An Interview with Graceless

A new single release from Graceless delivers quite an intense set of messages, and it comes through with a sort of intensity, especially in the vocal performance that grabs your attention.

This is a track that has a vast undertone, and some of those vocals are used in the background, distant, drenched in reverb effect, and used almost like instruments themselves, which gives the song a beautiful layer of depth musically.

This is the track that grows. Not just in intensity, but instrumentally as well. Some guitars come layering on top of others as the song unfolds, the Beats come in a little more heavy-handed, and the whole thing sort of builds up.

It's actually quite a beautifully composed song, and you can tell there was a lot of attention to detail in the tonalities of the instruments involved.

This is a track that feels alive and breathing. There is almost always a spacious aesthetic, and it sort of invites you to drift along with it. Again, the song is actually quite intense throughout its entire course. This is not just because of the vocals, but also how the whole song comes through to match their energy.

The track is called "God's Plan", and what I took from this was that it was based on questioning religion, along with how certain elements of religions are used to push different ideologies and agendas throughout the course of history.

This is something that feels personal, and you can tell it was probably cathartic for the artist to write and release simply because she's letting so much inner thought off of her chest and doing it in such a descriptive and detailed manner that there's no questioning the sentiments involved.

Having said that, this is how I took the song, and others might just interpret it a little differently.

The drumming and percussion throughout this track really give it a vibrancy. The energy levels are pretty high and a bit heavy-handed throughout it all.

The singing is really the powerhouse. You are pulled into that intensity and how robust and bountiful they come through. She's got feeling and emotion behind how she's performing, and that's because of the topic she's singing about.

She's passionate about it, and that shines through and gives her loads of presents throughout the song.

This track really sat with me. After it was over, it made me think, which is something I feel like we need more of in music these days.

I feel like we need more music like this. Music that makes you think or feel. Songs that let you question things because points are being made quite clearly.

Again, this is how I interpreted the song and, for me, it made quite an impression.

Upon listening to this track, I found another called "The Raven," which was a beautiful song, very cinematic, expansive, engulfing, and really portrayed how the group can pull together such a sort of vivacious indie pop underbelly no matter what they're doing.

Again, this was all very cinematic and can be intense, but that's what gives it so much character and personality, which is something you end up really holding on to.

These songs let you think about the people behind them and how vulnerable they let themselves be with their music.

The instrumentation gives you these moods, and the lyrics give you the story or sentiment. Everything fits together like puzzle pieces, and I feel like for both of these songs, the instruments set those moods, damn near perfectly, for the lyrics.

Both of these tracks were the kinds of songs that have an electric energy to them. It's quite infectious and again, something about them stays with you for hours or even days after the songs have ended.

After listening to both of these, I had to have a chat with the band to find out where the soul came from. I wanted to know how the songs came together and what exactly songs like "God's Plan" are about from their point of view.

Everyone takes music differently. Everyone interprets songs in their own way.

Being able to hear from the artists themselves about where these tracks actually came from is something that's needed.

So, while you listen to both of these songs, have a read through of our interview with Graceless below.

Remember where you heard this first.

Where did this track come from? 

God’s Plan has been sitting on my chest for a few years. It comes from watching religion being used to justify whatever serves the agenda, whether that’s global conflict, the Church’s grip on Ireland, or the everyday hypocrisy I grew up around in rural Ireland.

The first verse was written in a church during a funeral, the first time I’d stepped inside one in years. I’m not religious, so sitting in this freezing monument to wealth while a priest harped on about sin and shame at a funeral genuinely did my head in. It felt tone-deaf and performative. I remember thinking, Who is this man on his soapbox scolding a room full of grieving people? That moment not only angered me but stuck with me.

Then there was the fire at Notre Dame. Overnight, billionaires rushed forward with chequebooks to save a building the Church could afford to rebuild in its sleep. Meanwhile, people around the world were starving, displaced, or under fire. It showed me the scale of hypocrisy that still exists in the western world.

