Saturday with NIYL: After the gig I’m usually wrecked, my gigs are a workout

Limerick artist NIYL's debut album, Parish Is Burning, is out now

10.30

I would sleep for longer but my dog Jasper will be doing CPR on my chest by 10am. He’s a corgi/husky mix, a pocket sized husky or a ‘posh fox’ as we like to call him.

At the moment because of the new album release I have been getting up a bit earlier — it’s full on! As an independent artist, there’s a lot of things to be done.

I’ve been reading a lot of Rick Rubin for creative inspiration in the lead up to the album launch. I’ll sit with The Creative Act for a short time and then I’ll get to work sorting out the merch, finalising the album cover and so on.

Thankfully, my partner Fiach is a visual designer and interior architect so he gives me a great steer when I’m going way off course with things. We also like to watch Architectural Digest on a Saturday morning to decompress.

11.00

I’ll go for a stroll with the dog around Ceannt Park and then I’ll head to my local cafe Pickles for another coffee and one of their delicious sandwiches or falafel wraps.

I am deeply obsessed with two podcasts at the moment — Table Manners with Jessie and Lennie Ware and The Dish with Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett. I find it very comforting to listen to people talk about things while cooking or eating.

If I wasn’t in Dublin or Limerick on a Saturday, I’d like to be in Kilkee, Co. Clare. I spent my summers there growing up. There’s something so relaxing about going for walks on the cliffs, going to the Greyhound for a pint, for a walk along the Pollock Holes and dinner in Naughton’s.

12.00

I’ll head into town and meet up with some friends who have been helping me out on the album. I will meet my backing vocalists and we’ll head to Playground HQ in Crumlin to mine into the deep and darkened depths of the harmonies in my songs.

Having been born and raised in choirs, harmony is really important to me when I make music and I have the most amazing singers working with me — Niamh Hinchy, Jane Patterson and Saoirse Kavanagh.

I’m listening to a lot of Yebba at the moment. She can do superhuman vocal acrobatics. We will think about what we can do in the live performance — what you can do in a live setting is very different to what you can do on an album.

NIYL: Having been born and raised in choirs, harmony is really important to me. Picture: Conor Diggin

17.00

After rehearsals, we might go for a wee pint or a glass of wine. If we are going local, we’ll go to the Stoneboat and if we’re going into town we’ll go to Frank’s in Camden Street.

19.00

We’ll head home to make a ruby chicken curry. It’s one of my favourite things to make when I have people over. I love the ritual. I’ll get the ingredients in, and then myself and my friends will get stuck in and make the meal together.

When myself and Fiach bought our house, I decided that I wanted to get as many cookbooks as I could and challenged myself to cook from them. Any chance I get, I like to cook up a storm — my next challenge is to get better at making homemade ramen.

When we bought our home, a priority for us was to have a gaff that could become a bit of a hub for people if they were up in Dublin for the night, flying into Dublin Airport or gigging in the city.

I’m awful at communicating with my friends by text or phone so the more often I can have people around the happier I am.

Once a month or so, myself and Fiach like to go out to dinner and a show. We recently went to Hawksmoor for dinner and then on to a show in the Gate Theatre which was lovely.

20.00

If I’m gigging, I will already have been at the venue for a couple hours before the gig starts, making sure everything is perfect. I will have grabbed a bite to eat with the band to lock in together — it can get stressful very quickly if we don’t look after ourselves. We’ll then hit the stage.

10.30

After the gig, I’m usually wrecked — my gigs are a workout. Directly after a gig can be a bit over-stimulating because you’re riding on the high of being on stage and if it’s a homecoming gig there’s always lots of people to have the chats with. I’ll hang around the venue and ground myself, and then it’s either out for the night or back home by 1am.

01.00

I’m a bit of a night owl and am much more creative in the nighttime. If the creative juices are flowing I might get the guts of a song down in an hour and then leave it and come back to it the next morning. I’m lucky that once I am horizontal, I can fall asleep straight away - I know a lot of people aren’t blessed with that gift.

Limerick artist NIYL's debut album, Parish Is Burning, is out now. He has performed alongside Cynthia Erivo, Dermot Kennedy and Rufus Wainwright and competed to represent Ireland in the Eurovision. For forthcoming tour dates, see instagram.com/niylmusic