Pillow Queens

Pillow Queens began when Sarah Corcoran and Pamela Connolly, having left previous bands, decided to build something with four queer women. They brought in Cathy McGuinness and Rachel Lyons, both of whom they had known for years, and released a debut demo EP, Calm Girls, in 2016, followed a year later by State of the State.

Connolly and Corcoran share lead vocals, trading verses and stacking harmonies over guitars that build slowly rather than jangle. All four members are queer, and the songs draw on Catholic imagery, family and desire without smoothing out the band's Dublin accents, a choice that set them apart at a time when many Irish acts flattened theirs.

The single 'Brothers', released in 2019, was followed by the soundtrack placement of 'Gay Girls' in the Amazon film Dating Amber the next year. Around the same time the band joined Irish Women in Harmony, a collective of Irish singers and musicians who recorded a version of 'Dreams' to raise money for the domestic-abuse charity SafeIreland.

Their debut album, In Waiting, arrived in 2020 to strong reviews. The band signed to Sub Pop's publishing arm in 2021 and to Royal Mountain Records the same year, releasing Leave The Light On in 2022. A third album, Name Your Sorrow, followed in 2024, built largely around break-up material.