HEADLINE
Indie-Folk Songsmith Harry Fennell Unveils Darkly Brilliant New Single “MAD”
TAGS: Harry Fennell, Lughaidh Armstrong Mayock, Basht., Rubarb Music, Electric Picnic, All Together Now, Whelan’s, The Ruby Sessions, RTÉ Radio 1, Red FM, Hot Press,
BLOG POST
Harry Fennell has released his new single “MAD,” out now via Rubarb Music. The Dublin-born, Galway-based singer-songwriter delivers a cinematic and psychedelic folk track that narrates a descent into madness through love, frustration, and sharp-edged irony. It is a bold, immersive piece of work from one of Ireland’s most compelling emerging voices.
The song was born out of a chaotic period, written with close friend Lughaidh Armstrong Mayock of Basht. in a session Fennell describes as “a dangerously effective place for the two of us songwriting-wise.” That chemistry is all over the track. Built around a travis-picked earworm guitar melody, “MAD” weaves silky folk vocals through experimental woodwinds and swelling strings, moving from something that feels like a tender love song into something far darker and more unsettling.
Hot Press called Fennell “one of the most compelling singer-songwriters in the city,” noting his 60s lodestars and a Dylan-esque eye for the absurd. Those instincts are fully present here. The track lands somewhere between Dove Ellis and Madison Cunningham, drawing nods to Tra Phaidín and The Bonk while remaining entirely its own thing.
Fennell has built his reputation performing at Electric Picnic, All Together Now, Whelan’s, and The Ruby Sessions, earning strong support from RTÉ Radio 1 and Red FM along the way. Raised on Bob Dylan and shaped by Leonard Cohen, Shakey Graves, and Father John Misty, his roots run deep and his instincts run sharp.
“MAD” is the first taste of his debut EP, arriving later this year. If this single is the opening move, the rest of that record is going to be worth the wait.