The second verse is rooted in something personal. A friend back home couldn’t get her child into primary school because she wasn’t baptised. In modern Ireland. We still haven’t fully moved on from the idea that access to education should depend on religious compliance. For decades, families twisted themselves to keep the Church onside, even as it punished women and hid atrocities. We still don’t know the full extent of it.

Verse three then looks at the simple truth that religion is man-made. Written by powerful people to shape societies, often at the expense of women and anyone who didn’t fit their mould. People commit horrors in the name of their god while ignoring the basic principle of loving one another. Religion became a tool of control. I do think the grip is loosening, slowly, as more people question what they’ve been taught.

That’s the heart of the song. It’s not anti-spirituality. It’s anti-control.

I'm hearing a few different approaches to this record! Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

Florence and the Machine and Sinéad O’Connor sit at the top. Florence’s drums, the cinematic lift, the sheer scale of her sound. I saw her in the Royal Albert Hall for the Lungs anniversary and it genuinely rewired my brain.

Sinéad brought rage, truth, vulnerability and vision. Protest songs that weren’t just political but emotional. We cover Drink Before the War in our live set as a nod to her and to everything happening in the world right now.

CMAT is another massive influence. She’s sharp, funny and painfully honest. That blend of humour and heartbreak is exactly the energy I want for Graceless.

Add in Fleetwood Mac for the storytelling, Billie Eilish for the production sensitivity, and Lana Del Rey for the mood.

And honestly, the Irish scene is unreal at the moment: Fontaines, Sprints, Kneecap, Morgana, The Cliffords. It’s a good time to be making music here.

Did you record this at a home setup, or at a big studio?

I demoed God’s Plan at home in my own studio and brought those skeletons into the studio in Tipperary. Owen, my producer and mixer, knew I was chasing “Florence-level drums” and he absolutely delivered. The track grew from those demos into something bigger, darker and more cinematic.

How did this all start for you as an artist?

I’ve been in bands most of my life, including Staring at Lakes, Dublin, circa 2013. Graceless started almost by accident in 2019 when a friend asked me to play a gig during a pop-up event. It was the first time I’d ever stood on a stage with just my own songs. It terrified me, but it also lit a fire in me and gave me much-needed confidence.

In 2022, I started working with Richie McNeill, our lead guitarist, and Graceless became a real project. The name came from a joke because I never felt like I was a musician. I didn’t feel polished enough. But that’s exactly why it stuck. I’m Graceless. I’m enough.

Graceless is my truth. It’s shaking off self-doubt. It’s an ode to being imperfect, unfinished and still worthy of being heard. It’s messy and human. It reminds me that imperfection doesn’t disqualify you from being an artist. If anything, it makes the music better.

Are you performing live right now? 

We’re lining up a full band run for 2026 with an EP launch, festival circuit and a proper Irish push. We’re hoping to squeeze in one final 2025 show to close out the year, then it’s all guns blazing for 2026.

Now that this is out, what's next for you?

Our next single, Underwater, lands in February 2026. It ties together the sound of The Raven and God’s Plan. It’s a track people haven’t heard from me before, so I’m excited to release it and watch it find its place.

Who's in your headphones right now?

Cat Burns is on repeat, and of course, West End Girl, and a lot of Kae Tempest, after seeing them in Vicar Street.

What would you tell people they can expect on this release?

Big vocals, Richie bringing his flavour on guitar, cinematic drums and a refusal to tiptoe around religion. If you’re into songs that have something to say, I suppose this song is for you.

Before we go, what would you like to express to fans of the music? 

Just thank you. The music industry is tough and you need to love what you’re doing to keep going, especially when you’re balancing it with a full-time job that pays for the studio time. I’m not built for the “six TikToks a day” lifestyle and I refuse to mime in a forest with an unplugged guitar, no matter how often it appears on my For You Page.

Music keeps me half sane. Anyone who listens, shares or turns up to a gig gives us the chance to keep going. There’s no money in this, just passion. If you’re listening, you’re part of why Graceless exists at all. So thank you.

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