B-Side Guys

Sometimes hope requires architecture. Nathan O’Regan’s “Better Days” builds reassurance note by careful note, constructing emotional shelter for his pregnant partner within the cramped confines of their Belfast home. The Irish singer-songwriter transforms domestic claustrophobia into expansive promise, proving that the most profound declarations often emerge from the smallest spaces.

Recorded at Attica Studios in Donegal with producer Gareth Dunlop, the track begins with warm percussion and soft piano that immediately establish intimacy rather than grandeur. O’Regan’s vocal approach demonstrates the technical mastery that caught Universal’s attention when he was sixteen—before they unceremoniously dropped him four years later. His delivery shifts seamlessly between vulnerability and conviction, particularly when he croons “Our dreams won’t go down in flames / If you can just hold on a little longer.”

The song’s emotional intelligence lies in its specificity. Rather than offering generic platitudes about perseverance, O’Regan grounds his optimism in tangible circumstances—the tiny house where “you couldn’t step in a straight line,” the question of where a baby would even fit. These details make his faith feel earned rather than assumed, practical rather than naive.

Dunlop’s production choices serve the song’s intimate scale perfectly. The arrangement never oversells its emotional content, instead allowing O’Regan’s natural charisma to carry the weight. The percussion remains restrained, the piano melodic but unobtrusive, creating space for the vocals to breathe while maintaining forward momentum toward the chorus’s central promise.

What distinguishes this track from countless other comfort songs is O’Regan’s refusal to minimize present difficulties in service of future possibilities. He acknowledges the cramped reality while maintaining faith in eventual expansion, both literal and metaphorical. The song succeeds as both personal love letter and universal anthem for anyone weathering temporary discomfort in pursuit of lasting change.

“Better Days” establishes O’Regan as an artist capable of finding profound meaning in ordinary moments, transforming domestic anxiety into musical grace through sheer force of vocal conviction and songwriting precision.