This nine-track debut, delving into the pre-Christian Irish tradition of grieving songs known as caoineadh (keening), shows us a young artist’s arresting engagement with the intensity of emotions surrounding loss. Rose Connolly has a beautiful voice with a wide melodic range, which she bends, twists, strains and warps through both her physical exertions and a sample-based granular synthesiser. The results recall both the Gaelic tradition of séan-nos singing, and the work of experimental artists such as Meredith Monk, Yoko Ono and Hatis Noit, while the beats meld folk with gothic, 4AD-era soundscapes unmatched since the glory days of This Mortal Coil.
“Mo Lean” features several new original recordings and reworks of songs and hymns based around the concept of death, life, mourning and catharsis. Rois re-imagines the tradition of keening in Ireland that goes back to pre-christian times, a practice in which women, or bean caointe, would keen a lamenting wail at the side of a coffin during a wake.
After discovering two out three lasting recordings of keening songs, Rois was inspired by their ethereal melodies to give them a modern reworking.
Rois aspires to express the power of the voice to transcend death and help us relinquish our fear of it.
released October 4th, 2024
Written & produced by RÓIS
The Fat Angel Sings 