‘Under Moving Skies’ is the new album by Dublin based singer-songwriter Eileen Gogan. Featuring guest appearances from luminaries such as Sean O’Hagan, Cathal Coughlan, Damian O’Neill, Terry Edwards and Stephen Ryan (The Stars of Heaven, The Revenants, The Drays), it is self-produced by Eileen and showcases the skills of this talented artist. The follow-up to her acclaimed debut, the concise and sparkling ‘Spirit Of Oberlin’ (see below), ‘Under Moving Skies’ is drawn from a much wider sound palette. Clearly relishing her role at the mixing desk, Eileen has written a collection of songs that take her far beyond previous boundaries.
Among eight self-penned songs are acoustic based pop nuggets such as the dreamily wistful ‘More Time’, the doughty ‘I Don’t Mind’ and the bouzouki-adorned ‘Yes, Music Does Have the Right To Children’, as well as ventures into more spatial, widescreen territory with the evocative and eerie ‘San Fran 1997’, the spectral ‘Sweet Alice’ and ‘Don’t Let Me Sleep’, a classic soul update that drifts into another world mid-song.
By contrast, ‘Echo’ is a suitably bare-boned meditation on a troubled relationship while the infectious ‘Malibu Stacy’ is all lip-gloss and Latin swagger. Adding further variety is a glistening instrumental by Undertones legend Damian O’Neill (who also provides the crackling guitar break on ‘Don’t Let Me Sleep’) and album closer ‘Celebration’, an a cappella version of a Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill poem for which Gogan has created a haunting air, providing the perfect showcase for her pure vocal style.
As a singer, Eileen’s unaffected delivery has invited comparisons with Sandy Denny and Kirsty MacColl, but her sound – a blend of glistening guitar and vintage keyboards – draws on a range of influences such as Richard and Linda Thompson, Neil Young, Can, Patti Smith, REM and Yo La Tengo. Her first album, ‘The Spirit of Oberlin’, was recorded with her band The Instructions and released in late 2015. It received widespread praise and was subsequently performed live at Longitude Festival, The Electric Picnic, Whelans, The Grand Social bar and Bello bar.
Outside of her solo work, Eileen has sung with The Would Bes’, The Revenants and The Drays and performed with Microdisney at their 2018-19 reunion concerts.
UNDER MOVING SKIES
TRACKLISTING
1 More Time
2 Don’t Let Me Sleep
3 Echo
4 I Don’t Mind
5 Sweet Alice
6 Malibu Stacy
7 Friday Tune
8 Yes, Music Does Have The Right To Children
9 San Fran 1997
10 Celebration
new interview with Eileen Gogan: https://bit.ly/3fyuRzJ
published by Write Wyatt
