• Having The Last Laugh: An Interview with Susan Calman

    January 22, 2017 - By 

    If laughter is indeed the best medicine, then Scottish comedian, actress and writer Susan Calman should be designated GP. Having imbued her diverse and far-reaching career with promoting mental health awareness via her own personal experience, Calman talks to Brian Coney about process, profile and positivity ahead of appearing at Belfast’s the MAC on February 5 (tickets and full info here). Hi, Susan. You’re setting off on a string of tour dates in February. How are you feeling about the shows? And tell us more about this particular show, The Calman Before The Storm. I’m really looking forward to getting out on…

  • New Additions to Iveagh Gardens Line-Up

    January 23, 2017 - By 

    Two new dates have been added to this year’s series of shows at Dublin’s Iveagh Gardens. With Fleet Foxes, Passenger and Damien Dempsey already set to play dates, it’s been announced that Baltimore’s Future Islands and Scottish indie rock heroes Belle and Sebastian (pictured) will play the annual concert series on Thursday, July 6 and Thursday, July 20 respectively. Tickets for Future Islands go on sale on January 27, whilst tickets for Belle and Sebastian go on sale on January 30. Both are priced €45.

  • Watch: Bad Sea – Solid Air

    January 23, 2017 - By 

    When it was released back in September last year, TTA’s Aoife O’Donoghue said ‘Solid Air’ by Dublin duo of Ciara Thompson AKA CMAT and Alan Farrel Bad Sea had “a wistful quality that evokes nostalgic memories of hazy summer days.” Ahead of what’s expected to be a busy 2017 for the fast-rising pair, they have just unveiled Ricardo Deakin’s video for said debut single, a narrative-driven, nicely presented accompaniment impressively reflecting the hidden fragility that can often underpin a relationship. Have a peek.

  • 17 For ’17: Fears

    January 23, 2017 - By 

    There’s something otherworldly about Constance Keane, and her solo project, Fears. The music here is remove from what Keane was making as the drummer of the feminist/animal welfare punk group M(h)aol, though keeping that distinctive dark tone. Her latest single Blood, a follow-up to 2015’s Priorities is a journey through alternative pop, with dark and looming synths and minimalist vocals, reminiscent of both BANKS and FKA Twigs. Produced and written by Constance, and mastered by Huntley Miller (Bon Iver, Tallest Man on Earth, The Staves) the track wouldn’t be unusual to hear on a John Carpenter soundtrack, or indeed in…

  • Repeal: A Night In The Key of 8 Announced

    January 19, 2017 - By 

    The sustained momentum and effort of the Repeal Project in Dublin and throughout the country over the last while has been nothing short of extraordinary. Founded by Anna Cosgrave, the campaign has sought to give a loud voice to a silenced issue, and has succeeded far and beyond anyone’s expectations. But with the final, biggest still to be scaled, however, Repeal Project are hosting a massive fundraising show – A Night In The Key of 8 – at Dublin’s Olympia Theatre on Sunday, April 23. With contributions to come from Panti, Roisin Ingle, Ailbhe Smyth, Tara Flynn and Una Mullally,…

  • Album Premiere: Switzerland – Long Gone

    January 19, 2017 - By 

    Set for its launch upstairs in Whelan’s on Friday, January 27, Long Gone is both the first release of 2017 from Popical Island and the debut album from Dublin quartet Switzerland, a band comprised of members of Drunken Boat, Hello Moon, Land Lovers and Paddy Hanna. Having premiered its stellar lead single, ‘Starting Out’, just last month, we’re pleased to present an exclusive first listen of the album, a ten-track release that goes some distance to confirm their arrival as serious contenders. Recorded with the help of Fiachra McCarthy, who has previously produced Squarehead, Brian Walsh from the band says of the early writing…

  • Premiere: Guilty Optics – And So It Goes

    January 18, 2017 - By 

    In the sixth issue of our physical magazine, Joe Madsen said Dublin trio Guilty Optics “proudly steer clear of poppy trends”, an observation that came to full-blown fruition in July last year via ‘The Kayapo Ghosts’, the virulent lead single from their forthcoming album Colossal Velocity.  The equally commanding successor to that opening gambit, ‘And So It Goes’ is a five-minute post-punk burst “confronting the role government plays in our lives, it’s desire for control and its previous attempt to abolish the senate.” Dig below.

  • Other Voices Announces New Series

    January 18, 2017 - By 

    Filmed both in Arlyn Studios in Austin, Texas as well as its hometown of Dingle on the Wild Atlantic Way, Other Voices have revealed details of its forthcoming new series. With the first episode set to air on Thursday, February 2 on RTÉ 2, the long-running series – which will run for nine weeks this time around – will feature heavyweights including Willie Nelson, Lisa Hannigan, Conor Oberst, Imelda May, Gregory Porter and Mumford and Sons. Elsewhere, Girl Band, Margaret Glaspy, Pixie Geldof, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, Overheard The Albatross and TTA favourites Rusangano Family are amongst other acts will make an appearance on…

  • Watch: Evvol – Comfort Fit

    January 18, 2017 - By 

    The steady evolution of Berlin-based Irish/Australian duo Evvol has been a joy to behold. Having dropped their debut EP under their previous moniker Kool Thing back in early 2012, singer Julie Chance and Australian multi-instrumentalist Jane Arnison have unravelled a darkwave-pop aesthetic that manages to marry nuance with real connotation. Where last year’s ‘Physical L.U.V‘ was “a truth-telling story about motivations and expectations”, new single ‘Comfort Fit’ is a release that confronts how we understand and embody comfort. Shot on DV cam, the video for the new single was inspired by fashion photographer Steven Meisel’s notoriously uncomfortable and subsequently banned Calvin Klein ad campaign from 1995. Shot…