Considering her second passion of teaching meditation, it came as no surprise when Susan Quirke shared the thoughtful and tranquil single Follow Rivers Way last month – a song she wrote while living in idyllic Northern California.

Listen to ‘Follow Rivers Way’ below:

On her debut album ‘Into The Sea’ however, Quirke surprises by delivering not only shades of the peaceful paean she delivered on the record’s single – but also several tracks that are filled with undeniable rock attitude. On I Like The Way she pairs a grunge chord progression and a driving bassline with some ‘Doolitle’ indebted loud to quiet dynamics. Let Us Love similarly borrows from 90s alt-rock and pairs the singers wistful vocal harmonies with emotional slide guitar and reverbed chords.

The title track is perhaps the smoothest blend of Quirke’s folk and alt-rock influences which she merges into a Mazzy Star style slow burn – the back end of the track is a stunning display of the Lahinch singer’s impressive vocal range.

Quirke has shared a blog outlining her 10 year journey making ‘Into The Sea’ which you can read on her website. Susan will also be hosting an online launch event for the album tonight, Friday 23 April, 8pm-9.30pm.

Stream ‘Into The Sea’ below: