CMAT: “The Irish have always been brilliant – but there is a lot of trauma”

nme.com:

CMAT has spoken to NME about the impressive cultural footprint of her native Ireland, as well as plans for her next album – which could arrive sooner than you think.Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson was speaking to us on the red carpet of the Ivor Novellos in London this week (Thursday May 23), where she was nominated for Best Album for the acclaimed ‘Crazymad, For Me‘ – but was already convinced that she wouldn’t win due to the competition she faced.

The award was later picked up by Yussef Dayes.“Lankum are nominated for the award, who’ve already beat me for Irish album of the year – also RAYE, who won 75million awards at the BRITs and I just sat through that, twiddling my thumbs, not winning anything,” Thompson told NME. “So, my hopes are low, but also high because I’m here!

Even to get nominated is a full dream come true.”A post shared by NME (@nmemagazine)Daragh Lynch of Lankum spoke to NME earlier this year about the current dominance of Ireland in culture – with some of the most in-demand names for the big screen including Cillian Murphy, Paul Mescal, Saoirse Ronan, Barry Keoghan, as well as the likes of Fontaines D.C., KNEECAP, The Mary Wallopers, Sprints, and NewDad releasing some of the most acclaimed music of recent years.

Lynch put it down to confidence overcoming trauma, and Thompson agreed.“I would say Irish culture is killing it at the moment because we are all a bit traumatised, we have a lot of generational weirdness going on, we have some post-colonial problems, we have a huge housing crisis, the government is a sack of spuds,” she told NME.“Also we’re just really funny people who are very creative.