• Premiere: White Sage – Way Beyond Our Means EP

    March 8, 2015 - By 

    Beyond running Dublin’s newest record shop, Little Gem, or performing as part of I Heart The Monster Hero and GODHATESDISCO, Andy Walsh has been concocting his own solo sonic wizardry as White Sage. Evoking the likes of Kraftwerk, Cluster and Harmonia, his superb debut EP, Way Beyond Our Means, is a self-proclaimed “sonic exploration of thought, emotion, dreams and imaginings through melody, countermelody and rhythms created using conventional and unconventional recording techniques.” Released via Little Gem Records on March 20, the EP – performed and recorded entirely by Andy Walsh between November 2013 and June 2014 – was layered using an early 20th century Ritzmar…

  • Her World: An Evening of Björk @ Oh Yeah Centre, Belfast

    March 5, 2015 - By 

    As part of the Oh Yeah Centre’s International Women’s Day on Saturday March 7, five female and female-fronted acts will come together to perform a selection of Björk’s back catalogue. This comes following her new archives book, an exhibition of her career and latest album, Vulnicure, and her emphasis on often-overlooked contributions to women in the art community – a problem she successfully fights through leading by example. Each set will consist of 2 covers of songs by the iconic, innovative, Icelandic artist, and interpreting her music as well as performing their own material on the night are piano-playing songstress Katharine…

  • From Book to Band: A World Book Day Playlist

    March 5, 2015 - By 

    “There is no friend as loyal as a book.” The astute words of Ernest Hemingway – and there’s a fair chance he wasn’t wrong. To coincide with this year’s World Book Day, we’ve set aside our latest read – Murakami’s South of the Border, West of the Sun, if you must know – to compile a ten-track playlist featured artists named after novels, including The Fall, Pylon, Soft Machine, The Blue Nile and The Art of Noise. Delve in to the literarily-leaning sonic wielders so.

  • Electric Picnic 2015 Line-up Announced

    March 4, 2015 - By 

    With many more acts still to be announced, the main wave of acts set to play this year’s Electric Picnic has been revealed. Featuring headliners Florence & The Machine and Underworld, the likes of Ride, Jurassic 5, Battles, Low, Django Django, Metz, Future Islands, The War and Drugs and more will all make an appearance. Check out the current line-up below and go here to buy tickets.

  • Album stream: No Spill Blood – Heavy Electricity

    March 3, 2015 - By 

    A heaving, cosmically-inclined beast and no mistake, Heavy Electricity, the debut album by Dublin noiseniks No Spill Blood is currently streaming via the Sargent House Soundcloud.  Without further ado, we highly recommend that you listen to said psychotic masterclass – set for official release on March 10 – below.

  • Sick Records’ First Birthday

    March 3, 2015 - By 

    Having featured in the first issue of our physical magazine, Belfast’s finest independent dispenser of wax,Sick Records celebrate their grand first birthday from 2pm on Saturday, March 7. Having steadily established itself as the city’s most comprehensively tasteful record store, psych-inflected rockers Thee Penny Dreadfuls, acoustic doom master Robyn G Shiels, new-fangled Derry duo Fabric and Bloomer White will all perform on the day, with DJ sets coming from Chris Hanna (Oneknown) and Jamie Nelson. Check out a video interview with Sick Records’ owner Kenny Murdock by The Thread below.

  • Stream: Evvol (Kool Thing) – Your Love

    March 3, 2015 - By 

    Having renamed themselves as the (assumingly) similarly Sonic Youth-inspired Evvol, the Berlin-based trio once known as Kool Thing have re-emerged with the bold, blippy and rather quite brilliant ‘Your Love’. The track is taken from their forthcoming album, Eternalism, which is released on May 18. We’re very much looking forward to getting our eager mitts on that.

  • TTA TV: Moving On Music

    March 4, 2015 - By 

    Currently based in the MAC, Belfast, Moving on Music have spent the last twenty years boldly showcasing some of the most exciting and curious jazz, blues, traditional, world and electronic artists. Celebrating that twentieth anniversary this year, the promoters – founded by Brian Carson – will also present the latest installment of their annual Belfast-based jazz festival, Brilliant Corners from March 25-28. In an illuminating and anecdote-riddled conversation with Brian Carson, the latest installment of TTA TV traces the history and development of one of Ireland’s most uncompromisingly exciting promoters, with two eyes firmly focused on the future and expanding further. Interview by James Magill; filmed and edited…

  • Stream: Alarmist – Morning, Kepler

    March 2, 2015 - By 

    Recorded and engineered by Solar Bears‘ Rian Trench at Meadow Studios, Co. Wicklow last year, Dublin quartet Alarmist have unveiled ‘Morning, Kepler’, the lead single from their forthcoming debut album. A vibrant, suitably sun-kissed instrumental effort for the first day of Spring, the track weaves a sublime patterns over almost five minutes, leaving one with an even stronger impression that Alarmist remain one of the country’s most forward-thinking and distinctive outfits. The follow up to 2013’s Pal Magnet EP, the band’s forthcoming album is expected to drop in the Autumn. With a Belfast date on the cards, check out Alarmist’s forthcoming tour dates…

  • Monday Mixtape: September Girls

    March 2, 2015 - By 

    Following on the heels of Pavement’s Bob Nastanovich, ASIWYFA’s Niall Kennedy, Quasi’s Sam Coomes, Ciaran Lavery and Girls Names’ Claire Miskimmin, Dublin noise-pop five-piece September Girls are the next act up for Monday Mixtape. A mix of old and new favourites currently inspiring the writing and recording of their second album, stream their handpicked ten-track playlist below. Photo by Joe Laverty. And one not on Spotify…