RELEASE - single - "WINDS OF CHANGE"
A new single - a remake of the 2019 Anam Danu track - "Winds of Change" - was released in July 2025.
"Winds of Change" started with the now familiar image of the haze of smoke in the air from the wildfires that are these days a feature of North American summers and grew into a protest song - not just on behalf of the climate but also encompassing the West's apparent inability to conduct its political affairs with any degree of decorum or dignity… or competence!
"EUPHORIA"
Anam Danu's 2024 album - "Euphoria" - explores what it means to be a mature adult in today’ s challenging times. It includes songs about storytelling and creativity, the value of long-term friendships, teaching and learning, the search for our roots, and the important choices we make as we grow older.
Most importantly, the album highlights the need for joy.
Siobhan and Andy are particularly grateful to Mairéad for her gorgeous and striking cover art.
Samples from "Euphoria" can be found below. The album is widely available for streaming and download.
HEADLINE
A collaboration between two musicians originating from different continents but sharing a Celtic heritage, who set out to create original, unusual, and innovative adult-oriented pop music on the West Coast of Canada.
BRIEF BIO
When vocalist/pianist Siobhan Monaghan and songwriter/bassist Andy Dawson Reid joined forces in 2019, they brought their many years of varied musical experience to the collaboration. Seeking to create something fresh and musically satisfying, the duo draws on their shared love of classic pop songs to create alternative adult-oriented music that is soulful, powerful, and cinematic.
Searching out the unpredictable elements that make great songs unique, Anam Danu’s music and lyrics evoke a range of emotions and vivid images using a musical palette that varies from sparse piano accompaniment to a full orchestral soundtrack. Siobhan’s distinctive contralto is always front and centre.
Anam Danu's fourth album, "Euphoria," was released in the fall of 2024. This collection of 10 new songs is available for streaming and for download along with their three previous albums, “Winds of Change” (2019), "Winter Blue and Evergreen” (2020), and "Soul Making" (2022); as well as 2023 singles "Perfect" and "The Journey Home."
A new single - a remake of the 2019 Anam Danu track - "Winds of Change" - was released in July 2025.
FULL BIO
Anam Danu began as a collaboration between two musicians originating from different continents but sharing a Celtic heritage — who set out to create original, unusual, and innovative adult-oriented pop music on the West Coast of Canada.
When vocalist/pianist Siobhan Monaghan and songwriter Andy Dawson Reid joined forces in 2019, they brought their many years of varied musical experience to the collaboration. Seeking to create something fresh and musically satisfying, they found their connection based on a love of classic pop songs and shared musical ambitions. Together, they create alternative adult-oriented music that is soulful, powerful, and cinematic.
Siobhan is a singer and pianist who enjoyed growing up in a musical family on the prairies of Alberta. The daughter of Irish immigrants, Celtic music was the ever-present soundtrack in her home. Her father was a traditional fiddle player, and her mother a talented singer and together they encouraged their children to sing and perform for others whenever possible. Siobhan learned to play by ear and improvise, and studied piano through the Toronto Conservatory of Music and the University of Lethbridge.
Music has always been a central part of Siobhan’s life. Early experiences were in musical theatre, choirs, and playing a wide variety of music at country hall dances. Throughout her life she has been the accompanist and soloist for many weddings and community gatherings. Following in her father’s footprints, she specialized in providing dance music accompaniment for Irish dancing competitions (Feiseanna/Oireachtas) and for many years performed in a Scottish Country Dance trio. She travelled to Normandy and toured as an accompanist for the Saskatchewan dance troupe, “Les Danseurs de la rivière La Vieille.” In 1996, she released her first solo piano album called "Common Ground." For 15 years she was a member of the Victoria-based trio, “Trilogy”, playing at farmer’s markets, private venues, and coffee houses.
Andy’s formative years in London (UK) coincided with the musical revolution of the sixties. Hugely influenced thereby he wrote his first song at the age of sixteen and has continued the pursuit of the perfect track ever since.
