eightball.ie proudly presents Declan O’Rourke

Thursday, October 25
Jean Monnet Lecture Theatre
University of Limerick

www.declanorourke.com

Irish songwriter Declan O’Rourke rough vocal style contrasts neatly with his intelligent string- and piano-laden arrangements, at once differentiating him from his contemporaries and highlighting the debt he owes to the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Paul Brady, and Burt Bacharach.

He spent a few years working in his family’s construction business in Melbourne before returning to Dublin in 2000. Though wary of the “music business,” he began performing his songs live. In 2002, he met Paddy Casey, who was busy working on the follow-up to his multi-platinum debut album, Amen (So Be It). Casey took O’Rourke under his wing, taking him along to label meetings, which softened his outlook toward the industry. O’Rourke, by now a talented electric guitarist, performed with Casey’s live band for some two years, playing a lead role in the singer’s 12-times platinum second album, Living, released in October 2003. The following year, O’Rourke broke away from Casey, inking a deal with the small indie label N4 Records, owned by acclaimed accordionist Sharon Shannon. He released Since Kyabram in October 2004, a collection of 11 tracks which featured string arrangements by Steve Wickham, violinist with the Waterboys.

www.myspace.com/declanorourke

www.ilike.com/artist/Declan+Rourke