• Premiere: Fears – Blood

    November 21, 2016 - By 

    Fears is the solo project of Constance Keane, drummer of Dublin feminist and animal welfare noise/post-punk quartet M(h)aol, and November 25 sees the release of new single ‘Blood’, following last year’s ‘Priorities‘, through her own label, Fears Records. In stark contrast to M(h)aol’s raw power, ‘Blood’ is an exercise in intense restraint and silently brooding alternative pop. Its brooding synth is evocative of the likes of John Carpenter (minus the timestamp), accompanied by claustrophobic, dissonant beats, with Constance’s lyrics and vocal performance lending the track the kind of somnambulist atmosphere to accompany a sleepless night. Ever the elusive entity, Fears’ first show takes place in Belfast on December 2 at a…

  • Lianne La Havas – Blood

    August 3, 2015 - By 

    For her second album, Lianne La Havas has traded the acoustic settings of her 2012 debut, Is Your Love Big Enough?, for a lusher, summery sound. Inspired, La Havas says, by her Jamaican and Greek heritage, the album fairly shimmers with plush, melodic soul numbers, usually of the most laid-back variety. At the same time, there’s a refined musical intelligence at work across the album that keeps the attention throughout – not least in La Havas’ expertly judged vocal delivery. While co-producers Di Genius (son of veteran reggae artist Freddie McGregor), Paul Epworth and Jamie Lidell all put in top-drawer…