Throughout the 70s and 80s Andy was the principal writer and bass player for a succession of bands in and around London. During this period he was also introduced to the world of theatre; going on to write six musicals for youth and fringe theatre companies, as well as incidental music scores for a number of plays and contemporary dance productions. He was musical director for a series of productions that toured to the Edinburgh Fringe and to the Jersey Opera House.
Working in education gave Andy the opportunity to teach drama at two of the best-known schools in England, as well as to write, direct or musically direct a further healthy portfolio of productions. On leaving the world of full-time work in 2015 Andy and his Canadian wife - Kate - relocated to her home town of Victoria.
Anam Danu released an initial collection of seven original tracks, "Winds of Change," in 2019. This was followed a year later by a second album, "Winter Blue and Evergreen," which was recorded remotely across the Internet during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Their third album, "Soul Making," was released in 2022 followed by singles "Perfect" and "The Journey Home" in 2023. Anam Danu's fourth album, "Euphoria," was released in the fall of 2024. This collection of 10 new songs is widely available for streaming and for download.
A new single - a remake of the 2019 Anam Danu track - "Winds of Change" - was released in July 2025.
PRESS AND REVIEWS
“Anam Danu set out to create Adult Contemporary Radio music that is not only soulful but also emotionally powerful and cinematic as well. Siobhan Monaghan’s haunting vocals are at the forefront, grabbing listener’s attention right away and next to her vocals are tasteful beats and piano accompanied occasionally by an orchestral embellishment. The dynamic duo have released two previous albums and with their third Soul Making, they show us that they’re better than ever. This ten-track collection shows them immersing themselves into the music and really owning their sound.”
“Making music together as Anam Danu since 2019, pianist and singer Siobhan and songwriter Andy bring forth soulful and utterly honest alternative pop. Aimed at mature audiences, Anam Danu is cinematic, intimate, and caressing almost like a loving friend, who knows you well. Home to powerful messages, they move the listeners, and in the case of “Perfect”, help to see yourself in a better light..”
'"Perfect" is a beautiful indie ballad by alternative pop musical duo Anam Danu that will speak to your soul. Sustained synths and percussive elements with a melody developing commence the song. Then the vocals enter in and the whole force of the arrangement takes you in like a wave hitting you head-on. The vocal delivery and synth production have extreme emotional power while the arrangement and tone of the vocals and every element are top-notch. The song lyrically deals with the importance of imperfection in the essence of being human, overcoming pain, and treating oneself with love.
The lyrics speak to the struggles of feeling inadequate and not good enough, but ultimately finding the strength to embrace oneself and love who you are. The vocals are raw and honest, conveying the emotions of the lyrics with power and vulnerability. The production and use of reverb give the song a dreamy, ethereal quality that adds to the emotive power of the lyrics. Overall, “Perfect” by Anam Danu is a powerful and moving indie pop song that speaks to the universal human experience of self-doubt and self-acceptance."
Sinusoidal Music (review of the single - "Perfect")
"“Every once in a while, in the world of music, you will come across an act that defies all of your current assumptions and thoughts about the flow of today’s music. They will blow you away, for good or for worse, in their own interpretation of what makes art ‘art’ itself. In today’s review, the act that’ll shatter your own preconceived notions shall grace you with a tapestry of music that I frankly have not heard synthesized in this manner before.”"
"Score/Excellent: Anam Danu returns with their newest release, titled ‘Euphoria’- an album sure to provide you with Euphoria. It is filled to the brim with serenity and character all in one, within a dynamic musical soundscape that stays true to its thematic origins and intent."
Music Review World (review of the album - "Euphoria")
“I go through new Canadian releases every 3 days. Around 300-600 releases. A few stick out. Like yours. ”
Johnathan Whitehorn - Radio Western
“Cinematic pop with an uncomfortable aura, Anam Danu have established a unique method of songwriting that is no stranger to evoking emotion despite it’s quirkiness... all of the elements are individually beautiful but come together sonically in an almost harrowing fashion, like it could be the soundtrack to suspense and love simultaneously ”
Brendan Finn - RGM (review of the single "Winds of Change")
“Quirkily unique!.”
Tom Hilton - Aldora Britain Records
