• Lady Bird

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Screenwriting 101, they say, is create conflict. Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan), the protagonist of writer-director Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, is a constant source of conflict, perennially fighting with all those around her. For what, she’s not always sure, it’s simply who she is. Her fighting is a form of self-expression, she’s fighting for her self-expression. As she says when a Father at her Catholic high school asks if “Lady Bird” is her given name- “Yes, I gave it to myself. It’s given to me, by me.” Set in 2002, Christine’s roller coaster final year of high school provides…

  • Stream: Le Galaxie – Day of the Child

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Le Galaxie are back with ‘Day of the Child’ the second single off their forthcoming album, released today and currently streaming on Spotify. The neon inflected dance track features MayKay from dearly departed Fight Like Apes on vocals and some Soft Cell inspired synths, perfectly encapsulating their signature sound.  Having appeared as a guest on previous tracks and a huge favourite at their live gigs, this release coincides with the news of her officially becoming the fifth member of the group. Their highly anticipated album ‘Pleasure’ will be released on April 6 on the Red River Label.

  • EP Stream: Rebekah Fitch – Broken Mind

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Launched with a full band show tomorrow night (Saturday, February 24) at the Belfast Barge, Broken Mind by Belfast-based artist Rebekah Fitch is FM-aiming alt-pop brimming with real nuance and heart. Filtering influence from acts including Stevie Nicks, Bjork and Florence and the Machine, Fitch’s sound betrays real attention to detail – not merely in terms of not only songwriting, but also how, lyrically, each song presents its own intricate emotive world. Fleshed out with some sublime production and burrowing hooks, Fitch has said that the songs on the release are united “on the common themes of internal war, mental struggles and cognitive dissonance,…

  • The Barbiturates – Only Folkin’ Jokin’

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Arguably the Irish group most deserving – in the literal sense – of the cult band status, Derry’s The Barbiturates have just released their latest LP, Only Folkin Jokin. Like its mini-album predecessor The Holy Mountain, it comes with  a visual accompaniment that threatens ocular trauma. Loaded with a sense of backwoods fear of the urban sprawl and the powers beyond their control, it’s another self-produced release that comes as act II in a larger thematic trilogy. With an Easter Egg that begs to be discovered – trust us – The Barbiturates’ leader has crafted what feels like an extended invitation to tune in, drop out, with pieces that casually dabble in acid…

  • Watch: Alien She – Death Sentence

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Released as part of the Art For Blind-supported Goodbye 8 Campaign, ‘Death Sentence’ by Dublin experimental trio Alien She is a track that confronts the crux of the Irish abortion rights debate head on. The closing track on the band’s debut album, Feeler, the band wrote the song after Savita Halappanavar, originally from India, died at University Hospital Galway in 2012 due to complications arising from a septic miscarriage and failings in her care. Accompanying a Bandcamp release – which includes a tote bag/print, proceeds of which go to Repealing the 8th – the release comes accompanied with a video courtesy…

  • Stream: Group Zero – Pursuit (Black Bones Dreams Mix)

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    A highlight from last year’s Structures and Light, ‘Pursuit’ by Belfast’s Cathal Cully AKA Group Zero has been reworked by production and DJ duo Black Bones. Extroverting the inward-looking subtlety of the original, the track has been re-woven as an early-morning dancefloor gem. Speaking of the track, Black Bones said, ““We wanted to lean the track more towards the club without losing it’s essence. Familiar noises mixed with an unfamiliar end. A sort of lost on the dance floor fog at 5am when you should have really gone home a long time ago. The joy of being there slightly mixed with…

  • Album Stream: Wyvern Lingo – Wyvern Lingo

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    Do believe the hype. Having went straight in to number one on the Irish iTunes charts, the self-titled debut album by Wyvern Lingo is a remarkable, all-killer tour de force from undoubtedly the country’s finest fast-rising band. Set to launch at Dublin’s Button Factory tonight, the first full-length from the Bray trio of Karen Cowley, Saoirse Duane and Caoimhe Barry is a razor-sharp snapshot of a band whose increasingly singular brand of harmony-driven alt-pop has been everywhere recently – and rightly so. Wyvern Lingo captures – and perfectly bookend – the latest chapter in what’s set to be an exciting, far-reaching few…

  • Dublin Film Fest: Black 47

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    The blackness is in the land, of course, the blight that’s reduced potatoes to asbestos, but, in Dublin Film Festival opener Black 47, it’s also in the hearts of the men who hold dominion over the land, and in the empire that produces them. Set in 1847, as crop failure and fever decimates the native Irish population, Lance Daly’s fourth feature reimagines the Great Irish Famine as a righteous revenge Western, a muddy, politically cynical chase thriller with shades of Rambo. James Frecheville stars as Michael Feeney, a Connacht man who returns home from overseas service in the British Army, to…

  • F I V E R T H O N @ A4 Sounds

    February 23, 2018 - By 

    A4 Sounds need your help and more importantly they need your fivers! The interdisciplinary artist studio and gallery organisation provide affordable access to studio spaces, artist facilities as well as running workshops and courses. In recent years these spaces have been disappearing from the Dublin creative scene and their presence is vital for the community. Recently A4 sounds was awarded a 10 year lease, securing their long term future. Along with this lease they also secured funding to carry out vital refurbishment to the space. To complete this work (which is for refurbishment to the the electrical system, to install a fire alarm system, and…