• Digging Deep with Chelsea Wolfe

    November 9, 2015 - By 

    Having released Abyss – her heaviest (and finest) album to date – back in August, Chelsea Wolfe is well and truly an artist who has come good on a sense of extraordinary promise. Ahead of her show at Dublin’s Button Factory on Wednesday, November 25, Mike McGrath Bryan chats to the L.A. artist about touring, digging deep creatively and the sonic imprint of sleep paralysis.  Abyss is drawn from the nightmares and situations created by sleep paralysis and other ailments. How was it to confront them creatively? It happened without overthinking it. I’ve had sleep and dream issues my whole life, and over time…

  • Interview: Samantha Crain

    November 5, 2015 - By 

    Ahead of her show at Dublin’s Workman’s Club on Sunday, Oklahoma singer-songwriter Samantha Crain chats to Brian Coney about her stellar new album, Under Brand & Thorn & Tree, reclaiming music/art from upper class white men and the imprint of the likes of Jason Molina and David Bazan on her new material. Hi Samantha, Under Branch & Thorn & Tree is, for my money, one of strongest records of the year. There’s such a deep conviction to your words and how you wield them. Looking back, how did you go about writing lyrics what triggered inspiration? Thank you! The first song I wrote…

  • The End of an Era: Radar 2005-2015

    October 20, 2015 - By 

    “Institution” is a word that seems to be all too wantonly applied to every other gig night across the country nowadays. After ten years positively both capturing and shaping local live music in the North of the country, Radar at Belfast’s Queens Student Union is most definitely an exception to that rule. Ahead of its final (inevitably somewhat emotional) outing on Thursday night, Brian Coney chats with Radar founder and main man Damien McAdams about the decade-long highs and highlights of a soon to be much-missed Belfast institution. Hi Damien. It should go without saying but Radar is and was a…

  • Interview: David Kitt

    October 19, 2015 - By 

    David Kitt has been a quiet institution of the Irish music world for what is fast approaching two decades. In that time Kitt has released six studio albums under his own name has toured extensively, one of those tours being support of David Gray earlier in 2015. Recently, Kitt has achieved success in the realm outside of his ambient, electronic folk sphere under the moniker of New Jackson which has seen him bringing his boisterous, driving electronica to festivals throughout the UK and Europe, sharing stages with the likes of John Talabot and Mano Le Tough. Eoin Murray speaks to David…

  • Interview: Neil Flynn

    October 15, 2015 - By 

    Neil Flynn is an artist who could stand as a true representation of what so many young people looking to dedicate their lives to music go through in recent years. Growing up in rural Ireland where dreams of making the music you love for a living and having it played in some of Europe’s most renowned nightclubs rarely become more than dreams, Flynn’s determination, work ethic and sincere belief in the art of electronic music has lead to him being signed to one of Berlin’s most promising labels, LOSSLESS. In the past year Flynn has released one EP, Louise and…

  • Interview: Jacco Gardner

    October 13, 2015 - By 

    Having played Dublin’s Workman’s Club last month, baroque pop prince and Dutch producer/multi-instrumentalist Jacco Gardner chats to Brian Coney about his new album, Hypnophobia, the imprint of cinema on his music and the luxury of recording completely on his own terms. Hi Jacco. You released the wonderful Hypnophobia (the “excessive fear of deep sleep” I’ve just learned) back in May. Before touching on the recording and songwriting, what’s the significance being the title of the release? When I saw the word for the first time I immediately felt some connection. For me it’s a way of describing the unknown territory…

  • Inbound: The Cujo Family

    October 13, 2015 - By 

    The story of The Cujo Family is a familiar one. Since their conception eight years ago they’ve amassed a serious, almost fervent fan base through their poetic song writing and knees-up live shows. Yet despite wide acclaim, full widespread attention remains elusive. Then life does its thing, and nips at your time with work, children, the day to day. And though music may remain the centre of your world, it’s one that has to be shaped around the very real needs of being a normal human. Yet that doesn’t mean you should give up, because here they come again. With…

  • Lingo Festival Interview: Saul Williams

    October 7, 2015 - By 

    Saul Williams as an artistic figure is a force of unshakeable power. His ability over the course of his career to tackle social, personal and political issues with verve and master craftsmanship has been insurmountable and defiant of any possible pigeonholing. From poetry to music, from acting to journalism, William’s medium defying career has turned him into an artistic totem in the sphere of social commentary. I spoke to him about his recently published poetic commentary on the state of America, US(a.) – a work that began when he returned to the States having lived in Paris for several years…

  • Interview: Wyvern Lingo

    October 2, 2015 - By 

    Having just released their stellar new single, ‘Subside’, Wyvern Lingo are really riding the crest of a wave at the minute. Touching on their formation, their creative process, touring with Hozier and their plans for the future, the Wicklow threesome chat to Robert Higgins. Hi guys. First off, how did the three of you originally meet? We met just before the start of secondary school. We all grew up quite close to each other in Bray. #brayisclass Who were some of your earliest influences? Were there any Irish acts that inspired you? It was a mixture of classic rock bands…

  • Culture of Controversy: James Cussen

    October 2, 2015 - By 

    James Cussen is a historian studying toward a PhD in UCC, who is an acerbic controversial and political presence on Twitter. Seanán Kerr travelled to Cork to speak to him in the wake of recent victories for rights in Ireland and defeats for democracy in Greece and to ask how these times fit into the grand historical story and how pop culture mediates our understanding of it. When in 2013, teenage cancer victim Dónal Walsh was given the national airwaves to express his thoughts on suicide (life is precious, don’t kill yourself), few challenged him on the matter, many of Ireland’s…