Patrick Keegan of Somebody’s Child: “There’s a responsibility when you’re given a stage”

Days out from their Dublin headliner, Somebody’s Child guitarist Patrick Keegan speaks on the phone with the steady calm of someone used to touring logistics and last-minute decisions.

The group met in college and still treat the city as a kind of musical home base. Patrick describes the Olympia as “our spiritual hometown,” a place where family, friends and old rehearsal routines converge.

“Even though most of the band don’t live here anymore,” he says, “it’s always the place we rehearse, it’s the place we, like, write songs. “All the gigs we’ve done so far have been sort of leading up to our hometown show."

That blend of practical routine and sentimental attachment is partly why the November 1 show feels like a milestone. The set won't be another run through the catalogue; Keegan says the band have been reshaping their live identity, expanding their sonic palette and introducing theatrical ideas they haven’t tried before.

“We’ve really worked super hard on our sound, bringing the songs from album two to the stage,” he explains.

"It is kinda easy to just write out a list of songs and then just play them one after another. But we wanted it to be more of a show,” he says, outlining how lighting, interludes and even a spoken-word poem have been woven into the running order to give the set a sense of narrative.

Hayam Taha, a poet from Gaza, composed the piece they now play before ‘We Could Start a War.’ Patrick describes the moment when Hayam’s voice first entered the band’s world. The poem’s closing line, “Let me be somebody’s child,” left a clear emotional imprint.

“Honestly, I cried. I couldn’t believe that she would incorporate that into her writing,” Patrick admits.

The collaboration grew from there. When the band wanted to produce a T-shirt connected to the project, Hayam supplied design ideas and a poem. The band’s designers turned that material into a physical item whose proceeds go to charity.

“This is the most important thing we’ve done,” Patrick adds. “This is the first time I’ve really felt that I’ve done something important in music or art.”

He distances himself from grand claims of being an activist, but nonetheless insists on the moral dimension of having a platform.

“Anyone who’s given a platform or a stage, I feel, has a responsibility, to use that in a way to bring awareness to something,” he says.

Coming back to Dublin also calls for a conversation about the city's creative community.

“We’re really big fans and close friends with Big Sleep, who are doing really amazing at the moment,” Patrick says. "[They were] probably the first Irish band we really connected with, personally and musically. I’ve played in groups with their bass player Aidan, and Naiara has covered for me in Somebody’s Child at times.”

And there's more multi-jobbing going on with peers Cooks But We’re Chefs.

“Our drummer Dan, he’s the drummer in that band as well,” Patrick says. “And our keyboard player, Síofra, she’s the lead singer.

"It feels like a really nice ecosystem of musicians in Dublin. Irish musicians can play so many different things. They don’t get stuck in one mode. So many of my great friendships have come from playing music with people, it’s such a powerful tool for connecting with people.”

Rehearsals for the 3Olympia show have been an experiment in flow and feeling.

“We’ve been trying to embrace the quieter moments from our second album,” Patrick says, acknowledging that a more varied live set can feel risky when a band is used to high-energy shows. But the payoff is a fuller experience. “Little things like that really just elevate it from just a gig to more of a show.”

Somebody’s Child are also finding the balance between being a live act that can fill rooms and a creative unit that wants to grow. Patrick describes the current songwriting method in practical terms: Cian and Shae go on writing retreats and return with “like 10 songs." From there, the group tests arrangements together, each member adding a stamp before anything is recorded. The band has grown into a more cohesive unit, Patrick notes, with everyone contributing ideas and pushing each other creatively.

“There’s a responsibility when you’re given a stage,” Patrick says again, the line anchoring what Somebody’s Child now want to do with their music: to move people, yes, but also to make space for other voices in the room.

• Somebody’s Child will play the 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin, on November 1. Tickets are available here.