Ispíní na hÉireann have released a powerful new single today, written about Tomás' time working on the phones for RTÉ’s Liveline radio show hosted by Joe Duffy.

‘Talk to Joe’, written by Ispíní na hÉireann (Tomás Mulligan and Adam J. Holohan), is taken from their upcoming debut album The Hard Working Men - out on October 28th.

“Lyrics stem from real situations but are altered to protect the guilty,” the charismatic band explain.

"Well would you look at the state of the country, its all gone to the dogs/Me landlord’s poisoning me water, and it’s killing all me frogs/They’re putting up the price of the motor tax, the sea level and the drink/And I called my plumber six weeks ago and he still hasn’t fixed me sink/Well there’s a man down in Donnybrook, you can tell him all your woes/If no one will give you a second look, you can come on and talk to Joe."

During a trip to Slovakia in 2017, banjo player Adam J. Holohan and guitar player Tomás Mulligan discovered how much they enjoyed playing with each other, shortly after they decided to form a band. One day, while sitting at the bar of the famous Cobblestone Pub in Smithfield Square Dublin, drinking the strongest accidentally created ale the Four Provinces Brewery had to offer, they decided upon a name; ‘Ispíní na hÉireann’, and thus the ‘Sausages of Ireland’ were born.

“We are Ispíní na hÉireann, the Hardest Working Band in all of the Land. For those who don’t know yet, that means The Sausages of Ireland, and we’re called so because we are the slippiest, greasiest dogs going.”

Their new album both opens and closes with versions of 'The Silver Spear' reel. On St Patrick’s Day 2019 in Molly Malone’s Bar in Temple Bar, the Silver Spear was played in excess of 20 times by Ispíní na hÉireann in a 3 hour session to a rousing response. Legend has it that the Silver Spear passed 30 plays that day, but as of yet, no concrete evidence has been put forward to support this claim.

In July 2019, while on tour in Lithuania, Ispíní na hÉireann would expand its ranks when they became acquainted with talented cellist Aongus Mac Amhlaigh, "who they quickly adopted into the band due to his amazing ability to make their music somewhat credible", the outfit describe.

The continuation of the album came to a screeching halt during Covid, the lads explained.

"This, however, may have been a blessing in disguise for this particular album as it gave the Hard Working Men time to reflect and analyse what they had already put together, and also an opportunity to write new material about their view of the state of the world," a press release reads. "As the world seemed to be coming to grips with the pandemic, Ispíní na hÉireann returned to the studio with more tricks up their sleeves and even more musicians to help them realise their vision."

The Hard Working Men is a combination of original songs and reimagined covers of songs and tunes from the Irish tradition.

"There is subtext, commentary, and method to all of the madness, which we are leaving open to the interpretation of the listener. It is up to you to decide whether or not this is all waffle, or if there is deeper meaning among all this noise. All art is open to interpretation, and we are excited to find out how this speaks to you."

The Hard Working Men will be released October 28th 2022.