“A rolling and tumbling track set to an organic trad backdrop, Bríd Lyons’ ‘Mother’ has a sense of place and time about it, filled out by Lyons’ commanding vocal performance”. – The Last Mixed Tape
“Bríd Lyons’ ‘I Must Go’ is a captivating track that stacks heartfelt vocals and Celtic influences with lyrical poetry”. – HotPress
Bríd Lyons is a Kilkenny born singer, songwriter and folk musician. She combines an acoustic sound with poetic lyrics that conjure images of nature and the human experience.
Her work is influenced by artists such as Hozier, Ye Vagabonds, Lisa Hannigan, Saint Sister and Anna Mieke. Bríd’s sound is Celtic and ethereal, and is rooted in folk tradition. It features everything from soaring acapella vocals to rhythmically complex acoustic arrangements.
In the past two years, Bríd has been selected as one of the KCLR representatives in the HotPress Local Hero Talent Search and has played several prestigious gigs such as the Ruby Sessions and Whelan’s Ones to Watch.
Bríd has also supported Irish folk giants such as Sharon Shannon in Whelan’s Main Room, Lisa O’Neill, Rónán Ó’Snodaigh and Myles O’Reilly at the beautiful St. Canice’s Cathedral and also opened for Jerry Fish on Kilkenny day.
Bríd has been honing her craft as a composer and performer for the past 9 years, working both on her own and with other projects. Her single, ‘October’, which was released in late 2021, saw her delve fully into a solo venture. Bríd’s second single, ‘Mother’, was released in 2022 and was awarded as The Circle Sessions Song Of The Year.
She followed up with ‘I Must Go’ in April 2023, the third single from her debut EP, Tied To The Turf, which was released in May 2023. Bríd embarked on a co-headline Irish Tour that May with fellow songwriter Luke Clerkin, selling out the Hole In The Wall in her hometown of Kilkenny.
For the last year Bríd has been reconnecting with her creativity and focusing on writing and developing her vision for her music. ‘Lantern Song’ is the announcement of a new creative era, with more emotional depth and maturity. The release will be followed up with a music video on November 22nd to further immerse the listeners into Bríd’s creative world. 2025 will be a big year for Bríd, with 5 more releases in the pipeline.
She has had coverage from Hotpress, IMRO, Golden Plec, The Last Mixed Tape, Ragged Cast and many more, making her an artist to watch out for.
The Story Behind Lantern Song:
‘When I was a child we had an autumn tradition of making homemade lanterns from glass jars wrapped in paper. We would light them for a nighttime walk in November, where we would sing lantern songs. These were old folk songs that explored themes of autumn and winter like harvest, migration, hibernation, the fall of the leaves and most significantly, darkness, and the hope that it could be kept at bay with our lanterns. We had an old songbook that was always kept by the piano that contained some of these songs.
In recent years, I asked my mother if she could lend me the songbook. It had been years since I had seen it but it was coming into autumn time and I wanted to refresh my memory of those old songs that I loved so much. To my deep dismay, she had given the book away to the charity shop just one week previously, not realising my personal attachment to it. We immediately went to the shop to try to retrieve it but it was too late.
It broke my heart that the book was gone, and that the songs were fading from my memory. I went to the piano and played some that I could recall. I made a record of as many as I could remember but there was one that escaped me. I knew there was one more about overcoming the darkness of the night. In my mind’s eye I could see the blue illustrations of tall evergreen trees that bordered that page of the songbook. Frustrated, I thought to myself: If I can’t remember how this song goes, I suppose I’ll just have to write a new one of my own. And so, Lantern Song was born.
Lantern Song is a nostalgic folk tune about a journey through a dark forest with only candle light and the stars as a guide. It brings the listener back to the fundamental rhythm of nature and weaves together themes of hope, change and loss.
Lantern Song was recorded and mixed by Gavin Doyle and mastered by Martin Quinn.’