Sunday at KnockanStockan 2018, featuring Æ MAK, Dowry, JyellowL, Chewing on Tinfoil, Shrug Life and Wastefellow. Photos by Zoe Holman.
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Following the limited release of cross-Ireland Little L Records compilation, 2016’s A Litany of Failures – featuring Oh Boland, Shrug Life, That Snaake and Junk Drawer – an expanded second edition has been confirmed for release on July 13. Set to be released on 180g gatefold double vinyl, as well as through Bandcamp, Spotify and the usual outlets, it features 18 acts from Belfast, Cork, Derry, Donegal, Dublin, Galway & Limerick. The DIY, co-op endeavour aims to provide an opportunity to perform outside each of their hometowns, shortening the mental distances between bands, and encouraging a cross-pollination of musical communities. Splitting costs between artists and the organisers, a sense of…
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Of all the songs written in the lead-up to this month’s Irish abortion referendum, ‘Your Body’ by Shrug Life strikes a particularly emphatic chord. Originally released in September 2016, the song – with its refrain of “Your body is not your body/It’s the property of church and state” – has taken on a whole new sense of import with a new stripped-back version recently filmed in an abandoned Magdalene laundry by David Knox. Though the original has no dearth of impact, this version, featuring Shrug Life frontman Danny Carroll and vocalist Máire Carr delivering a sobering and masterfully poignant rendition of the…
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In case you missed the memo, Dublin three-piece Shrug Life released one of the Irish albums of the year, ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, last month. Directed by long-time collaborator Dave Knox, the video for the album’s opening track and latest single ‘First World Problems’ is – in the band’s own, suitably spot on words – “a schizophrenic split-screen of life’s absurdity – featuring tarot cards, frenemies and “crap corporate coffee” along the way”. And just when we thought we couldn’t dig the track any more. Have a first look at the Knox’s visuals below.
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Concluding his review of their debut album – the eminently-tilted ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ – just the other day, TTA’s Will Murphy said, “Shrug Life deserve to be heard. Nurture them because fuck knows we’re not going to get another group like them for a long time.” To say those words are representative of our feelings about this release would be a towering understatement. We’ve watched on with glee as the Dublin trio of guitarist/vocalist Danny Carroll, bassist Keith Broni and drummer Josh Donnelly have evolved into one of the country’s most peerlessly engaging acts over the last couple of years – something that ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ confines over eleven tracks…
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Every now and then you get hit with shocking realisations about local groups: some of them are actually brilliant. Not just in “ah for a bunch of lads from Fairview, they sure can write a tune” manner, but in a real proper sense. The North and South have produced a few of these: And So I Watch You From Afar, Hozier, Rubberbandits and Lisa Hannigan, to name a few. Given how exclusive of a club this really is though, it’s a marvellous joy to encounter them in the wild. Dublin’s Shrug Life is one of those groups. Bouncy, energetic Gang of…
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Dublin’s foremost purveyors of wit-pop and satirists of modern day Ireland, Shrug Life, release their long-awaited album, titled ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ – fitting, really, given that bass player Keith Broni is the world’s first emoji translator. The jangle-pop trio are notable for having some of the most pointed lyrics on the island, courtesy of frontman Danny Carroll – who penned the album’s most recent single, the Repeal-themed ‘Your Body’. This is the band’s first lengthy release since 2015 debut EP The Grand Stretch on Popical Island. The album was produced by ‘veteran wildcard’ Fiachra McCarthy (also known for Dott, Squarehead & So Cow), with its artwork coming…
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Gentleman, indie-pop trouveur, broadcaster, podcaster, creative conspirator and Ireland’s answer to peak-era Morrissey (sans the casual racism and declining stature) Danny Carroll of Dublin’s Shrug Life waxes passionate about his favourite records, including Mission of Burma, No Spill Blood, The Specials, So Cow & Squarehead and more. Photos by Tara Thomas. Thin Lizzy – Thin Lizzy A few years ago I made a documentary on Thin Lizzy’s founding guitarist Eric Bell. It remains among the better things I’ve done with my life. He’s an absolute hero and in my biased opinion, is deeply underrated. This is the band’s self-titled debut album…
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Dowsing, Ratboys and Shrug Life live at the Roisin Dubh in Galway. Photos by Ciaran O Maolain.
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We in the Republic don’t like to talk about the big things, and if our history of women’s rights is anything to go by, we especially don’t like to talk about the big things that involve women. As Dublin gears up for Saturday’s March For Choice, jangle poppers Shrug Life have decided to celebrate the event with their latest single, the 8th amendment baiting ‘Your Body’. Leaving subtly and nuance at the door, the trio launch into their polemic with the jugular strike of the track’s opening line: “Your body is not your body/ It’s the property of church and state”.…