• Exclusive EP stream: Katharine Philippa – Broken To Be Rebuilt

    October 30, 2013 - By 

    Ahead of its release tonight at Belfast’s McMordie Hall, we are delighted to present an exclusive stream of the spectacular Broken To Be Rebuilt, the eagerly-anticipated new EP from singer-songwriter Katharine Philippa. Co-produced, mixed and master by Matt Duke, the six-track EP features extra instrumentation from five different musicians, including Duke himself. The closing track is an orchestra quartet version of the album’s title track, bookending a release that perfectly captures Philippa’s spectral and sublime craft. Stream the EP in full below.

  • Inbound: A Bad Cavalier

    November 1, 2013 - By 

    In the latest installment of Inbound, Brian Coney talks to And So I Watch You From Afar guitarist and ex-Panama Kings frontman Niall Kennedy about his (essentially) new solo project A Bad Cavalier, the release of his superb debut EP, Ex Libris, and trying to make the time to make the whole solo thing work. Hi Niall. You’ve just released Ex Libris, your first solo release under the moniker A Bad Cavalier. How long has it been in the making? It’s been in the making for quite a while now. I started A Bad Cavalier when I was 16 and I have been…

  • Drenge – The Limelight 2

    October 30, 2013 - By 

    Sheffield rockers Drenge may have received a sharp spike in interest recently thanks to Labour MP Tom Watson’s parting assertion that they are “an awesome new band”, but it’s visceral and absorbing live performances like tonight’s in the Limelight 2 that will surely see their popularity continue to increase. Brothers Eoin and Rory Loveless make up a guitar and drums duo, but their live setup is anything but lacking – one only need take note of the array of amp stacks and microphones which flank the pair on stage. The modest gathering of hipster-cum-metalheads that have assembled tonight are treated…

  • Gig of the Week: Bouts, Hurdles, Go Swim

    October 29, 2013 - By 

    Off the back of the release of their stellar debut album – Nothing Good Gets Away – our gig of the week this week will see Dublin indie rock band Bouts return to Belfast for a special album launch party on Friday, November 1. Supported by two of the North’s finest indie bands, Hurdles and Go Swim, the four-piece will play the wonderfully tucked-away Menagerie in the heart of the Holylands –  their first show here since they supported Amateur Historians in the same venue early last year. Go here for the show’s event page, check out our interview with Bouts…

  • Watch: Mojo Fury – Origami Bird

    October 28, 2013 - By 

    Ahead of setting off on a UK tour tomorrow, Mojo Fury have unveiled the excellent video to their new single, ‘Origami Bird’. Comprise of various visual delights including hand-drawn illustrations and silhouettes similar to those used in the band’s video for ‘The Difference Between’, the video’s visual art concept was devised by Helena Hamilton. Check out our 5 out of 5 review of the band’s new album, The Difference Between, here. Watch the video for ‘Origami Bird’ below.

  • Line-up announced for Belfast Music Week showcase

    October 28, 2013 - By 

    Belfast indie-pop band Go Wolf, fast-rising Derry collective Little Bear and indie rock quartet Seven Summits (pictured) are amongst the twelve acts confirmed to play this year’s Belfast Music Week showcase at Belfast’s Limelight Complex on November 12. Set to be a showcase of this year’s proceedings, the line-up for the showcase was hand-picked by a broad panel of industry figures from Northern Ireland and further afield. According to the official Belfast Music Week website, “it’s a chance to see legends and breaking talent, and to appreciate the ongoing success stories and a musical city that continues to make us…

  • Lou Reed: A Tribute Playlist

    October 27, 2013 - By 

    Arguably punk’s greatest ancestor, Velvet Underground founder and uncompromising solo artist and collaborator for the last five decades, Lou Reed has passed away the age of 71. One of the finest songwriters of the twentieth century (and, for many, beyond) his songs and art traversed genre, sentiment and style, dividing critics and fans from his 1972 self-titled effort right up his notoriously at odds collaboration with Metallica in 2011. From heroin and the NYC underground to Diet Coke and t’ai chi, Reed came a long way from the sixties, constantly re-affirming his right to be restless and fearlessly re-inventing his musical manifesto…

  • PigsAsPeople, El Ten Eleven, Droids @ Radar

    October 26, 2013 - By 

    Gentleman, scholar and masterful photographer Diarmuid Kennedy was there to capture Belfast-based three-piece PigsAsPeople launch their Idles & Us EP at Belfast’s Radar on Thursday, October 26. Rather inexplicable support came from U.S. post rock duo El Ten Eleven (bassist/guitarist Kristian Dunn, above) and Derry riffmasters Droids. Check out Diarmuid’s photos below!

  • Stream: Darling – Echoes

    October 24, 2013 - By 

    One of the downright catchiest songs we’ve heard from a new Irish act in ages, Dublin duo Gary Harding and James McGuire AKA Darling have unveiled their debut single, ‘Echoes’. A starry-eyed, three-and-a-half-minute hit in the making – calling to mind everyone from Two Door Cinema Club to Ed Zealous – the track was produced by Stephen Lipson, an English producer/engineer who has worked with the likes of  Annie Lennox and Pet Shop Boys. Check out the Feel Good Lost-directed video to the song below.

  • Stream: Grave Lanterns – Creepin’ Up On You

    October 24, 2013 - By 

    New-fangled Cork-based band Grave Lanterns have released a stream of the decidedly unearthly new single, ‘Creepin’ Up On You’. Calling themselves “4-piece garage dust from an 8-track mind”, the four-piece – featuring Cork psych rock Altered Hours‘ frontman Cathal Mac Gabhann – have very aptly described the track as a “samhain swan song”. Organ-led, the spectral imprint of the likes of Bauhaus, Link Wray and Nick Cave are perfectly accounted for over the track’s four minutes. ‘Creepin’ Up On You’ is officially launched on Halloween night upstairs at The Pavilion, Cork. Stream or download the track for free below.