The first single to be taken from 2 is the double A side, ‘the Ballad of Elton John’/Serotonin, and was released at the beginning of September 006. While Serotonin takes its place on the album, giving some indication as to the direction 2 will be taking, ‘The Ballad of Elton John’ warrants further investigation – like, why Elton John? It seems like a big departure from the observational lyrical slant of ‘Average Man’, does it not? “It’s more about celebrity and what can happen to those that live in that world. We have all these great household names that have just wasted away their talent when they become celebrities. I mean Elton John was great in the beginning and he wrote some amazing songs back in the day. But he can’t do it anymore – its like he just lost this talent that made him famous in the first place, which I find weird.

The conclusion drawn from a relatively brief conversation with Ciaran is that here is an artist who, having experienced the ups and downs of the music industry, is at ease with his own decisions, wise to the pitfalls, wary of the hype, but, above all else, is simply content to be operating in his own current headspace – take it as it comes, carpe diem, and all that jazz. Is this coming from the perspective gained from not living within the music scene? “Yeah, maybe that’s it. I need to bail out of music every now and again. It’s like living in a goldfish bowl. Last time around, when my third label, which is like the third ex-wife, went under,  things were going askew and I needed to get away from it all. It all depends on what’s going on really. At the moment, the stage that I’m at right now, I can say that I’m really enjoying it and I’m having fun. It seems really organic.  But I enjoyed myself at this stage last time around too – the problem begins when you start taking the show around the country with label representatives  - it seems less personal, playing all these huge stages.”

That said, Simple Kid hasn’t exactly shied away from the arena gigs. Since re-emerging from his musical hibernation, Ciaran has been out supporting the likes of Richard Ashcroft, Erasure and David Gray. “Why does everything have to be the same? You got these bands with their guitars and their haircuts and they’re adhering to exactly what’s going on. It’s the same thing over and over, again and again and again. I want something intriguing, something that’s going to be genuinely entertaining, so playing to a new audience is always good. I like doing supports as long as I can balance things out. But really I’ happy as long as I can just kind of exist.”

Kieran returns home for a show at the Savoy and  while he’s looking forward to doing his thing on his old stamping ground, there is a degree of apprehension also. “I’ve done some bad gigs in Cork in the past. It’s always been strange because there are friends and family there and there’s this expectation. Then there are those who might recognize the name and they’re curious about this guy from Cork. But when Truck On went into the Top 40 in the UK, I was coming back for a gig in Cork and it felt like this big homecoming and crowning. But it was just the most dead gig. The last few were great fun though, and hopefully this one will be too.”

Simple Kid plays The Savoy Mezz on Sunday, November 4.

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