Singer-songwriters Kelsey Michael and Neil Farrell have each released new singles today on the Bring Your Own Hammer label (in association with Dimple Discs).
They are part of an ongoing series for which musicians are tasked with creating songs rooted in the work of 19th century Irish writers.
Both songs are inspired and set to poems by Katharine Tynan, a poet, journalist and novelist born in Dublin in 1859. Already a published poet in her mid-teens, her first full volume of verse followed in 1885, while she went on to play a central role in the Irish literary revival that began in the late 19th century.
Tynan’s poem ‘Nymphs’ reflects key elements of the revival with its embrace of the natural world and its mysteries. She was also active politically; a nationalist, her journalism often focused on key social issues. However, her love of Ireland also accommodated a fondness for England, where she lived for a considerable part of her life. She was critical of the 1916 Easter Rising and supported Britain in World War 1, while both of her sons enlisted in the army. ‘Joining the Colours’ offers a vibrant portrayal of soldiers marching off to war, albeit strikingly combined with grim foreshadowing and a deep sadness at the fate that likely awaits them.
BYOH have once again partnered with the Irish Women’s Writing (1880-1920) Network for these singles, which was founded in 2016 with the aim of making the works and profiles of a diverse range of Irish women writers more visible and accessible. Further information about the organisation can be found HERE
The music of Kelsey Michael is a hotline to the nature and landscape of her adopted home of West Cornwall. Her 2024 solo album ‘Lethowsow’ (Dimple Discs) was described by Uncut as a ‘beguiling debut…infused with natural wonder’, immersing listeners in the rhythms of the sea. It presented crafted piano-songwriting influenced by Laura Nyro and Carole King alongside hypnotic songs with ‘zen-like repetition that is gentle and captivating’ (RNR). It received BBC 6 Music support from Gilles Peterson, Radcliffe & Maconie and other presenters. Kelsey has performed on albums by The High Llamas and Sean O’Hagan, and is also featured on Jocelyn Pook’s soundtrack for the Stanley Kubrick movie Eyes Wide Shut. She is currently working with fellow Dimple Discs signing Kev Hopper and collaborates with lap steel guitar and jaw harp/mouthbow duo The Happy Couple (David Ross and Judith Goodman), who are featured on ‘Nymphs’.
Neil Farrell is an Irish musician, songwriter and producer from Galway. He was a founder member of the band Toasted Heretic, whose four albums between 1988-1994 yielded a Top 10 hit as well as rave reviews all over Europe. He has more recently released the solo albums ‘A Trip to the Sewers of Paris’ (2018) and ‘A War About an Egg’ (2022), both under the moniker of The Melancholy Thug.
Bring Your Own Hammer (BYOH) brings historians and composers together to create new song cycles based on historical sources and to reinterpret song material rooted in the history of 19th century Ireland and of the Irish diaspora. It is not a band, a group, an ensemble or even a collective. If anything, it is a faction, but unlike 19th century Irish factions, who met, armed with sticks and two-handed wattles in fairs and markets, it is armed with voices and instruments and dedicated, as no faction before, to the reinterpretation of historical material in song form.