Irish Troubadour Podge Lane Releases Less of Me Across the Atlantic

Who doesn’t have Bob Dylan, Neil Young, or Woody Guthrie in their favourite country playlist? Now, it is time to add Podge Lane into that list. Not only he shares being a remarkable harmonicist but also his reality cries are stupendouly relevant of the times we live now. His recently released album, Less Of Me, is his fourth, and all ten songs are intense because each are unabashedly honest.

2025 has been the year Podge Lane chose to shift continents and Less Of Me is the byproduct of this tidal change. His travels from his motherland Ireland to the land of opportunity, America, blessed with over 100 shows, gave Podge corrigible moments for truthful writing. Less Of Me is a brilliant compilation of poetic lyrics, delivered through a blend of country, folk, soft rock, indie influences. Read on as I review a few of my favourite tracks.

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After a powerful guitar streak with Kicking Up Dust and an ironically cheery harmonica opening one of the most deeply depressive songs Broken Door, it’s the third track that truly grasps the emotion of the album by its roots. Honesty begins with soft drumming and immedietely draws attention with its whimsical lyrics. This one lands firmly on my list of favourites for the way Podge captures the beauty and cruelty of duality in such simple terms. “Honesty is foe and friend. Honestly doesn’t mean you harm. Doesn’t mean honesty don’t hurt.” A straightforward reflection of how truth can hurt and also liberate.

The most compelling track on the album is undoubtedly The Story. How Podge here flips the tired, old dynamics is a wonder and also gives the audience a great laugh. This song is most probably the most intelligent way to understand that acceptance is the key to breaking the vicious cycle of karmic repetition. The idea of Goliath having a David complex, and a man who finds love in a banshee to make a family, Lane takes metaphorical meaning to the next level. It is in these lines and concepts, in the most surreal thinking that Podge wins his audience. Capturing minds with, “He rearranged the story in seconds. Thousands of years down the drain, turned to dust. Who do you trust?” A hook that makes truth look so fragile, and known history so mythical, and opens up a scope for reality to be rearranged. “None of our lives come pre-rehearsed. Any old notion it can be reversed.”

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The seventh song on the album, January 2nd, has a warm, fuzzy feeling. It’s is quiet like the gentle lull that comes after a tedious day. Understandably, the artist has crafted this as a breather track. The song is profoundly relatable because of the words. It speaks of emerging out from a long, tiring spell of mental exhustion caused by depression. And the spell is only broken by the natural tendency to yearn peaceful simplicity. Something that comes with accepting the situation and beginning a path toward self-love.
The final track of Less Of Me, Kerosene Lighters And Firefliers, is about home. These lines by Podge, “The further I roam, from the place, the place I call home. The more I find it was here all along,” summarises the album beautifully. The transatlantic journey he made, the physical, mental, perhaps even the galactic distances he corossed, all finally make sense.

When we say we are looking for home, we mean we are looking for something or someplace, or someone that satisfies and comforts the soul. And thus, home is to each one, their own. Thank you Podge Lane for your wise words and music. You can follow Podge on his incredible musical storytelling journey via Instagram, X, Facebook, Spotify, and YouTube