• Reverberation Psych Fest 2016 (Day One) @ The Grand Social, Dublin

    April 12, 2016 - By 

    Following the success of last August’s inaugural outing, this year’s Reverberation Psych Fest returns to Dublin’s Grand Social for another two nights of intoxicating psychedelia, with more than a smidgen of mind-throbbing noise added into the mix. Donegal’s Tuath are tasked with opening night one on the Friday – no easy task given such a small number are in attendance by the time their time slot arrives. However the four-piece of Robert Mulhern, Ashley Mobasser, Shane McFadden and Scott Carlin grasp their time on stage with all guns blazing. Tuath’s style of play hints at elements of jazz fusion, which sits alongside a seriously heavy-metal…

  • Girl Band @ Vicar Street, Dublin

    April 4, 2016 - By 

    There is a sense of mystery about the Girl Band show at Vicar Street tonight. They have not played Dublin since releasing their debut LP Holding Hands With Jamie in September 2015. They rescheduled their Dublin show since cancelling their North American and European tours, including the Button Factory in November. They have since whittled down their new tour to a handful of dates worldwide, including Pitchfork Festival in Chicago where they are the only Irish act to play. This is a hot ticket to have. From the moment you walk in the front door you can smell the anticipation.…

  • exmagician Scan The Blue Album Launch w/ Waldorf & Cannon @ McHughs, Belfast

    April 4, 2016 - By 

    Having caught them play a blinder of a showcase in The Duke of York as part of the wider Output Belfast initiative in February, the promise of an intimate album launch show for exmagician in McHughs Basement tonight is a tantalising prospect – all the more so considering debut LP Scan The Blue seems made for the stage and the snippets offered not more than six weeks ago are still ringing merrily in our ears. And, as we descend into the venue, the intimacy of this show becomes more than just a cursory description. There’s but a metre between us…

  • Meatbodies w/ No Monster Club @ Workman’s Club, Dublin

    April 4, 2016 - By 

    Just over six months has passed since multi-instrumentalist Chad Ubovich last made an appearance here in Dublin, when he played alongside his good friend Ty Segall in their sludge power trio Fuzz. Ubovich has been involved in the LA underground scene since he was a teenager and is also a touring member of Mikal Cronin’s band. However outside of these projects it’s Meatbodies (formerly Chad & the Meatbodies) that should be viewed as his intrinsic musical outlet. With a sound that does not stretch the boundaries of psych, garage rock and heavy riffs that far, one can easily imagine where…

  • Sunset Sons w/ Louis Berry @ Limelight, Belfast

    March 30, 2016 - By 

    “I’ve only got five strings now, but I’ll play on anyway!” Liverpool born support act Louis Berry is nothing if not enthusiastic, with the guitar malfunction that occurred only two songs into his set seemingly only spurring him on to deliver an even more frantic than usual perfromance. Berry’s snotty delivery is a true asset when delivering the sort of hard-nosed, retro rock n roll that he and his three band mates specialise in, and the Scouser’s throbbing energy sparked a warm response from the already impressively large Limelight 2 crowd, as he tore through numbers such as ‘.45’ and…

  • Rolo Tomassi w/ Hornets @ Voodoo, Belfast

    March 29, 2016 - By 

    It’s a rather frustrating thing when bands announce a ‘UK tour’ that in reality is more like an ‘England with a token date in Scotland or Wales and nothing in Northern Ireland (or southern, for that matter)’ tour. So it was particularly gratifying when Sheffield mathcore rockers Rolo Tomassi announced an actual, honest-to-goodness UK and Ireland tour that promised two dates in the North and one in the South. Tonight in Belfast they were ably (and very much suitably) supported by hardcore/metal headcases Hornets. Hitting the stage about half an hour late, they emit a screech of feedback that signals…

  • Solar Bears @ Lavery’s, Belfast

    March 21, 2016 - By 

    Gigantic at Lavery’s is a Belfast institution. For over a decade now it’s been a valuable club night for those of us who would rather spend a Friday night dancing to LCD Soundsystem or The Juan MacLean over the more typically pedestrian fare on offer in most clubs of a weekend. It’s also been refreshing for its tendency over the years to play material by local artists alongside the usual international acts, so the recent monthly gig nights at the club have been an inspired move. Not to mention, with music industry release dates now standardised to Fridays on both…

  • Exodus w/ Lost Society @ Limelight, Belfast

    March 4, 2016 - By 

    Anyone who thinks that thrash metal is in any way obsolete or past its best need only to have peeked into Belfast’s Limelight on Monday February, 29. Inside, you would have seen a sea of long hair, patched denim vests and old school metal t-shirts – oh, and heard one of the best metal gigs of the year, as well. As if to prove that point, support act Lost Society, despite having recently released their third album Braindead, are still a young band (as in ‘barely allowed in a pub’ young), but are carrying the thrash torch with unbridled enthusiasm…

  • Girls Names w/ Gross Net @ Cyprus Avenue, Cork

    March 4, 2016 - By 

    “It’s one thing to spend a long time learning how to play well in the studio, but to do it in front of people is what keeps me coming back to touring.” It was Rush’s Neil Peart who said that. But what happens when you have to perform in front of hardly any people at all? This unenviable position is precisely what Gross Net, nom de musique of Philip Quinn, is faced with as he begins his supporting set for his other band Belfast post-punks Girls Names in front of a sparse crowd on a rather nasty, wet Friday night…