And Then There Were Two…

Paul Noonan and Brian Crosby…

wo happily lost souls who crossed paths many times in their early days as founding members of Bell X1 and Juniper, old friends Paul Noonan and Brian Crosby came together for some one-off gigs last April.

One-off gigs that soon led to a tour, the duo’s celebration of piano and vocal in its purest form leading to the formation of Pilgrims.

And enough songs for a debut album, Wintering, out on January 30th, with Echo Collective kindly providing those heart-tugging strings.

As the duo hit Greystones on February 6th as part of that nationwide tour, we caught up with the Noonan lad to find out just how music took over his life…

There was always music in the house – my parents had Beatles, Boney M, Charlie Pride, Johnny Cash records – all of which I took only a passing interest in.

I learned the recorder in school, and played the flute in their Lucan Concert Band. Again, no real passion – I was being a good boy!

It was only when a drummer joined the concert band (with an actual drum kit!) that I became interested. I loved how visceral and loud it was, and used to stay behind and play drums.

I switched to the percussion section and was hooked. I played guitar a little later (mainly taught by Brian, my fellow Pilgrim), and then piano.

I suppose I stated writing when I was 18 or so. Awful stuff at first!

As to the songs that shaped me, and still inspire me…

Talking Heads Once In A Lifetime
My friend Paddy Rooney and I used to listen to his older brother’s records when we were small. The groove and manic, evangelical delivery were really compelling to my 10-year-old self – the daft physicality in the video too!

The Sundays I Kicked A Boy
Their Reading, Writing, Arithmetic album was one that I considered ‘mine’, and I would listen to it a lot on my walkman in bed. Harriet Wheeler’s voice is a joy, and the playing shimmers beautifully around it.

U2 The Unforgettable Fire
So evocative and transportive – both in the sense that it transports to a windswept, heroic place, but also for me to my bedroom in 1984… I remember again as a child the fierce pride of U2 being Irish.

Radiohead Let Down
Despair and defiance, beautifully executed. Just so inventive in the instrumentation and parts. How everything drops out and builds again to Thom’s clarion call, ‘You know where you are!‘ – devastating.

Stevie Wonder Misstra Know It All
I think Stevie plays most instruments on a lot of his records, so how in-the-pocket they are with his feel is a beautiful and very satisfying thing. When he takes off and starts scatting nonsense at the end – ya can’t help but smile.

Q-Tip Breathe and Stop
Q-Tip’s record Amplified is full of great grooves and programming. Just so satisfying, that primal rhythm thing.

PJ Harvey Big Exit
What a wonderful artist Polly Jean Harvey is. So steadfast in following through on her vision from record to record, always so affecting. Aching beauty and vicious snarls. The album Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea was a balm at a shitty time in my life.

The Walkmen Juveniles
In adulthood, as in childhood, I like the idea of a band being ‘mine’ (my wife can’t stand them…). I love how this soars, and how the guitars stumble around the straight-down-the-middle drums.

Low What Part of Me
Again, such a moving voice Mimi from Low had – her passing was a terrible sadness.

LCD Soundsystem Someone Great
I love the marriage of man/woman and machine that these guys do – the synth and programmed world with the very live and shonky bass and drums and guitars. They can sit on those grooves forever… this song is also very moving.

You can find out more about the Pilgrims here, follow on Instagram here and Facebook here, and go grab Wintering on Bandcamp right here.