Ard Ó is an Alternative/Rock project founded in 2022 by Waterford (Ireland) native Stephen Keating, taking inspiration from the likes of Biffy Clyro/Muse/Radiohead to the more alternative sounds of Ben Howard/Bon Iver. Stephen spent his teens and early 20s in Irish music group Under Starling playing in various venues around Ireland. He is now living in south London where he has started his first solo project; Ard Ó. Since the release of debut single, ‘Delta’ in October 2022, Ard Ó has hit the London live music scene gigging in various venues across London including Camden Assembly, Old Dispensary, Map Cafe and O2 Academy Islington.
His most recent single ‘Sensory Seeker’ picked up support in Cobra Promotions, Hotpress, IMRO, Ragged Cast, Near FM, WLR FM and many more, making the young artist a close one to watch!
He now hopes to keep on building his momentum with the release of his brand new single ‘Peaceful Illusion’ dropping July 27th.
Peaceful Illusion
Following on from the release of “Sensory Seeker’ in June, ‘Peaceful Illusion’, carries on following the journey of the struggling protagonist, this time in 1st person where the song focuses on masking of emotion and the finding of temporary solace in substance’s. This moody tune slowly builds with a mix of textures including haunting backing vocals, electronic synths, into a huge ending with distorted guitars and hard hitting lyrics. Mixed and mastered by Dublin producer Matt Morgan, Peaceful Illusion is the last single and title track of Ard Ó’s upcoming EP.
Artist Quote:
“Peaceful Illusion”, the single and the EP as a whole, deals with some heavy stuff, all centered really around mental health and the battles/problems that we create for ourselves. Different people cope with these struggles in different ways, more often than not, in unhealthy ways. This track explores such a coping strategy, where people turn to the drink or drugs in attempts to distract themselves from their own negative thoughts”
‘Peaceful Illusion’ is out now
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