• For Ruin – Relapse EP

    For some sections of the workforce, the lockdown’s biggest consequence was a surfeit of free time. This allowed some musicians to devote more time to their creative pursuits. This was the case for Cork band For Ruin, whose mainstay John Murphy used some of that recovered time to record eight slices of highly melodic death metal, the band’s first output since it was put on hold in 2013. Relapse is the second release drawn from this batch, following on from September’s Elapse EP. In a case of great precognition, Murphy began constructing his home studio around three years ago, the…

  • Irish Tracks of the Week – April 2nd

    Happy Bandcamp Friday AKA the only day that means anything anymore. There’s a lot of great new Irish music out there this week, so we’ve whittled it all down ten of the best, featuring M.CAMBRIDGE, Cryan, Laurie Shaw, licehead, Comrade Hat, Amerik w/ Travi the Native & more. M.CAMBRIDGE – Land Songs: The Ballad of Sok le Boy EP Land Songs: The Ballad of Sok le Boy by M.CAMBRIDGE licehead – Beta Male Fever (Pilot Episode) BETA MALE FEVER! – Reality Climax (pilot episode -21 mins) by Licehead Cormorant Tree Oh – Zip Issues Cryan – Rodeo Queen Rodeo Queen…

  • Deep Down South: Would Bes, Double Stars, and Limerick-Related Besiegements

    Ireland is full to bursting of stories from its musical fringes. The Would Be’s have one of the most distinct in contemporary music; infamously turning down 14 major labels (remember when there were fourteen of those?) to follow up their debut single, praised alike by John Peel and Morrissey. Over twenty years later, brandishing a requisite amount of new tunes, the Would Be’s are back, having been coaxed out of retirement by rock scribe Tony Clayton-Lea. Cork label FIFA last week released their new single ‘Bittersweet’, backed up with a legendary John Peel Session in its entirety, and April 18th…