Good Strangers On the Making Of “Private Hell”
What was the creative process like for this particular "Private Hell?"
Conor: Private Hell was written during Covid. Niamh and I had just come back from living in Berlin for a couple of months and we were heavily influenced by the underground Indie Folk scene there. There was a lot of mad shit going on in the world in general at the time but there was a lot happening for me in my personal life too. I had a few mental health issues after the end of a significant relationship and I was also coming to terms with my sexuality. I was pretty messed up, so I decided to write about it. When I started writing Private Hell it was quite grim sounding because it was just me solemnly pining over these overly depressing lyrics on the acoustic guitar and the tempo was much slower. When we brought the song to the lads in the band, Luke (our bassist) came up with this insanely groovy riff and Des (our drummer boy) sped up the song which gave the song a whole new vibe. It gave the song the kick up the arse it needed.
Niamh: I remember sneaking into Conor's place during Lockdown and the two of us literally crying over a glass of wine singing this really depressing but beautiful song. But yea, it was nearly too emotional to sing at times. The guys in the band gave Private Hell a completely different feel and I love the juxtaposition of the sad lyrics but this upbeat groovy rhythm. This is the one we are most excited to play live.
Conor: I think there's hope in the lyrics too though. We all love a good cliche but I didn't want to write another bitter melancholic break-up song. I had written enough of them at the time. There are elements of bitterness & sadness & all that shit that comes with a breakup apparent in the lyrics, but I wanted it to be more in an "I'm sorry this happened but I wish you nothing but the best" kind of way. So I suppose it's more about personal guilt in hindsight. But at least you can shake your arse and have a good bop to it now though.
Were there any memorable or standout moments during the recording sessions for "Private Hell?"
Niamh: Well we recorded Private Hell while we were recording our upcoming EP 'Adult Teenage Novels' in the beautiful Black Mountain Studios in Dundalk earlier this year with the amazingly talented Alex Borwick (Catfish & The Bottlemen, Sam Fender, Lankum) and to be honest the whole process was so much craic! Alex really brought out the best in us.
Conor: There was a great feel in the recording room. We tracked all the instrumentation pretty much live and Alex really allowed us to capture a lot of energy & emotions in this studio that day. My particular favourite moment was getting all our partners and a few mates to come in to do record some live backing vocals on the track. It was very much wholesome family vibes in the studio that day.
What has been one of your favorite memories along the path to making "Private Hell?"
Niamh: I think jamming it out for the first time as a band was really cool. We all looked at each other in the rehearsal room and we knew we were on to something different.
Conor: Yea I think every time we play Private Hell in the rehearsal room, there's a great energy to it. But for me, my favourite memory was recording the vocals in the studio. Me and Ni both recorded our vocals live together in the room which was Alex's idea and I feel like we really bounced off each other so well and it brought out this great energy. It was quite powerful actually, when we weren't both pissin' ourselves laughin' in between takes.
How did your band members initially come together?
Niamh: Me and Conor have been singing together since we were teenagers really, so we are literally like a married couple at this point.
Conor: We have all played with each other individually over the years in various different bands and projects but never together as a fivesome. We are more like a group of misfit friends who happened to jam out in the studio one day. We were actually looking for musicians to record some demos and we were really good mates with the guys and knew they could play really well. But it sounded so good from the first rehearsal day that we sort of kidnapped the lads and made them join the band.
Can you share a valuable lesson or piece of advice that you have learned along your musical journey?
Conor: Don't take it all too seriously. Enjoy the ride. I have been in other bands and projects before where there was a of pressure and expectations, a lot of which I put on myself and others by exterior people within the industry. I think as you get older you learn to appreciate your own way of doing things & embrace your own overall identity as a musician more. I think a lot of the time in the industry, there are tendencies to compare yourself to others or be compared to others and how well they're doing, but I think it's more important to follow your own rules rather than following others and enjoy that process. Also....work with your friends.
Niamh: Get a manager! Ah no...We're an independent band and it can be hard to balance the creative and business side of things ..... but it is doable. It's all about surrounding yourself with like-minded good people.
