A harpist walks into Whelan's. Sounds like the start of a joke, but it's the whole plan: acclaimed harpist and songwriter Mikaela Davis plays Whelan's, Dublin on Thursday 21st January 2027.
She's bringing Graceland Way, the new album, out now on Kill Rock Stars. It was made in a hillside home in Chevy Chase Canyon in Los Angeles County, where time slowed and the world fell away, which is the kind of place most of us only reach on a bank holiday Monday. Davis co-wrote it with guitarist John Lee Shannon, and the pair co-produced it with longtime collaborator Dan Horne.
It's a story record: an unnamed antihero wandering a failing world, with her harp and his guitar doing the heavy lifting. The guest list is a rake of good taste. Madison Cunningham and Tim Heidecker sing harmonies, Wednesday's Karly Hartzman turns up on 'Junk Love', and 'Mizmoon' was written by Cass McCombs.
'Nothin's On The Radio' takes aim at the corporate airwaves. "Gone are the days when the radio was a way to bring people together, to amplify the voices of freaks and weirdos from all corners of the world," she says. Proof, if you needed it, that the harp is the most rebellious instrument nobody suspects. Deadly.
Tickets €23 including booking fees, on sale now from singularartists.ie and Ticketmaster.