Alternative Irish folk singer/songwriter Dotts O'Connor has said his highly-anticipated debut album, Sorrow Won't Find Us, was spurred on when he found out he was expecting twins with his wife.
The Roscommon-man, who first made a name for himself as a member of the Choice music-nominated band Come On Live Long, said he "didn't really consider the timing" of his solo project until he found out his partner was expecting.
"I had it in my head to work on another EP with a view to working on an album in the distant future. However, life has a funny way of making decisions for you," he said.
"My wife and I were expecting our first baby so I decided to start working on an EP before the arrival. I had some songs written and I booked some studio time and got some musician friends to record them with me. But before that recording session we got the outrageous news that there wasn't just one baba on the way but twins!"
O'Connor recalled "calling the lads into the live room of the studio before we started our first day recording" to share his joyous news.
"I thought to myself that I'd better record an album as life is going to get quite busy in a few months," he said. "I can remember calling the lads into the live room of the studio before we started our first day recording and explaining the situation and telling them 'Ok lads this project has now been upgraded to a full scale album!'".
He added: "I just went through this period of fertile songwriting whereby I knew that things were going to change for us in a few months so with that comes a lot of reflection and also a healthy dose of fear!
"So I was just writing and recording quite freely and without too much consideration of what the album might be about or the themes," he said. "I wanted to get it finished before a certain time so once you know that the project has a specific life span I found it easier to make decisions and wasn't too hung up on the minor stuff."
O'Connor, who is currently living in Cavan, explained how he "fell out of love with the detail" which he found "quite liberating".
O'Connor said he's over-the-moon to be hitting the right notes with fans and admits he never really considered "if anyone would actually enjoy" his new music.
"When you start a project you are so fully immersed in it that you really aren't considering how it will be interpreted. In my case I was having so much craic recording it with friends that I really never considered if anyone would actually enjoy it or take anything from it themselves," he said.
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With such a busy home and work life, what's next for Dotts O'Connor?
"I love the idea of writing music solely for live performance. Therefore the audience can only experience the music in a live setting. I think that would be an amazing experience for both performer and audience as there are no reference points to grab onto before the performance," he said.
"I've also begun writing new music which I'm very excited about so I hope to begin recording that after Christmas. I drive through a lot of countryside when driving home to Roscommon and pass a lot of people.
"Very often the mind wanders and I enjoy inventing a narrative around the people I pass on the road. At the moment I'm writing songs in this vein which I'm really enjoying as it is an open fairground for the imagination to run wild," he added.
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Sorrow Won't Find Us is out now.
Behind the music - Dotts O'Connor
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