The Mining Co. - Phenomenonology (2021) Hi Res

The Mining Co. is the musical project of Ireland born, London based singer/songwriter Michael Gallagher. On his last album, Frontier, a ‘fruitful Andalucian odyssey’, we found him exploring the nature of love in uncertain times. For his new album, Phenomenology, due for release on 1st October 2021, he makes a dramatic left turn towards musical influences that shift away from the folk, country and Americana that have influenced past releases.

A long-term fan of Sparklehorse, as well as Magnetic Fields and eels, Michael’s love of science fiction and story-telling, made a move into electronics the obvious next step. When asked about the decision to go electronic, Michael explains, “I wanted to give the narratives the feeling of them floating out into the beyond via static & electronic waves. The delivery and production of my vocal varies across the album to help give the sense of me portraying different characters telling their story”. Phenomenology is a concept album of sorts; the central protagonist Talby is the lead character of the 1974 cult sci-fi film Dark Star by John Carpenter and is a metaphorical journey into the unknown, where one has no choice but to face one’s fears, a hero’s journey indeed. With Phenomenology, Michael further cements his talent as a songwriter and storyteller par excellence, whether singing with guitar or keyboard, he is clearly one of the UK most singular talents.