Growing up in the Dublin suburb of Condalkin has had a massive impact on Conor Dardis’ life and songwriting. Although he’s now based in the UK (Preston to be exact) he’s proof enough that you can take the boy out of Dublin but you can’t take Dublin out of the boy.
A storytelling style reminiscent of Billy Bragg and Bruce Springsteen, and dare we say even Dylan – ‘The 51 From Station Road’ is a collection of 14 demos telling tales based on the working class Dublin of his formative years. It’s like taking a peek through the windows of the houses in Any Street: a slice of suburban life.
A concept album which reminds me very much of the Dublin domestic set novels of Maeve Binchy, these songs could easily find their way into a film or TV soundtrack. From the story of the family whose whole lives changed when the father is laid off his job, to the woman who’s working hard to pay off the loan despite having to live with domestic violence (there’s a twist to this tale), the songs are heartfelt, emotional, poignant. Stirring.
Find Conor on Twitter and his website. You can listen to his album on his SoundCloud. Definitely worth it.
