olan monk

Olan Monk is a musician, performer, and writer from Conamara, Ireland.

Their second album, Songs for Nothing, is out now on AD 93.

Written after Monk’s return to Ireland’s west coast, the record draws from sean-nós singing and Sinéad O’Connor’sconfessional lyricism, blending Irish tradition with experimental gothic art rock. Through shifting textures of shoegaze, cloud rap, and slow airs, the album evokes Conamara’s rugged landscape and a deep sense of place.

Featuring contributions from Maria Somerville, Michael Speers, Dylan Kerr, and others, Songs for Nothing reimagines Irish song traditions with raw, heartfelt intensity.

Monk dedicates it “to Conamara and all who have called it home.”

Their practice involves experimental and popular songwriting, performing as a solo act and in collaboration with other musicians, including recordings and performances with Actress, Ashley Paul, Elvin Brandhi, James K, Maria Somerville, Michael Speers, Moin, Princ€ss and Shampain. They co-founded C.A.N.V.A.S. with Lugh O’Neill as an events series and record label, established in 2018 to give collective agency to an increasingly dispersed community of artists.

Past releases include Love/Dead (2020) and Auto Life (2021) on C.A.N.V.A.S. and Dubplate 08 (2022) on AD 93. They contributed the single ‘Surf’ to Scenic Route’s The Road Less Travelled Vol. 2 compilation (2024) and feature on the single ‘Guess It’s Wrecked’ from Moin’s third album You Never End (2024), released on AD 93.
Past performances include appearances at Rewire, The Hague; Aiséirí in Leisureland, Galway; National Concert Hall, Dublin; the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Belfast; cafe OTO, London; Barbican Hall, London; Institute for Contemporary Art, London; PAF Olomouc; EOS crossings, Frankfurt and throughout Ireland, England and continental Europe.