The Cranberries' Noel Hogan joins forces with Brazilian singer Mell Peck in new group The Puro

The Puro – a new duo featuring The Cranberries' Noel Hogan and Brazilian singer Mell Peck – have released their new single, 'Prison',

Combining the talents of both artists, 'Prison' is centred aorund Peck's soaring vocals and Hogan's trademark approach to the guitar and keyboard.

“My style of writing has not changed dramatically since the early days of our first album," Hogan reflects. "If Dolores was still with us today this would be very much in the style of a song I would compose. Mell has the pure vocal ability and sound that Cranberries fans associate with us."

Hogan – who's scored around 50 million global record sales with The Cranberries as well as numerous side-projects – first heard Peck's music on YouTube, and decided to get in touch.

“Noel searched online to see who I was and that’s when it all began," the Brazilian singer explains. "We met and started talking and we came up with the idea of composing together. Noel sent me one of his songs so I could write the lyrics. I was so excited that I composed and recorded the song in two days. Since then, we have never stopped and the ideas are always coming up. I’ve always felt that we had something in common."

With several collaborations and a HBO documentary soundtrack under his belt, Hogan notes that he took "the lessons learned" from those projects and incorporated them into The Puro.

"I think the sound is a happy medium of me meets what I have learned in these projects," he resumes. "During the lockdowns I went back and listened to a lot of music I grew up with, remembering how great it was. I think there are hints of all of that in our combined sound as well."

The first hint of the Hogan/Peck project was released on New Year's Day. The pair unveiled a simple lyrics video for their song 'With Keys' ['Com Chaves'].

"We didn’t make any big announcements, like ‘Here it is!’" Hogan says. "I tried hard to keep away from reading reactions. The Puro was undertaken for the music that both Mell and I like. So, if you like it, that’s great. There’s lots more!”

Listen to 'Prison' below: