"You can feel it in the streets, everywhere," says Villagers Conor O'Brien, speaking of the new sense of freedom in Ireland for the LGBT community since the gay marriage referendum. "From the moment I was conceived, I felt a little awkward existing, whereas now I can feel it when you walk around Dublin and other parts of Ireland. Everyone in Ireland is so relaxed in every other way, it's just the colonialism and the church that made this soup of everyone being afraid to express themselves. Whereas now it's in the opposite direction."
It's a refreshing state of affairs, especially considering the recent atrocities in Orlando. But freedom is still something to be fought for - and no one knows this more by O'Brien, who himself has become a vehicle for promoting such liberation through expression.
As if by some strange serendipity, his stunning 2015 album Darling Arithmatic dropped around the same time. It's a staggeringly honest record, detailing his most intimate thoughts around experiences with homophobia, sexuality, love, and bigotry in his homeland and beyond.
"I've had a beautiful reaction," he tells us. "I've met people after shows and made a strong effort to go out to the merch stand on this tour and talk to everyone who came. I never used to do that, I hated it, but I've met some of the most beautiful people and heard some beautiful stories. It's been really heartwarming."
It's clearly touched a nerve with hearts and minds around the world, in Ireland and beyond - not just those struggling to come to terms with their sexuality, but those finding the means to share it, and others who are out and simply crave the same freedom to express themselves and feel comfortable in their own skin out in the wider world. A basic liberty the rest of us take for granted.
"Around the world, there's so much work to do," frowns O'Brien. "I would still feel awkward holding a man's hand in public in most cities of the world, even in London. It's a metropolis and a bastion of culture, but there are only certain places where I'd feel comfortable holding a dude's hand in the street - let alone doing other things. We're still living in a hetero-normative world."
Until then, all we have is hope and perserverance - two things that are very much a muse for Villagers at the moment as they work on new material. Our conversation may be brief, but the sheer drive pushing him towards the future is effervescently clear.
"I've been buzzing recently making crazy sounds - mostly synth-based stuff and drum machines," says O'Brien of progress on their next album. "Lyrically, it's about hope and faith. I've never really written about faith in this way before, in that I'm trying to become part of it as an energy. Let's see what the future holds."
Villagers upcoming tour dates are below. For tickets and more information, visit here.
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