Month: November 2019

Glimmermen return with their third album ‘Here I Stand’, released on November 9th on vinyl only. To launch this momentous occasion they will be having a launch in The Bello Bar in Dublin this Thursday the 7th and a special performance in Tower Records on Saturday the 9th at 1.00pm.

‘Here I Stand’ and expands further the musical landscape they enthusiastically explore. Eleven songs delivered in their own inimitable style. Themes of love and loss interweave with wide-eyed melodies, creating an album all at once aghast at and in love with the world. 

As alluded to in the cover art, the stand taken is not necessarily on solid ground, as many things are at play and in flux, and themes draw parallels with life’s many dysfunctional communication platforms and the struggle to makes sense of things within and without.

However, a fine balance is achieved by the musical scaffolding of guitar, bass, drums and brass, delivering an elevational, upbeat bunch of singable songs. The album was recorded in the Meadow in Co Wicklow early this year and expands further the musical landscape created in 2016’s ‘Breakin’ Out’.

From the hopeful title track to the playful ‘It’s Nice’, to the party-at-the-end-of-the-world vibes of ‘Sleep Walkin’, this is a record that will keep you on your toes and keep them tapping. 

Tickets for The Bello Bar will be on the door only. Admission: €8 or €15 with free Vinyl LP Line-up: The Middle Ages. Panik Attaks.

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Slyrydes are a four piece punk band from Galway city County Galway. The band formed in 2013 but didn’t release any music until February 2019. 

“We started the band (A) Because we all had a very similar sort of middle ground with the music we listened to and (B) Because we were pissed off with a lot of the musical content coming out of Ireland at that specific time. We couldn’t figure out why people weren’t pissed off.“

“We were pissed off. So we wrote about that.” 

2019 saw the release of their first single Mental Health which quickly gained critical acclaim across Ireland and the UK. “We sang quite bluntly about a real issue in this country. People related to that.” 

‘Point Of View’ followed which showed a more melodic side to the band and then ‘Out Patience’ which continuedthe topic of mental health in Ireland.

In their new single ‘Dangerous Animals’ Slyrydes take on the world. 

“This song is more about why we feel the way we feel,” explainst Eoin ‘Fuz’ Reilly. “The world is in bits. Not that everything is usually perfect, but, at this moment in time there is so much wrong. Also we touch on the subject of ignorance and bigotry. In a world where thankfully so much is moving forward there are still aspects of the general consciousness that need to be weeded out.”

‘Dangerous Animals’ is the fourth single from Galway’s Slyrydes. The album will be coming in 2020.

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Multi-award winning Irish power punk pop band The Blizzards new film “The Blizzards: Behind The Music” is available now on the RTÉ Player. The tell-all star studded short film documents the band’s exploits over the past year and has previously premiered in Dublin’s Irish Film Institute (IFI) and screened at the Galway Film Fleadh in July. The film can be viewed here. 

A chance to get up close and personal with the band, the Jeff Doyle directed film, follows Bressie, Dec, Justin and Louize and their by all accounts, unorthodox, manager Duncan as they navigate the challenges of the music industry. The film features an array of big names sharing their impressions of The Blizzards, from Picture This, to Laura Whitmore to Stormy Daniels. 

As if the film wasn’t enough the band have also recently released an album ‘The Last Great Algorithm’, along with the first single from the album ‘Who Would Want To Be In A Guitar Band?’ and are currently embarking on a UK & Ireland Tour.

The Blizzards, bruised and battered after releasing two albums with major labels, have decided to go it alone with the release of their highly anticipated third album independently. The albums release has been so long awaited that the band even made a film, “The Blizzards: Behind The Music” to document the process.

One of the most anticipated albums of the year, ‘The Last Great Algorithm’ is available now across all physical and digital platforms. Produced by Philip Magee (Kodaline, The Script), ‘The Last Great Algorithm’ presents exceptional levels of creative originality with first single ‘Who Would Want To Be In A Guitar Band?’ out now.

