THE NEW CITIZEN KANE
Q How did you approach creating the lyrical universe of PSYCHEDELIKA Pt.1 and what inspired its kaleidoscopic themes?
Writing is always a personal experience for me, ever since I was a teenager it was how I processed my feelings and experiences. When I was younger though, everything was so black & white for me, my views, my opinions, unwavering in my beliefs and how I experienced life, but with life experience comes (one hopes!) a bit more wisdom. I’m now 43, and as I’ve grown I’ve noticed a certain elasticity in my opinions & thought process, you notice that life is rarely black & white, that it is full of wonderful shades of grey and contradictions are abound, both in life and in our thoughts. As the concept for the album evolved into this honest reflection on life, experiences both inward & outward, I realised I needed to capture those contradictions in order for it to be an honest portrayal of the human experience, at least from my POV.
Q The album explores both vulnerability and resilience—how do you balance these emotions in your writing?
It’s funny because in business we talk about vulnerability & resilience as opposite sides of the same coin, by reducing your susceptibility to risk you become more resilient as a company. I think the opposite applies to us as people, I think it’s in the vulnerability that we find true strength & resilience, they go hand in hand, so it’s less about finding balance and more about opening the flood gates & going with the flow of the water rather than fighting against it.
Q In WELCOME TO PSYCHEDELIKA, you invite listeners to “look through your heart”—how does this idea shape the entire album?
The album is me at my most honest and vulnerable, in every song, on every topic. I think it’s important that we normalise having uncomfortable conversations in life, so that we can grow as a society. I am inviting listeners to do the same.
Q I DON’T NEED TO SAY captures intimacy in a very physical, sensory way. How do you translate personal experience into universal lyrics?
I think the lyrics here kind of speak for themselves… I’m literally recounting how I experience intimacy with my husband, again I’m being very open & honest here, there are no metaphors, I’ve never been a big fan of grand declarations & words when it comes to love, my love language is physical touch & actions, so it’s really my experience of the deepest form of intimacy, it’s quiet, it’s confident.
Q HERE, NOW emphasizes mindfulness and living in the present. How important is this philosophy to your life and art?
It’s become one of the most important aspects in my life, and I think a greater focus needs to be placed on mindfulness and being present right from a young age in school. We live in a world that has evolved much faster than we could ever physically keep up with, our brains & our primordial functions are still basically wired like those of cave people, we are wired for short acute bursts of stress to survive, flight or fight responses, our bodies did not evolve to deal with chronic daily stress of mortgages, career pressures, wars. It’s almost like we’ve become addicted to adrenaline & cortisol so we dwell on things in the past that we can no longer change & stress about future possibilities that have yet to & might never occur, all to stay in this state of stress, and in doing so we miss the actual experience of living. For better or worse, life only happens now!! Let’s all take a deep breath and step into life.
Q MY MUSE explores doubt and self-discovery. Do you see the creative process itself as a source of inspiration?
100%, it is healing and it is exponential in terms of inspiration. The more I create the more ideas & inspiration comes to me. I’ve had the luxury to focus purely on creating this year, having left my previous career back in January which I was still doing at 40% up until that point. It was really the reception to the Could Have Been EP that changed the tide for me, and made me realise this could turn into a sustainable career as an independent artist, so my husband & I sat down together and decided that we could tighten our belts for a while and really give this the opportunity to take flight. I’m super grateful to him for that, for being in this with me 100%, and it’s given me the time and space to realise my full creative potential.
Q HEADS ARE ROUND plays with surreal imagery of thought and perception. What role does imagination play in your songwriting?
Imagination and creativity are interlinked really, Heads Are Round was inspired by a quote by Francis Picabia, but to answer your question I’m going to use a different quote I saw recently from artist Paul Foxton: “As artists see the same things as everyone else, but we see different things in them. Through learning to see, we see more.”
Q In SAN DIEGO, love and place seem intertwined. How do locations influence your lyrical storytelling?
My songwriting can be quite cinematic, descriptive to a degree that still allows for universality. I think the inclusion of time & place helps draw the listener into the story you’re telling.
Q EYES WIDE SHUT examines emotional distance and desire. How do you approach vulnerability when writing about complex relationships?
When it comes to being vulnerable, you’re either in or you’re out, there’s no halfway to approach in opinion. Being vulnerable to me means turning the lens back on myself as well. I’m not just talking about a bad relationship in a “poor me” context, I’m also looking at the part I played in it. There are no villains, just uncomfortable truths.
Q SUBCONSCIOUS explores hidden desires. How do you access the subconscious mind during your creative process?
Well, I didn’t really need to access it in writing this song, because the situation I’m singing about was my subconscious coming out to the surface, it was personified already, so I won’t take credit for being smarter or more enlightened than I actually am 😉
Q WELL, DAMN! HERE YOU ARE reflects on temptation and self-restraint. Do you see humor and honesty as essential tools in songwriting?
For me they are, well the humour is part of the honesty, because that slightly knowing self-deprecating humour that I use in the song IS my actual humour in life, it’s very Irish in general I think.
Q WHISPERING TANGO emphasizes communication and misunderstanding. How do you use dialogue or voice to explore relational tension in your lyrics?
Whispering Tango was born out of miscommunication — with my husband. We were in one of those phases where nothing came out right, everything was a little sideways… and on top of it, he’s Brazilian, so sometimes he just mumbles out a nonsense word and hopes for the best. That mix of frustration and comedy became this song; a dance of whispers, misunderstandings, and passion, because at the end of the day… love is still a tango.
Q PUSH THE FEAR OUT deals with anxiety and societal observation. How do you translate social critique into poetic language?
This one’s about prejudice and how fear is used, my politicians & the media, to distract us from what really matters. We build these ‘monsters’ in our heads, but when you actually meet people, when you connect, you realise we’re all just human. I guess my language is naturally inflected with comedy & poetry, it’s not a defined goal that I set out with, but rather there are certain topics which can be a bit more “prickly” to approach & to hear, so I try to soften it through the music & delivery, so the topic becomes more approachable. This is about realising our similarities instead of focusing on our differences.
Q BITE THE BULLET deals with the end of a relationship. How do you approach writing about loss while keeping it reflective rather than bitter?
This song is about the end of a relationship, well an engagement actually. It’s the only relationship I’ve had where there was no resolution, no friendship or warmth left and believe me I was resentful for a long time. Writing the song was about letting go of that resentment, it was healing, and again in being honest & healing I had to turn the lens in on myself because I can only speak truth to my part in the ending of that relationship, and if he ever hears the song, it’s a reminder to him to focus on the beauty that was there, rather than the end.
Q AS WITHIN, SO WITHOUT explores searching for safety and identity in others. How do you navigate the tension between intimacy and self-discovery?
Age & growth hahaha. I’m reflecting on a past relationship in this song at a time when I was a little bit broken, and so were they. We were both searching for the answers in the other one rather than in ourselves, so eventually it became destructive to the relationship. There’s a line in the song “burning bridges no chance to escape” which kind of sums it up completely. It’s only when you realise that the answers to everything are actually inside ourselves all along that you find the peace you want.
Q IT’S SATURDAY AND I’M HIGH combines social commentary with personal reflection. How do current events and cultural climate influence your lyrics?
This is really the first album where I’ve looked outwardly as much as I’ve looked inwardly. I tended to avoid political & divisive subjects in my younger days, but you can’t ignore things forever. This song came from one of those afternoons when the world felt overwhelming — endless bad news, politics that made no sense. I was lying in the park a little stoned, watching clouds roll by, and Batman, my French bulldog not a hallucinatory friend btw, strutted past me and he has this little wiggle in his hips… Suddenly I saw him as Naomi Campbell strutting the runways in ’95, and I was just the bodyguard tagging along. It was ridiculous, but also perfect: this mix of humour & surreal fantasy just makes the social commentary a bit more palatable. That’s what the song is — a coping mechanism. Laughing at the madness, finding comfort in escape, and letting Batman steal the spotlight as usual.
