• Stream: New Jackson – Electric Blue

    January 30, 2017 - By 

    Including a fair few Irish artists, 2016 expectedly saw a deluge of Bowie tributes in the form of various covers, remixes and collaborations. Now, just over a year on from Bowie’s passing, David Kitt has offered up his own tribute in the form of ‘Electric Blue’. Produced under his New Jackson moniker and set for release in collaboration with Elliot Lion via Cin Cin Records on February 10, the single takes the basis of ‘Sound of Vision’ for a stellar, unravelling 10-minute dancefloor trip that really rewards a full (and indeed repeated) listen. Photo by Dorje de Burgh

  • Japandroids – Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

    January 30, 2017 - By 

    After a three-year hiatus, Japandroids have had plenty of time to work on and develop their long-awaited third album, Near To The Wild Heart Of Life. The Canadian duo’s disappearance after releasing their critically acclaimed sophomore album, Celebration Rock, left many with high expectations. And although  the bar may have been set slightly too high back in 2012, their return is nonetheless a successful one. It is a strong comeback, with the band developing and maturing their sound and lyrics while still maintaining true to their roots. The pre-released title track is a strong introduction to the album, featuring an urgency not dissimilar to…

  • EVA International 2018 Submission

    January 28, 2017 - By 

    Ireland’s biennial international art extravaganza EVA International was a huge success last summer in Limerick, attracting over 100,000 – you can read our review of the festival here. Entitled Still (the) Barbarians and curated by Cameroon-born Koyo Kouoh, the biennial was a response to the year that saw Ireland celebrate and remember the centenary since The Rising. Submission for next year’s event, curated this time by Columbian Inti Guerrero, are open until January 31st – full details here. Only 15 months till we get to see what’s in store!

  • Split

    January 29, 2017 - By 

    Split lives up to its title in dividing my opinion right down the middle. I’m not sure whether it’s a load of gratuitous, pseudo psychology nonsense or an entertaining exploitation thriller/horror. Thankfully, writer/director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense) has managed to break out of his disappointing – sometimes awful – run of films since the mid-2000s, by pulling an inspired performance out of James McAvoy (X-Men: First Class) and creating an intriguingly sinister story with a surprising bite in its finale. It may be generic at its core, containing a few too many plot holes, but Split is clearly…

  • Rebekka Karijord – Mother Tongue

    January 27, 2017 - By 

    The emotional transfiguration of becoming a mother is something that the majority of people take for granted. On her latest album Mother Tongue, Rebekka Karijord has documented that spectrum of emotion that permeates motherhood, from agonising torture to euphoria. Born in Sandnessjøen, just south of the Arctic Circle in Norway, Karijord moved to Sweden to train as an actor and has composed music for over 30 films, modern dance and theatre pieces, as well as writing plays and short stories. All of this reveals itself through repeated listens to the album as we delve further into her frame of mind. Based…

  • Turner Month @ The National Gallery

    January 28, 2017 - By 

    To the benefit of both the National Gallery of Ireland and Irish art fans Henry Vaughan in 1900, despite having no connection to this island, donated his sizeable Turner collection to be split among the national galleries of Scotland and Ireland as well as the Victoria & Albert and Tate museums in London. A quirk of the Vaughan Bequest was a stipulation that the work only be shown in January – to both better preserve the works and enhance it in the lower light of January – and for it to be free of charge. Over a hundred years later the tradition is still being kept and…

  • Cherry Glazerr – Apocalipstick

    January 27, 2017 - By 

    There is an old adage about judging books and the relative merits of their covers. While time and usage have rendered it a hackneyed cliche, there is a truth in it and an album like Cherry Glazerr Apocalipstick is living proof of that. The title and cover art make it appear as though we’re getting some sharp, nihilistic jubilance wrapped up in a playful exterior; a multicolored middle finger in the air to the end of the world and those who caused it. Now there are flickers of that promised sensibility, it’s lost in the haze of the bland and…

  • The LP Belfast Launch Night

    January 27, 2017 - By 

    In the first of a new listening party series, Belfast’s House Bar on Stranmillis will host the launch of The LP on Friday, January 27. The concept is simple: people show up, buy drinks and the organisers play a great album, uninterrupted, from start to finish. First up is Childish Gambino’s third studio album, “Awaken, My Love!”, released via Glassnote Records back in December. The album play will be followed by the LP DJ set, featuring funk, soul, hip-hop, disco, house and breaks. Entry for the launch is free and there’ll be some free good, as well as drink offers. Contact thelpbelfast@gmail.com…

  • SPECTRUM: Creative Music for Curious Ears

    January 27, 2017 - By 

    Presented by Improvised Music Company in association with Note Productions and Homebeat, SPECTRUM is a new festival experience for fans of innovative music-making. Set to present three days of stimulating music “at the creative intersection where jazz, contemporary, rock and electronic music collide”, the Dublin festival – which will run from March 10-12 at Whelans and The Opium Rooms on Wexford St, Dublin – will have a focus on the live and improvised, complimented by a compelling programme of talks. From a debate on the excessive classifications of modern music led by Professor Matthew Causey from Trinity College Dublin, Paul…

  • #CorkLovesMusic

    January 27, 2017 - By 

    Presented in association with First Music Contact, the inaugural #CorkLovesMusic will see a standalone series of free music industry clinics, talks and performance events kick off in Coughlan’s on Wednesday, February 22. Set to run throughout the year, the opening event will feature one-one-clinics with FMC CEO Angela Dorgan, talks featuring Young Wonder/aboveDat producer Ian Ring, venue promoter Joe Kelly and arts journalist Ellie O’Byrne, as well as performances from Sillk, The Sunshine Factory and Ghostking. Reserve your place at the launch here and keep ’em peeled more announcements throughout the year. Leaf EP by GHOSTKING IS DEAD