Speaking of the single Bressie of The Blizzards said: “The track was borne out of the very considered feedback from a media playlister about the perception that one of our songs was “too guitary”. Shocked at realising that guitars were now illegal, we had two choices. Give up, or write this song. We gave up actually. But our manager kicked our asses so here’s the song we wrote to retaliate.”

A busy few months awaits, with The Blizzards currently embarking on their UK and Ireland Tour. Tickets for all dates are on sale now. Visit Ticketmaster and local venue box offices for tickets.

THE BLIZZARDS // UK AND IRISH TOUR DATES 

Nell’s, London, UK // Nov 14
Crown Live, Wexford // Nov 22
Whelans, Dublin // Nov 23
Mike The Pies, Listowel // Nov 28
De Barras, Clonakilty // Nov 29
Dolans, Limerick // Nov 30
Kavanagh’s, Portlaoise // Dec 6
Monroes, Galway // Dec 7
Cyprus Avenue, Cork // Dec 27
Spirit Store, Dundalk // Dec 29

Out now ‘Who Would Want To Be In A Guitar Band?’, is the first single taken from The Blizzards brand new album ‘The Last Great Algorithm’, with the band’s short film “The Blizzards: Behind The Music” available on the RTÉ Player. Tickets for their UK and Irish Tour are on sale now.

Ireland’s SLOW RIOT have announced that their farewell / debut album ‘G.A.D’ will be released on November 15th via Straight Lines Are Fine. The news comes after a lengthy silence and has been received by fans with fervent excitement on social media. A new track ‘A Lighthouse’ is out now.

Pre-dating the recent post-punk explosion… Shame, Fontaines D.C., and The Murder Capital, SLOW RIOT built a reputation for razor-sharp, compelling songs framed by angular poetic lyrics; songs mixing darkness, shade and light; songs full of despair and hope. Through four short years, a series of singles and EP’s including 2016’s ‘Trophy Wife’ and 2018’s ‘Burn In The City’, propelled the band into festival appearances and onto radio playlists: KEXP, RadioX, 6Music, Today FM, etc. 

SLOW RIOT proceeded to record a full length album, completed in 2018 at Savage Sound Studios, Hastings, with longtime collaborator Kevin Vanbergen (The Pixies, The Maccabees, Dinosaur Pile-Up, The La’s and Biffy Clyro) inbetween tour dates with Preoccupations, whenyoung, The Twilight Sad, Mission Of Burma, Slow Readers Club and others. Unfortunately, after a sell out show at London’s The Victoria in June 2018, the band disbanded and the album was shelved until now. 

The 12-track set opens with the fan-favourite, white-hot ‘Trophy Wife’ before the melodic ‘A Lighthouse’ showcases the band’s knack for penning radio-friendly choruses. Title track ‘G.A.D’ and ‘Unkind’ delve into ethereal darkness, their subject matter informing the pervading tone of the album: hyper-anxiety, implicit and explicit violence, troubled and obsessive human relationships all set in a dystopian urban setting. ‘Heaven’s Daughter’ and ‘Search The Streets’ deliver the trademark urgency SLOW RIOT songs became recognised for, before the final trilogy of bombast; ‘Pink December’, ‘Hexes’ and the grandeur of ‘Mr Inconsistent’, replete with strings, bring the record to its ultimate conclusion. As an album statement, ’G.A.D’ reminds us that sometimes the best art is created once, and once only – and it often comes from a very dark place. 

The band collaborated with up and coming Irish artist Darragh Dempsey for the ‘G.A.D’ sleeve art. Recognised by the art world as a rising talent, Dempsey’s original oil on canvas ‘Táthar ag súil le saol nua’ (which translates from Gaelic as ‘A new life is expected’) adorns the cover signifying a ritual cleansing before a new beginning. And so, while the band may be no more, the very welcome release of ‘G.A.D’ signals a new beginning for all the members of SLOW RIOT.  

G.A.D Tracklisting:

Trophy Wife
A Lighthouse
Betrayed
G.A.D
Heaven’s Daughter
Burn In The City
Search The Streets
Unkind
Voyeur
Pink December
Hexes
Mr Inconsistent

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Villagers are pleased to announce ‘The Sunday Walker’ EP. The four tracks collected are primarily songs recorded around the time of ‘The Art Of Pretending To Swim’ sessions – Conor O’Brien’s acclaimed fourth album, released last year. The EP is available to stream in full now, with the vinyl release due on Nov 22^nd.

