NIALLISH

NIALLISH is a prolific artist with an eclectic taste. Although born in Dublin '96 with Jazz roots, his first contact with making music was the "banna ceoil" in Scoil Uí Dhálaigh. Soon after, piano lessons classically trained his eager ear and allowed him to entertain. Having grown through the transition from CD Walkmen to IPODs, Niall became obsessed with exploring all varieties of sound.

As interest in indie rock grew, Niall picked up guitar and drum skills in his late teens. Exam pressure produced a writer's burst where several songs would be penned daily, although few would include lyrics or even melodies. An exploration of chords and rhythms commenced with each of his instruments.

Recordings did not appear until 2016 (age 20) on Erasmus exchange in Amsterdam. These phone loop demos were uploaded to SoundCloud to combat loneliness, boredom and insanity. His older brother, a music tech graduate and producer, encouraged the endeavour by gifting him an akai mpd complete with Ableton lite. Electronic instrumentals were regularly produced throughout the remainder of his time in Amsterdam, as delusions of grandeur took hold.

Upon coming home to Dublin he was bursting to pick up and record an electric guitar which is what birthed the indie vocal release "Finish Up". A song good enough to warrant a music video and a Facebook launch.

Writing and recording took a back seat when Niall landed his first full-time graduate employment position. He soon found this to be draining and demoralising. Refusal to work in the office during Covid 19 gave Niall the time and foresight to begin releasing music officially. The debut EP titled NIALLISH was 5 tracks 4 of which had been stagnating on SoundCloud. Niall found that Spotify placement gave his music a new lease of life and generated buzz.

He landed his first Spotify editorial placement in 2022 with the contagious track INDIE NIALL, featured in the Breath of Fresh Eire list. Niall struck Spotify gold again in 2023 with the track Aug5th which featured on New Music Friday UK and Alternative Ireland.

The music industry affirmation from Spotify, Irish Press and Peer/Fan engagement emboldened Niall to quit the stinky day job and pursue music full time. He is enabled to do so with help of the Basic Income for Artists grant and audience support. Now, as always each project for Niall is an experiment and an opportunity to learn and develop.