Jayne Pomplas has today released her new video and single titled ‘Mother Superior’, from her upcoming album ‘This Is How The World Ends’, dropping September 11th. Jayne Pomplas does not appear to have received the memo that folk music is supposed to sit quietly in the corner looking tasteful. ‘Mother Superior’ arrives with considerably more ambition, dragging Irish tradition, cinematic atmosphere and a healthy dose of existential unease into the same room and somehow getting them to behave. The result is a music video that feels appropriately haunted without resorting to the usual tricks of making everything look like it was filmed through a rain soaked window while someone whispers about ghosts. Pomplas brings a striking presence to the screen, giving the song a visual identity that matches its introspective weight.
‘Mother Superior’ is built around that wonderfully uncomfortable conversation we all have with ourselves when the internal critic decides to work overtime. Pomplas turns that idea into something genuinely absorbing, and the visual presentation gives the emotional tension plenty of space to breathe. Rather than simply illustrating the song, the video feels like it inhabits the same psychological landscape. It is intimate, atmospheric and just theatrical enough to keep things interesting, which is exactly the sort of balance indie music videos occasionally discover after ignoring the rulebook entirely.
The real strength here is Pomplas herself. There is an unmistakable sense that she is not performing a character so much as allowing the audience into a complicated corner of her own artistic world. The combination of her presence, the song’s haunting arrangement and the distinctly Irish musical DNA gives ‘Mother Superior’ a personality that is difficult to manufacture. Bells, traditional influences, experimental textures and contemporary folk sensibilities could easily have produced an overstuffed musical stew, but Pomplas understands restraint. Everything feels deliberate without becoming precious, and that is a surprisingly rare trick.
‘Mother Superior’ ultimately makes a convincing case for Jayne Pomplas as an artist worth keeping a very close eye on. This is music with roots, but it is not stuck admiring them. The video captures an artist standing somewhere between tradition and reinvention, looking inward while making something expansive enough for everyone else to step inside. If this is the emotional centre of ‘This Is How The World Ends’, Pomplas has chosen a suitably dramatic place to plant the flag. It is beautiful, strange, vulnerable and quietly bold, which is pretty much the ideal combination for anyone who likes their indie music with a little mystery and considerably more substance than the algorithm ordered.
Featured image by Steve O’Connor.
About Jayne Pomplas
Following the acclaimed singles “Hit Single” and “Ninety Nine,” Mother Superior finds Pomplas at her most introspective, delivering a haunting, cinematic piece that explores the constant battle between self-compassion and self-criticism.
Written as an imagined conversation with her own inner voice, the song examines identity, faith, expectation and the often impossible pursuit of goodness. It’s a deeply personal reflection wrapped in expansive arrangements that blur the boundaries between Irish traditional music, contemporary folk and neofolk.
Beginning with an intimate vocal and fiddle melody, the song gradually unfolds into an immersive soundscape featuring electric guitar, bassoon, keyboards, symphonic percussion and layered choral voices. Field recordings of Dublin’s church bells weave throughout the recording as a subtle tribute to The Chieftains’ The Bells of Dublin, grounding the song in Irish musical tradition while pushing confidently into a contemporary neofolk landscape.
Pomplas is joined on the recording by an exceptional group of collaborators. Experimental folk duo Lunatraktors contribute drums, percussion, dance, backing vocals, duduk, bass accordion and bassoon, while acclaimed songwriter Adrian Crowley adds guitar, creating an arrangement that feels both intimate and cinematic.
Speaking about the song, Pomplas says:
“Mother Superior came from trying to understand the voice in my own head — the one that’s constantly measuring, criticizing and questioning. I wanted to write a conversation between that voice and the part of myself that’s searching for compassion. It’s probably the most vulnerable song on the record.”
The single offers another compelling glimpse into ‘This Is How The World Ends’, an ambitious debut album that traces a coming-of-age journey through eleven songs, blending intimate songwriting, experimental production and deep traditional influences.
Before embarking on her solo career, Pomplas established herself as one of Ireland’s most adventurous collaborators, performing alongside artists including The Chieftains, Frankie Gavin, Fin Furey, Francesco Turrisi, Liam Ó Maonlaí, Lunatraktors, Mik Pyro, Jaz Delorean, Bricknasty and Ron Block, while also opening for Vieux Farka Touré. Her work spans traditional Irish music, experimental folk and contemporary composition, bringing together seemingly disparate influences into a distinctive artistic voice.
‘This Is How The World Ends’ represents Pomplas’ first full collection of original material and captures a period of profound personal and creative transformation.
“This album is an encapsulation of what it feels like to grow up, at least for me,” says Pomplas. “I turned 27 and realised I’d been playing it safe for years. I went into overdrive and decided I was going to do everything all at once. And I have, in a way. And now I realise I know nothing. It’s little epiphanies like this that feel like the world is ending — and a world does end, but it always begins again.”
The album balances original compositions with imaginative interpretations of traditional material, featuring collaborators including John Francis Flynn, Patrick Stefan, Luke Coffey, Graham Heaney, Jamie Bishop, Jaz Delorean, Adrian Crowley, Lunatraktors, Méabh McKenna, Robbie Reilly and RVE.
With Mother Superior, Jayne Pomplas delivers one of the album’s emotional centrepieces—an arresting meditation on the voices we carry within ourselves and a striking example of an artist reshaping the possibilities of contemporary Irish folk music.
LINKS:
https://www.jaynepomplas.com/
https://www.instagram.com/sweet__jayne
https://www.tiktok.com/@sweet__jayne
https://www.youtube.com/@sweetjayne
https://bandcamp.com/jaynepomplas