In Conor’s words: “The tracks that fell through the cracks; it turns out they had their own story to tell. ‘The Sunday Walker’ EP is a collection of lost songs as much as it is an emotional arc. Songs of loss and songs of realisation. Songs of empathy and isolation.”

Villagers head out on a European tour later this week including the renowned Rolling Stone Festival in Germany before returning to Ireland for a run of sold out shows in Dublin and Cork in December.

Tracklisting:

1.     Did You Know

2.     Sunday Walker

3.     Adora Venera

4.     Note To Self (For Michael)

The Sunday Walker EP is available to pre-order on vinyl from Dom Mart.

Villagers Live Dates

Thurs 7th Nov – Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Fri 8^th Nov – LantarenVenster, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Sat 9^th Nov – Rolling Stone Park Festival, Rust, Germany
Mon 11^th Nov – Zakk, Dusseldorf, Germany
Tues 12^th Nov – Strom, Munich, Germany
Wed 13^th Nov – UT Connewitz, Leipzig, Germany
Sat 16^th Nov – Rolling Stone Beach, Weissenhauser Strand, Germany
Sun 17^th Nov – Burgerweehuis, Deventer, Netherlands
Mon 18^th Nov – Het Depot, Leuven, Belgium
Fri 22 Nov – Super Bock Under Fest, Vigo, Spain
Tues 10^th Dec – Cyprus Avenue, Cork
Wed 11^th Dec – Cyprus Avenue, Cork
Fri 13^th Dec – Vicar Street, Dublin
Sat 14^th Dec – Vicar Street, Dublin

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Beoga are set to release an unforgettable song this November in the form of their new single, ‘Make A Mark’ featuring Ryan McMullan. The single will be released on Friday 29 November and is the first to be taken from their upcoming mini-album due for release in February. ‘Make A Mark’ is a gorgeous meshing of two distinct talents – Ryan McMullan’s unmistakeable vocals and Beoga’s outstanding musicianship – with a killer chorus hook and a sparkling instrumental break.

Beoga were thrilled to work with Ryan, saying, “We have a long friendship with Ryan and making music together is a privilege with someone as talented and positive as him. We’ve been gigging this song for a while and people always ask about it after the show. It’s a good sign when that happens and I think people can hear how much we enjoy playing it.” Ryan was equally delighted to work with the band, saying,“‘It was a joy writing this song with Beoga. I think making a mark is something we all want, whether it’s in life, work or love. We want to stand out from the crowd and make an impact on someone or something.“

After five albums, a shortlist for a Grammy nomination and numerous international tours, Beoga reached a wider international audience as a result of a chance encounter with Ed Sheeran, Foy Vance and Johnny McDaid. This led to the band co-writing Ed’s massive hit ‘Galway Girl’ and guesting on ‘Nancy Mulligan’ from his album ‘Divide’. They also performed as Ed Sheeran’s only special guest on his headlining Glastonbury 2017 performance and supported him on his record-breaking Irish stadium tour in 2018.

This collaboration with one of contemporary pop music’s biggest icons led to Beoga exploring a more mainstream direction for their own record and working with a stellar line up of artists including Johnny McDaid, Foy Vance, Ed Sheeran, James Bay, and Ryan McMullan. The new record sees them find a truly original sound at the intersection between traditional Irish music and contemporary pop and has been produced by Grammy nominated producer and writer Jonny Coffer (Beyonce, Fall Out Boy, Rag’n’Bone Man, Kodaline). 

Through singles ‘Matthew’s Daughter’ featuring US country artist Devin Dawson and ‘Let You Go’ featuring Nashville favourite Anderson East, released this year, the band have started to introduce audiences to this new sound and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. ‘Matthew’s Daughter’ received a rave review from industry bible Rolling Stone and ‘Let You Go’ was in the top 50 at triple A radio in the USA in summer 2019. ‘Make A Mark’ is emblematic of this new direction and has consistently received a huge reaction at Beoga’s packed live shows. 

