Irish singer-songwriter Cuan has released his new single, On A Ship. We asked him the BIG questions . . .
The son of Jan Muyllaert, one of Ireland's few remaining Irish harp makers, Cuan lives aboard a ship on a rotating basis to tend to lighthouses along the Irish coast and further afield.
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"Working on a ship is something I never really envisaged myself doing, but that's the way things pan out sometimes," he says.
"The old school style of management in the job has come with its challenges, but I write my way through things and this situation was no different.
"The lyrics of On A Ship came to me while keeping watch alone on the bridge of the ship one hazy morning, after three weeks of illogical orders, insecure men shouting at each other and the lack of sleep which often accompanies seafaring. About a year later I realised it might be a song."
Tell us three things about yourself . . .
I believe in following your gut. Ignore your truth at your peril. I love waking up in the morning, going down to my kitchen in my house in Donegal, and the stove is still burning while the winter wind howls outside. Nothing beats the peace of that. I grew up near Navan, County Meath, and once played in a punk band called Ninted and the Skinners. I was the frontman, and we got plugged out three times for being too loud. That's way more than three things. Sorry...
How would you describe your music?
My music has always been unavoidable. Not necessarily the fact that it is music as such, but that I write about something. Words are generally more important than melody, but both affect each other. The songs I’m most happy with are the ones that helped me the most. A song is like a friend. It reminds you of who you are and when you realised something important. Life is short - if I don’t write honestly and sincerely, there’s little point. Style-wise, it’s difficult to hear yourself. You can’t look at your own eyes. So, I’ll leave that to the listener.
Who are your musical inspirations?
Hearing Beck for the first time in the late ’90s was a light-bulb moment - messy, loose, and fun. I’ve dreamed about meeting him and playing with him. Maybe that’s something that keeps me going. I can relate to his sound and his lyrics, though I’m not even sure why. I like a lot of stuff though - Tom Waits, The Dandy Warhols, Dylan, Elliott Smith. I saw the Hothouse Flowers in Belfast last week and they blew me away. But the music that keeps me going the most is the music that happens when I jam with other musicians - in pubs or around a kitchen table. That stuff is so freeing with the right people. Nothing to prove, just enjoy it. If I could play that way seven nights a week, I would. There’s no separation then, no pedestal. Just music and enjoyment.
What was the first gig you ever went to?
Well, there’s first gigs and first gigs. When I was maybe five or six years old, I went to a variety show in Navan Community Centre. My mother always tried to get us to see any shows or plays that were on. A woman sang From a Distance. It was a far cry from Beck, Dylan, or anything else, but it was the most amazing thing I had ever seen and heard up to that point in my life.
What was the first record you ever bought?
The first record I wanted to buy was The Final Countdown by Europe. I went into the Record Sleeve in Navan every week for months on shopping day with my mother, but they never had it. Eventually. I bought Sweet Child o’ Mine by Guns N’ Roses instead - probably on the advice of my brother,
What’s your favourite song right now?
That’s a hard one to answer. I’m gonna say Scare Easy by Tom Petty because I played it at a jam last night and it felt great. Petty was such a cool artist and his songs are so empowering.
Favourite lyric of all time?
"You’re screaming in my face, Whisper in my ear, Put me in a suitcase, With a can of beer" - Totally Confused by Beck.
If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
There’s no better way to ruin a song than to overplay it... Just look at what happened to Fairytale of New York... but I would choose Africa by Toto. Not because it’s particularly good or bad, but because I once worked with a young adult with autism who listened to that song about fifty times a day - so I think I’ve built up a tolerance.
Where can people find your music/more information?
People can find my music on Instagram: @cuansmusic and my website. Or come to the Rusty Mackerel in Teelin, Donegal, on a Wednesday evening. I’m usually jamming there with Stephen and Micky D.
Alan Corr
