LISTEN / ORDER
The album is available on CD, standard black vinyl LP and a special independent record shops DINKED edition neon yellow vinyl LP with lyric booklet and signed print. They are playing album release instores at Rough Trade East (London) on July 14th + Spindizzy (Dublin) on July 12th, order the album from those shops to gain entry to these shows. They have further tour dates in September full details below.
Poor Creature is comprised of Ruth Clinton, Cormac MacDiarmada and John Dermody, all three are members of other bands (Landless and Lankum respectively), their sound – particularly in the context of contemporary Irish folk – offers something unique, latest offering and album title track ‘All Smiles Tonight’ is a nod to the influence of American folk/bluegrass acts like Doc Watson and the Louvin Brothers. These shifting sounds are made possible by producer John ‘Spud’ Murphy, who has produced all of Lankum’s albums, and worked with Junior Brother, ØXN, Pretty Happy, Ye Vagabonds as as well as the final two albums by The Jimmy Cake, with whom John has played for over 20 years. “Spud is just incredibly talented”, says Cormac. “He’ll keep sending back mixes, and they just keep on getting better and better. He’s got this attention to detail and ridiculous ears – he’s also pretty patient, which helps.”
There’s definitely a unifying theme of loss and separation on nearly all the songs on the record. When working on ‘The Whole Town Knows’ (a Ray Lynam & Philomena Begley track), it transformed from a song about cheating hearts to something else. “It talks about how we can’t go on living this way, which became a metaphor for the climate crisis and the general destruction of the planet. ‘Lorene’, which Cormac sings solo, is an epistolary tale of missing someone, and the despair of unanswered letters, which channels Chantal Akerman’s News From Home.
“There’s something about the everyday and the fantastical, being entangled, which I think Irish music does so well” explains Ruth. This also sums up All Smiles Tonight, moving through stories and loss and history to create an otherworldly and timeless album for the ages.
Album tracklisting:
1 – Adieu Lovely Erin
2 – Bury Me Not
3 – The Whole Town Knows
4 – Loreen
5 – An Draighneán Donn
6 – All Smiles Tonight
7 – Hicks’ Farewell
8 – Willie – O
Forthcoming Tour Dates:
July 12th – Spindizzy instore, Dublin
July 14th – Rough Trade East Instore, London
Aug 31st – Supersonic Festival, Birmingham
Sep 12th – The Duncairn, Belfast
Sep 16th – The Attic, Leeds
Sep 17th – The Portland Arms, Cambridge
Sep 18th – The Larder House, Southbourne – Wandering Bear Presents
Sep 19th – Strange Brew, Bristol
Sep 20th – Subterranean Festival, London Royal Festival Hall, London
Sep 21st – YES, Manchester
Nov 27th – The Button Factory, Dublin
Rough Trade Records’ sister label River Lea, has previously released albums with the likes of John Francis Flynn, Lisa O’Neil, Ye Vagabonds, Brìghde Chaimbeul and more, confirming its place at folk music’s ever-evolving vanguard.