KEG (2023)
Pitching up somewhere between camps Mercury Rev and Sufjan Stevens, McGloughlin consistently creates big beautiful music which deserves big beautiful audiences…. The Goo Dublin
Led by Sligo native Pearse McGloughlin, Nocturnes weave a blend of meditative folk-noir with lyrics that are both emotionally resonant and spiritually uplifting….RTE Culture
a musical artist and wordsmith who crafts songs of exquisite beauty and depth … Nenesbutler
this is pop-folk goldsmithery of the highest order ... Between strings as precise as they are loose and vocals as inhabited as they are celestial, the journey is overwhelming... This songwriting is both deeply rooted and profoundly singular, giving it that long-lasting breadth that is so precious…. Le Village Pop
Six will knock them for the same number in fact and for me it shows a songwriter who is in love with what he does and having the sufficient talent to make others do likewise. Twee pop like the Apples in Stereo and I've always had a gra for that act….. MP3 Hugger
The Rest (2020)
‘softly embellished folk songs, often with a softly sweeping cinematic bent, the faint burble of electronics and a sense of the avant garde’…. Lauren Murphy, The Irish Times
'songs of autumnal ambience, bringing shades of a serene Sigur Ros or Beach House in their better moments' Steve Cummins, The Sunday Times
memories whirl with the mediative instrumentals and beautiful bilingual vocals….a dreamlike soundscape..full of heart and hope… Rachael Crabtree, Spiral Magazine
The Soft Animal by Nocturnes (2016)
'The time has come for Pearse McGloughlin's ever-evolving cosmic groove merchants. Their recent album The Soft Animal is our favourite Irish record of the year - do yourself a favour and get it immediately'.... RTE Culture
'It has almost magical powers in the way that it pulls you in, creating something that’s utterly captivating and just so damn beautiful'... Record of The Day
‘subtle elements of the fantastical’ - The Irish Times
‘flits between folk, ambient, orchestral and singer-songwriter styles, underscoring
an inquisitiveness and search for something greater within’… Nialler9
‘Release of The Week’ ….. The Irish Times Culture
‘beautiful harmonies’ - BBC Radio Ulster Across the Line
"a rewarding listen, 'The Soft Animal' is a true album " - The Last Mixtape
Album of The Week - Dan Hegarty, 2FM
Idiot Songs in Collaboration with Justin Grounds (2013)
“A series of sonic gems (gifted with beats and beautifully spectral spoken-word inserts) that breathe life and art into electronic music… 4****”
— The Irish Times, Tony Clayton-Lea
“Over 34 minutes, the pair, with help from Enda Roche, create what the best albums manage to do, an atmosphere exclusive to itself with its own identity. By indebting the project to Dostoevsky and partnering up, McGloughlin and Grounds have made an album greater than their two talents. No idiots here.”
— Nialler 9 – Album of the Week August, 2013
“A beautiful homage to the empathy and creativity of Dostoyevsky and without a doubt one of the best concept albums I’ve heard in my time…”
— Nay McArdle, Harmless Noise
“Taking inspiration from Dostoevsky’s ‘The Idiot’, Pearse McGloughlin and Justin Grounds have put together an album that impresses on just about every level. ‘Idiot Songs’ was recorded in the cold of winter in various locations (Clonakilty, Canada, Sligo and Dublin). This could be called a concept album, but don’t let that put you off! (Album of the Week August 2013)”
— Dan Hegarty, The Alternative, 2FM
“Taking from the duo’s new full-length, self-titled release – a concept album borne from a mutual love of the literary works of Dostoyevsky, composed and constructed via Dropbox – ‘Nastasya’s Tears’ is a beautifully executed, impressively constructed track instantly calling to mind the likes of Villagers, Death Cab For Cutie and – another Ben Gibbard project – The Postal Service.”
