One day in early summer of 1993, the radio was murmuring away and on came Out of Space by The Prodigy. I felt that lightning bolt I've heard people use to describe the first time they heard Elvis or The Beatles – the initial shock as the current travelled through me followed by an emotional thunderclap: a sense of belonging.
Around that time, I found myself directly in the path of a personal storm. Shortly after, my family broke up and everyone in it dispersed. I ended up staying with my aunt in Dublin for a couple of months and got my first job: minding my uncle's van so it wouldn't get robbed while he went around Dublin filling fag machines. Then I found the rest of the album. Experience was the first tape I ever owned.
I went back to my hometown in Skibbereen to try and help piece family life back together, greeted by a flood of confusion, insecurity and chaos. I clung to that album like it was a raft, listened to it over and over – sort of like when people in hard times find religion.
It unearthed a relentless passion, helped my confidence, being in my early teens. It gave me hope, forged friendships and steered me towards one defined path: music.
Brian Deady plays Live At St Luke’s Cork on December 30th
