Author: Breffni Banks

What a year it had been for Sena Dee and with his growing popularity, Sena Dee is now gearing up for his final release of the year, ‘I’ll Be There’, a collaboration with brothers from Ghana, BiQo & Exo Xan.

‘I’ll Be There’ tells the story of trying to be there for someone but not feeling wanted… but no matter when or where they call from, you’ll go running to ensure you’re there for them.

Boasting Sena’s trademark stabbing vocals and disruptive beats, Exo Xan brings a fresh approach to the track with euphoric vocals and BiQo ties it all together with catchy break down. This is the perfect track for autumn that bridges the gap between summer and winter.

“We had a lot of fun working on this one, it took about 2 years to get right, we recorded the track in a studio in Brooklyn, with Andy Bauer and spent a lot of time tweaking it. It’s was one of those tracks we listened to a lot and changed things up a lot to get it where we want. We are really happy with the final version and we hope everyone enjoys it” – Sena Dee

BiQo 

BiQo (born Stephen Sackitey Biko Okletey) is an afrosoul artist from Accra, Ghana. His love for music began at a tender age and his passion saw him representing Ghana in Nigeria at the MTN Project Fame West Africa music competition in 2015.

BiQo has performed at the famous Montreux Jazz club in Switzerland. He has worked with some of the top producers and musicians like Kwame Yeboah, Kojo Antwi and Kobi Onyame. He is currently a member of SuperJazzClub, a Ghanian Music collective that has gone from strength in recent years and currently boast over 100,000 monthly spotify listeners ahead of a European tour this summer.

Exo Xan 

Exo Xan is basically a next-gen act whose core sound has elements characterized by consciousness and perseverance.

He takes inspiration from both old and new acts who are characterized by soul some of which are; Meiway, Pat Thomas, Rema, Darkovibes, Deza Xxl, Bryan Adams and some others. Exo Xan combines these languages in his creative process (Ga, English, Pidgin, French, and Twi).Xan Sings passionately with the Ga language, which is the language he’s most skillful with. His fashion sense is unorthodox which is one detail that makes him stand out amongst his peers.

Exo Xan is one of the acts you would like to see grow into becoming one of the top giants in the African music scene in the next 3-5 years.

Cork native and singer-songwriter Jen Ella is set to release her new single ‘We Were The Kids Back Then’ a song that takes the listener on a journey of being a teenager growing up in rural Ireland.
Based in London, the Cork native carries on from her last single ‘‘I Must Go To The Party Alone’ a song about experiencing freedom and strength after an adverse life event. Jen Ella continues to portray a personal experience of hers with the ongoing aim to embed it in the mind of the listeners and allow them to be present on her journey when conveying her stories through her songs.

‘We Were The Kids Back Then’ was recorded by Joss Mogli a musician and producer from London. It features indie influenced guitars and delicate violins allowing the element of songwriting to shine throughout the song. Lyrics such as ‘smoked a joint with friends as I learned something more” and “the boiler room was the highlight of our teens” create a personal spin on the song showcasing nostalgic experiences as a teenager navigating there experiences as they transition into adulthood.

Jen Ella is a singer-songwriter and musician from Cork. She is now based in London and has been writing music all her life. She writes about her personal life implementing tales from love, travel, growing up in Ireland, history and relationships. Following success in 2021 making BBC sound’s airplay twice with her two tracks ‘Eyes for you’ and ‘Lipstick Queen’ she has spent the last few months working hard on new songs. She became the Scotsman’s Arts Artist of the week and her track Lipstick Queen was Hotpress magazine’s track of the week. Along with that her music has been played on international radio such as amazing radio and featured in many articles across Scotland and Ireland such as Finbar hoban presents, Indiebuddie, theothersidereviews, For the love of bands, alternative fruit, not bad, hot press magazine, the scotsman, along with her previous EP Spoken words making the RTE radio 1 recommendations playlist. Her recent song ‘I Must Go To The Party Alone’ was added to RTE2XM playlist, featured on BBC sounds and featured on Earmilk magazine along with features on other radio stations and articles.

