In 2025, Glasgow-based musician Dylan Jack Moran has released a string of singles, combining 90s classic guitar tone with his introspective lyrics and distinctive vocals. Moran met with Brig for the launch of his debut EP Even the Score, to discuss 90s resurgence, chronic illness and experience in the Glasgow scene.
Musical Origins
“I was born into quite a musical family’ says Moran when asked about the beginnings of his interest in music. ‘Everybody was into good tunes, about the house there was always art to do with albums and stuff like that,”
Moran got his first guitar at 18 and cites 90s classics like The Stone Roses and The Charlatans as key inspiration
“And that opened up an avenue to dive back into the 60s, the Beatles, the Kinks, the Who
“On the development of his own music; ‘I don’t ever think you can ever get as good as you want, you can always learn something new, I think that’s important, to never get too big-headed”.
90s Influence
In the last couple of years, pop music has seen a clear 90s revival, with classic bands like Pulp, Blur and perhaps most famously Oasis all touring, and some even recording new material. The 90s influence is clear to see throughout the 5 songs on Moran’s debut ep, but Brig was curious to know if this 90s sound was a result of current trends, or Moran’s own personal taste.
“I think it’s always been my thing,” answers Moran “and I like to think that, in the Glasgow scene anyway, I might be a bit of a pioneer behind that resurgence,
“With the EP itself, I didn’t particularly look to make anything, or make it sound like certain bands, it’s just sort of what happened, and I think that comes from personal taste. I think it was Noel Gallagher who said “you can only play what’s in your record collection”
Chronic Illness
Across Moran’s social media posts and lyrics, there is multiple references to his own experience with chronic illness. Moran discussed illnesses’ impact on not just his creative process but also motivating him to record and release his music.
“It massively impacted what I was doing, I had a good few songs written, but they were just sitting about gathering dust. And when I got sick, it just reignited my motivation.
“I was diagnosed with a rare disease that nobody else in the UK has been diagnosed with at my age, so they didn’t know how to treat it, it was all over the place, chemotherapy, dialysis, I’m waiting on a kidney transplant right now.
“But music really helped me a lot, getting into that zone. I’d recorded demos before, but never to the point that I was happy with, but this really pushed me to get my music out there, I just felt like I needed to be heard.”
Authenticity
Even The Score was produced by Cumbernauld-based artist/producer Lewis Jaoui, and the imagery across Moran’s social media and single covers is often related to his hometown of Cumbernauld. Moran stressed the importance of authenticity in his work, commenting on the lack of representation for working-class artists in the current music scene.
“I think it’s important, you need to be true to yourself. If you’re going up and singing about everything being happy, it’s like, is it really? And I think in the 90s there was more of that representation, and I think that’s part of my influence as well.
“It’s very real, it’s very everyday circumstances, there’s nothing in the songs that’s all lovey-dovey. I’m just a working-class guy growing up in Cumbernauld and the songs are just about that.
“I really like using the grittiness of my hometown, I mean Cumbernauld’s not the prettiest, I think it’s been voted ‘ugliest place in the UK’ a few times, but that’s where I’m from and that’s where these tunes were written.”
Moran is hoping to develop his Glasgow fanbase and potentially tour across a couple Scottish locations like Stirling or Edinburgh in the future, as well as big plans for future releases.
“I think next is the album, there’s a pool of about 40 songs already written that I’ve got to sift through, some aren’t gonna be out for a couple years probably, but there’s something for everybody.”
Even The Score is now streaming on all music platforms
You can buy tickets to Dylan Jack Moran’s next gig at King Tuts here.
Featured image credits: Lucy Rossiter
