• Stream: Subplots – Future Tense

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    Having reared their head after a five-year absence back in June with the release of ‘Colourbars’ – one of our favourite tracks of the year, no less – Dublin duo Phil Boughton and Daryl Chaney AKA Subplots have announced they release a new album, Autumning, on January 30. The second single to be taken from that, ‘Future Tense’ is an unravelling art-pop gem, marrying juddering, Interpol-esque bass lines with bubbling synth lines and exquisite vocals contortions. exceptionally-produced. The result is three-and-a-half minutes of sonic majesty that ends too soon. Stream ‘Future Tense’ below via Bandcamp, where you can also pre-order Autumning. Autumning by…

  • Israel Galvan @ The MAC, Belfast

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    La Edad de Oro (The Golden Age), the title of flamenco dancer Israel Galván’s programme suggests an evening of nostalgia. Certainly, there’s a human tendency to idiolize the past and this is true also of music. The Golden Age of Jazz is a much used term to refer to the period between the 1920s and 1940s, despite the racial discrimination against black jazz musicians. Flamenco purists too, point to the times when a singer, guitarist and dancer defined the art form, despite the fact that flamenco in its earliest incarnation was just a singer accompanied by rudimentary rhythm.  Memories can…

  • EP Stream: Silences – Sister Snow

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    Having experiencing a very encouraging 2014, Armagh indie-folk outfit Silences is the harmony-driven, effortlessly impressive brainchild of one Conchúr White. With a voice instantly conjuring two of the band’s biggest influences in Villagers and Death Cab For Cutie, there is an earthly, delicately pastoral allure to their craft; something that is in abundance on their second EP, Sister Snow. Over four wonderfully wistful tracks, the release never strays too far from its source – a distinctly provincial air of yearning, propelled by subtly hypnotic acoustic instrumentalism and White’s breathy meditations upon home, belonging and adulation. The fact that the band manage to set themselves apart…

  • The Simpsons and their Mathematical Secrets

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    Held in partnership with the NI Science Festival, Simon Singh will host a downright unmissable show for all Simpsons aficionados at Belfast’s Black Box on Friday, October 24. Based on his critically-acclaimed book of the same name, The Simpsons and their Mathematical Secrets will see Singh reveal how the legendary show’s mathematically gifted team of scriptwriters have used the series to explore everything from pi to primes, from calculus to geometry, from infinitesimals to infinity. Sounds fun, right? We’d be inclined to agree. Tickets – priced at £6 or £3 concession – can be purchased here.

  • Hey Symmetric by Karolin Reichardt @ Pollen Studio

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    Hey Symmetry, an exhibition showcasing the recent work from Berlin based artist Karolin Reichardt, will take place at Belfast’s Pollen Studio on Wednesday, October 22. In her work, Karolin – who lives and works in Berlin but has studied at Belfast’s University of Ulster – plays with the precariousness of change and chance. Her art is inspired by personal observations and reactions to the built and natural environment  and is informed by means of scientific data display such as maps, plans and models. Check out some of her work here. Hey Symmetric is open from 6-9pm but the exhibition will also be open…

  • Thom Yorke – Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    Listen Thom­­, we need to talk. It’s not me, it’s you.  You’ve decided to release your new record, Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes via Bittorrent. Conceptually, it’s neat wee idea, using the model which the industry has railed against for the last 15 years. It’s cheeky and somewhat clever, but a bit ‘too little too late’ considering the success of services like Bandcamp. The album’s release model is also stuck with being compared, quite fairly, to the ‘Pay what you want’ model of 2007’s In Rainbows. The thing is, that album legitimately challenged how we experience and release music in the modern…

  • Stream: Southern – Cool Kid

    October 20, 2014 - By 

    With new Irish dates expected to be announced soon, Belfast-derived, Liverpool-based brother and sister band (Thom and Lucy) Southern have really grown in stature and repute over the last few months. Currently doing the rounds supporting Jake Bugg on his UK and Irish tour, the band – also featuring Eoghan Clifford on drums – really hit home with their new single, ‘Cool Kid’. At just under three minutes in length, the track is all business – catchy, digestible, immediately familiar, it bears no sonic fat to trim, encouraging repeated listens from the get-go. We’re also a fan of the claps. Where…