Donegal-born folk-pop band The Screaming Orphans are no strangers to the music business. Made up of four sisters who’ve been playing together professionally for over 20 years, they are shaping up to have a bright 2019. Having recently dropped a new single – a trad-infused cover of The Turtles’ ‘Happy Together’ – and the album Life In A Carnival, these women are just getting started.

The Diver sisters – Angela, Joan, Marie Thérèse and Gráinne – grew up surrounded by melodies (interestingly, in the group’s early days, their mother acted as lead singer). After a fraught attempt at cracking the recording industry here in the mid-’90s – Hot Press remembers them well – the sisters packed their bags and headed across the Atlantic, where they finessed their unique blend of modern and traditional sounds.

“The Americans were really open-minded,” recalls Joan. “There’s a sort of wildness in us, and there’s a high energy about our shows. It’s part of us, you know?”

Having amassed a huge following in the US, Screaming Orphans are coming home this spring. Life In A Carnival celebrates their defiant attitude – one that they hope to share with the world.

“We’ve had to adapt and change,” notes Joan, “but it’s proven that adversity makes you stronger.”

Life In A Carnival is out now.