From Nashville with love

You only have to listen to Susan Enan’s accent to realise she’s not afraid to pick up influences from her surroundings. Born in Cambridgeshire, educated in Liverpool, and now seven years a resident of Belfast, when she talks you can hear inflections from all these places shouldering one-another out of the way to make themselves heard. Judging by ‘Moonlight/Skin And Bones And Silicone’, her soon to be released new single, it’s a tendency that is also serving her music well. The gospel pianos, the hushed choral backing, the plaintive vocals – all suggest that after her last visit to the States, she came back with far more than a suntan.

“I went to Nashville last year because a lot of my friends in Belfast have really close links with people over there, and it was just completely inspirational,” she admits. “The people I was hanging out with there were just incredible musicians. One of them, Julie Lee, has just signed an amazing publishing deal and is writing songs for Emmylou Harris and playing shows with Alison Krauss. The whole experience of hanging out with those people completely changed my attitude about the kind of music I wanted to make. I’ve just fallen totally in love with that whole Americana thing.”

From Lucinda Williams to Will Oldham, by the way of Ryan Adams and the regenerated (musically, at least) Johnny Cash, for the last five years, an array of gifted, nicotine-stained, mavericks have been quietly re-energising the previously battered role of the singer-songwriter. It’s a rescue mission that has its roots in the American heartland. It’s no surprise then, that Susan found her trip to Nashville so idyllic.

“I was just hanging out with musicians all day, listening to folk and bluegrass, Gillian Welch,” she says. “We would actually sit on the porch playing guitars, singing songs. It was just really great. Nashville was just inspiring. There was such an appreciation for musicians. What I’ve really missed since I’ve come back was the way that people would go round to one another’s houses and just play music. That doesn’t happen here.”

This, though, doesn’t appear to have stunted the development of her career. Over the last three years, Susan has released three self-produced EPs (the first with The Susan Enan Band), performed at the South By Southwest Festival, and developed a handy knack of picking up nifty support slots. Last year, she opened for Tony (“an absolute gentleman”) Bennett on a few dates in England, while Roger McGuinn was so impressed by her stint on some of his British shows that he brought her over to play at his American gigs.

“I was singing at a tiny venue in Liverpool – mid afternoon, crappy money, half wondering if it was really worth the bother – and there happened to be a guy in the audience who worked for the touring agency who were dealing with Roger’s tour. They asked me if I wanted to support him on a couple of shows. I was like, are you kidding? Afterwards, Roger got back to them, told them that he really enjoyed it, so I got to play with Roger in the States in October. Which was just amazing. Roger’s just a very quiet and sweet guy.”

Inspiration has also come from a source closer to home. Susan voices her admiration for Damien Rice – citing especially the against-the-odds success of O – and claims that he’s “a hero for any aspiring musician out there, just because of his determination and independence.”

These are qualities she’s had to call on herself while organising an Irish tour for February.

“It’s hard work but no-one is going to do it for you. And I think it is important to keep control for as long as possible. And in the long run it really is for the best. I certainly wouldn’t be in the position I’m in just now, if I’d relied on other people.”