Taken from his forthcoming new album ‘She Brings Me Back To The Land Of The Living‘ (No Quarter – 5 May), our Song of the Day comes from Irish guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, and producer Cian Nugent with his new single ‘High Up Airplane‘. Watch the accompanying video, directed by Hannah Loughlin.
The album title was a phrase spoken by Cian’s mother, Kathy, as she was in the hospital recovering from a stroke and learning to speak again. Cian moved back into his family home and became her caretaker in 2020. Kathy also provided the album’s cover painting (read more below).
Director and camera – Hannah Loughlin
Editor, colouration and post-production – Jasmine Wood
Best boy – Eoin O’Dwyer
Dancer – Lamia Tadjine
No Quarter released the 2nd LP by Cian back in 2014. A masterful 3 song album titled Born With The Caul. He followed that up with another record (Night Fiction) in 2016 and much touring – both solo and as a sideman for Steve Gunn and Ryley Walker. Now – 7 years later – Cian’s 4th LP will be released on May 5th, 2023.
Cian on ‘She Brings Me Back To The Land Of The Living‘
Meaning can come from surprising places. In 2019, while rehabilitating from a stroke and experiencing aphasia (difficulty with speech and, in her case, a complete inability to speak), my mother began saying: “she brings me back to the land of the living”, seemingly out of nowhere and with little knowledge of its origin or meaning. The phrase seemed fortuitous and mysteriously meaningful. It stuck with me, while I was working on the songs that became this album, and it gained further meaning when in 2020, I moved back to my family home in the Dublin suburbs to become a caretaker for her. This lifestyle change and the new role provided purpose, and it also helped conceptually form this album. And, in a sense, provided a return for me to the land of the living. The songs here act as a way of processing change and accepting new futures. The album cover is a painting made by my mother, Kathy Nugent, in 2019 while in the hospital. It served as inspiration and guidance during the album’s production.
Cian Nugent, January 2023
Pre-Order https://ciannugent.bandcamp.com/album/she-brings-me-back-to-the-land-of-the-living