Gracing the Celtic connection stage back in 2019 and 2022, since she has been down in London she has sold out various venues in London and Ireland such ‘’Spice of Life’’ in Soho and ‘’Ballinadee Bus’’ in Cork. She has also been accepted to write music in New York in April 2024 along with Andrea Stople who has written for the likes of ‘’Faith Hill’’ and ‘’Jimmy Wayne’’.

Connect with Jen Ella

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Listen on

Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube

‘Down with your Guard’ is the new single from Niamh Murphy. The song unexpectedly went viral when a live voices only version found its way on to social media. Niamh and Declan Sinnott brought the song into the studio and feel they have realised its full potential. The song feels very old and very young at the same time…  Maybe ageless is the word!

Hailing from Cork, Niamh invites you to share a journey – a series of song releases building to a beautiful album. In the Summer of 2021 Niamh and Declan Sinnott began recording. They found more than a little in common, but also revelled in their differences. They soon realised they were making something really special.

Declan says “Niamh’s voice and her songs paint very complete pictures. She takes you somewhere really true.”

‘Crème de la crème of Ireland’s hottest emerging music talent.’  – Hot Press Magazine

‘Five stars.’ – The Irish Times

‘Niamh Murphy’s voice is a wondrous thing.’ – Jackie Hayden

“Niamh is a wonderful lyricist and singer.”   Steve Lillywhite (One of Niamh’s songs was awarded top prize in the ISC, International Songwriting Competition)

As the evenings draw in and we prepare for the coming of winter, many of the superstitions and stories from the past resurface… Fiona Kennedys latest single ‘Whitethorn Tree’ is a nod to the supernatural so around Halloween was the right time to release it! The haunting atmosphere draws the listener in to the story & then blossoms into the earworm of a chorus.

“Fiona is an artist with a glorious voice…a mix of Emmylou Harris & Chrissie Hinds” Jack O’Rourke

“Fiona Kennedy is a force to be reckoned with” Downtown Magazine New York.

Whitethorn Tree is a track from the Cork singer- songwriters highly recommended new album ‘Find Me’ and was produced by Christian Best (Mick Flannery). The album was featured as Album of the Week on RTE Lyric FM’s Marty in the Morning show on its release earlier this year and a hugely successful nationwide tour has been in full swing since then. The album has been playlisted on several radio stations with an advance  release track, All Together Now, featuring on the RTE Radio 1 Recommends List some months ago. Sold-out live shows around the country including  Galway, Dublin, Cork and Belfast have grown Kennedys fanbase and a standout gig in the iconic Sea Church, home of TV’s Ballycotton Sessions, places her firmly back where she belongs, in the top drawer of Irish female artists.

“Fiona has a beautiful voice” Crystal Gayle

Fiona Kennedy plays The Guinness Cork Jazz Festival on  Friday 27th , Sat 28^th & Sun 29^th in the Festival Club at The Metropole Hotel Cork.

Connect with Fiona Kennedy

Instagram | YouTube | fionakennedymusic@nullgmail.com 

Award winning singer and multi-instrumentalist John Francis Flynn today shares a new single ‘Willie Crotty’ and its video, directed by Ruth Clinton and Cormac Dermody (from Lankum), taken from forthcoming album Look Over The Wall, See The Sky, which will be released via River Lea Recordings on November 10^th 2023.

This eerie rendition of ‘Willy Crotty’ was recorded in a bedroom in Leitrim using the unlikely combination of a clarinet, a handheld radio, a Casio SK1, a harmonica and an effects pedal. Where we might hear horror or feel terror, John explains that these sonic provocations are his guttural language and are always aiding the emotional leverage of the song, in a way that traditional instruments can’t. As for the song’s protagonists, “these are the sounds of their lives are being torn apart.”

A founding member of the band, Skipper’s Alley, with whom he has toured extensively throughout Europe and America.  While supporting Lankum on their 2019 UK tour he caught the eye of Geoff Travis, Jeannette Lee and Tim Chipping who quickly signed John to Rough Trade imprint label, River Lea. His debut album I Would Not Live Always subsequently won over critics across the board, including being MOJO magazine’s ‘Folk Album Of The Year’ and it led to him being crowned “Best Singer” and “Best Emerging Artist” at the 2021 RTE Folk Awards.

John Francis Flynn’s music evolves around traditional and folk material from Ireland, but that is only the starting point.