— BBC Across The Line
“Pearse McGloughlin and Justin Grounds tap Dostoevsky for inspiration on splendid collaborative album of folky pen-pictures…”
— Jim Carroll, The Irish Times
“Idiot Songs, the collaboration between Pearse McGloughlin and Justin Grounds, is a contemporary interpretation of Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot and hears the duo craft a musical concept around the Russian novel, with its tale of moral and social dilemma. Created for the most part while Grounds and McGloughlin were living in Ireland and Canada respectively, electronic beats are used to give pace and tension, while the use of classical arrangements of piano and violin give a timelessness that harks back to the chamber music of the novel’s setting. If you like Jung Trickster check out the exceptional video for Villages Of Ether.”
— Music Alliance Pact – Global Bloggers Mixtape – Irish contribution August 13
“It’s a listen-by-candlelight record that doesn’t outstay its welcome and is more accessible than the concept suggests. Lovers of singer-songwriter fragility and low-key electronics are likely to be satisfied as the wick burns down...”
— Harry Guerin, RTE TEN
“‘Idiot Songs’ is a powerful and expressive work of art, and at just over half an hour long, does not overstay its welcome. Combining electronic percussion with more traditional instruments, ‘electronic chamber music’ could not be a more accurate description of the unique and frankly bizarre use of instruments that features throughout ‘Idiot Songs’.”
— Jonathon Klein, Goldenplec
In Movement by Pearse McGloughlin & Nocturnes (2012)
“...another album for the wee small hours, a place he seems comfortable (...) a set of songs that, confidently and astutely, carry McGloughlin further along an upwards trajectory...”
— Jim Carroll, The Irish Times
“A quiet triumph...”
— Hot Press
“While it would be hard for anything to make up for the damp and defeats of this summer, here's one guy who's really trying his best...”
— Harry Guerin, RTE
“In Movement is a magical journey that is sure to delight audiences. A must-have...”
— Oxygen
“'Going Away,' (...) all too briefly evokes, almost funerally I would say, the ghosts of departure. A really good album showcasing the talent of this songwriter...”
— Terrascope UK
“Charming (...) glorious sounds of autoharp, piano and double bass...”
— 2UIBestow
“An album for late nights, red wine and self reflection In Movement once again showcases McGloughlin's ability to plough the same emotional furrows as his contemporaries but with a craftsmanship that eludes all but the most talented...”
— De/Code
“McGloughlin's accomplished schtick is quiet and whispery. Instead of sweeping you off your feet like a tidal wave, this music announces itself by lapping in around your ankles...”
— Eamonn Carr, Evening Herald
Busy Whisper (2009)
“…soft-focused, mellow tunes delivered with quietly assured authority…”
— Jim Carroll, The Irish Times
“An album that revels in an unabashed intimacy and raw tenderness - 8/10”
— AU Magazine
“There are small, fanfare-less albums that deserve to be guiding lights for the aspiring and the jaded as to how these things should be done…the Sligo man is a reminder that sometimes the most intriguing of talents are on your own doorstep—if you can spare the time to look and listen. 4/5”
— Harry Guerin, RTE
“Pick of the Fortnight, July 09”
— Jackie Hayden, Hotpress
“McGloughlin could well be the needle in the hay stack we have been waiting so long to find and this is certainly a masterful and learned voice that deserves to be heard.”
— ZME Music
“Much more than simple promise. 9/10”
— Andrew Hamilton, Clare People
“Busy Whisper is everything a good acoustic album should be; unassuming and unpretentious. Easily one of the best albums of 2009”
— DROP D
“Busy Whisper is exactly the sort of album that should see the LP survive as a format a stunningly good debut album that showcases Pearse McGloughlin as one of Ireland's brightest musical prospects.”
— Cluas
“An awesome first outing from a very exciting and talented individual 4/5”
—Subba Cultcha UK
“beautifully mellow folk based sounds with hints of everything from nick drake to the red house painters. features lots of lovely intricate instrumentation including tons of rustic cello, mandolin, double bass and violin.”
— ROAD RECORDS
“Warm melodies and gentle soundcapes…(a) voice similar to Neil Halstead from Slowdive over gentle guitar chords and arrangements.”
— 2uIBestow