Presented by Moving On Music
Making folk music in a time of global sickness and war, TRÚ draws on traditional wisdom for their newest record.
On their second album, the trio sings of timeless folk characters in hand-picked trad songs and original compositions inspired from the worlds of sean nós, Scots poetry and Americana ballads.
"Eternity Near" follows the critical success of their debut 2021 album ("No Fixed Abode"), which was nominated for Best Album at Northern Ireland Music Prize, ranked in MOJO's Top 10 Folk Albums of the year, and was playlisted on BBC Introducing.
The trio's sophomore offering further explores the intersection between traditional folk material, original songwriting styles and contemporary production techniques.
The band's name nods to their shared heritage. The trú was a mythological trio of poet-musicians in ancient Ulster. They were revered throughout the Celtic world, some believing their songs and stories came to them from the future. Others maintained that the trú were possessed by spirits during performance. As such, they were considered gatekeepers to the Otherworld.
It’s here where this Northern Irish trio draws their inspiration. Michael Mormecha, Zachary Trouton and Dónal Kearney grew up with different musical palettes, but also came from distinct cultural identities as children of the Peace Agreement in Northern Ireland. The trio has mixed heritage (British-Ukrainian, Ulster-Scots and Irish Nationalist) and together they have fostered an unusual and fruitful collaborative ethos based on respect and exploration. Leaning into their individuality, an eclectic repertoire of influences (from Clannad to Nine Inch Nails via Joni Mitchell and The Beatles) makes for an intriguing chemistry.
Produced against the backdrop of recent break-ups, family ill-health and bereavement, "Eternity Near" became a source of healing and catharsis for the band over the past 18 months. The record is bookended by voices from beyond the grave (one an adulterer, the other a spéirbhean/spirit). We also witness the shooting of a selkie and listen to a harp carved from a ribcage - one of the oldest murder ballads in the English tradition. We hear songs of forbidden and unrequited love and encounter the archetypal temptress - Molly/Malaidh - in two different tracks.
Perhaps a response to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and in light of recent private challenges for Mormecha, Trouton and Kearney, this album ignores the finality of death to peer beyond.
In touching on the afterlife, the supernatural, and the overwhelm of love, these folk songs deal with immortality. Indeed, they may be the closest we will ever get to eternity.