Morgana and Music in the Age of Overwhelm
Backdated article - April 2025 - original translation published for The Irish Times. Party Killer, Morgana’s EP is now available on streaming services and tickets for her upcoming headliner gig in Dublin are available here.
📸Meghan Law
In place of a generic press release, a colourful newsletter arrived in my inbox to announce Power Cuts, the second single by Morgana (formerly of Saint Sister). It was refreshing. The short email was brimming with honest details and personal touches, explaining the meaning behind her new song with accompanying music video stills.
“I wanna dance! I wanna shake! I wanna feel hot on the steps of a big old house like the pop star I imagine myself to be!” she exclaimed before signing off with two kisses.
Morgana is somewhat of an anomaly, in that despite having only released two songs in the past year, she has been routinely selling out headline gigs. Seeing her desire to be a “pop star” laid bare struck a chord, however. There is something intentional and honest about Morgana’s approach to writing and releasing music that is not in step with today’s pop industry - and it may very well be to her advantage.
Attending her early gigs in secret venues and at small festivals, it was exciting to go into a show blind. With rising ticket prices, it’s rare that we commit to attending shows clueless as to what the setlist might entail. In our dopamine-addicted, chronically online state, there is also something incredibly chic about something that can only be experienced by being in the room. Morgana’s music is not readily available, yet fans sing lyrics back to her, simply by having attended previous gigs.
Her debut single I’ll Cry When I’m Dead was released to critical acclaim in October 2024, alongside a music video featuring comedy darling Ardal O'Hanlon. The ‘sad banger’ (as she called it) announced a bold new radio-ready direction for the singer: “I’ll turn off those country songs, I’ll cry when I’m dead.” The danceable 80s-inspired anthem with a swelling synth-fueled chorus was just enough to whet the appetite of listeners.
Instant gratification has a grip on us all. We crave it. Usually once a craving is satisfied, though, we stop thinking about it. On the other hand, if a craving can’t be satisfied, it haunts you. We are told that artists need streaming platforms for exposure and to gain a following. By denying listeners instant access to her music, Morgana has become something even more powerful: she is covetable.
With little to no music online, Morgana has blazed a trail for herself, playing a sold out headline show in The Button Factory, surprising fans with a pop-up gig in the United Arts Club, opening for Dermot Kennedy, and securing a place in St. James’ Church at Other Voices - a coveted slot even for more established artists.
Now six months later, we finally receive second single Power Cuts, a pulsing synth-pop dream accompanied by a glamorous Kate Bush-esque music video. Building on her reputation for intimate storytelling, Morgana marks her solo career with unbridled emotion and a new dramatic flair.
Power Cuts is peppered with delightful Dublin-centric references like buying “rounds at Lisa’s Yummy” (an eccentric Liberties dumpling establishment), and served with addictively singable melodies. “Why’d you always shout when you’ve got nothing to say?” she demands, proving her ability to pen an undeniably catchy chorus with upbeat production and devastating lyrics.
Employing the use of recurring characters - Jackie, Freddie, and Cathy appear throughout her setlists - this song, according to the artist, was written as a “rallying cry against ageism in the music industry.” Her vulnerability, however, is masked behind alternative personas and bright synths. Her lyric “Prepared to party, ready to cry” acts as a mantra for her dancefloor-bound brand to date.
Morgana’s approach lends itself to an “if you know you know” mystique. The elusive air with which she surrounds herself seems to work especially well in an age of digital overwhelm. Her choice to fill smaller venues rather than to rush for bigger stages creates a certain exclusivity.
It will be interesting to see whether this approach will stand to Morgana in the long run, and for how long she will keep playing these more intimate and more interesting venues, especially at a time that is seeing much bigger artists struggle to tour on a larger scale. It seems to be working for her though, with upcoming festival slots at All Together Now and The Great Escape this summer, as well as a warm welcome for her second single. For now, less seems to be more for this undeniable pop star.