Stendhal festival returned spectacularly to Limavady, Co. Derry featuring live performances from ASIWYFA, Jordan Adetunji, David Keenan, Sasha Samara, Duke Special, New Dad, Jealous of the Birds and more. Photos by Darren Hill.
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It’s time to take another look at the latest Irish tracks this week with some phenomenal releases from the likes of Wyvern Lingo & Loah, Brontis, Klubber Lang, Soulé, Sarah Toner, Cruel Sister and more. Wyvern Lingo & Loah – Just a Girl Klubber Lang – Sleep Well Sleep Well by KLUBBER LANG Sarah Toner – You’re Not Thinking of Me Cabin – Evil Directions Cabin · Evil Directions Brontis – Pirates of the Mycelium Pirates of the Mycelium by Brontis Soulé – Queenish Loraine Club – Starting Now Niamh Regan – Happy Again Happy Again by Niamh Regan Cruel…
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SoFFt Productions presents SoFFt Nights at Dunderry Park in Co.Meath featuring live performances from Cormac Begley, Bunoscionn, Lemoncello and more. Photos by Kevin Hennessy
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Creeping back into the scene, Wolf Alice first teased the release of their third album, Blue Weekend, three months ahead of its arrival. In a world of surprise drops, the four-piece led by Ellie Roswell went for a more traditional album cycle, building anticipation with a string of singles, reminding us each time of their skills in simultaneously attacking your eardrums and playing with your heartstrings. After winning the Mercury Prize for the sophomore effort, Visions of a Life, there was a lot riding on Wolf Alice’s much-hyped return. Luckily, they’ve hit all the sweet spots across these 11 tracks. …
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St. Vincent is coming back to Dublin. Off the back of the release of her sixth studio album, Daddy’s Home, Annie Clark will play Fairview Park in Dublin on June 26. Marking her first date in the city since a two-night residency at the Olympia Theatre in 2017, the show doubles as her biggest Irish headliner to date. Tickets are priced at €49.90 and go on sale on Friday, July 9th at 10am. Read our review of Daddy’s Home here.
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Nairobi-born, Berlin-based KMRU’s Logue is a collection of ambient snapshots, compiling previously self-released individual pieces that chart his journey to date, and his rising prominence in the world of experimental electronic music. Where his three albums released in 2020,Peel, Jar and Opaquer, were cohesive, flowing works, the stitches in Logue are cut loose due to its loosely assembled nature. Nonetheless, it is an album of shining moments, thrilling ambience and transportive field recordings. Following the legacy of his famed Kikuyu Benga musician grandfather, music is in KMRU’s blood. The 24-year-old artist, however, opts for a less traditional route. Teaching himself FL Studio while…
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Last May, Bleeding Heart Pigeons released one of the most emphatic Irish albums in recent times, Stir. Thirteen months on, two-thirds of the Limerick band—frontman Mícheál Keating and drummer Brendan McInerney—have returned with the 10-minute epic ‘It’s Still There’. Commissioned by The Source Arts Centre of Thurles, and supported by both Tipperary County Council and The Arts Council, it’s a genre-mutating feat, melding Burial-esque menace with a slowly unfurling patchwork of ambient prog. Speaking about the track, Keating said: “This commission was a great incentive to play and experiment, and this was an ideal approach to writing the first tune we’ve made together since Stir was…
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The excavation of Ireland’s buried electronic past by All City’s Allchival imprint continues with a reissue of Island Stories, a contribution by English multimedia artist Nigel Rolfe, who moved to Ireland in 1974 to commence a long career in the fine arts. Recorded in 1985 at the famous Windmill Studios, assisted by a cadre of musicians and vocalists, Rolfe performed most of the songs on the ’80s defining DX7 synthesizer. While the idea of a solo keyboard album may conjure thoughts of minimal synth isolationism, this is a vibrant collection of tracks that sometimes approach Art of Noise-style avant-pop, with…
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Belfast blues legend Rab McCullough has passed away. The guitarist, who had performed with the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Rory Gallagher, died followed a cardiac arrest last week. He was 72. In more recent years, McCullough was a much-loved presence at Belfast’s Empire Music Hall. Each Thursday night, he and his band would treat locals and visitors alike to genuine musical mastery and, on countless occasions, some singular magic. In a statement, the Empire said: “As you all know, Rab played every Thursday, come rain or shine, in the Empire Basement. Students, music lovers and casual drinkers alike could be found marvelling at…
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This week’s refreshingly eclectic releases include Loah’s incredible National Poetry Day release, Irish Refugee Council fundraising compilation European Endless – featuring Arvo Party, The Bonk, Fixity, Whozyerman? and more – Ghostking Is Dead, Soda Blonde, and many more. Loah – The Body to the Soul The Body to the Soul by Loah Ghostking is Dead – Biceps Biceps by Ghostking Is Dead Various Artists – European Endless European Endless: 12 by European Endless Bedrooms – Afterglow EP Afterglow by Bedrooms Ódú – Men Like Me Soda Blonde – In The Heat of the Night Small Talk by Soda Blonde Dani Larkin –…