• Paddy Hanna – The Hill

    November 11, 2020 - By 

      Paddy Hanna is not someone to sit still. Nor is he someone who likes to be predictable. The Dublin-based songwriter’s sophomore album, Frankly, I Mutate, was not only a masterclass in retro-flecked, baroque pop, but, with the beauty of retrospect, was a clear blueprint of his personal mantra.  For his third album, released on Strange Brew (Autre Monde, Squarehead, Slow Place Like Home), Paddy notches up the experimentation, whisking away Girl Band’s Adam Faulkner and Daniel Fox, as well as Daniel Fitzpatrick (Badhands, The Mighty Stef) to west Cork. “We lost ourselves on the Hill, Daniel, Daniel, Adam and…

  • Brién – DIY VOL. 1

    August 26, 2020 - By 

      You wouldn’t want to put money on what’s going to drop next from the ever-reliable Soft Boy Records. Whether it’s creating a platform for groundbreaking Irish hip hop (Kojaque) or injecting new life into Dublin jazz (Five to Two), the collective has quickly established itself as a bastion of progressive and forward-thinking homegrown music, with each release offering something genuinely new.  DIY VOL. 1 from Belfast-based multi-instrumentalist Brién is no exception. Encompassing hip hop, jazzy broken beat and R&B in its short run-time, Brién’s latest offering encapsulates the very essence of Soft Boy Records into one, easily-digestible amuse-bouche of…

  • Bleeding Heart Pigeons – Stir

    June 8, 2020 - By 

    Four years after working with Virgin Records for their 2016 debut Is, as well as supporting the likes of Pixies and Father John Misty, Limerick’s Bleeding Heart Pigeons leave the pressures major label navigation on their second LP, Stir. Released on their own label Hlym Records – a play on the Old Norse word hlymrekr – from which their hometown gets its name – Stir is the most authentic portrait of the band yet, with its DIY nature allowing them to fully lean into their experimental sensibilities, while leaving plenty of room for pop verve. Previously acclaimed for their unconventional, hook-fuelled psych-pop, Stir opens a new…

  • Arvo Party – Devotions

    May 12, 2020 - By 

    Space truly is at a premium right now. Overnight it became a commodity almost more valuable than gold; a resource which should never be a resource. Yet here we are. From the air bubbles in our sourdough starter kits to distancing ourselves from the bountiful overnight epidemiologists on social media, obsessively we are seeking the sweet release it brings . Mercifully, Belfast-based musician and producer Arvo Party – real name Herb Magee – has delivered true audio escapism in this surprise ambient album, Devotions. Preceding a full length set to land in June, Devotions is Magee’s deepest exploration into the…

  • Destroyer – Have We Met

    February 21, 2020 - By 

    Over the course of his 25 year career, Dan Bejar, the driving force behind Destroyer, has carved a reputation for bombastic stylistic shifts. Stemming from an overarching philosophy that is actively against forging personal connections with his devoted following, Bejar has consistently given with one hand and taken away with the other. Whether it’s playing shows with his back to an unacknowledged crowd, or lurching from a commercial peak to an avant-garde experiment, Bejar has built one of the most interesting and expansive indie-rock projects with one simple rule: don’t even dare try and guess our next step.  Have We…

  • Aoife Nessa Frances – Land of No Junction

    February 10, 2020 - By 

    In certain strands of philosophy, opposing forces are just another cog in the machine that keeps the world working. Full resolutions to a problem are unobtainable, a pipe dream, given that the universe is in a constant flux. Instead, contradiction is to be embraced in order to achieve balance, rather than trying to reach a final resolution. For many, this is a sweat-inducing prospect. For Dublin’s Aoife Nessa Frances, however, this theory binds together her sensational debut album, Land Of No Junction. Frances’ solo debut is a far cry from the raw shoegaze of former band Princess, and instead is…

  • Maija Sofia – Bath Time

    January 5, 2020 - By 

      The best albums are like books. Each song should act like a chapter, with a clear purpose at the core, laying foundations to the narrative flow. This may sound simplistic, but it’s an achievement only a handful of artists can lay claim to. Maija Sofia is one of them. The Galway-born singer-songwriter began writing her long awaited debut Bath Time while living in London, before recording it upon resettling in Ireland. By writing over extended chapters of her life, Sofia never had any intention to produce a concept album, but found herself with a collection of nine tracks informed by her…

  • Elbow – Giants of All Sizes

    October 24, 2019 - By 

    Bleary-eyed and broken, Britain is bumbling from one disaster to the next. Social and demographic fractions, impending irreparable gulfs, rogue leaders contorting the political landscape, unthinkable shapes… Dead ends. Anxiety levels are at tipping point. Right on cue, an Elbow record – the audio equivalent of popping the kettle on, right? Wait for it all to blow over. Buoyancy. Optimism. Warm northern accents. Community. 40 minutes of escapism from the shitshow going on outside. Sink in. Press play. There’s a crunching bassline. Stomping drums. Despair. Hang on. “And I don’t know Jesus anymore”. Uh-oh. Pause. Check for scratches. No scratches.…

  • Fionn Regan – Cala

    August 23, 2019 - By 

    Wicklow boasts one of Ireland’s most varied coastlines. From Bray Head’s rocky outcrop to Brittas Bay’s rolling sand dunes, the landscape is almost limitless in its drama, and that’s before we even get to the mountains. In short, it’s the kind of landscape to leave romanticists salivating, and accordingly has been the subject of artists, musicians and storytellers for generations.  Its latest muse is Fionn Regan, who returned to the coastline of his home county for his sixth LP, Cala. Since recording his Mercury-nominated debut The End of History in Bray, it’s fair to say Regan has been on somewhat…

  • Clark – Kiri Variations

    August 9, 2019 - By 

    In 2018 a British TV miniseries, Kiri, was revered for admirably broaching the contentious topic of transracial adoption. Viewers and critics alike applauded the series bravura performances, so much so it went on to receive two BAFTA nominations. The composer of its score, Chris Clark (a.k.a Clark) clearly shares the same infatuation, feeling that he wanted to revisit and rework the series soundtrack for his tenth studio album.  On his first LP playing away from the ever-wonky Warp (home of Aphex Twin, Brian Eno, Oneohtrix Point Never), boundaries are tested. It’s clear that this ambition of Kiri was. Never one…