• Stream: Rory Nellis – Casual Discrimination

    February 6, 2017 - By 

    Taken from his forthcoming second album, There Are Enough Songs In The World, ‘Casual Discrimination’ by Belfast singer-songwriter Rory Nellis is a song that wields subtlety like a scythe. With its wonderfully-woven alt-folk brood summoning the likes of Department of Eagles and Grizzly Bear, it’s a very timely song that tackles racism and discrimination with a poise, lyrical finesse and extraordinary harmonic command that we’ve found sets Nellis apart from many of his tale-telling peers. Having already released two singles from There Are Enough Songs In The World (which is set for release on Saturday, November 11) ‘Casual Discrimination’ is the third and latest…

  • 17 For ’17: New Pagans

    January 19, 2017 - By 

    While new bands are The Thin Air’s raison d’être, new bands full of familiar faces are always a particularly mouthwatering prospect. Featuring Cahir O’Doherty of Jetplane Landing/Fighting With Wire and Claire Miskimmin of Girls Names on guitar and bass respectively, along with Balkan Alien Sound’s Conor McAuley on drums and vocalist Lyndsey McDougall, New Pagans are a veritable supergroup of Irish talent to rival Miskimmin’s other side project, Cruising. With one double A-side single to their name so far featuring the tracks ‘I Could Die’ and ‘Lily Yeats’, the latter is a paean to one of the oft-forgotten sisters of…

  • Album Premiere: Nomadic Rituals – Marking The Day

    January 12, 2017 - By 

    We’re over the moon – and indeed, the universe and its eventual demise – to premiere the gargantuan second album from one of the heaviest bands on this rock, Belfast-based heavy primal doom trio Nomadic Rituals. In the band’s own words: “‘Marking the Day’ was created as a concept album envisioning the birth and death of the cosmos, and ultimately focusing upon our subsequent place within it. From the formation of physical matter and structure of the universe; to the division of the first single cells and the evolution of the dominant species; to the final and inevitable heat death of the entire…

  • Premiere: Owen Denvir – Siren Song

    January 6, 2017 - By 

    Taken from an upcoming live EP, Motion Picture Soundtrack, ‘Siren Song’ is the first of five videos being released by fast-rising Belfast singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Owen Denvir on each Friday in the month of January. Featuring a five-piece choir, this first cut from the EP – recorded by Mike Mormecha and filmed by Dog Kennel Productions at Queen’s University – puts Denvir’s vocals centre-stage, making for a masterfully meditative tale of pain, solace and redemption. Have a first look at the video below.

  • EP Stream: Arvo Party – 1/1/2017

    January 4, 2017 - By 

    The electronic music-making moniker of LaFaro and GOONS bassist Herb Magee, Arvo Party first caught our attention back this time last year with debut EPs Beep and Tintinnabuli. With an album in the works, Magee resurfaced on Sunday with the aptly-titled 1/1/2017, a compilation EP of sorts featuring five tracks that wouldn’t seem remotely out of place on say, the soundtrack to Commando, Rocky IV, Kickboxer – and countless other classic 80s action movies besides. Conjuring the likes of Todd Terje, DROKK, John Carpenter, Dog Blood and Floating Points, Magee said of the EP on his Bandcamp page: “This EP is a collection of…

  • Premiere: Strength NIA – 1956 Olympics

    December 15, 2016 - By 

    Their first single as Strength NIA, ‘1956 Olympics’ by the Derry band formerly known as Strength is a song inspired by ‘Creggan Shops‘ by Australian band The Shifters. Rory Moore, frontman from Strength NIA, said, “None of the Shifters have ever been to Derry or Northern Ireland for that matter but I believe they have written one of the finest Northern Irish songs to date. Our song is a response to the ‘Creggan Shops’ as I’m originally from Creggan and I felt compelled to write it after hearing this cynical pop gem.” Strength NIA will release their debut album next September. With all…

  • Video Premiere: Malojian – This Is Nowhere (Aren’t You Lonely)

    December 14, 2016 - By 

    The title track from the band’s stellar, Steve Albini-produced, Northern Ireland Music Prize-nominated third album, ‘This Is Nowhere’ by Malojian confines within its three and a half minutes precisely what has always enthralled us when it comes to the Belfast band’s craft. As with many of the tracks on This Is Nowhere – which is available to buy now via Kilkenny’s mighty Rollercoaster Records – this is music that is born when the soul seeks solace through song in a world that doesn’t always reciprocate the simple hopes and wishes of good people. Featuring footage shot both at home, but mainly at Albini’s Electrical…

  • Running the Gamut: Introducing Orby Chase

    November 30, 2016 - By 

    One of many shining lights being championed by our friends at BeKreativ, Orby Chase are a recently-formed Belfast outfit on a mission. We catch up with the alt/indie quartet about the past, present and auspicious future of the band. Photo by Adam Martin Hi guys. First up: for the unacquainted, how and when did Orby Chase form? We formed in early January 2016. Josh had been doing the rounds as a singer/songwriter since the split of his previous outfit The Blindies and to reasonable acclaim. As his writing developed so did the textural palate he found himself reaching for and…

  • Swimming With The Stream: An Interview With Callum Cairns AKA Little Rivers

    November 23, 2016 - By 

    Photographer Ruth Kelly shoots and discusses new music, time management and sonic progression with Belfast indie folk singer-songwriter Callum Cairns AKA Little Rivers Hi Callum. First off, what inspired you to start writing music? I suppose I started wanting to write music when my dad brought Damien Rice’s first album ‘O  home. For some reason, I don’t remember listening to a lot of music growing up, so I’m pretty bad at my parents’ era of artists, but I’d never heard anything like that album and it fascinated me. Particularly because it started off my fondness for poetry. Do you have…

  • Video Premiere: Son of the Hound – I.O.U.

    November 22, 2016 - By 

    Not an artist to get too comfortable in one guise, Belfast-based musician Michael McCullagh AKA Son Of The Hound resurfaced back in August with quite possibly the darn catchiest song we’ve heard from an Irish artist this year, ‘I.O.U’. Something of a curveball when compared with the Omagh artist’s previous, more trad and folk-leaning output to date, its 50s swagger and twang revealed yet another colour on McCullagh’s wonderfully varied sonic palette. Whether you missed it the first time around or fancy a fresh listen, check out the single via Colm Laverty’s brand new video for the track – culminating in…