Track of the Day: Megan O'Neill - 'The Hard Way'

Following on from her most recent single ‘All Those Yesterdays’ released last November, Irish Singer - Songwriter Megan O’Neill returns with a new song ‘The Hard Way

When you first listen to 'The Hard Way', the first thing that strikes you is that it's not at all hard- quite the opposite in fact. 'The Hard Way' is easy listening - it's dulcet, and rich as the band builds the track with gorgeous sincerity. The foundation of the track is built on gentle electric guitar strumming but it soars when the trombone kicks in.

Self-written, the song was recorded at the Meadow Studios, Delgany, in June 2023 and produced by O’Neill and Alex Borwick. ‘The Hard Way’ was recorded mostly live lending the track a raw authentic quality.

Penned by Megan O’Neill in early 2023, the song reflects a period of grappling with grief and loss- and the overwhelming feeling of loneliness when you miss someone who is not coming back.

Sharing the news on Instagram, O' Neill posted saying that 'The Hard Way' is "my favourite thing I've ever created"

She continued to say: "- it's brutally honest and was written during a difficult time coming to terms with grief and loss".

 

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Last year, O’Neill released an EP titled: Time (Thought you were on my side), featuring five songs written and recorded with producer Richey McCourt. This EP merges her folk storytelling roots with more electronic elements and highlighted O’Neill’s ability to successfully oscillate between genres.

Megan O'Neill has released two LPs, Ghost of You in 2018 and Getting Comfortable with Uncertainty in 2021.

O'Neill is also a member of indie-electronic project ‘Where the Waters Meet’ alongside Paul Kenny which launched in November 2022 with a commissioned piece for the Recording Academy (The Grammy Awards): their cover of ‘Bette Davis Eyes’.

You can check out 'The Hard Way' below: