• Record Store Gay @ Outhouse, Capel Street

    We spent last Saturday in Outhouse on Capel Street for the annual Record Store Gay celebrations featuring Crayonsmith, Little xs for eyes, Fierce Mild, Laura Ann Brady, Gross Net, Switzerland and The Former Soviet Republic. Photos by Isabel Thomas and Abigail Denniston.

  • Monday Mixtape: Ciaran Smith (Crayonsmith)

    Following in the footsteps of the likes of Ciaran Lavery and Claire Miskimmin from Girls Names, Ciaran Smith (pictured, left) from Dublin band Crayonsmith selects his all-time favourite tracks – Fog, Rhye, Viet Cong etc. – for this week’s Monday Mixtape. Crayonsmith are currently recording an EP and playThe Horse and Stables, London, on March 17

  • Stream: Crayonsmith – House Call

    Albeit in demo form, ‘House Call’ by Dublin’s Crayonsmith is a lovely little slice of yearning indie-pop, hinting at some great things to come from the band. Culminating in an earworming closing refrain of “When you throw it all away” the track is propelled by its simple three-chord turn, lead guitar nuances and Ciaran Smith’s melancholic vocal delivery. Crayonsmith play Dublin’s Bello Bar this Saturday. Check out our Gigs of the Week here for more info.

  • The Thin Air’s Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2013 (35-1)

    Sixty-five increasingly exceptional songs in, we’re pleased to round up our first ever countdown of the Top 100 Irish Tracks of the year. Truth be told, this list could have been much, much longesear – such was the extent and quality of the output from our homegrown musical talent over the last twelve months. From unassuming bedroom artists treading the often very thin line between absolute anonymity and mass recognition to genre-defining, decades-spanning bands that fall comfortably under “legendary” status, we’ve been very happily bombarded with some truly extraordinary Irish music over the last year. Until next time… listen, enjoy…

  • Track Record: Crayonsmith

    For the latest installment of Track Record, the Crayonsmith lads arrived at my house armed with their favourite records, brownies and plenty of stories of why these albums mean so much to them. All three of them agreed that Public Strain by Women is one of the best albums ever. We chatted about the others over tea and here’s what they had to say: Women – Public Strain Ciaran Smith: “This record has everything and is a good example of where our three tastes meet. Amazing lo-fi recording job by Chad Van Gallen and loads of killer hooks. ‘Venice Lockjaw’ has…

  • Album stream: Crayonsmith – Milk Teeth

    Ahead of its official release on the superb Out On A Limb Records on Friday, October 18, Dublin band Crayonsmith have released a stream of their highly-anticipated third album, Milk Teeth. Recorded between Cork and Dublin at Guerilla Studios over the last couple of years, the album “lyrically and sonically focuses on a number of themes such as loss, fear, acceptance, humility and the importance of the love of family and/or friends in order for us to be happy.” With new dates set to be announced, the band have three upcoming shows to promote the new record: Saturday, October 19:…