Nuala releases dreamy psych-rock single 'Artemisia'

A mythical master of dream pop, Nuala has released 'Artemisia', the second single from her upcoming self-titled debut album.

It's a spacey psych-rock song, combining the shoegazey modern sounds of bands like Beach House with grittier grunge influences. Her voice is entrancing, an ethereal instrument that adds to the hazey world she creates within the song, a world inspired by the mysterious effects of absinthe.

“I wrote ‘Artemisia’ under the influence of absinthe and certain 19th century poets, who used the alcoholic drink as an artistic muse," she explains. "I loved the mystery and the fantasy surrounding it, the ritual of the way you prepare the drink. I let all of that infuse the creative process”.

With a simple, stark writing style influenced by heroes ranging from PJ Harvey to Leonard Cohen, Nuala evokes an otherworldly sense of the mythical and magical. She writes of deep rivers and distant planets, of secrets in the air and ultrasonic love affairs. Her songs, which range from delicate acoustic guitar or piano ballads to electric psych-rock numbers, ebb and flow like shadows flickering in candlelight.

Her immense talent as a songwriter was discovered by producer John Reynolds (Sinead O'Connor, Damien Dempsey, Natacha Atlas, Indigo Girls, etc.), who was immediately hooked after finding her songs online.

A recording session was set up and after two days they had captured five tracks. The first to be released was 'Lay Down my Gun', a metaphysical distillation of the ties that bind love and faith. It was produced in collaboration with Brian Eno, who lends a twinkling, sorcerer’s gloss to the wonder of Nuala’s pure, luminous voice.

Listen to her latest 'Artemisia' and watch the video below: