Ye Vagabonds // Nine Waves

Ye Vagabonds have built a reputation as one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary Irish folk. For their album Nine Waves, the duo wanted a visual piece that felt as rooted and atmospheric as the music itself. The brief was simple in spirit but ambitious in tone: create a film that could live alongside the record, drawing from landscape, place, and the quiet emotional pull that runs through their work.

The concept centred on movement between worlds. Dublin provided the grounding point, the everyday texture of the city where the band lives and works. From there the film travels west to Árainn Mhór, the rugged island off the Donegal coast. The island became more than a backdrop. Its cliffs, weather, and open Atlantic horizon mirrored the elemental quality of the music, giving the film a sense of drift and myth that echoes the album’s title.

Filming across two dramatically different locations brought its own rhythm of challenges. Urban production demands speed and precision, while island shooting requires patience and flexibility with weather, light, and logistics. The crew leaned into that contrast, shaping the schedule around shifting conditions on the island and allowing the landscape to dictate the tone of each scene. The unpredictability became part of the visual language.

In post-production the focus was on restraint. The edit allowed the performances and environments to breathe, balancing intimate moments with sweeping natural imagery. Colour grading leaned toward a soft, natural palette that preserved the textures of stone, sea, and sky. The final film feels contemplative and immersive, closely aligned with the pace and spirit of the music.

Nine Waves stands as a collaboration built on trust and shared sensibility. The film moves between city and island, presence and distance, offering a visual companion to the album that deepens the atmosphere of the work. It will premiere with a special screening at Lighthouse Cinema, bringing the project back to the city where the journey began.

Directed by Alex Delap
Cinematography by Leon Forristal