Often, to imagine Ireland is to fantasise about rolling hills, giants, saints and snakes. As John Francis Flynn says, it involves “a fair bit of paddywhackery and I hate paddywhackery.” The psyche-celtic album artwork for John’s second album Look Over The Wall, See The Sky, hints at this too though: a crystal goblet of luminous green Crème de Menthe resting upon a mossy ledge, perfectly encapsulating this imagined idea of Ireland in a way that is both funny and poignant. But, if you have to imagine Ireland in the first place, then you’re probably not too familiar with its reality: the towering glass giants of Google and Facebook, the unaffordable luxury hotels lining the Liffey amidst a homelessness epidemic and the highest rents in Europe.

To listen to Look Over The Wall, See The Sky is to witness history through a modern lens in a trance-like state. As expected, Flynn’s contemporary influences are sufficiently esoteric, from ‘The Heart Pumps Kool Aid’ by —__–___ to ‘The invention of the Human’ by Dylan Henner (a concept album about an AI learning to sing). However, he was also inspired by his contemporaries in the traditional music scene in Ireland, many of whom contributed to the album, as well as those outside of it, such as noise-rockers Gilla Band and Rising Damp.

Traditional music of course is not one-size-fits-all. Each song has its own story, history and characters which the singer must serve. “You can’t sing all the songs. Well some people do. But you can tell if someone doesn’t connect with that song…” On the record’s closer, ‘Dirty Old Town’ by Ewan McColl, John takes a song that’s been “done to death”, strips it back, slows it down and unexpectedly adds brass, harking back to the working-class colliers bands of the early 20th Century. In his reimagining of the song, rather than intensifying it he does the opposite, offering a calm and grounding resolution to an otherwise otherworldly album.

On his last record, I Would Not Live Always, John was much more conscious of bringing acoustic instruments and weird synthesized sounds together as a concept. But now with his unique musical language fully formed, “I feel freer within that language to experiment and take it further without it being too conscious or premeditated”.

Instead, the songs seem to live somewhere in John’s subconscious, as he is often able to visualize exactly how they will sound before putting them down. With ‘Kitty’, (famously recorded by Shane MacGowan on The Pogues’ debut, ‘Red Roses For Me,’) John had already heard a version of this song structured loosely in his head involving a drone, a warped clarinet, and a simple Robert Wyatt-esque beat. The result is a two minute lament after which sudden distortion punctures through a wall of sadness before pulling back completely to just a singular drone.

The sonic landscape created through the unconventional use of instruments jagged arrangements often teeters on the edge of disharmony, but it gives the work a magnetism by drawing you into its curious orbit of experimental folk. John masterfully unpicks traditional songs and rearranges them with an emotional force that sometimes leaves them unanchored. They float in a surreal space between the past and the present, the analog and the digital, between love and tragedy. Look Over The Wall, See The Sky is an album concerned with imagination, but not only with what John calls, “an imagined Ireland,” but also the re-imagining of traditional Irish music and the hopeful fantasy of an Ireland that could exist ‘over the wall’: powerful, hopeful and free.

Album Tracklisting:

The Zoological Gardens

Mole In The Ground

Willie Crotty

Kitty

The Seasons

Within A Mile Of Dublin

The Lag Song

Dirty Old Town

Forthcoming Tour Dates [tickets on sale now]:

