• Video Premiere: Sullivan & Gold – Guatemala

    April 24, 2017 - By 

    Once a duo, Sullivan & Gold is the music-making moniker of Derry’s Benjamin Robinson, formerly of the Good Fight. Aptly positing his music as “the perfect accompaniment to falling in or out of love”, his output to date has straddled wistfulness and deliverance in fine fashion, something that’s more than apparent on new single ‘Guatemala’. A heart-rending ballad taken from a new full-length set for release in late 2017, the track “tells the tale of a long distance relationship between a young couple; a newly qualified primary school teacher teaching in the north coast of Northern Ireland and a young Northern Irish…

  • EP Stream: Gumshoe – Sun Kisses The Moon

    April 24, 2017 - By 

    Having started to premiere tracks from the EP back in October of last year, Wicklow ambient hip-hop duo Gumshoe have let Sun Kisses The Moon out into the world in full. With previously released tracks ‘yom kippur’, ‘ninbasu’ and ‘forgotten weapons’ being ethereal teasers, the rest of the collection continues in much the same vein with delightfully odd vocal samples, sparse rhythms and brittle melodies coursing throughout its seven tracks. ‘a divisive nature’ is captivating with its stumbling bass throb and Gold Panda reminiscent melodic samples. ‘cherrylane’ is pure hypnosis with its languid keys, trills and swoops, jazz samples and a surreal spoken vocal detailing someone’s…

  • Tori Amos Set For Cork and Dublin Shows

    April 24, 2017 - By 

    Coinciding with the release of her forthcoming fifteenth studio album, Native Invader, it’s been announced that Tori Amos will play Cork’s Opera House on September 6 and Dublin’s Bord Gàis Energy Theatre on September 7. Tickets for the shows – priced €51.15 and €53.15 – go on sale from 10am this Friday. These dates kick off a two-month European tour, concluding at Glasgow’s O2 Academy on October 6. Here’s the full dates. September 6. Ireland, Cork – Opera House 7. Ireland, Dublin – Bord Gais 9. Belgium, Gent – Capitole 10. Luxembourg – Luxembourg Den Atelier 11. France, Paris – Grand Rex…

  • Video Premiere: Video Blue – Hold Muzik

    April 21, 2017 - By 

    London based, Dundalk native Jim O’Donoghue Martin AKA Video Blue has unveiled the video for ‘Hold Muzik’, taken from his album Love Scenes. Following from ‘Dusk Moves’ in March of this year, ‘Hold Muzik’ is yet another slice of snappy, indie-pop with minimalist guitars, subtle keys and vocal work that will remind you of those times you actually really liked the way Bono sang. Video Blue’s knack for earworm hooks and infectious melody shines through on this track as it does across Love Scenes and The Graduate inspired visual accompaniment directed by Freddie Leyden is an equally charming addition. Speaking of the…

  • Album Premiere: This Other Kingdom – Rêveur

    April 21, 2017 - By 

    Hands down one of the country’s most engaging neo-psychedelic propositions, Dublin threesome Del Kerton, Declan Dunne and Git Sweeney AKA This Other Kingdom have long struck a keen balance between hazed-out psych finesse and straight-up rock n’ roll glory. Having released their debut EP Sunlight back in 2013, and their well-received debut album Telescopic two years later, the trio are back with ‘Rêveur’, an eleven-track triumph filtering the band’s kaleidoscopic range of influences, past and present. From the lysergic strut of opener ‘Common Colours Common Sounds’ to closer ‘This is War’, the reverberations of everyone from Jefferson Airplane and Black Lips to The Doors…

  • Stream: Silverbacks – Dirty Money

    April 20, 2017 - By 

    Insofar as first-rate lo-fi indie rock goes, the island of Ireland is surely right up there with the most fertile. Laying claim to their stake amongst the very best, Dublin’s Silverbacks will release a new EP, the five-track Sink The Fat Moon on May 19 – and if new single ‘Dirty Money’ is anything to by, we’re in for something well worth the wait. A terse, harmonic-laden effort that openly yet rather brilliantly filters the more more reclined efforts of the holy trifecta that is Sonic Youth, Pavement and Pixies, it’s a masterfully languid release betraying real purpose in its disaffected swagger.…

  • More Acts Announced for Body & Soul

    April 20, 2017 - By 

    A host of new acts have been added to the bill of this year’s Body & Soul ahead of its return to Ballinlough Castle in Co. Westmeath across June 23-25. As well as Australia’s RÜFÜS, Lyra and Patrick O’Laoghaire’s I Have a Tribe are amongst the latest acts added. Deep in the woodland, Ryan Vail (pictured), Auxiliary Phoenix Trio, Dowth, PrYmary Colours and Wastefellow will play the Pagoda Stage. Elsewhere, B&S’s favourite party arena Reckless In Love will feature Byron Yeates, Automatic Tasty, Breen, Cáit, Eoin Ryan, Homebeat DJs, Lumo, DIP DJs, Major Problems DJs, Neil Flynn (Lossless), Bantum, ELLLL and John Daly…

  • Album Stream: Guilty Optics – Colossal Velocity

    April 20, 2017 - By 

    Dublin-based riffy post-punk trio Guilty Optics have just released their long-awaited debut album, Colossal Velocity, on vinyl & digital download. Recorded at Dublin’s Hellfire Studios with vintage gear by San Diego producer Ben Moore, best known for his work with Hot Snakes, Rocket From The Crypt & Ravi Shankar, the album is a discordant, aggressive burst of noise-rock tinged post-punk by way of the early-to-mid ’90s, à la Drive Like Jehu. Formed in 2008 by Alan Finnerty and Peter Lee as a duo, they played under the name Bend This, Uri Geller, before expanding their lineup and shifting to the band they now are. The album is available through Bandcamp.…

  • Watch: BP Fallon & David Holmes – Henry McCullough

    April 20, 2017 - By 

    Look as far and wide as you so please but you’ll struggle to find a more positively unique, perfectly fitting and cosmically-inclined musical obituary than ‘Henry McCullough’ by BP Fallon and David Holmes. A peak on the latter’s exceptional Late Night Tales release from last year, the six-minute sonic eulogy is a sorcerous tribute of semi-mystical proportions, weaving Fallon’s beautiful offering to the late, great McCullough with keyboards and drum programming from Holmes, guitar work from Noel Gallagher, additional drums Emre Ramazanoglu and backing vocals from Nina Holmes and Lisa Di Lucia. Ahead of the release of ‘Henry McCullough’ – The Andrew Weatherall…

  • Watch Enemies Mini-Documentary Final Show, Final Song

    April 18, 2017 - By 

    Lest we forget, 2016 was a bit shite for a variety of reasons, not least in losing three of the country’s finest acts: Solar Bears, Fight Likes Apes and Kilcoole math-pop maestros Enemies. But ensuring the latter’s emotional swansong at Dublin’s Vicar Street in December was an occasion fit to re-live time and time again, Daragh and Oran Bambrick have created a rather wonderful, seven-minute mini-documentary titled ‘Final Show, Final Song’, which captures the Wicklow quartet bowing out in typically electrifying fashion. The band said, “It’s been four months since the night we laid Enemies to rest. Fortunately we enlisted the help…