• The Thin Air’s Top 100 Irish Tracks of 2020 (#100-51)

    December 16, 2020 - By 

    Ah, 2020 eh? Unless you were living off the grid in a self-made banana bread house whilst rocking yourself gently to various iterations of ‘Happy Birthday’ as you washed your hands, then you will know that despite collectively living through the pandemic there were plenty of Irish songs to get excited about. 100 to be precise. We’ve listened to them on repeat since we couldn’t attend gigs, raves, or house parties so we’re certain we’ve selected the finest this little locked down island has to offer. It’s safe to say this year epitomised the true meaning of community in this country…

  • Stream: Joel Harkin – Vada

    May 1, 2020 - By 

    In just under three weeks, Belfast-based songwriter Joel Harkin releases his debut album, Never Happy. A ten-track distillation of the Donegal artist’s singular alt-folk vision, it filters the influence of artists as disparate as Conor Oberst, Modest Mouse, Bjork and Gregory & The Hawk to deliver a compelling statement of intent. The follow-up to March’s ‘No Recycling‘, new single ‘Vada’ is an outright highlight from the album.  “The song creates a world in which my mates from Letterkenny and the main character of my favourite film, the 1991 classic ‘My Girl’, exist in the same universe,” Harkin says. “It’s about how they…