• 15 For ’15: Oh Boland

    January 5, 2015 - By 

    Set to feature in physical form in our forthcoming January magazine, we continue 15 for ’15, a feature looking at fifteen Irish acts we’re absolutely convinced are going places in 2015. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll going to be previewing each of those acts, accompanied by words from our writers and an original photograph by our wonderful team of photographers. Next up is Galway garage-pop trio Oh Boland. Photo by Sean McCormack. What with ‘garage rock/pop’ being one of the three/four musical styles currently en vogue, Tuam’s Oh Boland are likely to leap on most of these ‘to watch’ lists as a matter…

  • 15 For ’15: Elastic Sleep

    January 2, 2015 - By 

    Set to feature in physical form in our forthcoming January magazine, we continue 15 for ’15, a feature looking at fifteen Irish acts we’re absolutely convinced are going places in 2015. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll going to be previewing each of those acts, accompanied by words from our writers and an original photograph by our wonderful team of photographers. Next up is Cork dream-pop band Elastic Sleep. Photo by Brid O’Donovan. There is much to be said for patience. After well-loved Cork pop combo Terror Pop abruptly bid adieu in mid-2012, the band’s core membership took their time about regrouping. Quietly and…

  • 15 For ’15: Alana Henderson

    January 1, 2015 - By 

    Set to feature in physical form in our forthcoming January magazine, we’re pleased to present 15 for ’15, a handpicked selection of Irish acts we’re absolutely convinced are going places in 2015. Over the next couple of weeks, we’re going to be previewing each of those acts, accompanied by words from our writers and an original photograph by our wonderful team of photographers. First up is Belfast-based songstress Alana Henderson. Photo by Joe Laverty. End of year lists are a funny thing. Every year the music industry churns these things out and every year the same names appear top of the…

  • The Thin Air Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2014 (74-01)

    January 1, 2015 - By 

    In the second (admittedly rather hefty) part of a two part feature, we count down our Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2014, from #74 to #01. Delve in. Go here to check out the first part of the countdown. 74. BeeMickSee – We Took A Dive Featuring his best friend and collaborator Paul Danver, ‘We Took A Dive’ by Belfast-based rapper Brendan Seamus AKA BeeMickSee tells the “tale of my harrowing relocation to Belfast in the mid 90s” and features on the The Belfast Yank. We Took a Dive by Bee Mick See 73. Droids – Burn Down Another rampant, riff-fuelled throwdown…

  • Merry Christmas from The Thin Air!

    December 22, 2014 - By 

    We are officially taking our Christmas holidays and we will return fully on 12th January 2015. We’d like to say a big thank you to all our dear readers and most importantly our fantastic contributors who have made the website and our print magazine what it is today. We also welcome new members to join our team in shaping what The Thin Air will be in the future. So from three Nordies, a Dub, one Cark bai and ein Berliner… MERRY CHRISTMAS! Illustration by Digital Beast Top row: Brian Coney (Editor), Andrew Lemon (Reviews Editor), Stuart Bell (Art Director) Bottom row: Stevie…

  • No Parachute @ Established

    December 16, 2014 - By 

    Launching in printed form in 2015, No Parachute – a new photographic project by And So I Watch You From Afar guitarist Rory Friers and their manager Graham Smith – will take place at Belfast’s Established on Thursday, December 18. Comprising of photographs taken on and off the road over the past few years, the selected images were all taken on iPhone. Speaking of the project, the pair said it “documents the duelling lives of band people and the contrasting moments that we are presented with along the way. From sureness and bliss to the harsh and unpleasant, from the…

  • Stream: Sleep Thieves – November Christmas

    December 16, 2014 - By 

    We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: even remotely attempting to write a decent Christmas song is tricky business. Thankfully, there’s some acts more cut out for the job than others – acts like Dublin electro-pop trio Sleep Thieves, who have just released an ultra-lovely, synth-driven effort called ‘November Christmas’. A self-proclaimed “dreamy, bittersweet jam”, the track is diametrically opposed to any kind of festival frivolity – which, as you might expect, works very much in its favour. You can download the track now via Soundcloud.  Stream the track below and treat yourself to the band’s debut album,…

  • Stream: Lantern For A Gale – Captain

    December 15, 2014 - By 

    Taken from their forthcoming debut album, From Adversity, Belfast-based hardcore five-piece Lantern For A Gale are streaming the blistering ‘Captain’. Stream the track below and make sure to catch them at Atlantic Lounge, Portrush on December 23 with 7.5 Tonnes of Beard and PigsAsPeople. Photo by Tom McGeehan.

  • The Thin Air Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2014 (100-75)

    December 30, 2014 - By 

    Twelve months, a billion tracks (probably) and a ridiculously impressive crop of new, emerging musical talent the island of Ireland over: yes, 2014 was been very generous indeed on the ol’ new music front. In a year when (the altogether sonically disparate) Girl Band and SOAK signed with Rough Trade, Adebisi Shank broke hearts in parting ways and Hozier “did a Kodaline” by going positively stratospheric – more on that later – innumerable lesser-known acts have also been slogging away in the garage, creating some of the very best sounds here or anywhere else on the face on the planet. In the first of a two-part feature,…