'It felt like a dream' -Kildare musician Tadhg Nolan talks 'crazy' Electric Picnic gig and upcoming releases

Leixlip musician Tadhg Nolan made a memorable debut at Electric Picnic 2024, performing with a full band for the first time at Ireland's biggest festival.

Known for his solo performances and his regular busking on Grafton Street, the talented Kildare singer-songwriter's sound breathed nostalgia, with vocals blending seamlessly into his guitar and the accompanying band.

Tadhg described the experience as a once-in-a-lifetime show, saying the gig was "amazing".

"Performing with such a big band like that was nuts," Tadhg said. "Usually, I perform solo, and I've only played publicly with a band a handful of times. It was kind of crazy."

Tadhg's performance on the Three stage in Stradbally included a brass section, backing singers, a drummer, bass guitarist, two additional guitarists, and a keyboard player. "I was so nervous going on the stage," Tadhg explained. "It kind of felt like a dream, like it never really happened, but apparently everybody enjoyed it!"

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Tadhg’s journey to Electric Picnic began with a simple but transformative decision he made as a teenager - as he only started playing guitar when he "gave up football".

"I was really bad at it, so I gave that up when I was about 16, and then I started learning guitar on YouTube at home," Tadhg said.

"I had been playing piano when I was 12. I really have a passion for music, but back then, I never really thought of music as something I would pursue as a career. When I started learning guitar and humming along to stuff in my room, I was like, this is something I really, really love, and then it took off."

Tadhg first performed publicly as a busker in December 2020, and despite the somewhat rocky start, was encouraged by the experience. “I remember bringing a friend out with me for moral support, and I brought out this little battery-powered amp that died on me after about 45 minutes. But I made 45 euro in those 45 minutes, so in my head, I was like, ‘wow, this is so good.’ I took it more seriously after that and haven't really looked back since.”

The preparation for Electric Picnic included intense rehearsals at Camden Studios in Dublin, guided by arranger Cian Boylan. “We showed him our songs in a one-on-one session, and he then put them on sheet music,” Tadhg said. “He arranged music for different musicians in the band, and they picked it up straight away because they're all just unbelievable session musicians.”

Tadhg also received guidance from Irish music icon Imelda May, who was at the studios to give some advice. “Imelda May was present during the rehearsals, and she was giving us tips and her own feedback on our songs,” Tadhg mentioned, adding that her input added a professional edge to their performance.

After a few standout gigs in local venues, Tadhg's journey to the stage in Stradbally truly began when he applied for the Three Network City Stages initiative, an initiative encouraging new musicians and buskers to perform at public outdoor stages across Ireland.

“The initiative is amazing. It gives such an amazing platform to up-and-coming artists and buskers like myself,” Tadhg said. “I applied for that in April, and then I got a message to perform at the Three City Stages event in Killarney.”

His performance at Killarney led to an invitation to Electric Picnic, which Nolan described as a dream come true. “I came home, waited a few weeks, and hoped that I would get some kind of email from Three for the EP gig. It did thankfully arrive. I had a video call with the Three team and I got the gig! I felt like I manifested it or something, but I was still in shock. It was just unbelievable. I'm still pinching myself.”

Reflecting on the Electric Picnic experience, Tadhg explained that the gig "was basically an hour set split between five up and coming artists".

"We got two songs each, and then we did a joint song at the end. We got to pick a cover and an original, so I chose 'Begging' as my cover, and then for my original, a song I wrote called 'Daytime Drunk.' It was so cool to hear that. I wrote that song in my bedroom, and last week I got to see this huge band learning and performing it on stage."

The experience at Electric Picnic was not just about the music for Tadhg, but also about the overwhelming support from his hometown of Leixlip. "Leixlip is one of the best places for support. There's such a good sense of community; it just feels like everybody's on the same team," Tadhg said. "So many from home showed up to the gig at EP as well. I remember thinking I didn't even know half of them were going to be there!"

The exposure from his Electric Picnic performance has already begun to pay off. "I've gotten a good few followers off the back of the gig and just a bit more attention for my own music. People responded really well to it. They want to see me release that song on Spotify, which is really cool," Tadhg explained. “Just before we did a sound check, a performer asked for me to come down to the front and asked me, 'What's your Instagram?' She had only heard me in the sound check, so the fact that people want to hear more of me from just straight off the bat, it's really cool to get that recognition."

Tadhg knows the significance of this performance and what it could mean for his career. "You never know what kind of trajectory a gig like that can put you on," he said. "And you never know who's going to be listening to you as well for the next while after a gig like that."

Tadhg is set to release music on Spotify shortly, and is not a musician to be missed!