Although it might not seem true, Villagers is a one-man band, and almost all of Becoming a Jackal (2010), a Mercury-nominated début album, was recorded by the same person: Conor O’Brien, a young Irishman whose vibrant, tremulous voice recalls another Conor (Oberst, from Bright Eyes), although the most frequent references hark to the sadly-missed Elliott Smith. His music easily pulls you in: it's a folk-pop of emotive melodies and complex poetical structure, tense and intense but always contained. He'll break hearts.

 

Day: Friday 23
Stage: Plaça del Rei
Time: 00.15h
Origin: Irlanda
Style: Folk-pop