Protest songs come in all shapes and sizes. And heck knows, there’s a lot to protest ATM. Which is where new single Deep Breath, a protest song from the Dowling Poole comes in.

The song brings you a “juxtaposition of paisley-tinted, loved-up poptones where underneath lurks the grim voice of doom,” as Jon Poole told RPM Online.

Willie Dowling said: “Deep Breath is a song of protest, and we feel it sums up in large thick brush-strokes, the upheavals we are all enduring.

“The extraordinary events of recent times, and particularly the last couple of months, have been so momentous and life changing that we all find ourselves reeling from the fumes of one catastrophe while being engulfed in another at an ever increasing rate.”

The song doesn’t feature on their latest album, See You See Me – which has been recommended to all but Trump fans.

“It’s often said – largely by right of centre people – that music and politics are an unholy mix, but I think that’s more to do with protecting the status quo,” said Willie.

“And unless we’re talking exclusively about teenage manufactured pop songs, aimed only at making money, how could a song not reflect to some extent, the point of view of the artist? When people say they don’t like politics, they generally mean party politics, which is completely understandable, but almost everything that touches our lives is political by definition, and any songwriter worth their salt will be saying something in their songs about these immense events and the way that they touch their lives.

Power

“Music is a powerful way of connecting people, and since the 1960’s, established power worldwide is aware of this and is keen to ignore, mock or condemn any critique of power made in song form.

Speak up

“Musicians are free to speak up about what they believe in, or the injustices that surround them just as much as anyone else. History seems to suggest that the only way we advance or evolve as a society is when people come together in significant enough numbers to show the ruling classes that we are not prepared to take their lies, hypocrisy and deceit anymore. Songwriting, just like all art, has it’s part to play in that process.”

The Dowling Poole‘s third album ‘See You See Me’ is out now, available to purchase directly from the band, via digital platforms and in record stores.