Cathal Coughlan (musician)

Cathal Coughlan
Coughlan in 2020
Coughlan in 2020
Background information
Born(1960-12-16)16 December 1960[1]
Glounthaune, County Cork, Ireland
Died18 May 2022(2022-05-18) (aged 61)
GenresPost-punk[2]
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
InstrumentVocals
Years active1980–2022
LabelsRough Trade Records, Virgin Records
Formerly ofMicrodisney,

Cathal Coughlan (16 December 1960 – 18 May 2022) was an Irish singer and songwriter from Cork, best known as the frontman of the band Microdisney, formed with Sean O'Hagan in 1980. Their second album The Clock Comes Down the Stairs reached number one in the UK Indie Chart. They developed cult followings in the Irish and UK indie music scenes before breaking up in 1988.

Coughlan went on to lead the harder-edged The Fatima Mansions, who found critical success with their aggressive live shows and five consistent albums, but broke up in 1995.

In the following years Coughlan released intermittent solo material with musicians such as O'Hagan, Jonathan Fell and Nick Allum.[3] His solo career and reputation peaked in 2021 with the well received album Song of Co-Aklan (composed from the point of view of his alter ego "Co Aklan")[3] which was released to critical acclaim fifteen years after his previous solo album Foburg (2006).[4][5]

  1. ^ "Cathal Coughlan obituary: Singer and songwriter who never stopped exploring musical frontiers", Irish Times, 28 May 2022. Retrieved 29 May 2022
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference ITimes obit was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference 2ltw2! was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "There's an Ironic Symmetry there, and I feel pretty good about it." Cathal Coughlan interview, The Ticket Magazine, The Irish Times, 16 February 2019. pp. 8–9
  5. ^ "Cathal Coughlan, frontman with Irish indie bands Microdisney and Fatima Mansions, dies aged 61". The Guardian, 23 May 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022