Kildare-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and voiceover artist Ross A has released his new single, Heartland Girl. We asked him the BIG questions . . .

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It follows his previous singles, Some Other Time, Maybe, Flowing To You, Flowing Through and Be OK. He will release his new album, Vestige, later this month.

Heartland Girl follows the tale of two characters over a multi-year period and is influenced by a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel.

"As soon as I started writing the first verse, the words flowed easily and the story was a straight line I could follow to the end," Ross says.

"I like a song you can float away on, walk around in, get lost in and we have an open-ended conclusion here, where the listener can decide the outcome for themselves, depending how they're feeling."

Tell us three things about yourself . . .

I enjoy making music. I've run nine marathons. You may have heard my singing voice before as Captain Barnacles on the kids’ TV show Octonauts.

How would you describe your music?

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Narrative-laden alt-folk. Earthy, textured. Multi-faceted. Often played with restraint, wont to venture. I’d say much of it is relaxing to listen to. I like to get a good mood going with the other musicians and take it from there. Sometimes it can be lyrically sparse or esoteric but if you like a story evolving with your song, I have those too.

Who are your musical inspirations?

Some: Dylan, Bowie, Waits, Springsteen, Warren Zevon, Wilco, David Byrne, David Lynch, Cormac McCarthy, Bukowski, Bill Callahan, Tom Petty, Leonard Cohen, Nina Simone, Gillian Welch, Father John Misty, Dawes, Calexico, Adrienne Lenker, Lankum, Lucinda Williams, Elliot Smith, Townes Van Zandt, Billie Holiday.

What was the first gig you ever went to?

Neil Young headlining Slane - under 12s went free at the time. I remember Eddie Vedder saying that we were "the best f***ing crowd Pearl Jam have ever played to" and fully believing him. 4 Non Blondes played the hit and people liked that. Saw Doctors had some sort of massive puppet on stage and I didn’t like that. Van Morrison seemed to me that day quite a grumpy man. Fully appreciating his genius came later in life.

Towards the end of the show, my father went into Classic Dad mode and had us leave early to "get out before the mad crowds," thereby eschewing Neil Young’s Rockin’ in the Free World encore with Pearl Jam. My older sisters were really raging at this crazy decision. I still remember how good that song sounded in the distance as our family walked down the road, above and away from it all.

What was the first record you ever bought?

Nobody Knows by The Tony Rich Project (cassette single). Glow by Reef (CD album).

What’s your favourite song right now?

If I Could Only Fly by Blaze Foley. It does something to me every time I hear it. He sounds sad and strong at the same time. There’s a powerful want in his voice.

Favourite lyric of all time?

"Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth, You’re an idiot, babe, it’s a wonder that you still know how to breath" - Idiot Wind by Bob Dylan. I marvel at how funny Dylan can be in a line like this, yet the rest of the song retains a sense of mystery and genuine pathos.

If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. It’s good n’ long with a lotta twists, turns, rests and rises.

Where can people find your music/more information?

@rosscapitalA on social media and my website.

Alan Corr