LIMERICK singer/ songwriter/ dancer Dora Gola will release her debut EP at a headline show in Dolan’s this Saturday October 20.
For the new recording, Dora recorded with Limrock legend Dave Keary (Tuesday Blue to Van Morrison and too many highlights to mention in between), Paul Moore on bass (musical director of Riverdance and former bassist for Van Morrison), Des Lacey on drums and percussion, Jim Hanley on piano and Alan Keary on strings.
“Excited is an understatement. One of my biggest dreams is about to come true,” Dora tells Limerick Post this week.
“I’ve been working with the best musicians and producer in the country, Dave Keary.
“Being able to release my music in possibly the best quality and having the full control over the production is incredible.”
Born in Poland, Dola moved to Limerick at 15 years and went to school in Newport. Since then, she graduated with first class honours degree from the BA in Voice & Dance (Limerick) and MA in Music Performance (Cork).
The title of the EP is simply ‘Dora Gola’, a collection of tracks to bring the listener on a journey into Dora’s world experience – all the different emotional states.
The EP starts with ‘Heartache’ followed by ‘Perfect Picture’, ‘Around the Sun’ and the ‘Outro’ which is dedicated to her best friend who passed away in March.
“It’s been such a busy and emotional year, full of ups and downs, successes and disappointments, broken heart and healing.”
The lead track for radio ‘Perfect Picture’ tackles the fallout from a world overloaded with technology and overwhelmed by social media.
“We live in the world where everyone seems to have a lot of virtual friends but in reality, a lot of us are lonely and looking for the real connection and relationships with other people. These bring us to the plague of depression and suicides. The song is supposed to make you question what’s really important, pause for a second and realize what you really need.”
Dora immersed herself into the process of recording these songs with producer Dave Keary and musicians of experience, a journey described as “an amazing and learning experience” for the singer .
“I’ve learned so much and met incredible people. Having so many people involved in making my record is a true privilege. I completely immersed myself into the process and appreciated every moment. It’s important to work with a producer who looks in the same direction as you and understands your vision. It makes it all pure pleasure. Dave has been amazing to work with.”
Recording to these high standards is an expensive business and the Limerick based songwriter used Kickstarter to raise funds for the project. Would Dora recommend this avenue to other young musicians?
“Absolutely. As scary as it seems it’s worth a try. I was always admiring people who were brave enough to put themselves out there and ask people to invest in them. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think I could reach the goal but the will of getting this record out was stronger than the fear.”
“The campaign gave me the reassurance that there are people who care about me and think that my music is worth it. I am entirely grateful for all the contributions and I feel this EP is a gift to me from people who have the faith in my work. Sometimes you gotta do what scares you the most. For me this was one of the things and I’m proud I took the risk.”
Getting to the point of making the ‘Dora Gola’ EP finally available is a dream come true for the singer who has performed at The Richard Harris International Film Festival and on the Liam O’Brien’s Crooning at Christmas national tour.
“Nothing is impossible. If you have dreams and you work hard to reach them it will all be worth it. Be prepare to fail but embrace the failure. You’ll gain experience, knowledge, resilience, growth and value.”
For the launch gig Dora will be accompanied by guitarist Sven Warner, bassist Shane Collins and drummer, percussionist Bart Kiely. Dora Gola plays Dolan’s this Saturday October 20.
