Author: Breffni Banks

This week Charles Boulevard release a new video ‘To See You Again’.

The song is taken from their recent debut album ‘Rendez-Vous!’

The idea for the song developed from an experience had by drummer Berny P.B. When facing an excessive rent increase from his property fund Landlord, he had to leave his beloved neighbourhood in Prague.

Lyricist Dermot explains “The situation was all too familiar to those of us who lived through the financial crash in Ireland. Whether you live in Dublin or Prague, it seems it is the ordinary people who are the cash cows for these funds which are given free access to control the market of a most basic human right – affordable housing”.

Changing our cities and communities to places where  “the culture is the vulture” as they put it.

Musically the song is driven by a heavy guitar riff and drums to express the lyrical content but ends on an optimistic note with the introduction of a resonator/slide guitar.

“I’m moving on, I’ll find that higher ground”.

If not a house on a hill, at least let us hope metaphorically.

The band have been busy in recent months recording a new album which is scheduled for release early next year.

‘To See You Again’ is now available on all digital platforms.

http://www.charlesboulevard.com

Pete Kavanagh is an Irish musician and songwriter who hails from Co. Kildare.

His sound evokes the vintage quality of influences such as Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie and The Beatles, but with a contemporary style that is unique to him.

With evocative lyrics and a rich tapestry of sound, ‘Join Up the Dots’, is a love letter to authenticity and to the human Spirit.

The nine tracks on the album combine alt-country, folk and rock with an overriding Americana feel. Pete’s strong vocal carries the narrative throughout the songs, with a rich array of instruments opening the soundscape and ethereal female backing vocals and lush harmonies adding tonal tangents to the stories being told.

Pete is joined by a host of musicians on this album including Graham Hopkins (The Frames, Therapy?), Frankie Lane (The Fleadh Cowboys), Lenny Cahill (King Modo) and Hally.

The album opens with Pete’s debut single, ‘To Hold the Red Rose’, which was well received, reaching No. 4 in the Irish Singer-Songwriter charts, being featured on the RTE Radio 1 Recommends Playlist and reaching the semi-finals of The International Songwriting Competition (Americana category) announced in February 2021.

Pete released a further two singles from the album, ‘Hold On’ and ‘Mercy’, both of which showcase the rockier side of ‘Join up the Dots’. These singles have also been well received with National and International radio play.

The next single scheduled for release is ‘Sweet Friend’.  “’Sweet Friend’ might just very well end up becoming Pete’s own “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” type-tune – it’s got that similarly haunting, down-to-earth vibe and grounded perspective that sincerely connects and comforts in the oddest of ways.  A tributary tune that has all the stunning craft you’d find on the records Tom Petty was writing towards the end of his career on Wildflowers and The Last DJ and with the spirit & atmosphere of a Bob Dylan classic.”

Website – https://petekavanagh.com

Facebook – https://facebook.com/petekavanaghmusic

Instagram – https://instagram.com/petekavanaghmusic

Twitter – https://twitter.com/petekavanagh7

YouTube – https://youtube.com/petekavanagh1

Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/artist/4veGu1QjrqP8hvPROeNWXo

Soundcloud – https://soundcloud.com/petekavanagh

‘Songs’ is the new album from Dermot McKenna, singer-songwriter from Monaghan, Ireland.

He has been independently creating songs for many years, in an eclectic range of styles. Culled from numerous recording sessions, each song on the album also has a video to complement the audio.

Influences include Prince, Gorillaz and Liam O’Maonlai.

He is frontman and songwriter in punk-pop band Van Cleef, who played numerous gigs around Ireland including Whelans, Dolans, The Ruby Sessions and supporting The Damned in The Button Factory.

Solo gigs include Arcadian Fields, The Grand Social, Hilton Park and supporting Mundy @ Westpark 2021.

Spotify YouTube  Bandcamp  Twitter Instagram Facebook

IMRO members Rodrigo y Gabriela have received a GRAMMY nomination in the Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella category for ‘The Struggle Within’.

‘The Struggle Within’ comes from the star-studded ‘Metallica Blacklist’ compilation album released in 2021 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the band’s self-titled album. All proceeds from the release benefit a charity of each artist’s choice (Rodrigo y Gabriela‘s Whales in Guerrero) and Metallica’s All Within My Hands foundation.

