Yana

Distant Shore

Today I want to introduce you to a wonderful singer/songwriter from the Czech Republic…Yana.

When you listen to her music you realize very quickly that she has a strong connection to Ireland and she says about herself that she may have lived there in a previous life.

Yana released her debut EP this summer, an EP that reflects the last years of her life and tells of hope, loss and expectations.

The EP:

“Distant Shore”, the title track and a collaboration with Liam Ó Maonlaī, frontman of Hothouse Flowers on piano and vocals. A brilliant song, slowly and with great lyrics, the voice of Yana is so haunting and clear and the whole song is crowned by the wonderful melody, emotional and deep.

“Will You Be There”, in this song too, Jana is accompanied by Liam Ó Maonlaí and even if the melody appears dark, it is a song about hope.

“Trapped in A Cage” is telling about expectations and the desire to just be yourself. I love the sound of the cello played by Elaine McCarthy from the band The Lost Gecko. A fantastic folk song which shows the range of Yana’s voice, sometimes softly, sometimes louder and always captivating.

“The Book Of Your Life”, without a doubt the happiest song on the EP and she says about it the most personal thing she has ever written. She is accompanied by Liam Oragh who’s the co-writer of the song and Colm Mac Con Iomaire who plays the violin.

A great start with hitting drums and a perfect guitar work making this song one of my favourites.

Yana has released 3 singles and now this fantastic EP and we can all only hope that we will hear a lot more from her. What a voice, calm and yet so urgent that you can’t help but listen carefully. “Distant Shore”is not an album that you can hear in passing, it is something that makes you sit up and listen from the first note.Songs with a message, meaningful lyrics convey the hope. We need more of such great musicians!