EllyD at Davey Davey, Dublin, 17th January 2018

The intrinsic connection between creative spirits and artistic minds came to fruition when Dublin singer EllyD launched her new single in the cool retro surroundings of Davey Davey hair salon on Stephen’s Street.

Davey Davey are well known as trailblazers in creative innovation, so it comes as no surprise to feel the synergy between the setting and starlet showcasing her talent tonight. It’s standing room only for the exclusively invited crowd, cradling cool craft beer in relaxed anticipation.

Billed as a launch for her latest release Lighthouse, EllyD unfurls a whole body of work in a ten-song set. Elaine, as she is also known, has composed a shimmering array of songs laced with the resonance of London Grammar in a lush, synthy landscape, styled with a powerful vocal that pivots seamlessly from delicate and desolate to cinematic soundscape.

Enduring themes of isolation, sadness, hope and humanity underpin a vulnerability that’s embedded in Elaine’s writing. The fragility of her subject matter is framed in luscious melodies with glossy hooks that deliver the poignancy of Beth Orton in places.

Say, from her EP released last year, expands from a questioning verse of quiet isolation into a full-blown, ambient drama. The porcelain purity of her voice accelerates the sentiment in her songs, her range injecting tension and timing to perfection. Lucky, a sombre, synth-layered song written after the Bastille Day terrorist attack, is a nod to the tragedy, an acquiesce of really, how ‘lucky’ we are.

Rise reveals itself as an emotional, wistful, haunting lament swelling the venue, the extended live version seeping onto the street drawing onlookers to the salon. A confident cover of London Grammar’s Strong is a perfectly breathless rendition, crafted with her own vocal twist leaving the audience hypnotised. An emotional tribute to the great Dolores O’Riordan, When You’re Gone is fitting and well received before the advertised highlight of the night.

Lighthouse is Elaine’s latest single. Soft and swaying, its lingering melody belies the verse of sadness and the finality of suicide. Echoing isolation in the production, gentle chimes and string arrangements carefully carved to lay bare the raw emotion of the song.

You can catch EllyD live in the flesh at the Ruby sessions tonight the 23rd of January , with her headline gig taking place in The Underground on the 27th.