• Inbound: The Clameens

    July 4, 2014 - By 

    Currently in the studio recording their debut EP, Derry four-piece The Clameens have made a strong impression at home and further afield over the last twelve months, not least for the infectious pop-rock of singles ‘Don’t Judge’ and ‘Follow’. In the latest installment of Inbound, we talk to the band’s frontman, Sean Breslin, about their formation in the Creggan area of Derry, abiding to a very particular songwriting mantra and the band’s stance on living for the moment, whilst striving towards the future. Hi Sean. You’ve had quite busy last few months playing shows and getting your music out there to new…

  • Public Enemy announce Belfast show

    June 27, 2014 - By 

    Legendary New York hip-hop group Public Enemy are set to play Belfast’s Limelight 1 on Tuesday, August 5. Consisting of Chuck D, Flavor Flav, DJ Lord and more, the show will mark pioneering Long Island outfit’s debut show in the city, thirty two years after they formed. Lauded for albums including Fear of a Black Planet and It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, the group released their twelfth studio album, The Evil Empire of Everything, back in 2012. Tickets for the show go on sale from Ticketmaster right here at 9am on Monday morning (June 30). Watch the video…

  • Interview: New Secret Weapon

    June 26, 2014 - By 

    Ahead of playing this year’s Sea Sessions in Bundoran at the weekend, we talk to Dublin prog-tinged alt-rock trio New Secret Weapon about their guerrilla-style live shows, breaking free from songwriting conventions and recording their long-awaited self-titled debut album with Solar Bears’ Rian Trench.  Hi guys. You said you formed “in the aftermath of KnockanStockan Festival 2007”. What was the catalyst for formation there? There were many catalysts but the best one was probably the fact that the three of us had never played music together before and we played as if we’d been playing together our whole lives. Seven years on,…

  • Watch: Princess – Neverlook

    June 26, 2014 - By 

    Released last week, we said ‘Neverlook’, the new single by Dublin noise-pop band Princess was “balanced very nicely between with glacial indie tangents and rampant noise pop, boasting a distinctive, compelling surge; splatterings of rhythm morphing with gaze-y guitar patterns and bobbing bass lines.” Sticking by that assessment, we’re happy to see a visual accompaniment to the track emerge, directed by Kevin Freeney and Dan Finnegan. Without giving too much away: clothes are swapped, legs are shaved and vintage cars are driven. Watch the video below.  

  • Watch: The Vals – Quiet Part of Town

    June 25, 2014 - By 

    The full band medium of Belfast-based singer-songwriter Paul Doherty, The Vals have unveiled the video to their new single, ‘Quiet Part of Town’. A wonderfully crafted effort, the song channels a timeless, psychedelic-tinged sound, broad, serene guitar chords marrying delicate keyboard lines, shuffling rhythms and sweetly-placed strings, not to mention Doherty’s vocals – a real centre-piece. Directed by Thomas McKeown and Daryl Randal, the video proves a suitably hazy, nostalgic accompaniment. ‘Quiet Part of Town’ will feature on The Vals’ forthcoming album, Wildflower May. Stream the video via Vimeo below.  

  • Stream: Spies – Moosehead

    June 24, 2014 - By 

    Bursting straight out of the traps, ‘Moosehead’ by Dublin five-piece Spies is nothing if not a sonic statement of intent from a band tipped to go far over the next few months. A gazey post-punk effort brimming with confidence and purpose, the track – produced by Rian Trench of Solar Bears – sees subtly soaring guitar textures, propulsive rhythms and Matthew Broderick’s sublime vocals merge to form one of the most impressive songs from an Irish band we’ve heard this year so far. Check out Spies’ forthcoming gig dates and the video for ‘Moosehead’ below. July 26: The Old Blue Last, London July 28: The Sebright Arms,…

  • Watch: BeeMickSee – Belfast Slang

    June 24, 2014 - By 

    Belfast-based rapped Brendan Seamus AKA BeeMickSee have unveiled the video to his new single, ‘Belfast Slang’. Created by Philip Mateer and Tristan Crowe of Red Mist Productions, the video features Seamus – introducing the uninitiated with various Northern Irishisms such as “scundered” – and actress Cara Cowan. ‘Belfast Slang’ – featuring a beat by Thrash Hat AKA Rory Friers of And So I Watch You From Afar – is the third single from BeeMickSee’s forthcoming album, The Belfast Yank. The album is launched at Bar Sub at QUBSU, featuring support by Aggressors BC, the Late Twos and TBC. Watch the video for ‘Belfast…

  • Watch: FLAWS – Feels Like Home

    June 23, 2014 - By 

    Ahead of their debut EP launch on Wednesday night, Belfast-based three-pieceFLAWS have released their video for their first single, ‘Feels Like Home’. Evoking the stadium-worthy melodic rock of In Case of Fire – a band that two thirds of FLAWS, Steven Robinson and Thomas Camblin, were once members – the track is an infectious three-and-a-half minutes of melodic alt-rock, redolent of a certain increasingly bygone sound of in Northern Irish music, Indeed, according to the band’s label, OLD FANG, FLAWS “pack a welcome punch not seen in Belfast this side of the late-noughties banjo haze”. A battle cry in favour of…

  • Watch: The Wonder Villains – Zola

    June 23, 2014 - By 

    Featuring Italian footballing legend Gianfranco Zola himself (actually), Derry pop quartet the Wonder Villains have unveiled the video for the typically starry-eyed new single, ‘Zola’. Filmed in London, the video was produced by Bradley Quinn and directed by Robin Morgan of Little Giant Films. The track is taken from the band’s debut album, Rocky, released via No Dancing/Third Bar. Watch the video below.