Author: Breffni Banks

Irish four-piece band, VINCI (Kurtis, Noely, Andy, Leo), have spent the past 18 months planning a return to the stage. Riding a wave of publicity coming into 2020 off the back of headlining The 14th Annual Oscar Wilde Awards, selling out their first show with MCD and features in Hot Press and Billboard, their single ‘Lions’ received a big push at radio across the US, seeing them invited to meet major labels and management in LA in March 2020.

With the world as we knew it falling apart shortly after, they found new ways to focus their time. Lead singer, Kurtis, built a studio to record and produce for the band from home, and they spent every lockdown lift rehearsing, writing and recording new music.

With live music finally returning to our lives in late 2021, VINCI return to the stage at The Workman’s Club on Saturday, November 20th.

Tickets on sale now from Ticketmaster

Follow VINCI on Instagram

Let the colour drain from your face as you listen to the latest extraction from Dental Records ‘Alone In Monochrome’, due for release, Friday, 12th November. This coincides with the band’s upcoming Ireland and UK tour from December ‘21 to Spring of 2022.

The Zen Arcade are a garage rock band from Ireland that play original and prawn cocktail flavoured songs, composed of three ex-members of The Strypes. Their debut single ‘Don’t Say A Word’ was the flagship release on their own label Dental Records and gained a number 1 spot on the iTunes Singles Chart the day of release and entered the National Singles Chart at No.12. Extensive radio support across Ireland, UK, USA and European radio stations followed.

After a year that saw the band produce and release their own Livestream show, which was broadcast simultaneously across 8 venues in the UK, release two number one singles, appear on the Today Show, announce their own headline Irish tour and make appearances at Left Of The Dial Festival in Rotterdam and London Calling in Amsterdam, all whilst sticking to their monthly zine and podcast release schedule, The Zen Arcade is doing it all.

They decided to end 2021 with the third release from Dental Records, ‘Alone In Monochrome’. This newest single explores the realms of reverb and the depths of despair on this paean to pigments and lack thereof.

“I left a world that was technicolor, for a plane of existence that was your shade duller.”

This latest release tees them up nicely for their headline Irish tour in December and imminent headline UK tour in 2022.

 2021

Friday December 3rd – Sandinos, Derry

Friday December 10th – Winthrop Avenue, Cork

Saturday December 11th – Dolans, Limerick

Wednesday December 15th – The Roisin Dubh, Galway

Friday December 17th – The Spirit Store, Dundalk

Saturday December 18th – The Grand Social, Dublin

2022

Thursday April 7th – Lending Room, Leeds

Friday April 8th – The Attic, Glasgow

Saturday April 9th – Gullivers, Manchester

Sunday April 10th – The Cookie, Leicester

Tuesday April 12th – Rough Trade, Bristol

Thursday April 14th – Shacklewell Arms, London

Friday April 15th – Bodega, Nottingham

Sunday April 17th – Stockton Calling, Stockton

To connect with The Zen Arcade 

Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

Niamh Regan is a critically acclaimed songwriter from county Galway. Released in the midst of the lockdown in 2020, her debut album ‘Hemet’ announced her arrival as one of the most distinctive songwriters in Ireland today. Earning nominations for both the RTE Folk Awards and the Choice Awards Album of the Year, the album received soaring praise, and led to performances on The Late Late Show and Other Voices.

Following her studies at the University of Limerick, Regan honed her craft as a songwriter by travelling between Ireland and California, writing about her experiences along the way. As a result, her songs seamlessly weave the intimacy of the Irish lyrical tradition with the expansive breadth of American songwriters such as Karen Dalton, Stevie Nicks and Joni Mitchell, but the resulting sound is entirely her own.

A natural storyteller, Regan’s songs are windows into her world, snapshots of the intimacy of everyday life. This is evident on her upcoming EP, In the Meantime, which was generously supported by the Galway International Arts Festival Elevate Bursary. The EP is a collection of songs written during the challenges of the pandemic, exploring themes of acceptance, uncertainty, independence, family guilt, silence and ordinary acts of love. With her singular mastery, Regan’s songwriting draws us into the intricate details of everyday life and elevates them into something universal.

This week, Niamh performs at Right Here, Right Now Festival at Cork Opera House, Friday 12th November. Taking to the stage on the night will be Mary Coughlan, Wallis Bird, Loah and Niamh, accompanied by the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra. Tickets available at corkoperahouse.ie

And this weekend, Niamh embarks on a 9-venue ‘Hemet’ Ire/UK tour. With some shows already sold out and others filling up quickly, early booking is advised.