You can catch Beoga performing ‘Make A Mark’ amongst other hits when they support Foy Vance on his tour across the UK and Ireland in November. They are also headlining their own shows in Dublin, Galway, Belfast, Limerick and Cork in December.

Ryan has a busy touring schedule too, most recently as an honorary member of Snow Patrol while Johnny McDaid was recovering from surgery. Ryan is touring Europe through November and returns to Belfast for a series of intimate dates in early December. He then heads Stateside for a solo tour in early 2020. 

SEE BEOGA LIVE

13^th – 24^th Nov      Special guest on Foy Vance Irish & UK Tour
Thur 5th Dec         Whelan’s, Dublin
Sat 7th Dec           Roisin Dubh, Galway
Thur 19th Dec       Ulster Hall, Belfast
Sat 21st Dec         Dolans, Limerick
Sun 22nd Dec       St. Luke’s, Cork

‘My Mandalay’ is the brand new single release from Monaghan singer songwriter Jim McHugh.  This song is about a night of fleeting romance and questions was it really love or were the couple caught up in the delirium of passion. My Mandalay is the name used to associate the exotic affection towards the partner.

This single is from Jim’s album ‘My Nuclear Radio’ released in September 2019. It was recorded, produced and mastered in Ben Reel’s studio in Armagh. ‘My Mandalay’ features Jim on Vocals/Acoustic Guitar/Mandolin/Bodhran and John McCullough on Piano.

Single artwork by Eimhin Farrell.

‘My Mandalay will be available on all digital formats for streaming/download from 15th November. 

Upcoming live dates:

Nov 28^th, Spirit Store, Dundalk
Dec 7^th, Iontas Theatre, Castleblayney 

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BRÍDÍN, West Co. Sligo native, carries on the tradition of Irish music into the fourth generation of her family. BRÍDÍN plays harp, flute, piano and dances sean nós. BRÍDÍN’s musical talent emerged at a very early age. Over the years she has achieved many accolades for her musical ability. Her love of music lead her to pursue a musical career, having studied music at University College Cork achieving a degree and masters in music and performance. BRÍDÍN’s performances include radio, television and music festivals both home and abroad.

Over the past number of years, BRÍDÍN has developed her own style influenced by her natural surroundings and rooted in her background in traditional Irish music. BRÍDÍN uses her loop and effect pedals to create her musical pieces. Her layered melodies on harp and voice blend beautifully with contrapuntal fiddle, electric guitar and bass, woven together with pulsating drums.

‘Ocean Of Stars’ is BRÍDÍN’s second single release of 2019 and is available on all music platforms now.

Rapper and songwriter Marvell has released his brand new solo EP titled ‘Full Energy’. He releases his much anticipated project four years since his last solo project ‘Before We Started’ or B4WS for short.

‘Full Energy’ is a project full of progression and boasts rejuvenation and new spiritedness. This came about during a period of time where the rapper succumbed to a new found energy, zeal and desire to release his most impressive body of work yet.

Marvell decides to take it up a gear with bangers such as ‘This One’ featuring fellow respected Dublin rapper Huva, and ‘City Of Stones’. Where he talks about his hunger and lust for delivering a memorable end product as he says, “people saying only real music’s gonna last.” Spawning appreciable tracks with catchy hooks and quick fire punchlines to show he’s not done yet merely only lacing up his boots. 

We see the growth from previous projects such as B4WS where in tracks like ‘MindYourOwnBusiness’ Marvell takes a different approach in showing a more vulnerable side to him where he admits to past mistakes and reaffirms that he’s, “always been a man on a mission,” as he continues to march towards jubilation.

‘Full Energy’ is good for the ears and more. Seven tracks and flavours all stirred and mixed in a great big pot which is ‘Full Energy’. With new visuals loading and more to look forward to from the Lucan rapper, Marvell was definitely charged up for this one.

‘Full Energy’ is available for streaming and download on all major platforms.