Following up his double A-side offering “Contrast” / “The Garden” as well as his highly-praised single “Already Here” earlier this year, Northern Irish singer and songwriter David C Clements continues the support for his forthcoming album ‘The Garden’ with his euphoric new single “Little Outsider”.
Co-written alongside Snow Patrol’s Iain Archer, “Little Outsider” continues that warm and illuminating aesthetic he has been crafting for his next studio record. Brimming with these rich and emotive textures that perfectly elevate his soaring vocal performance, Clements finds himself in one of his more passionate guises to date.
Adding about his latest effort, he said, “‘Little Outsider’ is a song I wrote with Iain Archer about the joys and madness of having kids. About how disorientating it can be, how at times you’re constantly trying to find your footing, but also how there’s so much happiness to be found in all of those moments.”
David C Clements will also take to the Ulster Hall stage on December 20th *(note the change of date from the originally advertised Oct 6th) with his full band to celebrate the release of his new album. Tickets and more information available HERE.
Clements calls time a blessing and a curse. In the eight years since the release of his debut album, he has toiled through creativity’s long winters and now offers up ‘The Garden’, an 11-track alternative folk record featuring songs written with Iain Archer and Jacknife Lee.
In spending the best part of a decade writing and recording ‘The Garden’, he has “accidentally journaled” the key moments in his life. Clements began close to home with long-time producer Michael Keeney (Foy Vance, SOAK) in Bangor, County Down, meeting one evening a week to experiment with new songs. Under the guidance of Gary Lightbody (Snow Patrol), he was encouraged to take his time, and to explore co-writing.
While life’s demands can get in the way of dedicating time to music, it is that same life that creates the stories that are shared within these songs. Clements and his wife welcomed a son. Beloved family members were lost; he met them again in dreams. He moved house, moved jobs, made friends, and lost touch with others. Songs were scrapped and new ones took root. His daughter was in pre-school when recording began; now she is about to finish primary school. Clements writes about empathy and escape, the mundane and the unmeasurable. “Been wandering round for years looking for the garden,” he sings on the title track.
Following the release of his debut album, ‘The Longest Day in History’ in 2016, Clements established himself as one of Northern Ireland’s most distinctive voices. In 2022, he stood in as lead singer of Two Door Cinema Club on their South American festival run. He was invited to Washington D.C. in 2023 to perform at the capital’s St Patrick’s Day Gala Concert, alongside James Vincent McMorrow, SOAK and Tolü Makay.
David C Clements performs in places as epic and ethereal as his musical offerings. Within the circular walls of Mussenden Temple, perched on the edge of a sheer cliff with the Atlantic Ocean below. In Belfast’s Central Church, his sold-out Christmas show has become an annual tradition; pews filled with listeners who hold Clements’ voice in reverence. If he sings it, they will come.
‘The Garden’ will be released on September 20th through Third Bar Records and will be available on vinyl and digital formats