Wexford twins release new single and announce tour dates

The Ocelots are twin brothers Ashley and Brandon Watson from Wexford, now residing in Leipzig, Germany…

Building on the folk-rock essence of their debut, the duo are excited to announce the release of their highly anticipated second album, Everything, When Said Slowly, set for February 2025.

This album unveils a richer, more expansive sound, masterfully produced by long-time collaborators Cillian and Lorcan Byrne (Ailbhe Reddy, Susan O’Neill). The narrative woven throughout the album explores themes of Irish migration, the perception of time, love, and the simple joys of cycling.

“The title Everything, When Said Slowly is a response from an old Irish man’s perspective on people leaving our hometown of Wexford over the years past. He said it was a very long time since they left, but not much time if you said it fast. I found it wonderful and profound, but also deeply moving and fitting for the album’s sentiment. How time flies or drags depending on what you’re experiencing, especially when it’s time in a place you said goodbye to.”

Blood harmonies are the centre of The Ocelots’ sound – imperfections of a voice breaking or a tempo shifting. Recorded live in Orphan Recording Studios, by Gavin Glass (Lisa Hannigan, BellX1, David Keenan, John Grant, Villagers), the band’s performances help form a driven, energetic scrapbook, coloured by flutes, synths, harmonica and harmonium.

The twin brothers blend absurdity and sincerity in an array of literature-inspired musings. Open tunings and clawhammer banjo bring country-folk contemplation, but the imagery is very much urban, living outside of the romanticised glaze of wood cabins and cottage-core nostalgia.

“Apart from recording the majority of the album in an intense window of three days, we had a long overdubbing phase back in Leipzig. We were able to be more creative with the final touches. I worked in a bookstore and inside we had this beautiful noisy harmonium. I had a lot of fun with that, and I was in love with the sound. Brandon worked day after day on lead guitar parts, harmonica parts and arrangements for cello lines or extra harmonies. It took way longer than it should have, but it was worth it,” they told Wexford Weekly.

TOUR DATES:

To celebrate the launch of the album, The Ocelots will perform live shows across Ireland, The UK, and Germany.

See them at:

IRELAND:

Feb 7 – The Jeremy Hynes Room – Wexford Opera House
Feb 8 – The Seantí – Waterford
Feb 12 – The Black Gate – Galway
Feb 13 – The Commercial – Limerick
Feb 14 – Whelan’s – Dublin
Feb 15 – The Duncairn – Belfast
Feb 16 – Sandinos – Derry
Feb 21 – Coughlan’s – Cork
Feb 22 – Levis’s bar – Ballydehob
Feb 23 – Prim’s Bookshop – Kinsale

UK:

Feb 26 – Newport (Le Pub)
Feb 27 – Frome (HydeAway)
Feb 28 – Worcester (St. Swithun’s Church)
Mar 1 – Birmingham (Sunflower Lounge)
Mar 2 – Sheffield (Cafe #9)
Mar 4 – Leeds (Oporto)
Mar 5 – Manchester (Castle Hotel)
Mar 6 – London (Green Note)
Mar 7 – Brighton (Folklore Rooms)
Mar 8 – Winchester (The Arc)
Mar 9 – Southbourne (Wight Bear)
Mar 11 – Cambridge (Portland Arms)

GERMANY

Feb 4 – Rough Trade Records Instore – Berlin

April13 – Bad Kotziting

April 23 – Hamburg

April 24 – Berlin

April 25 Leipzig

May 11 – Munich

May 15 – Cologne

May 16 – Frankfurt

May 17 – Dresden