• A Sense of Wonder in the Particular: An Interview with Perlee

    October 4, 2019 - By 

    Perlee are an Irish-bred dream-pop duo based in Berlin. Made up of Saramai Leech and Cormac O’Keefe, their first release ‘Chains of Coral/Feelings of Plenty’ is out today. Saramai sits down with Maija Sofia to discuss her creative process, her inspirations and Perlee’s plans for the future. Catch them tonight in The Grand Social Ballroom as part of Ireland Music Week. So having lived in both rural Ireland and Berlin, do you think both of these geographical locations have influenced your music? Listening to the songs it feels like there’s a sense of rural wilderness but also a kind of…

  • 100 Keybaords: An Interview With ASUNA

    September 30, 2019 - By 

    Asuna is a pioneering Japanese sound artist set for this year’s Belfast International Arts Festival to perform his latest mind-bending live creation, 100 Keyboards. The project involves playing the same key on 100 battery-operated keyboards at once, building a sonic moiré effect which must be heard to be believed. Ahead of the shows, we caught up with Asuna to discuss the birth and genesis of project. 100 Keyboards takes place at The MAC across October 17-19. Go here to buy tickets. __ Take us back to before you devised the idea of 100 Keyboards. What creative activity led you to the…

  • Video Premiere: The Bonk – May Feign

    September 25, 2019 - By 

    The first of ten commandments that Captain Beefheart drilled into guitarist Moris Tepper upon joining the band in 1976 was: “Listen to the birds – That’s where all music comes from. Birds know everything about how it should sound and where that sound should come from. And watch hummingbirds. They fly really fast, but a lot of times they aren’t going anywhere.” If you’ve caught The Bonk live, then you’ll know what it is to be hypnotised by exactly that pendulous meditation on a single groove, as each of their seven(ish) members instinctively weave around each other, while time falls away. Today, we’re delighted to premiere ‘May Feign’,…

  • Mixtape Preview: Donnie Darko

    September 24, 2019 - By 

    Mentally divorce, for a moment, music from Richard Kelly’s Donnie Darko. You’re still left with a genre-defining film. A contemporary indie classic. A movie blurring the lines between horror, black comedy, teen drama and cult sci-fi mind-bender. Put it back – Michael Andrews’ motifs brimming with vintages Moogs and electric vibraphone, alongside era-defining jams from Tears For Fears, Oingo Boingo, Echo & The Bunnymen and more – and you have a near perfect big-screen encapsulation of a particular breed of ’80s suburban ennui.   Despite its lacklustre performance at the box office, Donnie Darko was, of course, a runaway critical…

  • The Story Of An Artist: In Memory Of Daniel Johnson

    September 13, 2019 - By 

    On Tuesday, 10th September, 2019, cult singer songwriter and outsider art iconoclast Daniel Johnston passed away at the age of 58 due to a heart attack at his home in Waller, Texas. The singer was best known for his 1983 album Hi, How Are You?, which he recorded alone, on a cassette recorder. The album has gained cult status since it’s release and has been cited by many important musicians (perhaps most notably Kurt Cobain) as being of major influence. In fact, Daniel Johnston has been a major influence on many different people. To some he was something of a…

  • Beyond Contrived, Bandwagonesque Bullshit: An Interview With Shrug Life

    September 10, 2019 - By 

    It’s long been the contention of this publication that if any songwriter could claim to be the voice of Dublin it’s Danny Carroll, lead singer and guitarist for Shrug Life. Since 2015’s The Grand Stretch EP, the indie trio have consistently floored us with earworm hooks and existential despair with an empathetic smirk. The songs encapsulate so much of what it means to be alive in Ireland at the moment; the ennui, uncertainty and the oddly humourous nature of it all. With their latest single, ‘Strangers’, having dropped, Will Murphy has a little chat with Mr. Carroll to see where…

  • NI Music Prize 2019 – Best Live Act and Best Single (Public Vote)

    September 9, 2019 - By 

    We’re pleased to team up with the Northern Ireland Music Prize to host the public vote for the Best Live Act and Best Single awards at this year’s event. Taking place at Belfast’s iconic Ulster Hall on Thursday, November 7th, this year’s prize will see the return of four individual awards: the aforementioned Best Live Act and Best Single awards, as well as the Oh Yeah Contender award and the main Best Album prize. Nominators chosen from sectors including music journalism, radio, podcasts, blogs, festival and event programmers, music retail, promoters, live music venues, as well as key influencers from elsewhere in the arts, were…

  • Stream: Doubt – HD Tool

    September 3, 2019 - By 

    Flood co-founder Doubt will release his new EP, Steam Cycle, via the label on 4th October.  The Cork hard drum collective, run alongside fellow DJ/producers Syn and Tension, has become somewhat of a bastion for the niche genre since launching in 2017. With a sound defined by heavy, syncopated percussion and minimal (but very effective) electronic flourishes, the Flood crew have played alongside scene originators such as NKC. They have also become key reference points for the genre’s development thanks to a slew of digital releases on the label, their tracks becoming a trademark in many a DJ set and…

  • No Deal Gross Net: An Interview with Philip Quinn

    August 30, 2019 - By 

    If we truly are living the end of days, at least there are those who can observe and comment on the doom, with a bit of dark humour and use of rhythmic beats to remind us there is a glimmer of hope in humanity. One such person is the man behind Belfast’s avant-garde electronic outfit Gross Net. Philip Quinn started the project back in the, comparatively tranquil, year 2014. His first release was the Cassette EP, when Christian Donaghey of Autumns was part of the Gross Net set up. Next came the second mini-record of Outstanding Debt, followed by the…

  • Rock For Choice: NI Musicians on Why We Should All Support Rally For Choice 2019

    August 30, 2019 - By 

    On Saturday, September 7th, the fourth annual Rally For Choice will take place in Belfast. Now, more than ever before, the movement – which demands free, safe and legal access to abortion services in Northern Ireland – is propelled by unstoppable momentum. With the country on the cusp of finally achieving women’s rights in line with the rest of the UK and Ireland, there’s a very real sense that the time is now. From 4pm that day, Belfast’s Ulster Sports Club will host its unmissable sister event, Rock For Choice. Hosted by Girls Rock School NI – a non-profit organisation…