• The Thin Air’s Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2013 (74-51)

    December 13, 2013 - By 

    Love, hate or merely tolerate them, end of year lists come in all different shapes and sizes. From the finest EPs of the last twelve months to the most questionably-named bands to emerge throughout the year, there is currently no shortage of lists and countdowns around to remind us of what went down in the world of music, both international and much closer to home, in 2013. This is our humble little offering – the Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2013. Feel free to go here to check out the first installment of the countdown, featuring tracks 100-75. 74. The…

  • The Thin Air’s Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2013 (100-75)

    December 10, 2013 - By 

    It’s that time of year again: End Of Year” lists are steadily rolling in from every conceivable direction, many of us are still debating the BBC Sound of… verdict for next year and we’re all silently pondering our own favourite albums and EPs of the last twelve months. Closer to home, it’s been yet another ridiculously impressive year for Irish music, both North and South. Since January 1, right up until the writing of this article (December 10), a single week hasn’t gone by that wasn’t soundtracked in some way by the very best in new, homegrown music. As such –…

  • The First Time: Steven McCool (Little Bear)

    December 2, 2013 - By 

    In the latest installment of The First Time, we ask Steven McCool from Derry band Little Bear to divulge the “firsts” of his music listening, loving and making life. Thanks, as ever, to the upstanding and excruciatingly talented Joe Laverty for the wonderful accompanying portrait photo of Steven. Nice, isn’t it? Check out more of Joe’s photography right here. First album you bought? Excluding the dodgy rave tapes that I bought from the local market, I think it might have been Radiohead – Pablo Honey, and/or Gomez – Bring It On.   First single you bought? The Hed Boys – ‘Girls…

  • The End of an Era? How a Generation Got Beat Pt. 2

    November 28, 2013 - By 

    Over the years, ATP has become a watchword for a certain kind of classicism, an “accepted history” of what ‘good’ music is over the last 30 years. In this version of events, punk is good, rock is largely bad, unless it doesn’t take itself seriously, although “new” metal is ok. Electronica is generally given a by ball. Bands like Mission of Burma, Yo La Tengo (below), and The Flaming Lips are regarded as in the same way Mojo readers regard The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Eric Clapton, and many of the younger people there are aware they’re seeing something…

  • The End of an Era? How a Generation Got Beat Pt. 1

    November 27, 2013 - By 

    I looked down at my wrist. I held the scissors in my other hand, almost trembling with excitement. Or was it fear? I couldn’t say. Closing my eyes, I felt the pressure in my fingers, and heard the gentle sound of metal slicing through ribbon. After three years of wearing my ATP 2011 wristband, I removed it, like a surgeon operating on a tumour. I still hadn’t slept properly since The End of an Era Part 1, the first half of the festival’s great farewell, but the magic had been broken. If this was the end, then it was a…

  • Eleven Must-See Shows in Belfast This Christmas

    December 3, 2013 - By 

    Whilst we haven’t exactly been neglected of great shows of every conceivable kind all throughout 2013, there’s something about the Christmas period that somehow brings together some of the most downright irresistible line-ups of homegrown (and occasional international) musical talent. This year is no different, both across Belfast and much further afield. That said, keeping our eyes (and ears) firmly fixed upon the aforementioned hub of seismic musical happening, we present to you our eleven “must-see” shows in Belfast this festive period.  Radar: Feet for Wings – Speakeasy, Thursday, December 19 Radar at Belfast’s QUBSU Speakeasy has delivered for some…

  • Lesser Known Pleasures: James Brown – Get on the Good Foot

    November 22, 2013 - By 

    Lesser Known Pleasures is dedicated to celebrating great albums that are often overlooked in the hope of gaining them some more of the attention they so deserve. This time, from a surprisingly large choice of decent James Brown full lengths, Get on the Good Foot receives the LKP treatment for it’s breadth and because, for a funky pop album, it gets plain nutty… It is perhaps fair that James Brown is considered a singles artist. From the mid-50s on he was responsible for an endless stream of 45s saturating the R&B market. Served up in what seemed like throw-enough-at-the-wall tactics…

  • Director’s Cut: September Girls – Heartbeats

    November 25, 2013 - By 

    Can you introduce yourself to us and a give us a little background? My name is Jessie Ward O’Sullivan and I’m a filmmaker/musician originally from California, but have been living in Dublin since 2002. I went to NYU film school originally to become a camera operator, but found I preferred directing, editing and working on a smaller scale. How did you get into directing music videos? I think it was music videos that got me into filmmaking in the first place. I grew up watching videos like ‘November Rain’ and Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’. I just loved the creativity and the…

  • An Introduction to: Wendy Carlos

    November 14, 2013 - By 

    Wendy Carlos, musician and arranger, is 74 today. If you haven’t heard of her then you will certainly have heard her work on the soundtracks to A Clockwork Orange, The Shining and the original Tron. It was her 1968 triple Grammy winning Switched-On Bach that established her reputation. Like so many great ideas the work was based on a simple notion – arrange JS Bach for the synthesiser. Having worked as an adviser to Robert Moog, she was uniquely qualified for the task. The album sold over a million copies and was influential in all kinds of ways. Vince Clarke…

  • The Chancer’s Guide To… Frank Zappa

    November 5, 2013 - By 

    December 4th will see the 20th anniversary of Frank Zappa’s death. Inevitably between now and then, we can expect a dramatic increase in discussion about the man, his legacy and his broad ranging musical output. So in order to stay ahead of the game, it’s time for a refresher. Refresher that is, for those of you in the know. For all the chancers out there it’s more like a crash course allowing you to pretend to be less of an ignoramus online or in the pub or wherever you try to inject your tuppeneth, welcome or otherwise. The Chancer’s Guide judgeth not.…