Lisa Hannigan - Emotional connections and sonic weaves

About a month after the release of her third album, Lisa Hannigan came to Milan for promotional activities, and we had the pleasure of meeting her. Her answers offer a privileged perspective on everything behind this comeback, from her close collaboration with Aaron Dessner to the importance of never separating the purely technical side from the human and emotional one.

The last time I saw you was in Milan, when you were on tour with Glen Hansard. I think there was a special chemistry between the two of you on stage, so I know you've both since had a solo album and tour to attend to, but I was wondering whether there's any idea of putting that chemistry down on a recording in the future.

Oh, I don't know. Glen was the first person I saw who made me think I might actually want to be a singer on a stage singing my own songs. I remember that, during the show, he had a harmonica and a full pint of Guinness fell into it, and he just drank it! I'd never seen that kind of passion in anything before that moment, and it was truly amazing for me. Then, after a lot of other things, it was wonderful to open for him on tour and watch him every night. We've actually already recorded several things together over the years, but I'm always up for recording with him, he's one of my favourites and he's a lovely person. It's always great to meet him.

Talking about the sound of your three records, I think there's a path, in the sense that the second one starts from what you'd done on the first to do something different, and even on this latest one there's something that comes from the previous one as well as something further removed.

I think you're right, and maybe this path really will keep going. This record does have something particular about it, but overall, I think it's all based on the process of giving a performance and feeling more comfortable doing it, as well as being more honest with yourself. Maybe, on the first record, I felt almost embarrassed being so honest, but then it gets easier, partly thanks to touring, and this record does feel very personal — I mean, they're all personal, but now I'm older, and everyone changes over the course of all those years. There are a lot more darker things on this record, because as you get older, various things become part of your life, and I think there's a mix of all those things here.

Speaking of the stories you tell on the album, I read in the press release that "Prayer For The Dying" is dedicated to a relative of a friend of yours who, sadly, passed away. But just listening to or reading the lyrics, you can't tell who the song is for. Are there other lyrics with a story behind them?

All the songs are personal, they're about difficult situations, that's obviously true for that song too, but they all come from something — do you want me to tell you about a particular song?

Yes, I'd planned to tell you that I usually ask artists something about my favourite song, but this time I couldn't settle on one, so maybe there's one you'd like to talk about instead.

I think the most important song on the record, also because of the work Aaron Dessner put into it, is "Ora". I wasn't sure what was going to happen in my life, I was afraid really hard times were coming, and I got an email from him asking if we wanted to write something together, and I said yes. So he sent me his music, it was four minutes long, and I'd record myself at home, then stop to do something else, like the laundry, and then start singing again and record. I remember that, with "Ora", I was in London and I missed home. I had good reasons to be there, but I remember that, while singing on "Ora" "sto andando a casa, sto andando a casa", I felt like I wasn't on the right path, like I was lost, the way you feel when you're facing something bigger than yourself. That song is so immediate and easy, and I still feel it's very important for the record and for the moment we were in while making it. There are so many elements in it, and the words are very personal, and then all the sonic textures — I feel it's a very important song for me.

You've just given me an example of how you start writing a song, but I was wondering, do you ever just start from a melody?

No, never. I simply spend a bit of time mumbling until I find a line to start from, and the melody and lyrics always arrive together. For this record, when I sent Aaron what I'd written, he'd always give me a positive response, so, for instance, I didn't have to worry about the fact that I'm not a very good guitarist.

And then I read that you recorded the album in seven days.

Well, I did my part in seven days - me, Aaron, a bassist and a pianist, in New York in this beautiful church - but then I went home and Aaron was working on hundreds of records, I think he was working on eight different albums at once, I remember one was by Frightened Rabbit. So, if he had a free day, he'd call some friends in to play on my record, so it took a couple of months to get everything done, all the layers, and he'd send me emails asking what I thought about a certain thing and I'd always say it sounded wonderful and thank him. I had all these parts sitting in my inbox arriving at different times, which was actually a good thing because it meant I could listen to everything carefully. In the end, it took a few months for it all to come together properly.

We've talked about how the sound of the album was built, but I get the impression there's also something new in the way you've used your voice.

Yes, I feel that first and foremost I'm a singer and, over the years, I really wanted to use my voice as an instrument. On "Prayer For The Dying", for example, I feel I sang differently compared to before. Self-confidence matters too - now I really feel I can use my voice as an instrument, and I think I did that on that song, considering how powerful it was. On "Lo" too, there are several layers of vocals, and the high notes really work well together with the strings. So, first of all, for me the voice represents an emotional connection, but I also like to think of it as a physical sound, something that can be part of the texture.

I was also about to ask you something else, but I don't know if it's more Aaron's area of expertise than yours. I noticed some really in-depth work on rhythm on the album, maybe you can tell me something about that.

A very important person for this aspect is Ross Turner, an Irishman, very talented and very creative. There were lots of musicians interacting together on the record, so I can't say I did that work myself, I'm not very good at that. The bassist made a lot of great choices, and Aaron too, obviously. So, it's all thanks to the musicians.

On this record there's no communal sing-along moment like "Knots", for instance. Do you have a feeling you might write another song like that in the future?

Yes, I'm sure, I think on this record the feelings weren't right for a song like that, but I'm certain I'll write at least one more like it. Maybe, on the next record, they'll all be like that - who knows.

It's commonly believed that you can appreciate an album differently depending on how and where you listen to it. I was never entirely convinced of that, but listening to your record in different settings, I had the feeling I grasped it better when I listened to it in bed, in the evening, alone in my room. Do you feel there's an ideal situation in which to listen to it?

I feel the record will go perfectly with November. It's warm right now and I feel it'll work best when it's cold and snowing. A lot of my favourite songs are tied to moments like watching the sun rise, or being home alone, but I think driving could also be a good time to listen to it.

You'll be playing in Milan at the end of October, what can we expect?

Lots of new songs and lots of old ones too. The band is slightly different compared to the previous tour, there's more piano and more synth and there's an American singer, Heather Woods Broderick, who opens the show and then we sing together, she has a truly fantastic voice, so there'll be plenty of harmonies, moments where we jump around, I can't wait.

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