Rae Kelly

When my grandparents and Great Uncle Joe passed away within three weeks of each other in 2016, I sat at my piano to try and process my grief in musical form. The result was a piano piece that I later called 'Idir Eathara' - an ancient Celtic term, which describes a boundary as neither one place nor another, but the space between. 

This is my first self-produced release and experience as a Music Video Director! I was delighted to work with an exceptional group of talented people on this project, including:

Ruth Hallows - Cellist

Manuel Latouche - Animator (music video)

Valentina Zapata - Artist (music video)

Josh Nolan - Artist (single artwork)

Lucas Mendes - Sound Engineer at The Park Studios

Andy Carr - Mixing and Mastering

I hope you enjoy the piece and accompanying visuals. In the words of American Astronomer Carl Sagan, "The cosmos is within us, we are made of star-stuff".

Buckle up folks, I am excited to finally share new music with you! 'Ignorant as Icarus' was born from feelings of isolation, loneliness and uncertainty, so it seems fitting that of all the years I could have released the darn thing (it's been in my life a while), this is the one. The song came together one evening in my final year of university. I was studying Music Technology and Ancient Classics at the time (hence the Greek mythology). It's one of a few songs that came together in one sitting - music and lyrics hand in hand, like some mysterious force. In terms of the personal feelings behind it, I won't go into detail... let's just say I was feeling a bit blue! The song lived as a Myspace demo, and was a regular in my live sets for many years, but I was cautious about my approach to recording 'the real thing'. Roll on about a century and here we are...! 

Years in the making 

I always knew I wanted to record this song with live strings, something that seemed implausible way back when. A few years on, I was lucky to be introduced to ABC bassist Andy Carr, who is the most wonderful musician and human being. Through his wealth of musical connections, my dream became a reality (thanks Andy!). 

The track features Birmingham-based Enigma String Quartet and we recorded their parts in Producer Jon Cotton's studio (frequented by one of my favourite artists, Scott Matthews). We were also joined by top-notch drummer Tim Bye. 

When I composed this song, I was filled with anxiety and dread. Today, having come out the other side, it has taken on a more hopeful sentiment. It's a huge relief to finally release it into the wild and I'm excited to share our work. I hope it is a feast for your ears! 

Special thanks to my friend Haley McHaffie for the artwork photo, Mark Ulrik for guitar parts and to David D'Andrade for introducing his awesome musician friend (Andy) to a complete stranger (me) after a chance conversation outside a pub - if it wasn't for that, this wouldn't exist! 

Click here to listen and/or download 'Ignorant as Icarus' today! If you're a fellow creator interested in collaborating in the future, do inbox me. 

More to come... 

Rae x

It's been quiet around here!

After a couple of years off gigging and recording due to problems with my voice, I decided to get myself back out there and record a live session - just for fun. I thought it would be a fun challenge for me to step away from the piano and reinterpret two of my songs with the guitar, so I called up my good friend Mark Ulrick We had a great laugh (you can watch some behind the scenes videos on my Instagram feed)!

After a few rehearsals, we filmed in the stunning setting of Childwickbury Manor, with the help of Cinematographer Richard Allen and Sound Engineer Jack Hobbs.  

Here's an original called Ramshackle Love. Check it out! :)

On the last Sunday of 2014, I played a solo set in a gorgeous venue called The Wodan Halle in Freiburg. I was overwhelmed by the warmth and attentiveness of the audience. Special thanks to the sound engineer for taping my wandering sustain pedal to the floor! It was an absolute pleasure and I hope to be back with new music soon. Photo by Britt Schilling.