. Ethereal and experimental, propulsive and transportative, their interpretation of this folk imbued music is utterly singular, and stands entirely apart from the members’ wildly impressive pedigrees.
With an imminent new record produced by the aforementioned ‘Spud’, and a show to celebrate in the intimate confines of The Bello Bar on the 10th of August, anyone with even a passing interest in sound owes it to themselves to explore the rarefied environs the trio so effortlessly conjure.
It’s a beautiful combination of things you guys put together. It’s such a unique interpretation of that source. Was it a conscious thing, to do something so ethereal and enchanting, or was that just what you stumbled upon when you started working on Poor Creature?
Cormac: I’d say it’s a stumbled upon thing.
Ruth: It always comes from the instruments we play, and that we have around. We work from that outwards, rather than anything premeditated, or aesthetic. We all have our sets of influences, and that fluctuates as well. Things unfold and change over time, and of course, we’ve had a lot of time, over lockdowns and being slow to record, to actually sit with the songs, and alter them slightly.
I would say it’s a product of the instruments, and the sound develops out of that, informed by influences that we’ve carried for years.
What can we look forward to over the rest of 2024 from the three of you? Will the album see a full tour for example?
Ruth: We’re hoping to get the album out as soon as possible, but no concrete plans after that. We’d like to travel. We have, or rather, I have, slowly whittled down the number of instruments we use to try and make it a little bit more manageable. There was just smany things…
Cormac: Especially the Organetta, in particular.
Ruth: I have this 1977 Hohner Organetta, an electric organ. It’s really lovely, but it’s so bulky and heavy. We’ve been working on making ourselves a little more portable.
I’m amazed by the abstract visuals you guys create, and your work with artists like John Francis Flynn.
Ruth: Sligo has infinite excellent landscapes, for just going out and messing. I have a visual arts background, and I have a visual arts background, so I’m used to making videos. Cormac is great at thinking of spooky ideas.
Cormac: We both love finding colour and shape and contrast.
Ruth: It’s a process, and experimental. Not coming from a proper film background, as in making storyboards or production plans. It’s very fun to go out on a mountain with, say, a camera and a bin bag.
Cormac: Giving people the credit that they can draw their own narrative from this stuff is important.
Words: Adhamh Ó Caoimh
Poor Creature play Bello Bar on Saturday August 10th. Tickets here.
