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Singer-songwriter Joseph Gorman moved from his family’s dairy farm in Co Kildare to Cork city to study music. It could be said there’s much irony in the fact that the penultimate project for this course, an EP (a cross between a single and an album) of original songs, was recorded at home in the farm house over recent months.
As this was Joseph’s major study in the final year of his music degree, he had been very much looking forward to working in the newly built recording studio in University College Cork (UCC), where he attends college.
“I went to Cork to study music. I had never lived away from the countryside, basically. I moved to the big city in Cork and I was a bit overwhelmed by the size of it at first, even though Cork mightn’t be that big compared to Dublin,” says Joseph.
“I spent awhile adjusting to it and I presumed I was going to record music in the city, obviously. I think it’s ironic – after everything that’s happened, I ended up recording my EP in the farm house. Which is gas, but that’s how it turned out anyway.”
The EP is aptly named World of Madness, a lyric from one of the songs called Ebbing and Flowing. It’s out now on Spotify and other music platforms. All of the songs were written by Joseph over the past three years.
In choosing the songs, he tried to pick tracks that were relatable to the situation we’re currently living through. Joseph describes his music as easy listening soul-folk and says all of the songs on the EP are quite different.
Innovation and ingenuity
Undertaking a recording project like this at home 10 years ago wouldn’t have been an option, but thanks to modern technology and a lot of ingenuity, it was very much possible. The hot press was even repurposed into a vocal booth.
“It’s only a small little hot press. We filled it with duvet covers to try and create sound proofing. I’d have to press record outside the hot press, run in, shut the door and start playing or singing. It’s comical when you think back on it, that’s what I was driven to.”
Of course, like most country dwellers, Joseph was glad to be living in the expanse of the countryside during lockdown. But the farm also posed its own noise-related challenges. Machinery was constantly passing by the house.
“My brother was driving around in tractors and quads. We were close to a drought there about six weeks ago, so he was going up and down with irrigators and bringing in bales.
I was trying to record the piano in one room, while he was trying to do Glanbia board meetings on video calls in the next room
“I had to tell my whole family I was going to be recording at such and such a time. My father Vincent is on the board of Glanbia, so they would be having meetings a lot. I was trying to record the piano in one room, while he was trying to do Glanbia board meetings on video calls in the next room.”
Once Joseph had the vocals and some of the instrumentals recorded, he then had to find session musicians online who would record other instrumentals for him. This proved to be an international affair. He used a drummer working out of a studio in London, a cellist in New York and a violinist in Russia.
When he received all the recordings, Joseph then had to mix it all together. Seeing as the college facilities weren’t available, he had to order a lot of equipment online. Once it came, he rearranged a bedroom in the house to give him space to mix the music.
Overall, there was a lot of innovation needed to get the job done, but Joesph is happy with how the EP turned out. The 21-year-old says he has no regrets and in the days before speaking with Irish Country Living, he received his results and had gotten an honour.
A start in music
As well as singing, Joseph plays no less than six instruments. But interestingly, no one else in his immediate family is musical. “Really, there’s no one in the family with a note between them. I don’t know where I got it from,” he laughs.
“I started singing and playing music first when I was Oliver Twist in the local musical in Athy. I started voice training after that. In 2013, I entered Scór na nÓg in solo singing and I won the All-Ireland.” 
A member of Macra, Joseph is a big promoter of entering competitions within the organisation, especially the performance-based ones. He was previously the chairperson of UCC Macra and continues to be an active member.
Both of Joseph’s parents were involved in Mountmellick Macra in Co Laois. His mother Mary, a retired teacher, has run Ballindrum Farm B&B for the past 30 years. His brother Brendan is a full-time dairy farmer, alongside their father Vincent. Their other brother Francis works in cyber security.
Next year, Joseph is going back to UCC to further his musical studies, but he says no matter how much time he spends in the city, he’ll always have strong rural roots. Although music is very much his passion, he knows that when he’s at home, the milking still has to be done.
“I did a bit of milking growing up. I always liked to be out in the air and surrounded by the animals, but I knew music was my thing. Even this evening now, I’m going down to do the milking. I’m still completely grounded – I know the milking has to be done as well. I’m not a break away rock star or anything, I’m just trying to get my music out there.”
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