• Belle and Sebastian – Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance

    Nineteen years and nine albums later, Belle and Sebastian still prove to be a true testament of youth. Nearly two decades after the release of their debut album Tiger Milk, ninth studio album Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance finds a sound that carries the torch of their primordial folk roots while embracing the changing tastes of an alt-oriented audience. Distributed by Matador Records, the album marks the band’s first release with the US indie label and the first with Atlanta-based producer Ben H. Allen III. Given this tenuous moment in the Glasgow group’s prolific career, the change in direction reads a…

  • 15 For ’15: Edward F Butler

    Thirteen varyingly exceptional acts down, the penultimate Irish artist in our 15 For ’15 feature is Edward F Butler. Currently based in Belfast, Butler is a wonderfully forward-thinking musician who we reckon is set for very special things over the coming months. Words by Aaron Drain. Photo by Alan Maguire. Multi-talented music man Edward F Butler has had a fairly tremendous run of things so far. Not only has he had a foothold in the cinematic arts, having directed videos for Oh Volcano, as well as the video for his own debut single, 2014’s ‘Running From Fears’, ehas seen his music reach…

  • Whiplash

    True to its title, Whiplash hits like a double decker. I left the screening of writer-director Damien Gazelle’s astonishingly hot-blooded second feature dizzy and elated. Andrew Neiman (Miles Tenner) is a young, ambitious jazz drummer attending the fictional Schaffer Conservatory, the most prestigious music academy in the United States, and suffering from an acute case of what we might call ‘undergrad hubris’. Desperate to impress, he falls under the tutelage of the school’s alpha dog, Terence Fletcher (J. K. Simmons), a merciless instructor who demands excellence of his pupils and enforces standards through a robust programme of terror and humiliation. Whiplash arrives on the…

  • Track Record: Aisling O’Riordan

    In the latest installment of Track Record, we delve into the record collection of Aisling O Riordan, Music Programmer for Quarter Block Party which runs from February 6-8. She plays with Morning Veils and she is also one of the co-founders of the Southern Hospitality Board which promotes music and craic in Cork city. Photos by Brid O’Donovan. THEESatisfaction – awE naturalE I found out about THEESatisfaction when I was working in The Pavilion, Cork. Joe and Stevie sent me on a song called ‘Enchantruss’ as a Soundcloud link. Joe was like, “Oh I think we’re gonna try and get these…