‘A nice closing of a circle on this record’: Declan O’Rourke on celebrating 20 years of Since Kyabram

“I actually remember being disappointed the first day it was released that it didn’t hit number one,” says Declan O’Rourke, reflecting on what he then considered to be an underwhelming reception to his debut album, Since Kyabram, in October 2004.

The singer-songwriter from Dublin didn’t have long to wait however, as the record quickly garnered critical acclaim and went double-platinum within two years with tracks like Sarah, Marrying the Sea and Galileo becoming enduring hits.

Despite Declan’s initial reaction on release day, some grounding words from his team gave him perspective and led him to enjoy his success as a new artist.

“My manager said to me: ‘Are you mad? Do you have any idea what you’ve achieved?’ And that was the end of that conversation, I took it on board”.

“I didn’t allow myself to imagine it being anything. I just did it and hoped for the best, it was a lovely surprise to see how well it did then,” he reflects.

For the album’s 20th anniversary, Declan is embarking on a 19-show tour of Ireland and the UK, with the first date in Kilkenny’s Watergate Theatre on Thursday, October 2.

After performing the album live last year with a handful of shows in Dublin, Cork, Belfast and London, the demand for more from fans all over the country led to an expanded tour for fans to celebrate Since Kyabram’s legacy.

“It’s just a nice closing of a circle on this record, the fun around the music and people’s connection to it. I still love playing the songs, so I’m really looking forward to it and I love Kilkenny, it’s a great place to kick off,” Declan outlines.

“In a way, it’s taking stock and celebrating it with people who have stayed the course all that time, thanking them, having a bit of a party and saying: ‘Now here we go, onto the next 20 years,’”he adds.

In addition to the anniversary tour, the album was re-released earlier this year with an added disc of previously unheard material from the original master tapes which Declan only got the opportunity to listen to years after the studio sessions had taken place.

“I presumed it was just the recording of each song that we used. I had no idea there was all this other stuff like different takes and the banter between us in the studio as we were putting them down.”

“It was just beautiful and I got to relieve it at a pace that I wasn’t afforded at the time. There were so many little treasures and nuggets on there so it was a natural step to add a bonus disc to the record and release it with this anniversary,” he says.

Since his debut, Declan has made seven more albums, written two novels and starred on screen, leaving a world of time and knowledge between Since Kyabram’s release and today. 

This separation has allowed him to experience his definitive album in a new way and enjoy it again to close this chapter of his career.

“I felt less like it was me than was there 20 years ago, it gives you enough removal to actually forget so much. Even when you’re listening to it you go, ‘was that me?’”

“You remember snatches of things that happened but you don’t remember writing huge chunks of the songs. It’s a gift in a way because you can view it for the first time, but the 20 years gave me the opportunity to do that, to step aside and just be a passenger from that perspective,” he explains.

Declan is no stranger to Kilkenny or the Watergate stage and has fond memories of the city and venue as he prepares to make the first stop of the tour which will last just under two months.

“I honestly find it to be one of the most beautiful parts of Ireland. One thing that stands out to me was playing there for my first concert after Covid when we’d been two years locked up,” he recalls.

“I played a song on the piano and it was so emotional to be back on stage again that I started filling up I suppose you could say. I couldn’t get through the song, it was just really visceral.”

“The crowd helped me back onto it, they were saying ‘come on, you can do it’. That was very unexpected but it’s a lovely memory.”