 Fri, Dec 1^st – Set Theatre, Kilkenny

Sat, Dec 2^nd – Vicar St, Dublin

Fri, Dec 8^th – Roisin Dubh, Galway

Sat, Dec 9^th – St Luke’s, Cork

Sun, Dec 10^th – De Barras, Clonakilty

Thurs, Dec 14^th – Dolan’s Warehouse, Limerick

Fri, Jan 12^th – Out To Lunch Festival, Ulster Sports Club, Belfast

Fri, Jan 19^th – Brudenell, Leeds

Sat, Jan 20^th – Celtic Connections, Drygate, Glasgow

Sun, Jan 21^st – The Caves, Edinburgh

Tues, Jan 23^rd – The Exchange, North Shields

Wed, Jan 24^th – YES. Manchester

Thurs, Jan 25^th – Hare and Hounds, Birmingham

Fri, Jan 26^th – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff

Sat, Jan 27^th – The Exchange, Bristol

Tues, Jan 30^th – Concorde 2, Brighton

Wed, Jan 31^st – The Dome, London

Thu, Feb 1^st – Point FMR, Paris

Mon, Feb 5^th – Paradiso Upstairs, Amsterdam

Sat, Feb 10^th – Silent Green, Berlin

Thu, Feb 22^nd – Theatre Royal, Waterford

Following her high-energy single The Jewel In The Lotus (Kenny Dread Remix), West Cork singer Corinna Swara pulls the tempo down in a hypnotic blend of Spanish guitar and chillout groove for the new single release ‘Akasha.’ Co-produced with guitarist Kenny Dread, ‘Akasha’ also weaves field recordings from the Irish seashore, tribal djembe drums, and mouth percussion into the swirl.

‘Akasha’ is a Sanskrit word for space or sky and in yogic philosophy is the most subtle of all elements, preceding fire, water, and earth. Corinna Swara’s exquisite singing engages all these elements in this gorgeous new track.

Produced by Kenny Dread and Corinna Swara

Corinna Swara: singing, piano, synth, djembe, frame drum, rainstick, field recording

Kenny Dread: nylon string guitar, synth, shakers, drum programming

Contains upright bass samples from “The Music Of Space” as recorded by Breeda Murphy

Words by Corinna Fisher

Music by Corinna Fisher and Kenton Muschenheim

Connect with Corinna Fisher

Twitter | TikTok | Instagram

The Line is the pseudonym of Brian Dillon, musician, sound artist, and member of Meltybrains? who recently announced his forthcoming record ‘Red Blood Cells and Righteousness’ coming Weds 1^st November via Strange Brew. This communally created record comprises of 13 tracks that features some of the most exciting names in Irish music: Godknows, Sorcha Richardson, Dan Fox (Gilla Band), Sarah Corcoran (Pillow Queens), Caoi de Barra (Wyvern Lingo), Lullahush, + many more.

Following up from his recent single release ‘Patience of Saints’, with Godknows and MuRli, The Line shares ‘Communion’. Speaking about the song, Brian says:

 “Communion is a song about who you are, where you’re from and how the experiences of the past shape the person that you are now. In the song, both Loah and Fehdah explore these ideas from both personal and societal standpoints. It explores the regrets felt by individuals in a society which is built on so many mistakes that it may never be able to redeem itself.”

Stream/buy the track here: https://lnk.to/TheLine-Communion

ABOUT RED BLOOD CELLS AND RIGHTEOUSNESS:

Brian is a member of Meltybrains? and has worked with a range of Irish artists over the last 10 years, including Talos, Loah, Brídín, and Lilla Vargen among others. He has performed at many international festivals such as SXSW and Iceland Airwaves, and his music has previously been featured in Q Magazine, Boiler Room, and Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist.

In recent years he has gleaned a great deal of experience from collaborating with a range of musicians, as well as artists from a number of disparate disciplines, including JFDR, Anna B Savage, Emma Martin (choreographer), Ellius Grace (director), Emmet Kirwan (actor/writer), Mark McGuinness (photographer) and Kate Dunne (aerialist).

The wealth of collaborative experience has led to the basis for his new project. Red Blood Cells and Righteousness is a communally created record, built on the creative endeavours of Brian and a number of friends from within the Irish music world. The album is set for release Weds 1st November 2023 via Strange Brew. 

The 13 track collaborative LP focuses on the importance of community and communal values. The intention of the record was for the creative process to reflect the themes and content. As a result each song was a collaboration between Brian and some of his favourite Irish musicians, friends and most erstwhile collaborators. This includes Godknows, Loah, Sorcha Richardson, Dan Fox (Gilla Band), Sarah Corcoran (Pillow Queens), Caoi de Barra (Wyvern Lingo), and a range of others.

The sonic landscape of the album is varied, as each track came from a collaborative writing session. As a result, there are a multitude of reference points and influences. The influence of dream-pop acts such Beach House and Cocteau Twins, as well as noisier acts like My Bloody Valentine and Skunk Anansie is felt throughout. The songwriting continually pays homage to greats of contemporary alternative songwriting, including the likes of Sufjan Stevens, Frank Ocean, Phoebe Bridgers, Villagers, and Big Thief.

