Irish indie rockers NewDad take us inside their dreamy EP ‘Banshee’

We pick the hottest new acts so you can tell your friends you heard them first. Meet Irish indie rock outfit NewDad on their sophomore EP 'Banshee'.

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Right now, Ireland is an absolute hotspot for exciting new talent and indie rock four-piece NewDad are a perfect example of why you need to keep your eyes and ears on the Emerald Isle.

Growing up in the small-town of Galway, it was a school project and a random name generator that laid the early foundations for NewDad. After years spent wearing through the stage floors of their hometown, and with the support of its tight-knit community in tow, the band’s second EP in 12 months Banshee is taking NewDad out of Galway and onto the international stage.

Bursting onto the scene in March 2020 with their debut single ‘How’, NewDad’s breezy, easy-going soundscapes quickly turned heads. From there, a run of singles throughout the year – channelling everything from grunge to scuzzy Pixie-esque guitar, paired with brighter pop layers and dreamy hooks – cemented NewDad as a group to keep an eye on.

Their debut EP Waves landed a year later and made it clear that, while NewDad was still a new band, they were certain of their sound. Dark and stormy with undeniably beautiful moments amid the mammoth guitars, the EP acted as a perfect introduction to the world NewDad have created for themselves and caught the attention of fans across the globe.

Not even a year later and NewDad are back with EP number two – Banshee. If you were impressed by what NewDad created on their debut EP, its follow up is here to prove that the four-piece are still only getting started.

Building on the themes from their debut EP, it is the growth and expansion in sound that is most noticeable. All the best bits are still there, but it is as if NewDad have stretched a layer of velvet over the top – lush, floating melodies ebb and soar, the power-pop injection is more apparent, while percussion, bass and guitars crash and groove around vocalist Julie Dawson.

Now, with their biggest UK and Ireland tour to date, plus a run of shows in the US at SXSW – 2022 is the most exciting year of the band’s career so far. And the best part is, for NewDad it is only the beginning.

Since the very early days NewDad have been turning heads of critics and tastemakers around the world, receiving nods from the likes of The Fader, NME, Clash, BBC 6 Music, Radio 1, Annie Mac, Jack Saunders, Matt Wilkinson, Apple Music, Double J, DIY Mag, and more.

With a debut album already in the works, now is the time to get to know Irish indie rockers NewDad.

This EP is definitely bigger, having more time in the studio definitely meant we got to experiment more and layer more into each track so there’s an overall bigger sound. The main themes of this EP are restlessness and anxiety, during lockdown that’s how myself and most people were feeling so that’s what inspired a lot of the writing.
NEWDAD ON THEIR SOPHOMORE EP BANSHEE

To celebrate the release of their new EP Banshee, we sat down with NewDad to get to know them better.

Check out Banshee by NewDad:

The NewDad Story

From the beginning

NewDad: “We started making music when we were about 17, we all needed something for our music practical and figured we might as well form a band. Once we realised there was a sound there that we liked we kept at it, and when we got older we started to take it more seriously :)”

What you’ll hear

“It’s alt-rock that’s a bit gloomy, it took us a while to get to place where we were happy with our sound and the music we were making. We were hugely influenced by Pixies and early Cure, the album Seventeen Seconds specifically.”

Influences & inspirations

“We’re inspired by so many different artists but a big thing that inspired us was seeing so many Irish artists doing amazing things. We saw just Mustard open for The Cure and that was a big moment for us, also seeing the success of the likes of Fontaines DC and The Murder Capital made us feel like maybe we should give it a go.”

Inside the Banshee creative process

“We wrote all the songs in the space of a month, it was when we moved in together after the first lockdown and we hadn’t gotten the chance to write for a while. The EP mainly focuses on feelings of anxiety and restlessness because that was what we were all feeling during covid.

“My favourite memory from recording the record was getting to experiment in the studio a bit more. For the last EP, Waves, we only had three days to record it, but for this EP we had a week, and so a lot of time to play with all the fun stuff in the studio.”

Tell us the story

“The main themes are anxiety and restlessness. Being locked down for so long got to me and everyone I know, and in the EP I was trying to talk through those emotions that we were all experiencing.”

Audience takeaway

“That it’s okay to feel down. Lots of people feel that way, and the more we talk about that the better, everyone should be kind to themselves. Be patient with yourself and understand we’ve been through a lot the past two years and it might take a while to feel okay again.”

Say it in a sentence

Banshee is…“a bit gloomy but there’s moments of light – that’s life I suppose.”

For the love of music

“I love everything about music, but having an outlet to express things that can be hard to express in your day to day is very helpful for your mental health. Also I just love making music, I love playing guitar and writing melodies, it’s super fun.”

Kicking goals

“It’s hard to pick something specific, everything has been so exciting and has felt like such an achievement to us, but just seeing how many people all over the world connect with our music is very cool. We never imagined so many people would like what we were doing.”

Overcoming struggle town

“I can’t think of any struggles in particular, but it’s easy to overthink while recording and it can be hard to know when to stop sometimes. It can be hard to know when songs are done, so I guess it was trying to let go of the songs and say there’s nothing more we can do.”

The year ahead

“We’re writing an album and can’t wait to record it. We’re really happy with what we’re writing right now and can’t wait for everyone to hear them. We also have lots of gigs this summer and will hopefully get to do a lot more over the next year.”