Q CAFÉ LIFE portrays disconnection and routine. Do you draw inspiration from everyday observation when writing your songs?
I did for this album. I love people watching & this song was inspired by sitting in cafés and watching people — the loneliness behind smiles, the way we distract ourselves, the fear of facing who we are; a reflection on how easily we become disconnected, even when we’re sitting side by side. It’s both empathetic and critical, because I see myself in it too.
Q RATBAG JOY juxtaposes joy with underlying existential discomfort. How do you explore duality in human experience through lyrics?
Ratbag joy is a reckless anthem of nightlife escapism… Here my focus was in creating a juxtaposition between the music & lyrics, it isn’t about judging, but about exposing that tension: how joy can be a disguise, how we escape life to feel “alright tonight.” The lyrics are dark, but musically it’s bright, bouncy, relentless — deliberately so. It’s the sound of the façade, the carefully constructed mask the protagonist wears to feel “alright tonight”, the dance we do to hide what’s breaking inside.
Q AFTERGLOW focuses on healing and self-realization. Do you see this as a thematic closure for Part 1, and how does it reflect your own journey?
Oh my god, yes, 100%!! I wrote Afterglow about one of the hardest chapters of my life — when anxiety had taken over and I barely recognised myself. I felt like I was trapped inside a body I couldn’t control, watching from the outside. But it is what ultimately led me back to music, so in a way, I’m grateful to have gone through that, because creativity is what healed me. Writing this song was my way of acknowledging it, of saying: “this is real, but it’s not the end.” It’s also about recognising what drags us down — people, habits, environments — and finding the strength to let go. I wanted to be as open and vulnerable as possible, because I know how isolating it feels. If someone else hears this and realises they’re not alone, then it means everything.
Q Across PSYCHEDELIKA Pt.1, sensory imagery is central. How do you use the senses to deepen emotional engagement in your songs?
Our senses are all connected, so it stands to reason that if you can engage multiple senses at the same time, the payoff is greater, the emotional connection is deeper. I wanted to create something multilayered, so it can be enjoyed on the surface level, but for listeners who want to go deeper, the rewards are there.
Q Love, anxiety, and introspection recur throughout the album. Are these personal experiences or broader human observations for you?
Both, they are either direct experiences I’m writing about, or observations where my POV is obviously shaped by my experience. I trust the listener who wants to go deeper to be able to tell the two apart.
Q Your lyrics often balance surrealism with intimacy. How do you decide when to lean into abstract imagery versus concrete storytelling?
Well, this ties in nicely to the previous question! Concrete storytelling is generally when I’m writing about an actual personal experience or event, whereas the surrealism tends to flourish in my more observational narratives.
Q The album has a cohesive narrative feel without being linear. How do you craft lyrical continuity across 17 tracks?
Simply by being authentically honest, it is my true POV across all songs.
Q Looking ahead to Part 2, do you see the themes from Pt.1 evolving, or will you explore entirely new lyrical territories?
It’s both really. You know, at its core the album is about being human, it’s about honesty, it’s about duality, it’s about breaking down taboos & initiating conversations with love & warmth & respect & empathy, regardless of the topic or personal viewpoint. I hope whoever stumbles across my album willingly or by surprise, can step away and think of how similar we all are as humans. People love to focus on how different we all are, and there is so much divisive rhetoric everywhere right now, I want to focus on the ways we are similar… go back to finding that middle ground. While our stories may be different, our emotions and experiences are so similar, regardless of race, nationality, gender, sexuality. We need to lead with that empathy, and kindness. Part 2 continues in this vein while tackling new topics
