Life is all about balance, and for every dream experience that shakes up your world, there’s often a sacrifice to be made. NewDad have had plenty of the former since releasing their debut single ‘How’ in 2020 and steadily building an ever-burgeoning fanbase around their spellbinding dream-pop. They’ve released a critically-acclaimed debut album in 2024’s ‘Madra’, gained a fan in their ultimate hero, The Cure’s Robert Smith, and toured parts of the world they never thought they’d get to visit. But for all that to be possible, the Galway three-piece have had to give up some things, too.

Around four years ago, the band – singer/guitarist Julie Dawson, guitarist Sean O’Dowd, drummer Fiachra Parslow – left their home behind and moved to London. It’s a relocation that’s helped them thrive as a group, but is also something that Dawson still has mixed feelings about. “Most days I wake up and I’m like, ‘Yes, let’s fucking do this’, but I do still miss home,” she explains.

That tension between knowing you’re where you need to be right now and longing to be somewhere else colours ‘Altar’, NewDad’s highly anticipated second album. Started shortly before the release of ‘Madra’, it’s deeply informed by Dawson’s yearning for home, for family and the place that she truly belongs. In some ways, the record is a tribute to Galway, the singer in reverence of her hometown

Fittingly, given the love for home on ‘Altar’, the continued ascent of the three-piece on this record will also continue to further Ireland’s current standing as a hotbed of world-beating creative talent. NewDad are bringing something fresh to the new wave of original, formidable young acts from the country, distinctive from their peers as they join them in making waves around the world.

Whether live or on record and regardless of where listeners are tuning in from, Dawson hopes ‘Altar’ helps people gain the courage to stand up for themselves and be proud of themselves, and gain the strength that this confident new album has given her. “Nothing’s perfect,” she reflects, “but if you just work hard and are true to yourself, it’ll be alright.” Sacrifices might still have to be made in the balancing act of life, but ‘Altar’ at least has helped Dawson accept that and is about to take NewDad to even greater heights.