• Indie Label Day 2017

    October 4, 2017 - By 

    Presented by two of the country’s leading independent imprints, Art for Blind and Penske, the inaugural Indie Label Day will take place at Whelan’s in Dublin on Saturday, October 14. The first event of its kind in Ireland to focus purely on record label culture, the day-long fair will celebrate DIY music on the island of Ireland. A marketplace, DJ sets and live bands will take place across two rooms. The afternoon (which is free and runs from 2-6pm) will feature pop-up stalls bringing together a range of independent record labels and distributors operating around the country as well as…

  • Belfast, Don’t Miss This Party on Saturday

    October 2, 2017 - By 

    The third installment of an ongoing series, a downright unmissable party featuring Not Squares, Twitch DJs, Robocobra Quartet, Chris Hanna, Blue Whale and much more will take place in a secret location somewhere in Belfast this Saturday, October 7. Want in? Here’s the lowdown: Location: TBA (Belfast) Doors: 8:30pm Last Entry: 9:30pm Min. Donation: £10 BYOB With live music ‘til late from: Not Squares Blue Whale Robocobra Quartet Hornets CATALAN! Beauty Sleep Plus DJ sets from – Twitch DJs Chris Hanna Marion Hawkes Chill & Nephillim Cardinal & Underdog Gav Williams Mista Meez Crilli DJs Anton K + More Places are…

  • Eoin Dolan – UBIQUE

    October 2, 2017 - By 

    Ireland might be one of the world’s greatest surfing locations, but it has always lacked some of the simple pleasures that come with the territory. Chiefly among these is the music. Surf rock made a huge splash in 60s southern California with pioneers like Dick Dale and The Beach Boys ushering in a profoundly new sound. Their music is so infused with that time that it’s become almost impossible not to hear ‘Surfin’ USA’ when imagining surfer dudes and dudettes “riding the barrel”, so to speak. The Irish coast, on the other hand, is not the most inspiring place for…

  • Stream: And So I Watch You From Afar – Dying Giants

    October 2, 2017 - By 

    North Coast quartet And So I Watch You From Afar are nothing if not ambitious. Having spent the last few years carving out their very own path in the world of masterfully-crafted instrumental rock, the Belfast-based foursome will release their fifth studio album, The Endless Shimmering, via Sargent House on October 20. Having let the cat out of the bag last month via lead track ‘A Slow Unfolding of Wings’, new single ‘Dying Giants’ goes one further. Blending the band’s instantly recognisable brand of intricately-woven fretboard exhibitionism with a slew of face-melting passages and a sublime – and somewhat unexpected – outro, the song’s…

  • Kendrick Lamar and James Blake Set For Dublin Date

    October 2, 2017 - By 

    Having last played the city at last year’s Longitude Festival, Kendrick Lamar will kick off his Damn. at Dublin’s 3Arena on February 7. Kicking starting a 15-date string of shows, culminating in Berlin on March 5, Lamar will be supported on all shows by James Blake. Tickets for the Dublin show are priced €62 including booking fee and go on sale this Friday, October 6 at 9am. Here are the full tour dates:

  • Protomartyr – Relatives In Descent

    October 1, 2017 - By 

    You could be forgiven for thinking that any and all modern articulations of “rock music” have become politically toothless. As a medium, it doesn’t quite seem as suited to critiques of society and culture as it once did. That being said, it seems Detroit four-piece Protomartyr would be inclined to disagree. Relatives In Descent, their fourth album, finds them wrestling with the nature and form of truth, spurred on by the vertiginous, collective sense of History swarming violently around the present. Having recently signed to UK Label Domino, the band retreated to L.A. in March of this year to record…

  • Wolf Alice – Visions of a Life

    September 29, 2017 - By 

    It’s rarely a good sign when all of the singles on an album are placed at the start. It’s almost an admission to the listener that says ‘Look, this isn’t great but at least the first couple of tunes are alright and you can just switch it off after that’. The only issue here is that even the singles on offer aren’t particularly inspiring. Wolf Alice’s sophomore offering, Visions Of A Life seems to lose all of the effortlessness and vitality of its predecessor and is bland at its best; cringeworthy at its worst. If this isn’t the epitome of…

  • Making It Count: An Interview With John Deery and The Heads

    September 28, 2017 - By 

    Look as far and wide as you will, but you’ll struggle to find an Irish band as respected as Derry’s John Deery and the Heads. Ahead of the launch of their wonderfully-woven third studio album, Nothing Permanent Lasts, at the Nerve Centre on Saturday night, we talk to the quartet’s main man about evolution, the power of change, successfully going down the crowdfunding route and much more. Go here to buy tickets and for more info about the album launch Hi, John. You officially launch Nothing Permanent Lasts at the end of the month. You ran a successful pledge campaign for…

  • David Holmes’ God’s Waiting Room – Marie Curie Fundraiser

    September 28, 2017 - By 

    A night that always delivers something special, David Holmes‘ God’s Waiting Room will return to wonderfully inimitable environs of Belfast’s Maple Leaf Club on Saturday, September 30 for a special fundraiser for Marie Curie Hospice. Compèred by Joe Lindsay, joining David Holmes on the night will be Raphael Doyle and Gerry Diver, who will perform the sublime ‘I Come From Ireland’. The night will also see the return of Barry Woolnough and Alain McClean, who will perform ‘Great Spirit Father in the Sky’ and ‘Judgement day Blues’ as heard on Holme’s recent – and downright essential – Late Night Tales…