Secret Meeting score: 72

by Phil Scarisbrick

London-based, Irish alternative folk musician Seamus Fogarty released his second album and first for Domino Records around a year ago. The Curious Hand was a meandering journey through the lives of a rich cast list which received great critical acclaim. Now he returns with a follow-up EP entitled This Old Suit, so does it stand up to its predecessor?

The title track stomps along with a constant looping guitar riff fighting with a swelling violin and various, building electronic layers to be heard. This all bubbles along under Fogarty’s rich vocal melody as he sings of being “like an old suit/waiting to be worn again“. There are subtle changes to the vocal effects and layering which add a sense of urgency before dysipating back to a more settled feel. It is a beautiful composition that will lodge itself in your head.

Song for John‘s vocal kicks in immediately and starts on what seems like a stream of consciousness, unveiling feelings of confusion and regret. The large sound of the chorus falls apart as it searches for the right way out before a repeated falsetto hook “If there’s a God up there I hope he can tell/that I’ve been touched by heaven but I’ve lived in hell” anchors everything. The chaotic make up of the track’s music gives a sense of forboding to a wonderfully crafted song.

The rest of EP is made up of remixes of The Curious Hand tracks, Carlow Town and Seems Whatever (remixed by Django Django and James Yorkston respectively), but the original tracks released here are the real story, and show that whatever Fogarty releases next, we can very excited by it.

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