Lemoncello, the Dublin based duo of Laura Quirke and Claire Kinsella, today announce their second album, ‘Perfect Place‘, due for release on May 8 via Claddagh Records. Alongside the announcement, the band share the new single and video for ‘Articulate Animal‘, the album’s opening track, following the earlier release of ‘Meet Me Halfway.’
Co-produced by Ruth O’Mahony Brady (Lisa O’Neill, Gorillaz) at her studio in Cabinteely, Dublin, ‘Perfect Place’ evolves from the band’s folk soaked roots of their critically acclaimed 2024 self-titled debut, and confidently explores intricate new shapes, marking a bold new chapter for Quirke and Kinsella. Imbued with assuredness, the record encompasses full band recordings that weave synths and electronic percussion into the duo’s staple organic sound.
Written and recorded over a two-year period, the album began with an artist residency in late 2023 in a cabin overlooking the Skellig Islands off the southwest coast of Kerry. From there, Quirke and Kinsella spent a year exchanging voice notes and demos before bringing the material into the studio.
The result is a record that addresses both the personal and the collective – the way external pressures find their way into intimate relationships, and the difficulty of navigating an increasingly unstable world.
Says Quirke: “In the past I think I’ve abandoned songs a little bit too soon. I hid behind flowery language instead of getting to the heart of the thing. With this album we wanted to express things that are difficult and messy. Sometimes to be clear emotionally you need to be abstract lyrically but you can’t be afraid to take everything off and just stand there completely vulnerable.”
‘Articulate Animal‘ opens the album with a solo vocal over a cello drone. A recording that originated in a five-minute creative writing exercise Quirke undertook at a workshop. The exercise was designed to bypass the critical mind and access instinct directly; the central motif that emerged, “Wish I could stop telling myself things,” forms the core of the song.
Kinsella subsequently developed the production, layering electronic percussion, synths, and cellos. The session also brought in co producer O’Mahony Brady alongside Cormac Begley on concertina and Joe Doyle and Lorcan Byrne on bass and drums.
“We decided the solo vocal line coming seemingly out of nowhere over a drone would be a good song to start the album. A manifestation of shedding layers to get to the heart of things.”
WATCH THE VIDEO FOR ‘ARTICULATE ANIMAL’ HERE
WATCH THE VISUALISER TO ‘MEET ME HALFWAY’ HERE
Lemoncello’s work is driven by the palpable chemistry of a long-term friendship, speaking to listeners in the way that an ex or an old friend might, cultivating a sense of consolation that leaves audiences forgetting there’s a world outside of the room.
Following their current run of Irish dates supporting Ye Vagabonds, Lemoncello will return to the UK in May for their own album launch headline shows in Liverpool and London. Festival appearances at Night and Day, Deer Shed, and WOMAD are also scheduled for later in the year.
Tour Dates
Thu 26 March – Watergate Theatre, Kilkenny, IE (Ye Vagabonds support)
Fri 27 March – Watergate Theatre, Kilkenny, IE (Ye Vagabonds support)
Sat 28 March – Dolan’s, Limerick, IE (Ye Vagabonds support)
Sun 29 March – Dolan’s, Limerick, IE (Ye Vagabonds support)
Fri 8 May – The Jacaranda, Liverpool, UK (Album Launch Headline Show)
Tue 12 May – Theatreship, London, UK (Album Launch Headline Show)
29–31 May – Night & Day Festival, Roscommon, IE
24–26 July – Deer Shed Festival, UK
23–26 July – WOMAD Festival, UK
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