Speaking about the album, Brian says “This is an album built on personal relationships and communication, dedicated to playing a small but significant role as a part of a world so much bigger than any of us are willing to admit. After all, maybe we’re all just blood cells, swimming through the veins of the earth, serving a much higher function.”

Red Blood Cells and Righteousness will be released on Wednesday the 1st of November via Strange Brew, and there will be a small Irish tour to launch the record featuring guest performances from collaborators on the album.

TOUR DATES:

Nov 18^th – Róisín Dubh, Galway

Nov 19^th – Connolly’s of Leap, Cork

Nov 25^th – The Sugar Club, Dublin

Red Blood Cells and Righteousness

TRACKLIST:

1. Nothing W/ Lullahush
2. Communion W/Loah & Fehdah **NEW SINGLE
3. Earth Died Streaming W/Feel Bad Music Club
4. Hero of Coincidence W/Sarah Corcoran
5. I Know This Is Water W/Eamonn Dillon
6. Everything We Know in An Instant W/ Lullahush
7. Patience of Saints W/Godknows and Murli (previously released as a single)
8. The World Told No Lies W/Dan Fox and Nevv
9. Fruit Peel Path W/Caoi de Barra
10. A Trail, Thin but Beautiful W/Lullahush
11. Collar Bone W/Sorcha Richardson
12. Light Work W/Ben Bix and Micheál Quinn
13. A Crack Becomes a Crevice, A Foothold Becomes A Foundation W/ Eoin French

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/briantheline

Artist Website: http://briandillonmusic.weebly.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brian_dillon_is_sound/

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0uoS5ZiwVkX4qPs3ryEU7s?si=z8n6zX1oR828k59Y64gTDQ

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@theline8138

Enda Gallery has spent years crafting soulful and liberating music, exploring the depths of emotion through heartfelt, genuine songs conveying poetic expressions of his truth. His 2021 debut album “The Journey to Zero” earned him RTÉ Radio 1’s Album of the Week, with the single “Don’t Let Me Win” gaining acclaim from Cerys Matthews on BBC 6 and “It’s Alright” featuring on the BBC Introducing mixtape and hit series “Normal People”.

Now based in County Clare, his releases since “The Journey to Zero” only serve to emphasise his diverse talent as an artist. Drawing from the genre-defying expressiveness of Frank Ocean and profound candour of Sufjan Stevens, Enda Gallery has created work spanning from the triumphantly honest Liberation EP to his explosive collaboration with the two-time Grammy-nominated producer duo Christian Rich on ‘So Easy, Pt. II’ (Childish Gambino, Vince Staples, Drake). Paired with his collaborations with the likes of Niconé, Kid Simius, Dead Rabbit, Nobody’s Face and having produced Tolü Makay, Willzee, Strange Boy, and Mundy, Gallery has developed an undeniable talent for defining his own presence inside of a song through a stunning combination of self-determination and empathy.

Fresh from three American tours over 2022 playing solo piano shows which lean into his prowess as a songwriter, and the release of ‘Take My Hand’ in February 2023, Enda Gallery is now preparing to celebrate sincerity with the launch of his sophomore album, and shares his new single ‘Click’ today (Weds 18^th October 2023).

Stream: https://found.ee/EndaGalleryClick

Official Music Video:

Speaking about the new track, Enda says: “Click” is a song that embraces vulnerability, acknowledges the weight of life’s challenges, and ultimately finds solace in the pursuit of a brighter tomorrow. It’s a musical journey that mirrors the struggles and aspirations of many, offering a message of hope and the belief that, indeed, one day, it will all “click.”

And on his upcoming album “Birds of Paradise”:

“Singles “Take My Hand” and “Click” will have their place on my upcoming sophomore album, “Birds of Paradise.” As I continue to craft this album, I’m in a constant state of curiosity. It’s a journey of self-discovery, and I remain open to the unfolding of my creative spirit. I have no idea what the final form will be.”

“Birds of Paradise” is anticipated to be released on April 24, 2024.

