• Sea Sessions Announce First Acts

    February 15, 2017 - By 

    The self-proclaimed biggest beach party in Ireland, Bundoran’s Sea Sessions have announced the first acts to play its 2017 outing across June 23-25. With more to be announced, the following acts will make an appearance: The Coronas, Primal Scream, Sigma, Foy Vance, All Tvvins, Badly Drawn Boy, Mr Scruff, Dreadzone, Brian Deady, Aine Cahill, Wyvern Lingo, Little Hours, Gurr, Kormac, Talos, The Cuban Brothers, Caravana Sun, Otherkin, Stomptown Brass, Touts, Soule, Bitch Falcon, Jack O Rourke, Jafaris, Le Boom, Penrose, Eve Belle, Apella, Tiz Mc Namara, Wolves of Youth and Keith Disconaut. Festival director Ray O’Donoghue says “It’s always great fun…

  • EP Premiere: Bob Skeleton – If This Isn’t Love

    February 17, 2017 - By 

    Galway young guns Bob Skeleton have returned with their second EP If This Isn’t Love. Following from their 2016 debut Shade, the four piece have continued on the path of confessional, bright indie-rock on this new EP. Adding some stylistic flourishes here though, the band showcases a tangible progression, suggesting a determination to grow and develop as a unit with each release in their still quite nascent stage. The opening title track is an uptempo pop cut while ‘Living In The Deep End’ is a jangling, dreamy and quaint offering that will satisfy fans of Real Estate and The Shins. The EP’s real highlight though is on the stripped…

  • Stream: Maija Sofia – Persephone

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    One of our featured 17 For ’17 acts, we are pretty convinced 2017 is set to be a big year for Dublin’s Maija Sofia. Haven’t carved out her own path over the last while, the Connemara-reared artist has just unveiled her latest – and almost certainly greatest – single effort to date, ‘Persephone’. A self-described ode “to the many talented women throughout history who have been oppressed and overshadowed at the hands of an abuse” the track – which marries a wonderfully cloistered atmosphere with an intimate, lo-fi air – was produced and recorded with London electronic artist Gazel. In short: we…

  • Video Premiere: Strength NIA – La Floresta

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    Hands down their strongest single effort, ‘La Floresta’ by Derry outfit Strength NIA is a track that perfectly sums up the beating heart of the Rory Moore-fronted band’s experimental alt-pop craft to date. With its uncanny melodic surge and rhythmic panache, it makes for an extremely transmitting three-and-a-half-minutes from the fast-rising act. The single – which is set for official release on February 28 – also comes accompanied with rather brilliant video courtesy of Conor McFeely. Have a first watch and listen below now.

  • Premiere: Looking Svelte – Evolve

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    If you’ve been at least moderately au fait with the Irish alternative scene over the last few years, the name Ryan Burrowes is likely to ring a bell. From his work as main-man in Banbridge purveyors of scuzzy post-hardcore noise, Abandcalledboy, up until his recent membership in Belfast’s Robocobra Quartet, he’s tread a busy, involved path that’s always hinted at some autonomous experimentation bubbling beneath the surface. Serving as confirmation of that suspicion, his new-fangled, solo moniker Looking Svelte is a self-proclaimed pop project that will yield self-produced debut EP, Gelatine, this Friday (February 17). Featuring the influence of Triphop, noise…

  • Stendhal Festival Make Annual Call For Artist Submissions

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    Right up there with our very favourite Irish festivals, Stendhal Festival of Art in Limavady have announced that they’re on the look-out for artist submissions for their 2017 installment across August 11-12. Set to return for its seventh outing, artists interested in taking part in the multi-award winning event can complete an application form via the festival’s website here. Organiser Ross Parkhill says that the submission process is one of the team’s favourite times of the year: “We really love when submission time comes around. We try our best to keep on top of all the amazing new music that…

  • First Acts Revealed for Castlepalooza 2017

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    With many more acts yet to be announced, Girl Band (an Irish festival exclusive, we’re told), Wild Beasts, David Kitt and Waze & Odyssey are amongst the first names set to play this year’s Castlepalooza when it returns to Charleville Castle in Tullamore across August 4-6, Shit Robot, I Have a Tribe, Heroes in Hiding, King Bones and Lumo Club are also amongst the first names. Elsewhere, Colm O’Regan, Kevin McGahern, PJ Gallagher and Deirdre O’Kane are the first comedy acts confirmed for the Laughter Lab. Tickets are now available to buy, ranging from €59 to €119.

  • Stream: Lighght – Superstar (unmix)

    February 14, 2017 - By 

    Cork based electronic producer and promoter with the Diffract club night, Lighght, has released a new track. And yes, before you ask, it is of course swirling, atmospheric edit of Jamelia’s 2003 R&B classic ‘Superstar’. Duh. Having put out a variety of glitching, industrial tracks reminiscent of Nicolas Jaar and Dorian Concept in the past year or so, the producer will be releasing more singles and audiovisual projects in the coming months as well as continuing to host the regular Diffract events.

  • Watch: No Monster Club – Sion

    February 13, 2017 - By 

    Not exactly an outfit to needlessly sit on or tease out new material, Dublin’s No Monster Club are a band whose prolific output has never been cause to wonder about quality or consistency. Released as a single back in February last year, the slinking art-pop of ‘Sion’ is a perfect case in point, something we’ve been happy to re-visit in the form of its brand new video, an accompaniment featuring what main man Bobby Aherne calls words “vaguely meta” video footage featuring the very parade the song is written about. Sure enough, it syncs up wonderfully well.

  • Arcade Fire Set for Belfast and Dublin

    February 13, 2017 - By 

    To say the 2017 Irish Summer festival calendar is already bursting at the seams with unmissable shows would be underselling it a bit. Adding to the is the highly-anticipated return of Arcade Fire, who play Belfast’s Belsonic at Ormeau Park on Tuesday, June 13 and Dublin’s Malahide Castle on Wednesday, June 14. With special guests to be confirmed, tickets for the shows go on sale at 9am this Friday priced £45 including booking fee for Belfast and €69.50 (inc. booking fee) for Dublin.