Euphoric indie rock is the vessel Pillow Queens use to celebrate their queerness, stand up for the rights of women, and reflect on their strict Catholic upbringings in Dublin.
There comes a point when every band finds themselves in a new place on the horizon. The precocious snarls of youth are gone, and the invincibility of being new – and Pillow Queens have been one of the most acclaimed new bands in recent years – is now replaced by something else. A feeling of being unburdened and unafraid, of dropping the ballast of what other people might think. This is not to suggest a band who has softened, or rejected the music that made their name, if anything the new material places them in another realm, open to seriousness and vulnerability. The band’s timeline runs parallel to huge social and cultural change in Ireland, and queerness and Irish identity have always underpinned the songs. There hadn’t, in short, been a band quite like them before in Ireland.
After forming in 2016, the band released a series of singles, honing their craft and working towards their first album, In Waiting (2020). Along the way there has been acclaim from UK and American press, many sold-out gigs and an appearance on James Corden’s US TV show. After signing with Canada’s Royal Mountain Records, they released a follow-up album, Leave the Light On in 2022, touring the UK, US and Europe extensively, including shows at Austin’s SXSW and supporting Phoebe Bridgers in Glasgow.
