B-Side Guys

Cillian and Lorcan Byrne wrote the song that would define everything else. “Your Own Head” fell out in one go, becoming the emotional blueprint for Basciville’s upcoming second album—and it’s not hard to hear why. The Wexford-born brothers tackle the ways we compromise ourselves for love, religion, society at large, examining the impossible balance between global moral duty, being present, and keeping yourself safe. With Ailbhe Reddy’s voice arriving like a lighthouse beam through fog, the collaboration transforms lament into something cinematic and searing.

The production builds on swirling guitar textures that evoke REM, Jeff Buckley, and The Frames while sitting comfortably alongside contemporaries like Gang of Youths, Big Thief, and Tamino. Equal parts band and production duo, Basciville have spent recent years as quiet powerhouses in Ireland’s music scene, collaborating with Susan O’Neill, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, The Ocelots, and Reddy herself. Their work blends folk, art rock, and orchestral swells—moving between sparse minimalism and expansive arrangements depending on what the material demands.

Reddy’s involvement came naturally from years of friendship and past collaboration. She recorded her first real studio experience with the brothers, making this return a full-circle moment. Tracking vocals one sunny day in Wexford Opera House, she fell for the track quickly, noting the lyrics differ beautifully from what she’d write for herself. Her vocal trades verses and harmonies with Basciville’s signature intensity, creating dialogue rather than simply adding feature-artist polish.

What gives the track its weight is how it refuses to pretend the balance it describes is achievable. The friction between vulnerability and survival, between wanting to do right by everyone and keeping yourself intact—these aren’t problems with solutions but ongoing negotiations that grind people down. The brothers wrote their second album in the wake of socio-political disillusionment and spiritual fatigue, exploring dissolution of ideals and the quiet rebellions that begin inside your own mind. “Your Own Head” captures that exact moment when you recognize what you’ve given up in the name of keeping everyone else comfortable.

Since forming in 2016 and releasing debut EP ‘Blues in Red’ to critical acclaim, Basciville have built their reputation through never-ending tours of Ireland and mainland Europe, releasing their acclaimed debut album ‘Hymns to the Air’ and EPs ‘For All Lost Youth’ alongside singles like ‘Shall We Gather’ and ‘Post Youth’. Their sound demonstrates what The Last Mixtape described as “strong evocation and emotional desire, carried forward by the weighty sound of it all”—Cillian’s intimate and soaring vocals combined with raw, emotive lyrics and Lorcan’s R&B and jazz-inspired percussion.

“Your Own Head” arrives November 13th via Faction Records as the first glimpse of the second album due in 2026, proving that sometimes the song that falls out first isn’t just a starting point but the thesis statement for everything that follows. The brothers soundtrack both personal and political unrest, documenting what it costs to live outside your own head while everyone else needs something from you.