You can sum up the journey of Seán McGowan with the title of his first EP on Xtra Mile: Graft & Grief. Work and stress. Life at the anvil and hammer, bearing the brunt of life’s weight. Since 2009 he’s been at that grindstone, gathering stories and carving melodies while working late nights in bars between shows armed with just an acoustic guitar. After two EPs, he really became “one to watch” in 2013 around Brighton’s The Great Escape festival, and tours with Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly., The Rifles, Beans on Toast and Frank Turner followed. After releasing the Look Lively EP in early 2016 and touring with Grace Petrie and Recreations, he released breakthrough single ‘No Show’ and embarked on a sold-out full-band UK tour. He signed with Xtra Mile in 2017 before releasing an EP and finally his debut album Son of the Smith in 2018. We all have our craft, and Seán’s assured, passionate, lyrical grasp of where he’s at, where we’re all at, where he’s going and where we might all end up could end up soundtracking our social conscience for years to come.