Grian Chatten – Chaos For The Fly

It’s a rare thing to come across something new with timeless appeal, but Grian Chatten’s debut solo effort Chaos For The Fly fits the bill. The Fontaines D.C. frontman strips everything to the bone, putting himself front and centre with both poise and vulnerability to create an album that’s distinctly innate to who he is.

Plucking comparisons to Nick Cave and Morrissey wouldn’t go amiss here. Fairlies and Last Time Every Time Forever correlate with the fire and intimacy that seeps throughout Cave’s work, while the Morrissey-esque, haunting vocal melodies of album closer Season For Pain are sublime.

Co-produced with Dan Carey, a minimal Irish folk aura provides the album’s sonic bedrock, but the depth and variety exhibited is plentiful. There’s also a definite melancholic underbelly, which almost becomes too dreary on tracks like I Am So Far. But this is made up for with the unsurprisingly high standard Chatten sets when it comes to writing lyrics: from relationships to social and personal observations, they’re pure poetry.

Switching to a solo record doesn’t always work for everyone, but this certainly does. A real gem, this bold album brimming with character begins the etching of Chatten’s name among music’s greats.

Listen to: Fairlies, Season For Pain