Dark Music from the Irish? Well I Never...:James Vincent McMorrow

When thinking Irish temperament it tends to be in extremes. On the one hand there's the raucous, life-affirming, fun loving side. On the other is the melancholic, mournful, hard-luck side. And as a musician, Dubliner James Vincent McMorrow has covered both.


Cutting his teeth on hardcore punk, McMorrow credits Crosby, Stills and Nash for turning him folk. He now makes slow-moving, heartbreaking albums with faintly tragic guitar-picked melodies and high-pitched vocals (not unlike Bon Iver, actually). Meanwhile, his lyrical inspiration comes from the likes of  John Steinbeck, F Scott Fitzgerald and Roald Dahl, writers Mc Morrow looks to for "the darker, less spoken-about aspects of life, solitude and disillusionment." 


In terms of the good vs. the hard luck of the Irish, McMorrow's music may fall in the latter category. But we're all the luckier for it.


His new album will be available January 25 in the Canada/US, and March 7 in Europe. For now, you can get his self-titled EP from Faction Records.

James Vincent McMorrow EP by partisanpr