Bring Your Own Hammer (BYOH) presents “From the Tombs”, the first single from their second album, released in collaboration with Dimple Discs. Involving members of Suede, The Cranberries, Fun Boy Three, Cane141, The High Llamas, Saint Etienne and Madness, the cinematic arrangement transforms a grim historical footnote into a vibrant, melodic offering, honouring its tragic subject matter through the lens of high-calibre, polished indie-pop craftsmanship.
This single is rooted in the harrowing story of an Irish servant in New York City, as relayed by The New York Tribune. The woman was committed to “the Tombs” and charged with infanticide on October 5, 1881, and later convicted of manslaughter in the 4th degree on November 25 before being sentenced and sent to Blackwell Island on November 26. With her sentence commuted by four months for good behaviour on June 15, 1883, she would finally be released on July 25 after nearly two years. At that point, she virtually disappears from the historical record.
A masterclass in collaborative artistry that unites historical scholarship and contemporary composition, Mike Smalle (Cane141, Augustus & John, B-Movie Lightning), June Miles-Kingston (The Mo-dettes, Fun Boy Three, The Communards, Everything but the Girl) and Bernard Butler (Suede, McAlmont & Butler, The Tears, and Butler, Blake and Grant) are joined by Fergal Lawler (The Cranberries), Marcus Holdaway (The High Llamas), Ian Catt (Saint Etienne) and Terry Edwards (The Higsons, Madness, Near Jazz Experience, Butterfield 8, PJ Harvey, Nick Cave).
Honouring its tragic subject matter through the lens of high-calibre, polished indie-pop craftsmanship, “From the Tombs” is the sequel song to, and largely based on the same sources as,”Old Oak Road” by Mike Smalle with Cathal Coughlan and Jah Wobble, the lead single from the first album, ‘My Grief on the Sea’. Dedicated to Cathal Coughlan (Microdisney, Fatima Mansions), one of Ireland’s most revered artists, this collection of songs about the sea, maritime voyages, and migration to and from Ireland during the 1800s, also involves numerous superb artists.
Both albums were curated by Dr. Richard Mc Mahon, lecturer in History at MIC, Limerick and currently a visiting fellow at the Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge, who explores forms of invented history, rooted in historical sources from Ireland and overseas, with support from Dr. Niall Whelehan, senior lecturer at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, who has written widely on the history of modern Ireland and the Irish diaspora with a focus on the 19th century.
“Our second album, “From the Tombs”, will be released in the autumn of 2026. It is a barnstorming 21-song double album that takes the listener on a journey through the history of crime, law and order in Ireland and among the Irish Diaspora in the long nineteenth century,” says Richard Mc Mahon.
Bringing some of Ireland’s and Britain’s finest songwriters together with historians to create new and original song cycles based on historical sources and to interpret song material rooted in the history of 19th-century Ireland and of the Irish Diaspora. Not a band, nor an ensemble or even a collective, Bring Your Own Hammer is a faction – one that is armed with voices and instruments and dedicated to re-interpreting historical material in song form.
The “From The Tombs” album also features Sean O’Hagan (Microdisney, Stereolab, High Llamas), Audrey Riley, Cian Nugent, Adrian Crowley, Tony Higgins, SJ McArdle, Michael Walsh, Lisa Lambe, Luke Haines (The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof, Black Box Recorder), Miriam Ingram, Hugh Bunker (Fatima Mansions), Damian O’Neill (The Undertones), Brigid Mae Power, Anne Gilpin (Morton Valence), Linda Buckley, Lavinia Blackwall (Trembling Bells), Inni-K, NQL. Kelsey Michael, Neil Farrell (Toasted Heretic) and Michael J. Sheehy.
“From The Tombs” is now available on Bandcamp and on platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify everywhere except North America and the Caribbean. The single should be made available in those regions by May 14th. ‘My Grief On The Sea’ album is also available on Limited Edition sea-coloured vinyl, CD and digitally via Bandcamp.
CREDITS
Written by Mike Smalle & Richard Mc Mahon
Mike Smalle – vocals, organ, acoustic guitar
June Miles-Kingston – vocals
Bernard Butler – electric guitars
Ian Catt – bass guitar
Terry Edwards – trumpet
Marcus Holdaway – cello
Fergal Lawler – drums
String arrangement by Marcus Holdaway
Mixed by Ian Catt at Cat Music
Released by Bring Your Own Hammer & Dimple Discs
Publicity by Shameless Promotion PR