Today, Free Flight Records’ Irish prodigy Darren Kiely releases his sophomore EP, From The Dark (LISTEN HERE). Produced by David Baron and featuring co-writes from Ryan Hurd, Teddy Reimer, Daniel Tashian, Joe Fox, Geoff Warburton, Jon Hume, and Gabe Simon, Kiely takes his craft to new heights as he explores the harsh realities that come with growing up and moving on. “This collection of songs was written from a darker place—one where there was not a lot of hope and where I was searching for the smallest bit of that hope in different things. It is not as hopeful as some of my previous releases in the sense that I really tried to capture or describe the moments where hope is the very faintest thing in the distance,” says Kiely. Featuring the previously released tracks “Slow Decay” and “Say I,” the six-song collection evokes quite a range of emotions from the pop/folk singer-songwriter and allows the listeners to experience his inner dialogue first-hand as the EP progresses: “The sequencing was strategic because I wanted to show that there are waves of dark moments—peaks and troughs—in everyone’s life. I thought starting out with darker songs then moving on to brighter or more hopeful ones, and eventually going back to the space of losing hope and feeling dark is representative of how I view the cyclical nature of life,” Kiely describes. From The Dark Track List: - A Long Way (Darren Kiely / Daniel Tashian)
- Say I (Darren Kiely/Joe Fox/Geoff Warburton)
- Ocean (Darren Kiely/Joe Fox/Jon Hume/Geoff Warburton)
- Can’t Hold You (Darren Kiely/Jon Hume)
- Slow Decay (Darren Kiely/Gabe Simon)
- From The Dark (Darren Kiely/Ryan Hurd/Teddy Reimer)
To mark the release of the project, Kiely also shares the Official Music Video for “Ocean” (WATCH HERE). The music video captures the essence of the song, which Kiely describe as “one where you come to realize the fear of loving someone so much that there’s nothing you can do but almost surrender to how overwhelming it is, and kind of accepting your fate that you just have to fall and feel that love.” Directed by Dustin Haney, Kiely brings the viewer to the coast of his native country where the symbolization of the ocean’s crashing waves comes to life. Pulling inspiration from influences like Mumford & Suns, The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, Kiely has mastered his own distinctive sound while drawing in fans worldwide. With a busy start to the year thus far— “Sunrise” reaching No. 1 on the Irish Homegrown Chart, signing to Free Flight Records, and headlining his almost sold out 33-date international THE LOST TOUR— Kiely continues to capitalize on his momentum with the announcement of plans to join Mat Kearney on the HEADLIGHTS HOME TOUR this fall. For a full list of tour dates and tickets, visit darrenkiely.com. About Darren Kiely:
Hailing from a quaint town in Co. Cork, Ireland, Darren Kiely’s folk-infused pop sound originates from his inherited love of traditional Irish music, intertwined with modern influences such as The Lumineers, Mumford & Sons, and Noah Kahan. At just five years old, Darren learned the tin whistle, and at eight years old he picked up the fiddle, eventually teaching himself to play guitar as well. Darren began singing in 2019, quickly garnering attention for his raw and fervent vocals and emotive delivery. After winning numerous honors at a national level in Irish traditional music, Darren found his way to NYC in 2022 to continue developing his own music and sound, and soon after headed to the songwriting hub of Nashville. Darren’s unique presentation of folk-infused pop and lush storytelling, which echoes the backdrop of the Irish countryside where he was raised, is the forefront of his debut EP, Lost, which arrived last fall. The seven-track project explores the triumphant war of overcoming self-doubt, struggling to find himself, questioning emotions and seeking answers. Lostfeatures new track “Mom & Dad,” which debuted in the Top 40 on the Irish Singles Chart and also landed him in the Top 5 on the Irish Homegrown chart, as well as fan-favorite, No. 1 hit, “Sunrise.” Kiely took his new music on the road in the fall with his headline THE ROAD HOME TOUR, where he sold out shows across his home country of Ireland. Following his headline tour, Kiely toured across Europe with the 502s. The singer is currently on his international headline tour, THE LOST TOUR, wrapping in Ireland in May. | 
