• Parquet Courts at The Helix, Dublin

    June 14, 2022 - By 

    As the stage crew carry out the last of their tasks, the countdown to Parquet Courts’ arrival draws imminently closer. The stage of Dublin’s Helix is bathed in a low red hue, which gives off more of a dance club aesthetic to proceedings, as opposed to the fact it is about to host one of Brooklyn’s foremost indie bands. With the crowd beginning to gather, the club vibe is emphasised even further as the sounds of Todd Terje’s take on M’s ‘Pop Muzik’, and a remix of Timmy Thomas’ 1970s’ song ‘Why Can’t We Live Together’, pulsate from the PA.…

  • Lee Fields & The Expressions @ The Button Factory

    January 20, 2020 - By 

    Born in 1951, North Carolina native Lee Fields’ musical CV has amassed an extensive number of impressive notches over the years; he released his first single back in 1969, has worked with the likes of BB King, Kool & the Gang and Dr. John, he helped carve out careers for Sharon Jones – a former backing singer of his – and Charles Bradley, while he had his vocals used in the 2014 James Brown biopic Get On Up, and has had his songs sampled by the likes of J. Cole and Travis Scott. On top of all that he is…

  • We Were Promised Jetpacks @ The Workman’s Club, Dublin

    December 10, 2019 - By 

    “Nice one, I can tell we’re gonna have a great night. Loving the air drumming too!” are the first words frontman Adam Thompson utters early doors. There’s an obvious likeability factor that oozes from Thompson, with his laidback and up for a laugh persona clear for all to see. Edinburgh’s We Were Promised Jetpacks are now into their sixteenth year and have returned to Dublin as part of the ten-year anniversary of their debut album These Four Walls. Thompson is accompanied by Sean Smith (bass) and Darren Lackie (drums), with former Frightened Rabbit member Andy Monaghan currently part of their…

  • Mountain Goats w/ Laura Cortese & Dance Cards @ Button Factory, Dublin

    November 23, 2019 - By 

    Having started out on his musical journey in the early ‘90’s recording self-penned songs through a cassette boombox, John Darnielle’s lo-fi aesthetic wasn’t too far removed from the likes of Robert Pollard or the late Daniel Johnston. Darnielle has an unnerving ability to cover the more downtrodden aspects of life such as addiction, isolation, death and abuse, yet somehow manages to create songs that include hook-laden pop sensibilities spliced with humour, that it makes it impossible not to be drawn into his desolate world. This tour is in support of The Mountain Goats’ seventeenth full-length record, In League With Dragons,…

  • Pixies @ Olympia Theatre, Dublin

    September 28, 2019 - By 

    As soon as this gig was announced a few months ago, it was always going to be a scramble for tickets, and so it transpired as it sold out in a matter of minutes. Having the chance to witness one of – if not the most – influential alt-rock bands of all time in such intimate surroundings wasn’t lost on anyone.  The history of Pixies pre and post their 2004 reunion is a well-trodden tale and it’s clear from both fans and critics alike, that the idea to release new music, hasn’t exactly hit the heights of their initial time…

  • The Specials @ The Olympia, Dublin

    April 16, 2019 - By 

    With The Specials’ last tour here being November 2014, it should have come as no surprise that they sold out all three nights in an instant. Adding to the anticipation is the fact this highly influential band finally decided to release new music, in the form of this year’s Encore. As a result night two was a feverish hive of positive energy and activity, as a multitude of skinheads, mods, punks, rude girls and bootboys of varying ages and hair lines, beamed and skanked their way throughout a sweaty 90 minute set of two-tone classics, sliced with a few new…

  • Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever w/ MELTS @ Whelan’s, Dublin

    August 22, 2018 - By 

    On what was an already humid evening, it wasn’t much of a surprise that this sold-out crowd led to a rapid rise in temperature inside the venue. The reason for the sweat-box effect was down to the debut Irish appearance of Melbourne’s Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever. Formed five years ago, the band have picked up quite a few column inches since the release of their debut Talk Tight EP in 2016, which led to Sub Pop releasing the highly acclaimed French Press EP last year and their full-length debut Hope Downs in June. Strolling on stage just after 9:30, the…

  • Ty Segall @ Tivoli Theatre, Dublin

    June 7, 2018 - By 

    It is as if the drawn out, cloudless evenings knew that Ty Segall was coming to town. A gloriously heady concoction of 60’s proto-punk, garage rock, glam, psychedelia and heavy metal,  Segall’s music is something that may seem at odds with a wonderfully sun drenched weather front, but one that makes perfect sense when listening to his back catalogue. Over the course of his ten solo LPs, numerous collaborative albums, and countless other releases, Segall has managed to prove he can effortlessly combine his love of melody with a raucous sound that can go off on a zig-zagged tangent at…

  • Rocket From The Crypt @ Whelan’s, Dublin

    December 5, 2017 - By 

    When San Diego’s finest purveyors of rock’n’roll Rocket from the Crypt decided to down tools near the tail end of 2005, it came as quite a shock to their devoted fan base. Yes, there were several interlinked side projects the various members continued on with, but none drew you into the same extent. Luckily after a one-off get together six years later involving a kids T.V. show, John ‘Speedo’ Reis decided to reignite his charges on a fulltime basis circa 2013, and they’ve been tearing stages across the world a new one ever since. However, before the headliners arrived, their…

  • BNQT @ The Button Factory, Dublin

    November 6, 2017 - By 

    The initial seeds of BNQT were planted by Midlake’s Eric Pulido while touring their Antiphon album back in 2013. He hoped he could convince several of his favourite vocalists into a collaboration of sorts that mirrored something akin to the Traveling Wilburys crossed with The Band, with vocal and songwriting duties being shared. Fast forward to April of this year and BNQT’s debut Volume.1 finally blossomed, with Grandaddy’s Jason Lytle, Travis’ Fran Healy, Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapronas and Band of Horses Ben Bridwell joining Pulido and some of his fellow Midlake colleagues; Jesse Chandler, Joey McClellan and McKenzie Smith. With…