Having been part of the ‘Take Back The City’ initiative in Dublin, and written a song about it, as well as playing over 250 shows in a single year, Luke Clerkin‘s exploration of the Dublin music scene has been thorough, political, and at times extremely full-on.

Having used his experiences as both lessons and fuel, Clerkin’s now back with his EP ‘What Little Time We Have’, in which he tries to condense his fast-flowing, emotional take on life into a lively, poppy style.

Ahead of the launch of his single ‘Nocturnal’, Clerkin talks me through the journey so far…

Can you tell me a bit about ‘Nocturnal’?

Nocturnal was written over two years ago, months after I stopped seeing someone that I’d been seeing for a while. The song explores the initial moments of nervousness and lust that were involved in the beginning, and then it moves on to the feelings of regret after it finished.

The regret comes from myself, wondering if I should have given more time and energy on ‘a love that was distant but almost near’. This song is my first step into releasing something with real pop elements, and it also shows me with a full band energy that I wouldn’t really be known for.

What will be the themes of ‘What Little Time We Have’ when it arrives?

WLTWH explores the themes of mental health, love, regret, closure, and the question of love itself. These themes are things that constantly come up in my life, so putting them together made sense to me, and putting this out will essentially be my closure on the situations that inspired the songs.

Deeply personal songs seem to be a theme with your music. Is there an element of self-therapy to it all?

Absolutely. Writing music is part of my self-care routine. When I’m feeling emotional about something, or if I’m feeling hurt or annoyed, I’ll pick up my guitar and I’ll write about it. Honestly, there is no better feeling for me than finishing a song that is about something that has affected me badly.