• Video Premiere: Elder Druid – Witchdoctor

    September 15, 2017 - By 

    Belfast-based sludge doom five-piece Elder Druid are self-proclaimed “Occult-laced riff dealers” on a mission. Having impressed with their debut EP, Magicka, in September last year, the band – who count the holy, hazed-out tetrad Black Sabbath, Electric Wizard, Kyuss and Sleep as key influences – will release their pummelling full-length release, Carmina Satanae, early next month. Produced by Niall Doran at Belfast’s Start Together Studio, the record is a fist-clenched, eight-track statement of intent from the fast-rising, Gregg McDowell-fronted band. A highlight from the release, lead single ‘Witchdoctor’ evolves from straight-up riff worship to the slowly bludgeoning self-exorcism of its Electric…

  • Album Stream: Kieran O’Brien – Turn

    September 18, 2017 - By 

    Galway’s Kieran O’Brien has been honing his style for some time now. From the atmospheric folk that defined last year’s After The Storm to the dream-pop leanings of June’s ‘Only A Dream’, the songwriter’s work to date has been explorative, sincere and endlessly refreshing. Returning now with his second EP, Turn, the ventures into a full-band sound are becoming more sure-footed and assertive, taking as many cues from the likes of The War On Drugs and Real Estate as from stalwarts of the Americana folk tradition. Speaking of the new EP’s thematic foundation, O’Brien said: “After The Storm reminisced heavily on the ocean and past events. These songs look ahead, towards…

  • Monday Mixtape: Joshua Burnside

    September 4, 2017 - By 

    Having come good on years of promise with his long-awaited debut album, Ephrata, back in May, Comber experimental folk musician Joshua Burnside reveals a selection of his all-time favourite tracks, including Luke Kelly, The Microphones, Sam Amidon, The Books. The Microphones – I Want The Wind To Blow I love the production on this track – the way the guitars are panned, the heavy compression, the distant drums, and how Phil Elverum holds some words for so long that they become sort of suspended in time. The Books – Free Translator This is a great track by The Books and it’s interesting…

  • Premiere: Petty Youth – You Make Me Feel Good

    August 31, 2017 - By 

    A regular fixture in the city’s live scene over the last couple of years, Belfast three-piece Petty Youth are a band whose straight-up, no-frills brand of rock n’ roll aims straight for the jugular. A two-minute burst of breakneck garage rock, new single ‘You Make Me Feel Good’ – a single whose Bandcamp tags include “Buckfast” and “The Hives” – is a textbook case in point. Framed by their influence of various unaffected rockers of yore, this is music that, rather making excuses for itself, invites you to cut loose and leave the thinking to later. Have a first listen…

  • Irish Tour: Brian Wilson

    July 27, 2017 - By 

    The downright legendary Brian Wilson and his band live in Galway and Dublin. Words by Steven Rainey and Aoife O’Donoghue, photos by Aaron Corr and Sean McCormack. Festival Big Top, Galway There’s a moment in the 2014 Brian Wilson biopic Love & Mercy where Brian – played by the wonderful Paul Dano – starts playing ‘God Only Knows’ for the first time on the piano. It’s probably one of my favourite scenes. It’s a quiet and poignant moment of the film, and I remember getting chills, awestruck at how such a simple melody was having such a hold on me.…

  • Guys, There’s a Hybrid Theory Singalong Fundraiser For Pieta House Happening in Dublin

    July 23, 2017 - By 

    In troubling times, it’s to great, and kind minds such as Glenn Fitzpatrick to whom we should turn. Following the tragic passing of Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington on Thursday, Fitzpatrick (with help from Dublin musician and former Overhead The Albratross member Joe Panama) will host a Hybrid Theory singalong to raise money for suicide and self-harm charity Pieta House at Dublin’s Fibber Magees on Thursday, August 3. Over at the fundraiser’s Facebook event page, the organisers said: “Linkin Park are a band that meant so much to so many of us during our formative years. Hybrid Theory in particular had…

  • This Is The Kit – Moonshine Freeze

    July 14, 2017 - By 

    With a back catalogue spanning close to a decade, alternative folk rock project This is The Kit have indelibly made their unhurried mark in the niche of alternative folk rock and beyond, getting nods across the board from the likes of Guy Garvey as part his Music Box series, an episode of which he dedicated to the band.  Headed by Kate Stables, the project is a collaborative one through and through with there being contributions from various artists throughout the years including Rozi Plain and Jesse D Vernon. This collaborative vein continues in new album Moonshine Freeze with contributions again from…

  • Irish Tour: Future Islands and Sacred Paws

    July 10, 2017 - By 

    Future Islands with support from Sacred Paws live in Dublin, Galway and Cork. Words by Kelly Doherty and Paula Murphy, photos by Sean McCormack and Alan Maguire. Cork Opera House It’s been a long time since Future Islands first played to an Irish crowd of 14 people and it wouldn’t be a far jump to say that in the intervening years they’ve become somewhat indie darlings on this island and the sold out Cork crowd is more than happy to spend Independence Day with their favourite American exports. Before they take the stage, we’re treated to a blinder of a…

  • Irish Tour: Mitski

    June 12, 2017 - By 

    The mighty Mitski live at Belfast’s Empire Music Hall and Dublin’s Whelan’s. Words by Aoife O’Donoghue, photos by Sara Marsden and Pedro Giaquinto. Empire Music Hall, Belfast Photos by Sara Marsden Whelan’s, Dublin Photos by Pedro Giaquinto Fresh from her show in the Workman’s club last September, Mitski made a welcome return to Ireland this week, playing not one, but three locations; Cyprus Avenue in Cork, The Empire in Belfast, and finishing up in Whelans in Dublin. The New York-based artist has quickly grown to prominence and praise after four albums, her latest being Puberty 2, released last June, and…

  • Watch: The Hot Sprockets – Right Spots

    June 7, 2017 - By 

    Dublin’s blues rock dedicants The Hot Sprockets have shared a tripped-out new video for their recent single ‘Right Spots’. Taken from their forthcoming album Dream Mover which is set to land later this year, ‘Right Spots’ is an infectious and driving outing to watch a bar fight to. If there are no bar fights around, the visual accompaniment for the track curtesy of Little Beast founder Luke Sweetman, three animators and a 30-strong crew is a much more vibrant affair. A feast of hand-drawn psychedelia, neon lights and uncanny-valley choreography, it’s a lot to take in, but an awful lot of fun to…