In response to the nomination, Rodrigo y Gabriela took to their Twitter, to say:

In 2020, Rodrigo y Gabriela were presented with their first GRAMMY Award in the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album category for their album ‘Mettavolution’. This win was also the band’s first GRAMMY Nomination. Released in April 2019, ‘Mettavolution’ is the band’s fifth studio album. Described as, “the most ambitious music of their twenty-year career together,” ‘Mettavolution’ brings together Rodrigo and Gabriela’s passionate interest in Buddhism, the history of human evolution and the liberation of the potential we have as a species; all expressed through the medium of two acoustic guitars.

The 64^th Annual GRAMMY Awards will take place on Jan 31st 2022 at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles.

JYellowL releases his brand-new single ‘Appetiser’ featuring UK-based artist Antigoni, due for release Friday, 26th November 2021.

This is the second single taken from his upcoming EP due for release next year.

To celebrate, JYellowL will perform an intimate invite-only show in association with audiomack on Thursday, 25th November, in The Workman’s Club, Dublin, the day before the single drops on all major platforms. 

Speaking about the release and collaborating with UK-based artist Antigoni, JYellowL said:

“This song on first listen makes you want to move your body from the beginning to end. The creative chemistry between Antigoni and I was immediate and I think it shows how we bounce off each other and go back and forth to create this storyline. The production is banging and we all wanted to make something that merged both our styles, the result is wavey. But there’s a dichotomy in the lyricism and it’s actually a paradox , because on one hand, I’m saying I want something substantial from this person. I want someone to feed my soul, not an “appetiser” that’ll only temporarily satisfy me but on the other hand, I come across a little impatient like I’m shallowly content with rushing things to just have a taste.” 

2021 saw JyellowL’s critically acclaimed debut album 2020 D|vision nominated for Irish album of the year 2020 at the RTÉ Choice Music Prize Awards and debuted at number 2 on the official iTunes album charts as well as number 1 in the hip hop category.

The album served as a timely soundtrack and breath of fresh air for an overwhelming year, manifesting JyellowL’s intention to put Irish rap on the map as a force to be reckoned with on a global front.

JYellowL is emerging into this changing world of 2021 with a string of new releases and collaborations coming to fruition, having performed a dynamic and standout set as part of Extraterrestrial at the National Concert Hall, an event celebrating Black Irish identity. 

The next phase in his blisteringly fast rise is envisioned as ‘Yellowszn’. Listeners can expect a series of EP’s that JYellowL is calling ‘shades of yellow’ and which will reveal and explore new sides to him musically that hasn’t been shown before.

A recent trip back home to Nigeria which was longer than expected due to the pandemic lockdown gave JYellowL an unexpected and inspiring opportunity to tap into the deep-rooted and ever-innovative music scene there. Immersed in the surroundings and sounds, this time allowed him to connect and collaborate with cutting-edge producers and artists there, whose influence can be felt throughout yellowszn.

The first EP of ‘shades of yellow’ features production from Nigerian hit-maker Tee-Y who orchestrated the soundtrack behind the lead single ‘See Me Finish’ and has worked with the likes of Davido, M.I., Tiwa Savage, and more. The slick production of Nigeria-based producer StevJazz, who is signed to Aristokrat records, also helped shape JYellowL’s latest work. The horizon is limitless for an artist like JYellowL who continues to unleash music that connects a multiplicity of origins and cutting-edge collaborations while shaping his own distinct and undeniable voice.

LIVE DATES: 

25th November 2021 – The Workman’s Club 

Connect with JYellowL:

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Website | Spotify

Rising star Lorraine Nash returns with another beautifully crafted single with ‘Snowflakes’.

Due out December 13, Lorraine’s vocal wraps around the listener hygge-style like a warm blanket with a cup of hot chocolate, as she asks you to look up at the stars and hold on to hope, because “from the cold comes something beautiful”.

“There’s a crack, a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in,” said Leonard Cohen and Lorraine Nash writes about this with aplomb, from her powerful statement on female authorship on ‘Sing With Her’, to getting over heartbreak with ‘Wolves’.

