Evan Merriman Takes a Spin Through Life, Loss and Time on Life’s Carousel
Sometimes music needs a little extra time before it feels just right.
For emerging Co. Meath artist Evan Merriman, that time has been spent carefully shaping a sound that pulls together a pretty wide mix of influences. There are traces of indie and pop-punk roots, from The Smiths to Blink-182, alongside the ’80s pop-rock of The Police and the modern folk storytelling of The Lumineers.
Music Runs in the Family
Coming from a musical background, with a number of musicians in the family including his father, Jonathan Merriman, it was perhaps inevitable that Evan would eventually find his own path.
A multi-instrumentalist as well as a songwriter, he puts those skills to work on Life’s Carousel, a deeply personal track that introduces the young Meath artist with relatively little fuss.
There are no oversized production tricks here. Instead, Merriman lets the song - and particularly its story - do the heavy lifting.
Life’s Carousel
Keeps Things Simple
The track opens with stripped-back acoustic guitar and Merriman’s close, intimate vocal.
A simple beat soon joins in, keeping things ticking along before the full drum kit arrives alongside a solid bassline. Electric guitar picking sits quietly in the background, adding colour without crowding the arrangement.
And that's one of the song's strengths.
Despite the difficult subject matter, Life’s Carousel
never becomes overly sombre musically. There’s a surprisingly lively quality running underneath it, giving the track a sense of movement that fits nicely with its central theme of time continually rolling forward.
Merriman’s vocal follows a similar less-is-more approach. He stays close to the mic and keeps the performance personal and understated rather than trying to overpower the arrangement.
A Personal Song About Grief, Ageing and the Passage of Time
It’s lyrically where Life’s Carousel
carries most of its emotional weight.
The song explores Merriman’s grief following the loss of his grandfather, while reflecting on ageing and the unavoidable passage of time.
There’s a particularly difficult idea at the heart of the track: watching someone you love grow older and gradually become a shadow of the person you remember.
Rather than dressing that experience up in complicated imagery, Merriman approaches it from a personal perspective. That intimacy suits the arrangement and gives the song a genuine singer-songwriter quality.
It’s heavy territory for a first release, but Merriman doesn't allow the track to disappear underneath its own sadness.
Recorded at Jam Studios in Meath
Life’s Carousel
was recorded at Jam Studios in Co. Meath and produced by Martin Quinn.
Merriman handled the vocals and instrumentation on the track apart from drums and percussion, which were played by his father, Jonathan Merriman. Producer Martin Quinn also appears on keyboards.
Final Verdict
Life’s Carousel
is the songwriter introducing himself. The arrangement is uncomplicated, the vocals remain intimate and the brighter musical backdrop provides an effective contrast to a lyric dealing with grief, ageing and loss.
As a debut, Life’s Carousel
is a thoughtful and promising first spin from a young Irish songwriter finding his own sound - and one worth keeping an ear on.
The single, Lifes Carousel, is available through all streaming platforms.
Photo Credit: Evan Merriman
