Meryl Streek - 796 (Translucent Orange Vinyl)

The debut album from Dublin's Meryl Streek takes its title from the 796 babies discovered in a mass grave at the former mother and baby home in Tuam, Co. Galway, and much of the record is a direct response to the findings of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation. Across twelve tracks of spoken word, punk, and electronics, Streek turns his attention to the Church, the state, landlords, gangland violence, and the cost of simply getting by in modern Ireland.

Meryl Streek Opener 'The Start' builds from a collage of news samples before 'Full of Grace' kicks the record into gear, while 'False Apologies' and the title track deal directly with Tuam and its aftermath. The album closes on 'Dad', a moving tribute to his late father, the Guernica drummer Darragh Broe, who introduced him to punk as a child. Recorded and mixed by Dan Doherty (Fontaines D.C., Damian Dempsey) at Darklands Audio in Dublin, it is a raw, confrontational and deeply human record from an artist with something urgent to say.