In ‘Snowflakes’ she sings about holding onto to hope reminding us that “you can only know love if you’ve known pain”. Capturing the magic of winter and feeling as if it was written especially for the Christmas season, ‘Snowflakes’ is a song Lorraine first wrote when she was 16 which she returned to rewrite as she was putting together her debut album, due out in 2022.

The independent release of her debut EP Wildflower in 2020 saw the multi-instrumentalist quickly become one of the most played female artists on Irish radio.

Lorraine has made use of her skills on numerous instruments to self-record her eagerly awaited debut album alongside producer Herring Ahern set for release in 2022.

A spellbinding, live-streamed set at Cork Opera House in the winter of 2020 by the Kerry singer songwriter led to her signing with FIFA Records.

In the past year Lorraine has wowed audiences at the Ruby Sessions, Right Here Right Now Festival, (Indiependence presents) Autumn Air, Triskel Arts Centre, Cork Opera House, Kinsale Arts Festival and has performed alongside John Spillane, Jack O’Rourke and The Lost Brothers.

Lorraine releases ‘Snowflakes’ on FIFA Records December 13, 2021.

Upcoming Performances

November 27 – Triskel Arts Centre, Cork (support for Jack O’Rourke album launch)

Facebook: @lorrainenashmusic

Twitter: @lorrainemnash

Instagram: @lorrainenashmusic

IMRO member Johnny McDaid has just received a GRAMMY nomination in the Song Of The Year category for ‘Bad Habits’ by Ed Sheeran.

Released on the 25^th June 2021, ‘Bad Habits’ peaked at number-one in over thirty countries including Ireland, where it spent eleven consecutive weeks at the top of the Irish singles charts. McDaid is credited with a song writing, engineering, production and acoustic guitar performance on the track, which recently also picked up ‘Best Song’ at the 2021 MTV Europe Music Awards.

Johnny McDaid is a prolific songwriter and producer behind a wide array of recent chart hits including Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape of You’, ‘Human’ by Rag ‘n’ Bone Man and Zara Larsson’s ‘So Good’. Born in Dublin and raised in Derry, Northern Ireland, McDaid moved to London in his late teens and spent a decade leading his band Vega4, whose song ‘Life is Beautiful’ featured prominently in a number of US TV dramas and films. When that band split, Snow Patrol members Jonny Quinn, Gary Lightbody and Nathan Connolly set-up a publishing company, Polar Patrol Publishing, and made McDaid their first signing. Johnny has since written soundtracks and numerous songs for movies alongside Snow Patrol frontman, Gary Lightbody. McDaid went on to tour with Snow Patrol during the Fallen Empires Tour and subsequently joined the band. In addition, the GRAMMY nominated songwriter has worked with diverse artists such as Example, Robbie Williams, Biffy Clyro, Rudimental, Birdy, Kodaline, Faith Hill & Tim McGraw, BTS, Beoga and P!nk.

The 64^th Annual GRAMMY Awards will take place on Jan 31st 2022 at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles.

Anne Brennan brings her unique vocal talents to a brand new 2021 Christmas release ‘Christmas in Dublin’.

Anne, who hails from Maam, county Galway comes from a family steeped in musical tradition and has shared the stage with some of Ireland’s best artists including Damian Dempsey, Declan O’Rourke, Paul Brady and Sharon Shannon.

‘Christmas in Dublin’ was written by UL writing student Deirdre Devally in a collaboration with Galway musician Niall Teague.

The song was inspired by Deirdre’s own experiences, Deirdre states:

“While the song is specific to Dublin, I think the sentiment is universal – the longing of emigrants or those far from home to be with family. ‘Christmas in Dublin’ is written from the point of view of the one who is away from home but it’s also about the parents and grandparents left behind”.

The song features stalwart drummer Miki Belton and the talents of ‘Music Matters’ senior string ensemble.

‘Christmas in Dublin’ was recorded at Paddy Jordan Recording Studio and is set for release on Friday December 3^rd from iTunes, Spotify and all streaming channels.

For more information; https://www.facebook.com/christmasindublinsong/