Michael J Sheehy And The Hired Mourners – Don’t We Deserve Some kind of Love? (Dimple Discs) – There are quite a few sides to Michael J Sheehy. When Miraculous Mule hit the spot then no band rocks quite like his blues-based garage band do (or indeed before that the even more raw way Saint Silas Intercession attacked) and there is of course a great back catalogue of solo albums and back before that the adventures of Pissboy and those flies all buzzing around that Dream City Film Club back there at the end of the last century (which is where we first encountered Michael – actually it was way back when Dream City Film Club were making their first secret moves as Derby Country Football Club while they tested the water in the back rooms of 90s North London pubs). Those Dream City Film Club albums easily stand the test of time, they stand the test of all the fights and everything else that came with them (he has by his own admittance pissed away at least three good careers). This new Hired Mourners album is just one of the many sides of Michael J Sheehy..
Mr Sheehy has one hell of a back catalogue, this is his latest Hired Mourners album which I guess really is a solo album, but then there are some great players that make up his collective of Hired Mourners. There are some solo albums that really are just him (and maybe his demons), his Hired Mourners albums come with some beautiful details added by others, lush strings and such. The boundaries have always been a little blurred (and probably in more than just one way), the golden thread that runs through it all though, the thing that holds it all together as one great body of work is that rich voice; that voice, that voice that has always allowed him to get away with so so much. Hey look, we’ve said it again and again (and again) about Michael, we’ve written pages (and pages) of reviews, we’ve put his gigs on, hell, we released some of his records (back in the days when we were stupid enough to thanklessly run a record label); we’ve got history, baggage and a whole lot more and none of that matters right now. What does matter right now is this achingly beautiful new album and just how gorgeous it is.
He is only drinking in his dreams now….
Look, it is important to note, if this is your first taste, and there is a damn good chance it is, he has been criminally ignored by those who keep the gates, ignored for years (and years), if this is your first taste, this is only one side, his right hand if you like (and if your right hand does a good thing then your left hand doesn’t really need to know). This is the grace in a carved out space, his melancholy or his (catholic) guilt maybe? His hope, his hurt, and yes, it is real, these songs quite obviously come from a place deep down, you can’t just write songs and sing them like this if none of it is real, you can’t sing like this if those stitches haven’t really burst. We’ve said all these things before on these pages, they probably apply even more this time around, this isn’t an album that rocks, this is drenched in soul, in love, it life, in regret, in hope, and yes the hope here is important, the hope in the details, in the space, in the quiet, in the power, it the way it takes everything and gives even more.
Put quite simply, this album is beautiful, every bit of it, every tender groove, every crying shame, every crack of the pane and everything ever stolen. Every song here, every moment of every song and yes, as over the top as it might seem, I am going to mention Elvis here (and that possible nod towards Lennon) and yes we have mentioned Elvis before, I don’t say these thing lightly, I do say the same things every time, this is Elvis-good, Only Drinking in My Dreams and that need for a friend he sings of….
Hey look, Ive said these things about Michael’s albums (and gigs) a hundred times before, I don’t really want to repeat it all again, I don’t what to have to stand here thinking up new things to say about him and his music – the arrangements are wonderful, the backing, the knowing of where everything should go, the instinct he and his band have – I don’t want to have to think about it or write about it, I just want to enjoy it. And yes it is enjoyable, it doesn’t always have to be about kicking over the furniture while you neck the potcheen, life really isn’t that shallow.
This is a really enjoyable hopeful beautiful album of songs, proper songs, creafed songs, songs full of so MUCH. This is honest, it is drenched in very real soul, drenched in so much. I’ve listened to little else since it landed here a couple of days ago, I don’t really want to have to write about it (it will no doubt figure highly in our end of year lists again).
I don’t need to bang my head against that brick wall again here do I? Doesn’t he deserve some kind of love? Don’t we all? He’s giving so much here. Go listen, then go tell five people, then tell them to go tell another five people, this is such a beautiful album to get lost in for hours or days or maybe even weeks… (sw)
The album is out on the 19th June 2026, hopefully the label will add at least the details to their Bandcamp page sometime soon. There’s an album launch gig in London at the Water Rats, Kings Cross on June 7th (tickets). Find Michael on Instabloodygram or Facebook
Meanwhile, here another of his sides, the sound of a few Summers back, explore his back catalogue…
Previously on these pages….
ORGAN THING: The first rule of Miraculous Mule is you don’t talk about Miraculous Mule…
Oh there’s loads more coverage, go use the search engine up at the top of the page….
THE ORGAN 