Video Credits

Director/Producer – Enda Gallery

Camera/Director – Colm Hogan

Camera – David Qualter

Editor –  Dave O’Carroll

Music/Lyrics – Enda Gallery

Actor – Saoirse Harrington

Label – WELCOME TO THE NEW WORLD

Song Credits

Words & Music by Enda Gallery

Recorded & Mixed by Jeremy Nothman at Knockroe Studios, Kilfenora

Guitar, Vocals, Drums, Synths – Enda Gallery

Bass & Bass Synth – Jeremy Nothman

Mastering – Thommy Hein

Artwork photography – Vira Olevska

Artwork – Paul Smith

Social Links

Website: https://endagallery.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/endagallery

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/endagallery

Twitter: https://twitter.com/endagallery/

YouTube: http://bit.ly/2OmGRLK

Spotify: http://spoti.fi/3uOFGp0

Apple Music: http://apple.co/2O0wqgK

YouTube Music: http://bit.ly/3uPpT9r

Growing up, Cork artist Kevin was a non-verbal autistic child with an eating disorder and intense social anxiety. His solace for that anxiety was the theatrical videos, dramatic performances, and the larger-than-life persona of Meat Loaf himself. This sparked something in the silent boy. It sparked a flame that would lead to communicating, self-teaching himself piano and earning a First Class Honors Degree in Music. Though the journey was wrought with many anxieties, Kevin credits Meat Loaf’s “never ever quit” attitude as inspiration for getting through these tough times.

The two would ultimately meet virtually at GalaxyCon 2020 and struck up a rapport. Meat’s encouragement and friendship drove Kevin to overcome his anxieties as an artist imposed by autism and the Covid pandemic. What resulted was Embrace the World (Meat was in talks to partake in the supergroup before his passing) and a customer service role at Boots. To quote Kevin’s mother Cathy, “It’s like two births. You have the child that was and the young man that he is.”

Walsh teamed with Canadian-producer Taylor Harris on the track and immediately you can hear what Meat’s influence has meant to the young artist; the sense of drama and theatricality in the production, the sense of opera underneath the rock exterior. Joey Clarkson, Luna Olivia Avery and Marie Conniffe soar on a choral-backing vocal line that is equal parts John Williams, Jim Steinman and Queen. Between Kevin’s classically trained powerful tenor voice and Harris’ succinct attention to detail, they recreate the classic wall-of-sound that made the Meat Loaf original such an epic track while bringing it to a modern audience.

This influence extends further to the touching cinematic music video loosely inspired by A Star Is Born, written and produced by Walsh and filmed by deepRed Productions, whose previous credits include Miracle of Sound, crew for director Bob Gallagher and numerous worldwide award winning videos. It made its Irish premiere as part of Dublin International Short Film and Music Festival. Bow Street Academy graduate Claudia de Luca plays Kevin’s erstwhile love, as an X-Factor inspired audition for stardom tragically tears the duo apart. The video also features Timmy Dowd (Disenchanted) and Leila Ecker (Influencer / Miss Universe Cork 2020). Kevin himself also displays the expressive acting chops which landed him supporting roles in musicals like Into the Woods, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and the TV Series The Young Offenders. His career goal is to write a musical movie, and he sees this video as the pilot for that story.

Emerging onto the music scene in 2022 with the Autism Awareness themed supergroup Embrace the World (featuring the West End’s Caroline Kay and fellow neurodivergent nu-folk artist Emma Langford), Kevin Walsh soared straight to #1 on iTunes, #19 on the Irish Homegrown Charts, appeared on the Six O’Clock Show and headlined AsIAm’s Same Chance World Autism Conference 2022. Emboldened, he has now decided to strike out on his own as a solo artist.

His upcoming single, Not a Dry Eye in the House, a cover of the Diane Warren-penned Meat Loaf classic, is a prime example of Kevin’s influences and talents as a singer and an actor. A classically trained tenor with a rock edge comparable to Josh Groban and Colm Wilkinson and a style informed by years of musical theatre experience.

Kevin looks forward to a number of performances in Winter of 2023 to be followed by his debut EP in 2024, a concept piece further exploring the story found in his latest music video.

More than anything, Kevin wishes to let the world know what Meat Loaf and his music has meant to him. Not a Dry Eye in the House will be available on all major online music streaming platforms on 27^th October 2023.