Sprawling in its own delicate way, ‘Lights’ by Kildare producer Jack Casey AKA EMBRZ is a deftly composed slice of electro-pop. Featuring wonderfully warped vocals courtesy of Los Angeles singer pennybirdrabbit, the new single was released on Friday via Slow Down Records. Stream the track below and keep up with Casey’s future stirrings here.
Dublin post-punk quartet That Snaake have just released their debut EP, Go Bricker (AKA At Swim One Stone). Channelling wry, socially surreal lyrical content in the vein of Future of the Left’s Falco through apathetically snarled vocals evocative of some of the classic indie rock bands. Papally-named guitarists John & Paul contrast angularity & density in the kind of guitar interplay heard from Wire, Milk Music, Slint and Fugazi. The self-aware foursome launched the EP in Dublin autonomous social centre The Barricade Inn on Friday with a selection of great underground Irish acts. The title of the EP comes from a YouTube video of what the…
Having previously been scooped by Foy Vance and Robyn G Shiels, the shortlist for this year’s Northern Ireland Music Prize has been revealed. Set to take place at Belfast’s Mandela Hall on Friday, November 14, the following twelve albums will vie for the annual prize, as voted for by more than 70 people from the Northern Irish music industry and media: A Plastic Rose – Flickering Light of an Inner War And So I Watch You From Afar – Heirs Axis Of – The Mid Brae Inn BeeMickSee – Belfast Yank Ciaran Lavery and Ryan Vail – Sea Legs Duke Special – Look Out Machines The Lost…
Let it be known: Mons Olympus don’t exactly shy away from the riffs. With an ever metamorphosing hybrid of space prog and funk, the latest phase of the Belfast-based three-piece’s evolution has taken form in the punchy, groove-laden ‘Incognito’, a track that sees the Rory Dee-fronted band trimming the proverbial fat and aiming straight – and most tenacious – for the jugular. Featuring some wonderfully subtle violin work by Aidan Kelly of Affleck, the track – the purest distillation of the band’s vision to date, including their previous incarnation as Chocolate Love Factory – was recorded, mixed and mastered by Stephen O’Hagan and…
Set to make its inaugural appearance at Dublin’s RDS across November 7 and 8, the bill for the inaugural Metropolis is something of a statement of intent. With the likes of Chic, The Roots and Jamie XX announced as part of its initial launch back in July, the festival have today revealed several new acts set to perform, as well as the full Day by Day breakdown over the two days and nights. Spread across six rooms, taking in live music, performance, discussions and talks from selected creatives, and installations geared towards transforming the RDS into an audio-visual playground, Hot Chip, Vic Mensa, Le…
With its launch set to take place at Belfast’s iconic Empire Music Hall on Wednesday, October 7, alt-punk quartet Empty Lungs have unveiled the video for their new single ‘Medicine’. Revealing the band’s more saccharine side – and we mean that without any unfavourable connotations – the Kev Jones-fronted four-piece once more fuse rousing refrains with an earnestness tempered with a keen balance of weight and restraint. Following the single launch at the Empire, the band will also play the following East Coast dates: October 07: Empire Music Hall, Belfast, Ireland October 23: Philadelphia, PA (Empty Lungs Acoustic) October 24: New York, NY October 26:…
Home to the likes of Loah (pictured), Ensemble Ériu, Conor Walsh and more, Dublin’s Ensemble Music have announced that they’re to take the very brave next step in expanding into a record label. With an €8,000 goal in mind, the collective have also wisely launched a Kickstarter campaign in conjunction with the announcement. Speaking about the move, Ensemble said, “We feel that Ireland needs a new independent label with a fresh perspective. One that will support exceptional artists who have a lot of potential but aren’t necessarily seen as commercially viable. We didn’t want to rush into it, waiting for our artists to develop…
Having originally featured on his 2013 debut album, Not Nearly Dark, ‘Shame’ by Ciaran Lavery is on the verge of hitting 10 million streams on Spotify – a pretty mindblowing and fully deserved feat for one of the country’s hardest working and most naturally gifted artists. Shot in Dublin by ROC (also responsible for this wondrous thing) the song now has a suitably simple yet perfectly poignant video, once more managing to strike a faultless balance between heartfelt sentiment and droll humour. Ciaran Lavery plays the following UK shows in October. 16 Glasgow Nice N Sleazy 17 Newcastle Upon Tyne The Cluny 2 18 Leeds Games Room, Brudenell Social…
It feels like a lifetime ago that Derry band PORTS went under the moniker Little Bear. Having very much underlined that interim period in the sublime evolution of their rousing indie rock sound, the quartet’s latest single ‘Gameplay’ is a wistful and cunningly layered mini masterstroke, with a perfectly balanced ratio of sleep and release. Check out the band’s forthcoming tour dates and video for the aforementioned single below. September 25: Whelan’s, Dublin September 26: EchoEcho, Derry September 27: Monroe’s, Galway October 2: Black Box, Belfast October 3: HWCH, Dublin October 4: Cyprus Avenue, Cork
The term “millennials” has come in for much overuse from quarters that don’t seem to have much exposure to the current millennium, much less its subjects. Enter Cork quartet The Shaker Hymn, with their second album in two years, leading off with an extended rail against the pitfalls and pratfalls of the term. It’s a raucous rocker, armed with fuzz and invested with the psych-pop charm currently permeating the city’s musical cracks, with production from foremost psych exponent Brendan Fennessy (O Emperor), and serves as a taster for self-released album ‘Do You Think You’re Clever?’, due early 2016. Get a listen…