• Dig Early: Six Months of Psych (Part I of II)

    June 6, 2014 - By 

    Having seen a real upsurge over the last while, 2013 was a particularly stellar year for psych rock (and all its many manifestations) the world over. With mind-expandingly exceptional albums from the likes of Hookworms, Goat, Destruction Unit and Unknown Mortal Orchestra sating the psych thirst of the more cosmically-inclined amongst us, it might yet pale in comparison to the sheer abundance of first-rate psychedelia that’s been released (and is set to be released) in 2014. Here’s my picks of the year so far. Blank Realm – Even The Score [from Grassed Inn] Two years on from the psych-tinged art-rock of their debut album, Go Easy, Brisbane sibling trio Blank Realm made…

  • Oh Yeah Centre announce Scratch My Progress acts

    June 5, 2014 - By 

    Belfast’s Oh Yeah Centre have announced the five acts that will take part in this year’s installment of their talent development programme, Scratch My Progress. Having expanded from four acts to five this year, the programme has chosen indie-pop band Hurdles, singer-songwriter Matthew Duly, indie-punk act Hot Cops and Belfast alt-rock five-pieces Setotonin and R51. Speaking of the selection process, project manager Charlotte Dryden said, “We had more applicants and a harder job of getting it down to four than the previous two years, so we thought we would extend the offer to one more act. It’s an exciting and challenging development for us, but…

  • Watch: Skymas – Hey Porter

    June 5, 2014 - By 

    Having recently kicked into gear on the live front, Belfast-based electronic-rock trio Skymas have unveiled the animated video to their pounding second single, ‘Hey Porter’. The follow-up to the Martin Corrigan-fronted three-piece’s debut single ‘This River’, the video for the track features an series of interesting characters busting shapes to the song’s wonderfully propulsive rhythm. Having formed last year, Skymas will play the following shows over the summer: Saturday, June 28: Craft Village, Celtronic Festival (3pm, admission free) Saturday, July 5: Aether and Echo, Belfast Saturday, August 9: Liquid Rooms, Edinburgh Go here to read our Inbound interview with the band here…

  • Watch: Subplots – Colourbars

    June 6, 2014 - By 

    Marking their first release in five release, Dublin duo Phil Boughton and Daryl Chaney AKA Subplots have unveiled the rather visually satisfying video to ‘Colourbars’ Set to feature on the twosome’s forthcoming second album, set for release later this year via their own label, Cableattack Records!!, the track is a subtly entrancing four minutes of minimalist beats, guitar shapes and deformed vocal lines. With more shows set to be announced, the band will play Dublin’s The Pop Inn with Bouts and Come On Live Long on Saturday, July 26. Watch the video for ‘Colourbars’ via Vimeo (where else?) below.

  • Celtronic 2014

    June 4, 2014 - By 

    Ireland’s premier electronic musical festival, Celtronic will return to Derry for its fourteenth year from Wednesday, June 25. Running to Sunday June 29, some of the finest producers and DJs in dance and electronic music including Ben UFO, Derrick Carter, Karenn Feat Blawan and Pariah, Magic Mountain High, Pearson Sound and Space Dimension Controller will perform in various venues such as Sandinos, The Nerve Centre and Masons across the city over five days. Check out the full line-up for the festival and buy tickets here. Watch a fifty minute Boiler Room set from Ben UFO below.  

  • EP Stream: Little Rivers – Little Rivers

    June 4, 2014 - By 

    Set for its official launch at a secret show at Belfast’s Menagerie tonight (Wednesday, June 6), Northern Irish singer-songwriter Callum Cairns AKA Little Rivers has digitally released his second – self-titled – EP. The follow-up to his 2012 debut EP, We, I, the release six-track release features single ‘I Have No Sleep’ and a live version of the poignant ‘Hold On’. According to Cairns’ Bandcamp page the EP “stems from uprooting and moving to England, the loneliness accompanying it, and the first steps following a heartbreak”. Little Rivers was produced by Cairns, Michael Mormecha and Thomas Camblin. Stream it below via Bandcamp. Little…

  • Gigs of the Week: The Emerald Armada, Angel Olsen, Spectrum Festival

    June 5, 2014 - By 

    For the first time in a few weeks, our three gigs of the week take place across Belfast over the next few days. Which once again has had us thinking: there was a time, not that long ago, when the phrase, “There’s nothing on in Belfast” was all-too regularly uttered by the best of us. While this was something of a myth, there can be no denying that there is an absolute abundance of shows, nights, clubs, happenings and events right under our noses, night in, night out. Never, ever hanker for “the good ol’ days”, eh? As far as we’re concerned,…

  • Exclusive Preview: Sons of Caliber – Albatross

    May 30, 2014 - By 

    Ahead of its official release on June 13, we’re very pleased to present an exclusive, one-day stream of Albatross, the debut album by Northern Irish folk singer-songwriter Andrew Farmer and friends AKA Sons of Caliber. Two years on from the Andrew Farmer-fronted band’s critically acclaimed 2012 release The Tundra, the nine-track album is a subtly mesmerising collection of songs, traversing  the laws and hidden depths of nature, love and survival. Albatross will be launched as part of this year’s Open House Festival at Belfast’s Black Box on June 22. Go here to buy tickets and stream Albatross via our Bandcamp page below. (You…

  • Robyn G Shiels – The Blood of the Innocents

    May 27, 2014 - By 

    Six years in the making, Belfast-based singer-songwriter Robyn G Shiels will sigh a breath of relief on Saturday, May 31, when he launches his long-awaited (not to mention, truly exceptional) second studio album, The Blood of the Innocents. Set to take place at Belfast’s Black Box from 8pm, the show will also feature support from Jonny Black of LaFaro and a DJ set from Clive Moore. An array of guests are also expected to make an appearance on the night. Go here for the show’s Facebook event page, pre-order the album here and stream ‘Drunk Myself a River’ from the album…

  • Watch: R.S.A.G. – ‘I’ll Be There’

    May 27, 2014 - By 

    Six years on from the release of his breakthrough debut album, Organic Sampler, Kilkenny multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Hickey AKA R.S.A.G has unveiled the video to his new single, ‘I’ll Be There’. Created by Paul Mahon AKA Geppetto, the visual accompaniment is a brilliantly edited melange of brief hypnagogic visions and black-and-white footage of Hickey on drums, bass and guitar. The track will featured on the next R.S.A.G album, set for release in Autumn. Watch the video below.