• Watch: Owensie – Dramamine

    October 5, 2015 - By 

    Taken from his highly-anticipated new album, Dublin singer-songwriter Michael Owens AKA Owensie has unveiled the video for the the release’s extraordinary title track, featuring Woven Skull’s Aonghus McEvoy and Villagers’ Conor O’Brien on drums and backing vocals. Evoking the more somnambulist musings of Department of Eagles, the song is a subtly layered, harmony-laden four and a half minutes of ensnaring acoustic majesty, superbly mirrored in the accompanying video from Bren and Bob of Able Frame Productions. The track was produced by Dek Hynes and mixed by James Eager at The Hive Studios in Wicklow. Dramamine is launched via Out On A Limb Records with…

  • Monday Mixtape: Horace Panter (The Specials)

    October 5, 2015 - By 

    Artist and co-founding bassist of 2-Tone legends The Specials, Horace Panter reveals his ten all-time favourite tracks, including Laurel Aitken, Nirvana and The Rolling Stones. Spencer Davis Group – Trampoline The Bside to their 1966 Fontana release ‘When I Come Home’. Sounds like Booker T & the MG’s but was recorded by four young men from Kingstanding in Birmingham! When I was 13, I imagined myself as a pirate radio DJ. This was my theme tune – it still is! Robert Ward – Pour Me One More Drink  An out-take from his 1992 album on the New Orleans ‘Black Top’ label. Sarah Brown on…

  • Premiere: Empty Lungs – ‘Medicine/Bernadette’

    October 2, 2015 - By 

    Ahead of launching it at Belfast’s Empire Music Hall on Wednesday, October 7, we’re pleased to present an exclusive first listen to the new double A-side from Belfast alt-punk band Empty Lungs. Tracked by Andy Coles, ‘Medicine/Bernadette’ – was mixed by Chris Ryan and mastered by Dan Coutant in New York – captures the Kev Jones-fronted quartet at their emphatic best. See below for the band’s upcoming tour dates and our premiere of the release. The online sales from Bernadette will be donated to womenonweb.org.

  • Watch: Participant – A Change

    October 1, 2015 - By 

    Featuring images of 1980’s Ireland lifted from a VHS cassette of corporate videos encouraging tourism, the video for ‘A Change’ by Dublin-based musician Stephen Tiernan AKA Participant possesses a curious, otherworldly charm, wonderfully reflected in the track’s jittering, symphonic alt-pop spell. The first single to be lifted from Tiernan’s forthcoming Content EP, the track fuses heartfelt lyrics and field recordings & samples with acoustic guitar and burgeoning ambience; plinking synth notes and synth strings marrying in a haze of experimental pop triumph. Participant performs at Dublin’s Mercantile on Friday night as part of Hard Working Class Heroes 2015 (9.20pm –…

  • Sound of Belfast 2015 Programme Announced

    October 1, 2015 - By 

    The programme for this year’s Sound of Belfast has been announced, with the events running from November 6-14 around the city, culminating in the presentation of this year’s Oh Yeah Legend Award to The Divine Comedy at the NI Music Prize event at the Mandela Hall on November 14. The festivities include many exhibitions from local artists & filmmakers, as well as conferences and masterclasses at the Oh Yeah Centre. These include the Belfast Urban Affinity 2015, aimed at hard-to-reach youths, and the Breaking Into Music Youth Conference, featuring the likes of Phil Taggart, who quickly progressed from BBC Radio Ulster to Radio…

  • Playlist: 10 Must-See Acts at Hard Working Class Heroes 2015

    September 30, 2015 - By 

    On the eve of the return of the country’s leading celebration of homegrown, independent music, Hard Working Class Heroes, we have compiled a list of 10 comprehensively unmissable acts to catch across Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Go here for the full schedule. Everything Shook Argento Nights EP by Everything Shook Arborist Twisted Arrow ft. Kim Deal by arborist Inni-K The King has Two Horse’s Ears by Inni-K The Altered Hours Silences Participant Bit Slow by Participant Elastic Sleep Slip by Elastic Sleep I Have a Tribe SlowPlaceLikeHome Best Boy Grip Sharks by BestBoyGrip

  • Stream: My Tribe Your Tribe – Ghost With You

    September 30, 2015 - By 

    Following a packed summer schedule that included slots at Electric Picnic, Body & Soul, Valentia Isle, Spirit of Folk and Secret Village Festivals, eclectic Kildare duo My Tribe Your Tribe have released their third single this year, ‘Ghost With You’. With their debut album due in 2016, this cut fuses their anthemic pop sensibilities with jagged, alt. rock guitar lines and electro-pop synth use. They play The Academy Green Room this Thursday for Hard Working Class Heroes at 9pm, and you can preview the rest of their material on Bandcamp. ‘Ghost With You’ will be released on October 30, but you can stream it…

  • Watch: Blue Whale – Jack Irons

    September 25, 2015 - By 

    Ex-drummer for the likes of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam and Eleven, Jack Irons has an interesting and illustrious CV – one which he can (yet probably won’t) now add, “Title of instrumental banger by Belfast-based experimental band Blue Whale” to. A collaboration between the band, filmmaker Tom Hughes and contemporary dancer Maeve McGreevy, the quartet’s new single is a potent, wonderfully emphatic audio-visual creation, fusing Blue Whale’s bombastic, Battles-esque experimental instrumental rock with Hughes’ sublime directorial eye and a truly compelling performance by McGreevy throughout. The track was recorded by Start Together’s Ben McAuley and is available to download here. Blue Whale play…

  • Premiere: SlowPlaceLikeHome – Cesare’s Principle

    September 25, 2015 - By 

    One of our must-see acts at this year’s Hard Working Class Heroes, Donegal producer Keith Mannion AKA SlowPlaceLikeHome has summoned some spectacular sounds over the last few years. “Finally the album it as supposed to be,” Mannion will released a rebooted version of his sublime debut album, Romola, on October 27. A largely re-recorded version of the original, Mannion says it will close the chapter on the album, with new material planned for early next year. The penultimate track on Romola, we’re very happy to premiere the latest incarnation of Cesare’s Principle, featuring guest vocals by the Masterson sisters. SlowPlaceLikeHome play Dublin’s…