• “It’s a Different World For Women…” Women on Wednesdays at Whelan’s

    August 9, 2017 - By 

    “It’s a different world for women,” says Eve Belle, a singer-songwriter from Donegal before her appearance at the inaugural event Women on Wednesdays in Whelan’s back in July. As one of many female-driven initiatives in Dublin, Women on Wednesdays is unique in that it is one born of the powerful force that is global female solidarity. The motivation is to bring female artistry to the fore, with artists offering their time and talent in order to raise funds for Aidlink’s girls’ rights and education projects in rural Kenya. Alongside Eve Belle (above) stood soul artist NC Grey, comedian Eve Darcy, spoken…

  • Festival Mixtape: Indiependence 2017

    August 2, 2017 - By 

    Returning to Deer Farm in Mitchelstown this weekend (August 4-6), the line-up for this year’s Indiependence Music & Arts Festival is arguably their strongest and most eclectic to date. Headlined by Welsh alt-rock masters Manic Street Preachers (pictured), this year’s line-up boasts international names including Tom Odell, Frank Turner and Wild Beasts, as well as some of our favourite Irish acts making their own dent on the big stage at the minute, including Overhead The Albatross, Talos, We Cut Corners, BARQ, Super Silly, Le Boom and Stomptown Brass. With tickets still available to buy here, here’s our annual, 10 track…

  • Playlist: Belfast Music Club – Pride @ The Bear and The Doll

    August 2, 2017 - By 

    Berlin-based, Californian-born producer Daniel Wang will stop off at Belfast’s new-fangled The Bear and The Doll on Saturday night. Presented by and featuring the ever-tasteful folk at Belfast Music Club, it promises to be a night of first-rate disco and boogie from 9pm. Featuring Sylvester, Gwen Guthrie, The Rah Band & more, here’s a 10 track sampler courtesy of Roger Montgomery of BMC to give you a sense of what to expect on the night. Photo by Christopher Martin

  • Festival Mixtape: Stendhal Festival 2017

    July 28, 2017 - By 

    Set to return Ballmully Cottage Farm in Limavady across August 11 and 12, Northern Ireland’s only unmissable summer festival – and officially Ireland’s “best small festival” three years running – Stendhal is shaping up to be just as memorable as its last few outings. Ahead of our festival preview next week, we’ve whittled the year’s bill down to a twenty-track festival mixtape, featuring Ash, Joshua Burnside (above), Ryan Vail, Mongoose, Overhead The Albatross, Making Monsters, Ryan Vail and more. Go here to buy tickets.

  • Moments in Love: Balearic Favouritess from Bullitt’s Jonny Carberry

    July 25, 2017 - By 

    “My definition of Balearic? It’s music that’s mostly eclectic, happy, sexy, not cheesy, that gets its roots in the origins of dance music and flourishes on the dancefloor; a sound that makes you forget genres, or categories and you just enjoy it, listen to it – dancing and sharing it. Beat poetic, but real!” DJ Alfredo, Balearic innovator. As this Test Pressing article shows, the term ‘Balearic’ is a bit elusive and often poured over. To me as a ‘DJ’, it means the freedom to play lots of different genres and tempos: ambient, soul, new age, lounge, disco, industrial, electronic…

  • Playlist: 20 Acts To Catch at Electric Picnic 2017

    July 24, 2017 - By 

    For all its kaleidoscopic, genre-spanning variety, there’s no denying choosing which acts to catch (and those artists to regrettably miss) at Electric Picnic can be a bit of a headache. Sure, Clashfinder is a big help (seriously, we’d be lost without it) but let us help you out if you’re EP-bound this weekend: from Interpol, Chaka Khan and Parquet Courts to Run The Jewels (above), Soulwax and Car Seat Headrest, here’s 20 acts to catch at this year’s Electric Picnic, returning to Stradbally Estate across September 1-3

  • Festival Mixtape: Arcadian Field 2017

    July 20, 2017 - By 

    In just its second year, nestled at the foot of Dundalk’s Cooley Mountains, grassroots festival Arcadian Field is one of the truly independently-minded festivals in Ireland this summer, and takes place over the weekend of August 5th & 6th. The lineup features some of our favourite acts from across every corner of the island, encompassing a huge breadth of genres; performing are the likes of electronica alternative act Nouveaunoise, hip-hop act Naive Ted, Donegal experimentalists Tuath, Galway garage rockers Oh Boland, the anthemic alternative songstress Naoise Roo, Dundalk native & multi-instrumentalist, the rootsy Elephant, Dublin fuzzniks Thumper, Belfast jam band Electric Octopus, and many more across the board. The site,…

  • Keeping It Old School: An Interview with Paul Kane of Over The Hill Collective

    July 18, 2017 - By 

    Having grown in leaps and bounds over the last seven years, Over The Hill is a music collective based at Belfast’s Oh Yeah Music Centre aimed at mature musicians but open to everyone. Brian Coney chats to founder Paul Kane about its foundations and development, as well as why it’s a crucial link in bridging music, community and the older generation. Hi, Paul. First thing’s first: how did the Over The Hill collective first come about? It started about seven years ago. When I first walked in the doors here at Oh Yeah Music Centre I had just changed careers and…

  • “They’re Us… That’s All” The Unlife of George A. Romero

    July 17, 2017 - By 

    In 1967, music and art threatened to take over the world. The Beatles were proclaiming that “All you need is Love”, Jefferson Airplane were chasing the white rabbit down the hole into a magical wonderland, and Pink Floyd were taking us into the outer realms on an ‘Interstellar Overdrive’. Meanwhile, up on the big screen, Warren Beattie and Faye Dunaway were smouldering as outlaw couple Bonnie and Clyde, while Dustin Hoffman pursued an unconventional love in The Graduate. It was a good time to be young, white, and American. But for all the hopefulness that emanated from pop culture, real…

  • Interview: Looking Forward with Tim Wheeler of Ash

    July 17, 2017 - By 

    In between the victory lap of a 1997 anniversary tour and a new studio record set for release next year, Ash are spending the summer playing clubs and festivals across the UK. Jonny Currie spoke to frontman Tim Wheeler ahead of the band’s highly-anticipated headlining slot at Stendhal Festival in Limavady next month. If money was no object, what would be your dream festival line-up alongside Ash? Oh, that’s a good one. I’d say probably… Mudhoney, Weezer and Brian Wilson. You and the band are playing Limavady in August, but outside of touring with Ash are you back in Northern…