See Niamh and her band perform at:

• (SOLD OUT) Róisín Dubh, Galway w/ support from Molly O’Mahony | Sat 13th Nov
• DeBarra’s Clonakilty w/ support from Molly O’Mahony | Sun 14th Nov
• Levis’ Corner House, Ballydehob w/ support from Molly O’Mahony | Mon 15th Nov
• Dolan’s (Upstairs), Limerick (Presented by Seoda Shows) w/ support from Molly O’Mahony | Wed 17th Nov
• Whelan’s, Dublin (Presented by Singular Artists) w/ support from Tadhg Williams | Thurs 18th Nov
• (SOLD OUT) The Duncairn, Belfast w/ support from Laytha | Fri 19th Nov
• Spirit Store, Dundalk w/ support from D Cullen and Sinead McConville | Sat 20th Nov
• (SOLD OUT) Quiet Lights festival @ Coughlan’s Live | Sat 21st Nov:
• The Green Note, London, UK | Wed 24th Nov

Tickets for these shows are available via http://niamhregan.com/tour.html

FIND NIAMH ONLINE…

• Spotify
• Apple Music
• Twitter / @niamhreganmusic
• Facebook
• Instagram
• Bandcamp
• TikTok
• http://niamhregan.com/

If you’ve ever ended a relationship too early and had regrets you’ll see yourself in ‘Hurt You’, the latest single from Tebbitt.

More than an apology song about a break up, it’s an explanation of a poor decision and a hopeful invitation to a second chance. “The song is about a premature breakup, before hopefully getting together again,” explains Tebbitt. The indie-pop single will be released to streaming platforms on 9 November and can be pre-saved now.

Tebbitt is the mononym of James Tebbitt, whose layered voice carries the melody of ‘Hurt You’ over delicate synth riffs, understated drum loops, and bass guitar. With inspiration from indie-soul artists Jungle and Jai Paul to electronic duo Mount Kimbie, the production on ‘Hurt You’ is intentionally minimal. The song follows the release of Tebbitt’s first solo single, ‘Closer’ last May.

As the lead guitarist in the Irish-Canadian band ROMES (f.k.a. Nightbox), the Wicklow-born musician was based in Toronto with the band for 9 years. ROMES was signed to Five Seven Music and released an EP and an album produced by Grammy-nominated Tony Hoffer (Beck).  James co-wrote charting songs ‘Tryna Be’ which appeared in EA Sports Madden NFL 17 game and ‘Believe’ which was featured in TNT network’s 2017 NBA Playoff coverage. ROMES toured the U.S.A., Canada, and the U.K. and supported The Strokes, Ellie Goulding, and Death From Above 1979, among others.

The decision to leave the bandmates he’d played with for well over 10 years and return to Ireland coincided with the start of the pandemic. The ensuing isolation gave Tebbitt the time and space he needed to work through the end of that chapter of his life and write on his own. The result is an impeccable collection of 8 new indie-pop songs with Tebbitt taking on all vocals and instrumentation that lean into strong melodies with electronic elements. Tebbitt’s self-produced album “Errands” was mixed and mastered by Paul Vroom in London, Ontario, Canada and will be released in February 2022on his own label, Bitta Jam Records.

Fya Fox has today announced her gripping new single ‘Numb’, due for release 12th November 2021. ‘Numb’ is FYA’s final release of 2021, it exhibits raw emotion, honesty and a way of connecting with her fans. 

Speaking about her latest track ‘Numb’, FYA said:

“I was standing there singing at this funeral watching from the gallery and just couldn’t understand why I was so numb. I kept my composure the entire ceremony but as the coffin was being carried out I suddenly got this feeling, this is it, this is the last time I see you. My Granny, who was a major inspiration in my life passed away. A few days later I’d a zoom session with an artist in the US who I’d never written with before so didn’t want to cancel. Brompton the legend didn’t know what he had himself in for,  we wrote Numb and 5 days later I went into the studio with the incredible Matt Weir to record a rough demo. 

Numb is very different from my previous tracks, it’s the most honest! I really didn’t think I was going to release it but I feel so many people can connect and relate with it especially after the year we’ve had!”

Fya Fox is the exciting new prospect from Ireland spinning tightly wound yarns of brooding and emotive alt-pop. A classically trained vocalist straying beyond Ireland’s traditional country/folk scene, FYA’s influences span from Banks, Lana Del Rey and London Grammar. 

Fya’s previous singles ‘Body’, ‘Lies’ and ‘Sunset’ have already been supported by BBC Radio 1, 2fm, Today FM and the likes of Hot Press, Record of the Day, Nialler9, The Last Mixed Tape, Flavour Magazine, Fortitude & Alfitude + many more. 

TO FIND FYA FOX ONLINE, VISIT:

TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | SOUNDCLOUD | SPOTIFY

The debut EP from ANDI is based around different facets of mental health. Be it through her own experiences or her loved ones CEDAR WARD is a musical piece of healing. Having grown up visiting hospital wards and clinics from an early age, Amy created a fictional and non-fictional creative space to deal with past and present trauma.

The opening song HOUSEWIFE which was released early this year is a song that focuses on a feeling of despair and a desperate need to escape the mundane boredom of everyday routine. It touches on mental health, societal expectations and generally feeling low. The song slowly builds up tension towards a crescendo, the peak of which signifies a resistance to traditional values, and female empowerment.

