The Weight Of The Woods
Dermot Kennedy
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.
The Weight Of The Woods
Dermot Kennedy
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.
The Weight of the Woods is Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, released in early April 2026 on Island/Interscope and produced largely with Gabe Simon (Noah Kahan, Lana Del Rey). Written with the forest behind his home on the Dublin–Kildare border as a central image, it roots his stadium‑sized, folk‑pop balladry in Irish landscapes and folklore, using woods, storms, and seasons as recurring metaphors for grief, love, memory, and the pull of home. Kennedy has said the title refers to the “weight” of relationships, community, and history that he carries onto the stage and ultimately hopes to “give back” to the land, casting the record as a kind of love letter to where he’s from.
The album opens with “The Weight of the Woods (Reprise),” a short, atmospheric intro built around a choir recorded in a church during a snowstorm, then moves into “Honest,” a rootsy, galloping track that harks back to his folk beginnings as he sings about sacred love and the rush of youth. Lead single “Funeral” sets the thematic tone with lines about grief as a “solid promise” and a desire to shed old burdens, while mid‑album highlights like “Endless,” “Turnstile,” “Refuge,” and “Sycamore” shift between intimate piano ballads and more anthemic, Jeff Buckley‑tinged climaxes. The closing title track returns to the woods motif explicitly, picturing him lying on the ground, staring at the sky, and imagining himself literally becoming part of the landscape.