David Keenan THE FIRST FEW BRAVE STEPS FOR KEENAN
You couldn’t accuse David Keenan of being slow out of the gates to the new year market. His debut album came out on Friday. A Beginner’s Guide To Bravery showcases the Dundalk singer-songwriter’s brilliance as a lyricist.
The sharp melodic turns in the ten-song collection keep the ear constantly engaged.
I first saw David Keenan weaving a spell over some very excitable fans of The Strypes when supporting them in Dublin’s Thomas House in June 2017. Tomorrow night, he headlines the Olympia Theatre. Okay, so his ascent hasn’t been as rapid or dramatic as another DK, Dermot Kennedy, but 26-year-old
Keenan might be hailed ultimately as the one with the rarer talent. The songs on A Beginner’s Guide To Bravery are captivating. If it doesn’t feature in the top ten ‘Best ofs’ at the end of the year then 2020 is going to be a brilliant year for music.
‘For two years beforehand, people were saying to me, “where’s the album?”, he says.
‘But I knew some stars had to align first. A band had to form around me that I trusted and loved, who could play with me and understand my way of explaining things. I don’t mean that in a dictatorial way. I don’t speak in musical terms; I don’t know the names of chords. It took a couple of years for us to learn to play together and develop.’
Keenan knew he wanted to be an artist from a very young age and inspired by the likes of Jack Kerouac and Bob Dylan, at just 17, with his parents’ blessing, Keenan headed for Liverpool to play music, to live life and meet people with different stories to tell than those he heard growing up in Dundalk.
‘When I lived in Liverpool, I met people who lived on the street and there’s great sadness and great beauty in the stories that they tell.
It’s exactly the same here in Ireland. These are people who don’t have a certain position in society but that gives them the freedom to speak and express themselves exactly how they want to.’
He returned to Ireland after a year and slowly honed his skills as a performer.
He has developed a style and delivery that bears comparison with Jeff Buckley and Bob Dylan. He is a fan of poets such as Stephen Smith and Stephen Murphy and maverick musicians from his home-town. Keenan embraces the new Ireland with the growing influence of multiculturism but is also inspired by Gaeilge and Irish traditional stories and music.
‘The way that Ireland and Irishness is marketed around the world is bull***t. Ireland and Irishness is in its seanchaís, bards and the work of Stephen Murphy and The Mary Wallopers, Junior Brother and TPM. They are revolting against the sterilisation of Irish culture. I try to be an advocate for that when I can.’
nA Beginner’s Guide To Bravery is out now. David Keenan plays the Olympia Theatre tomorrow night.
‘The way Ireland and Irishness is marketed around the world is bull***t’