• Inbound: The Wood Burning Savages

    In the latest installment of Inbound, we chat to Paul Connolly and Dan Acheson from hotly-tipped Derry alt-rock quartet The Wood Burning Savages. Having just released their debut video for their wonderful new single ‘America’ following a hugely impressive headline performance at Belfast’s Radar, the pair talk about the band’s stance on being “old school” in the modern age, their stance on the imprint of last year’s City of Culture and having two albums worth of material waiting in the wings. Hi guys, you have just released the video for your new single, ‘America’. Can you tell us more about…

  • Interview: Dave Lombardo

    Ahead of an unforgettable drum workshop at Belfast’s Crescent Arts Centre, Brian Coney and photographer Liam Kielt met up with boundlessly influential metal drummer Dave Lombardo for a career-spanning interview, touching upon everything from his legendary work with and acrimonious departure from Slayer, his latest string of musical projects and keeping grounded and being at one with his fans. You’re hear from the drum workshop in Belfast. What encouraged you to go off and do these things? It’s a good way for me to get out there and talk to the fans and get in touch – get at ground level.…

  • Interview: Plane Crasher

    A Herefordshire sludgy garage punk quartet who know how to meld the rawest of genres – once accurately described as “a wild fusion of The Jesus Lizard, The Ramones and Shellac” – Plane Crasher play Belfast’s Warzone Centre on Saturday March 8. To date, they’ve released a triple single, a live session and an eponymous 12” EP, all available independently on Bandcamp. Stevie Lennox caught up with them ahead of their Irish tour to catch a few of their thoughts. When did you actually form, and why? Sometime early 2010. It started a few years before that, Edd asked Matt to join his…

  • Interview: Isobel Anderson

    Three increasingly majestic studio albums in, Belfast-based experimental singer-songwriter Isobel Anderson has steadily established herself as one of the finest forward-thinking artists of a generation. Held in the highest of esteem by critics including BBC Radio’s Lauren Laverne and Jamie Cullum, to name but two, the East Sussex-derived musician talks to Brian Coney about inspiration, experimentation and how artists can break free from pre-conceived musical confines. Hi Isobel. You released your superb third album, In My Garden, in December last year. How did you approach things, from both a songwriting and recording perspective, on the record? In terms of songwriting, the album…

  • Interview: The Return of the Dangerfields

    Having disbanded back in 2010 after a decade and innumerable (and unforgettable) performances, Belfast punk rock/heavy metal heroes Dangerfields are returning to the stage for “one night only” at Belfast’s Warzone on Friday, February 21. Touching on the whys, whos and whats of their highly-anticipated comeback, we talk to the band’s drummer/vocalist Andrew Griswold. Hi Andrew You’re set for a “one night only” return at the Warzone on Friday night. I suppose the logical first question is… why now? Basically because Christopher Owens kept pestering me. I really didn’t want to get the band back together, even for one night, but…

  • Interview: Maximo Park

    In the nine years since the release of their Mercury Prize nominated debut album, A Certain Trigger, Newcastle indie rock band Maximo Park have evolved and expanded upon their boundlessly energetic and impassioned approach to accommodate their collective desire to avoid repeating themselves. With their new album, Too Much Information, embracing a decidedly more electronic approach to an exceptional end result, the Paul Smith-fronted are once more commanding critical clout for their unmistakable brand of zealous and adrenaline-fuelled indie rock. Ahead of their highly-anticipated return to Belfast on March 1, Shannon O’Neill talks to the band’s keyboardist/vocalist Lukas Wooller about the writing of…

  • Interview: Sean Gullette

    Sixteen years ago, American actor, screenwriter and director Sean Gullette sprung to the film world’s attention via his critically acclaimed lead portrayal of Maximillian “Max” Cohen in Darren Aronofsky’s surrealist psychological thriller, Pi (π) – a modern cult classic that he co-wrote. Fast-forward the guts of two decades and Gullette – now an increasingly widely-respected auteur in his own right – is gaining plaudits for his debut feature-length creation behind the camera, Traitors. Centering on an all-female punk rock band in Morocco, the film offers up an alternative view of Muslim women in contemporary North Africa and is bolstered by its punk…

  • Interview: Cymbals

    C Having just released their long-awaited second album, the stellar The Age of Fracture, London DIY ‘tropi-disco’ four-piece Cymbals have spent the last two months carefully re-imagining their decidedly danceable electro-indie craft. Inspired by the decaying nature of semantics and everyday meaning in the modern age – as written in the book of the same title by Princeton academic, Daniel T. Rodgers – the album is challenging and resolutely enjoyable in equal proportion. Ahead of their Belfast show at Belfast’s Limelight 2 on Thursday, February 6, we talk to the band’s bassist Luke Carson to discuss concepts, inspiration and the band’s implicit “manifesto”…

  • Q&A: Girl Band

    Dublin-based quartet Girl Band have made a hell of a lot of noise in a short space of time. From last year’s gloriously curdling racket of a Blawan cover, ‘Why They Hide Their Bodies Under My Garage’,  the band have been riding on a fresh wave of attention which has not only rekindled interest in their 2012 EP, France 98, but has also created something of a hypestorm around their latest single, ‘Lawman’. What’s particularly refreshing is that said hype seems to be justified – the aforementioned single is a six-minute beast of a thing; all dread-inducing basslines and frenetic percussion.…

  • Q&A: Hornets

    Ahead of the release of their forthcoming new EP, No Faith, we chat to Sib, vocalist/bassist from Belfast punk metal band Hornets about the writing and recording of the release, recently expanding to a four-piece and what the next few months hold in store for the band. Photos by David Timlin. You’re set to release your latest EP in the coming weeks. How was the song writing process for these songs and what can we expect to hear? Yes, our new EP, No Faith, is to be released on the 31st March. The song writing process for the EP was much…