Biography
Irish singer/songwriter SOAK traces the origin of their stage name to a blend of the words “soul” and “folk,” though they have long maintained that neither label fully captures the sound they create. Their songs, marked by a breathy delivery and raw emotional candor, unfold over evocative, frequently minimal arrangements that draw as much from indie rock as from folk or soul traditions. A string of EPs appeared from 2012 onward, followed by the 2015 debut album Before We Forgot How to Dream, recorded while the artist was still a teenager; the record earned a Mercury Prize nomination. Themes of early adulthood surfaced on the 2019 release Grim Town, while 2022’s If I Never Know You Like This Again looked back at formative years after Monds-Watson had come to identify as non-binary.
Born Bridie Monds-Watson in Derry, Ireland, in 1996, the future SOAK absorbed Joni Mitchell, ABBA, and Pink Floyd records owned by their parents. Guitar lessons began at age thirteen, and by fourteen they had joined friends in a band. The SOAK alias soon emerged for solo performances shaped by an affinity for the 1975 and Foals. Their mother provided transportation to shows, allowing the young performer to build an audience within Derry’s active local scene. The debut EP Trains surfaced in 2012, quickly followed by Sea Creatures. Chvrches extended an invitation to record for their Goodbye Records imprint, resulting in the 2014 EP Blud. By the close of that year SOAK had secured a contract with Rough Trade, and the BBC included them on its annual Sounds of 2015 longlist. The full-length Before We Forgot How to Dream arrived in June 2015, reaching the Irish Top 20, the British Top 40, and the Billboard Heatseekers chart in the United States.
A 2016 stand-alone single paired SOAK’s renditions of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.” Grim Town, issued in 2019, confronted the disillusionments and practical demands of entering one’s twenties and climbed to number 66 on the Irish chart. Monds-Watson publicly identified as non-binary in 2020, prompting a reflective turn on the more expansive third album If I Never Know You Like This Again. Produced with longtime collaborator Tommy McLaughlin, whose other credits include work with Luke Sital-Singh and Pillow Queens, the record marked SOAK’s first effort with a complete band and adopted a mid-nineties aesthetic centered on electric guitars and effects pedals.
Born Bridie Monds-Watson in Derry, Ireland, in 1996, the future SOAK absorbed Joni Mitchell, ABBA, and Pink Floyd records owned by their parents. Guitar lessons began at age thirteen, and by fourteen they had joined friends in a band. The SOAK alias soon emerged for solo performances shaped by an affinity for the 1975 and Foals. Their mother provided transportation to shows, allowing the young performer to build an audience within Derry’s active local scene. The debut EP Trains surfaced in 2012, quickly followed by Sea Creatures. Chvrches extended an invitation to record for their Goodbye Records imprint, resulting in the 2014 EP Blud. By the close of that year SOAK had secured a contract with Rough Trade, and the BBC included them on its annual Sounds of 2015 longlist. The full-length Before We Forgot How to Dream arrived in June 2015, reaching the Irish Top 20, the British Top 40, and the Billboard Heatseekers chart in the United States.
A 2016 stand-alone single paired SOAK’s renditions of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.” Grim Town, issued in 2019, confronted the disillusionments and practical demands of entering one’s twenties and climbed to number 66 on the Irish chart. Monds-Watson publicly identified as non-binary in 2020, prompting a reflective turn on the more expansive third album If I Never Know You Like This Again. Produced with longtime collaborator Tommy McLaughlin, whose other credits include work with Luke Sital-Singh and Pillow Queens, the record marked SOAK’s first effort with a complete band and adopted a mid-nineties aesthetic centered on electric guitars and effects pedals.
Albums
If I never know you like this again
2022
Grim Town
2019
Before We Forgot How To Dream
2015
Turning Tomorrow
2008
Singles
