Groove Tube with Cian O’Connell

For years now, Jerry Fish has been renowned as the enigmatic, theatrical ringmaster of Electric Picnic – proprietor of the Electric Slideshow stage and all its burlesque, circus cabaret. So successful has his work as a carny been that it had been a decade and a half since Jerry, whose real name is Gerard Whelan, last released an album.

That changed last November with the arrival of Dreaming of Daniel, a 13-track LP reimagining and interpreting the work of American Lo-fi and outsider legend Daniel Johnston.

On March 7, Jerry takes a blend of his and Johnston’s songs to Galway’s Róisín Dubh for the final leg of his Irish tour.

MayKay, frontwoman of Fight Like Apes and a major collaborator on Dreaming of Daniel, will also feature. The pair share a love for Johnston, with Jerry’s fascination dating back to the 1990s and his days as the frontman of indie-rock outfit An Emotional Fish.

“After interpreting him and really getting into his head, I think he held a torch high for a lot of artists or people who want to express themselves,” Jerry says.

“He’s been a massive inspiration in that way. Even making this record was something I wanted to do to maybe take more of his power, if you know what I mean.

“He had an awful lot of struggles with mental health issues which he was very brave about, I think. Anyone who endeavours to make art – I guess your job is expressing those feelings and maybe offering some solace.”

Jerry’s album is denser and more layered than Johnston’s original material tends to be. There are lush orchestral interpretations of songs that, in their original form, are quite minimalistic – often focused around one unusual instrument line like Walking the Cow’s chugging chord organ. Jerry’s arrangements were at once more expansive and perhaps more traditional.

“I’m a big fan of the Tarantino soundtracks where every kind of genre is different,” he says. “I brought MayKay on board so you’re not listening to one male vocal throughout. You’ve got a mixture. I wanted it to be eclectic in some ways.

“The other thing I stayed away from was being weird for the sake of being weird. Daniel’s obviously a lo-fi artist and a lot of people think it should be strange or weird. I was very true to each of the songs. In a way, I’ve done the opposite to what Daniel has done so I’m left there thinking maybe I’ve missed the message too.”

Pictured: Jerry Fish…back at the Róisín Dubh for the final leg of his Irish tour.