From humble beginnings as an aspiring singer-songwriter in his hometown of Bray, Andrew Hozier Byrne – better known as Hozier – has become one of the biggest success stories in the history of Irish rock. Propelled by the multi-platinum success of the international hit ‘Take Me To Church’, his self-titled debut made Hozier into an international star.

He was then presented with the eternal dilemma of artists who have a huge debut LP: how to overcome difficult second album syndrome. Hozier’s solution was brilliantly clever – he chose not to release that second album. Or, rather, he first released an acclaimed EP, Nina Cried Power, which nicely whetted the appetite for album number two.

Named for the famous gospel singer and civil rights activist Nina Simone, the EP maintained Hozier’s interest in issues of politics and social justice, first explored in the massively popular video for ‘Take Me To Church’, which focused on gay rights in Russia.

At last year’s Electric Picnic, Hozier joined R&B legend Mavis Staples on the Main Stage for a rendition of The Band’s classic ‘The Weight’. Staples in turn appeared on the title-track of Nina Cried Power – which would also be the first track on his sophomore album Wasteland, Baby!, released in March of this year.

“I realised early on in the writing of ‘Nina Cried Power’ that it was a duet, and that the person I wanted to sing it with me was Mavis Staples,” he explained to Hot Press’ Stuart Clark. “I wasn’t arrogant enough to automatically think that she’d say ‘yes’. When she did, I was at first elated and then very aware that I was going to be sharing the studio with one of the greatest vocalists of all time. No pressure!

“It’s hard not to be intimidated by someone of her stature, but Mavis is the most magnificent person to be around. She’s super warm and caring and giving. She really threw herself into it and was so open to ideas. We flew out to Chicago to record with her and, yeah, I’m thrilled.”

Given the current grim state of international politics, Hozier has plenty to get his teeth into on Wasteland, Baby!, with the title nodding to TS Eliot’s iconic WW2 poem, ‘The Wasteland’. Further sealing Hozier’s status as one of the artists of the moment, the album achieved the holy grail sought by artists the world over, as it reached number one on the US Billboard charts.

Artistically, it represents another major step for Hozier, with the singer expanding from the rock, soul and blues template of his debut, and showing himself to be a songwriter of formidable ability, with a melodic flair other acts would kill for.

“The success of the first album took me completely by surprise,” he candidly admitted to Stuart Clark. “The cart’s before the horse and you’re going out there as green as grass. I don’t know how I did those first American TV shows because I was in absolute ribbons. I’d only been in front of a camera once before that.

“Something I’ll wish for the rest of my life is that I could do it again differently. It was really difficult getting used to singing ‘Take Me To Church’ three times a day in an air-conditioned studio, and the rest of the time talking in interviews. You’re trying to keep cool and pretend that this is normal but, no, it was tricky on the way up.”

Nonetheless, Hozier navigated his way with aplomb and the result is that he’s now headlining festivals like Electric Picnic. Returning to his native soil, there will of course be a special buzz in the air, and with a batch of singalong-friendly hits to call upon, his set should be a hugely celebratory and memorable occasion.

“You’re constantly putting fires out in your mind and dealing with post-gig comedowns,” he mused to Hot Press. “I don’t know exactly how to explain it, but a lot of musicians come offstage and feel a sort of despair. It could be a coming down, adrenaline sort of thing. You’re going from panic to stress to elation to anxiety as you post-mortem the gig. Fortunately, though, I have my band of brothers and sisters around me. I look at them and think, ‘We’re in this together.’”