• Video Premiere: BAD BONES – LANG

    March 25, 2016 - By 

    In a short amount of time BAD BONES (Dublin-based producer Sal Stapelton) has carved out both a unique and mysterious sound and image. Her eerie, infectious beats and experimental-pop composition style have earned her comparisons to FKA Twigs, Arca, Maya Jane Coles and Robyn. At the same time her video work has cultivated a minimalist, yet enigmatic image. Her new single ‘LANG’ gives us a new glimpse into the dark and beautiful netherworld that Bad Bones seems to inhabit. The track takes its title and integral samples from David Lang’s piece ‘I Lie’ (written for the unforgettable opening Paolo Sorrentino’s…

  • Stream: Ryan Vail – Mirrors

    March 25, 2016 - By 

    Having successfully completed a pledge campaign to ensure the release of his forthcoming debut album, For Every Silence, Derry musician Ryan Vail is streaming one of its highlights, ‘Mirrors’. An all-too-brief, electro-ambient effort recalling the Jon Hopkins at his most reticent, balmy beats and broad washes of synth entangle over the track’s three odd minutes, acting as a bed upon Vail’s spoken omnipresence firmly takes centre-stage. You can still pre-order For Every Silence via Vail’s pledge page here.

  • Video Premiere: Contour – Oppression

    March 22, 2016 - By 

    “All too often, women are stuck in a vicious cycle of low self-esteem, depression, eating disorders, sexual harassment and addiction as a result of negative gender stereotypes and body image oppression enforced by the patriarchal system and the media. As the dust settles on another Paddy’s day we have had a taste of what is to come as the days grow longer. This video depicts a snapshot of an inebriated adventure around a sunny Dublin city. The song is like the stream of thought of the wild spirit who tries to negotiate the issues related to this cycle within the confines…

  • Premiere: Oh Joy – Habits & Recreations

    March 21, 2016 - By 

    Recorded with Liam Mulvaney at Bow Lane Studio, the forthcoming self-titled EP by Dublin alt-rock band Oh Joy faithfully throws back whilst keeping a fixed eye on the present-day, fuzzed-out ruminations. Counting the likes of Pixies, Elliott Smith and DIIV amongst their main influences, there’s an authenticity to the trio’s intent-drenched throwdowns, not least on the EP’s lead single ‘Habits & Recreations’, which we’re pleased to premiere here. Oh Joy will be released at the end of the month.

  • Video Premiere: Come on Live Long – For The Birds

    March 22, 2016 - By 

    Last week, Dublin based group Come on Live Long returned with their first track in several months; the lush, smooth, R’n’B infused ‘For The Birds’. The song makes good use of the band’s known strong suits, from Louise Gaffney’s hypnotic vocals, Daithi O’Connor’s subtle yet ear pricking guitar licks, to their overall penchant for tremendous dynamic shifts which lead to a feeling of both ease and empowerment when listening. ‘For The Birds’ is taken from Come on Live Long’s second LP Move As One which is due to be released this Summer. Speaking of the writing process for the new album, Gaffney…

  • Premiere: The Wood Burning Savages – We Love You

    March 21, 2016 - By 

    If their last few shows are anything to go by – not least their thrilling performance at our Tuesday Throwdown at Lavery’s in last month – Derry’s Wood Burning Savages are a band coursing forth with a huge amount of momentum right now. Recorded by Rocky O’Reilly at Belfast’s Start Together Studio, their new single, ‘We Love You’, is breakneck two and a half minutes that sees frontman Paul Connolly at the peak of his steadfast and ever-increasingly silver-tongued powers. Speaking of the release, Connolly said, “It’s not a love song. It’s a song about youthful dreams and hope being…

  • More Acts Set for Sea Sessions

    March 14, 2016 - By 

    Bundoran, Co. Donegal surf and music festival Sea Sessions have announced the second wave (ahem) of acts set to play its ninth outing from June 24-June 26. With the likes of Primal Scream, Bad Manners and Ciaran Lavery already revealed, Gavin James, Ham Sandwich, King Kong Company, Raglans, Daithi, Exmagician (pictured), Miles Graham, Picture This, T.P.M., Fang Club, New Valley Wolves, Crow Black Chicken, Karma Parking, Third Smoke and Wolves of Youth join the bill. Tickets for this year’s festival start at €99.90. Go here to buy yours. Check out the current Sea Sessions line-up below.

  • Stream: Race The Flux – Matty Rusko

    March 11, 2016 - By 

    Reminiscent in different ways to El Ten Eleven, Axis Of and the elated instrumentalism of And So I Watch You From Afar, ‘Matty Rusko’ by Galway four-piece Race The Flux is the kind of prog and latter-day post-rock-leaning track we’re more than happy to wrap our ears around time and time again. Going at least one step further than some of their peers in said realm, the single is a masterstroke in sidetracking exhausted tropes of the genre, blossoming from purposeful instrumentalism to a single-minded, fist-clenched conclusion. Going one further: it’s right up there with the best Irish tracks released this year. Race The Flux play Dublin’s…

  • Stream: Deadman’s Ghost – Insula

    March 11, 2016 - By 

    Previously known as Deadman, Belfast producer Jason Mills AKA Deadman’s Ghost comfortably established himself as one of the country’s most ambitious and idiosyncratic musicians with his debut LP, The Broken Zoetrope. Drawing comparisons to the likes of Beck and David Holmes, it tapped into a magnificent mid-point between expansive post-rock terrain and exquisite electronic soundscapes. Very much a return worth waiting for, his new track ‘Insula’ instantly lured us to a realm in which Beak> and Tortoise got together to jam ‘All I Need’ by Radiohead. The result was delightful.

  • Watch: Sam Ojo – So Pro

    March 11, 2016 - By 

    It’s safe to say 17-year-old Dubliner Sam Ojo is a hip-hop artist with confidence and flow beyond years. Produced by Ignorvnce, his new single ‘So Pro’ is, in spite of being under two minutes in length, a heady, intent-drenched throwdown that doubles as something of a statement of intent from the hugely-promising wordsmith. The latest release as part of the new-fangled Word Up Collective – also featuring the likes of Damola, Katie Laffan, Anti-One and Stay Gold – watch the video for the track, directed by Steven BeatSmith, below.