‘Giving Up’, Andi’s previous release was written at a time of self-doubt. Amy had doubts whether to pursue music and let her inner thoughts sabotage her music career. The track, along with the very moving and powering music video, did very well and gained huge support from Hot Press, The Thin Air, The Last Mixed Tape, Golden Plec and The Verge Music News to name a few.

ITCH is a song about toxic relationships and Co-dependency.

CEDAR WARD is the title track from ANDI’S EP. It is based on mental health from a whole number of different perspectives based on Amy’s personal experience, her family, friends and news headlines.

ANDI states that “The whole EP was written at different times in my life. Housewife was written nearly ten years ago and I came back to finish it almost 8 years later, it brought up some past and present trauma but it’s healthy to acknowledge what wasn’t good for you in the past and how you have grown from it. Some of the songs were written during the early stages of lockdown for instance Cedar Ward. I was taken back by a tragic story on the news. It really affected me so I found myself furiously writing my feelings down and coming up with fictional and non-fictional scenarios which were influenced from growing up visiting mental health clinics which then formed the song and whole EP. We are all living in very hard times these days and it is so important to get that message out there that it is okay to not feel okay and to reach out for help. When I feel really low or very strongly about things I like to pick up the guitar and write how I am feeling. It’s very therapeutic and sometimes it ends up sounding like pure tripe, other times I might be lucky enough to get a solid tune from it but the main thing is I feel a lot better afterwards. We need to mind ourselves.”

ANDI is the new project from Amy Kelly, in which she steps out into the spotlight. Amy is a performer and ANDI showcases not just her presence as a live act but also her skill as a songwriter. ANDI started as an acoustic 2-piece and initially developed into a full band for a performance at Knockanstockan Music Festival in 2019. A stream of shows later that year led to the recording of ANDI’s debut single, ‘Hermit’.‘Hermit’  took influence from Tame Impala, The Pixies, Jeff Buckley & Elliot Smith. It was featured in Nialler 9, Hotpress, The Last Mixtape, it was featured on a number of Spotify Playlists and received national radio airplay.

In February 2021 ANDI released Housewife which had already received reviews and features from the likes of Hotpress magazine, Imro Ireland and Golden plec as well as some national airplay and Spotify playlists. Housewife is a dramatic song about feeling trapped in an  everyday routine, societal expectations of women and the boredom of normal life. This is the first single from the upcoming Cedar Ward EP. Having been chosen as ‘Whelan’s ones to watch ‘, A sold out show in The Grand social and SIN E this autumn, ANDI is an artist you want to keep your eye on this year.

ANDI’s recent release in September, ‘Giving UP’ took up press support by storm with features in HotPress, The Last Mixed Tape, The Thin Air, Ick Mag, Golden Plec, The Verge Music News, Music from The Heart and Spotify Playlist’s such as Signal Flow. She is now ready to release her Debut EP which is her most powerful piece of work to date, proving that she is a unique artist that is on the rise.

She is set to launch her debut EP in Dublin’s Iconic venue Whelans on November 12^th.

TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

With the blessing of the Moloney Family, The Chieftains and Claddagh Records release a complete career retrospective, featuring over 60 audio and visual tracks from the world’s most celebrated traditional Irish band.

 “Over the last few months Paddy was instrumental in putting the Chronicles project together – whether it was choosing versions of a recording to include, working on the track list, or approving the artwork – he really enjoyed being involved and it meant so much to him seeing this come together on Claddagh Records, The Chieftains first ever record label, and one which Paddy ran for several years, producing much of its catalogue. We are so happy that he got to see the final version. The album is a fitting tribute to Paddy and The Chieftains.” The Moloney Family and The Chieftains.

In advance of their 60th anniversary next year, The Chieftains will release Chronicles: 60 years of The Chieftains on November 12th, 2021 on the Claddagh Records label. The project, which has been in production for the last twelve months, was postponed following the untimely death of Paddy Moloney, the group’s founder and leader, in October. However, following consultation with Paddy’s family and the remaining members of The Chieftains, the project has been completed as Paddy wished with the original artwork, track list, liner notes and footage.

The release marks the first time ever a complete career retrospective from The Chieftains has been released and includes tracks from across the band’s discography – from their very first album release Chieftains 1 right up to their most recent studio album release Voice of Ages – and includes seminal collaborations with The Rolling Stones, Paulo Nutini, Diana Krall, Alison Krauss, Van Morrison and Sinéad O’Connor. It also includes previously unreleased recordings from Live at The Royal Albert Hall, Live at The Cambridge Folk Festival as well as footage and recordings from the BBC and RTÉ archives. Chronicles: 60 years of The Chieftains will be available across multiple formats including 2CD, 2CD/DVD, 2LP, 3LP (Ireland only), Digital Standard and Digital Deluxe.

Founded in 1962, winners of six GRAMMY® Awards and an Academy® Award, The Chieftains have popularized traditional Irish music world-wide during their 60-year career. Their ability to transcend musical boundaries to blend tradition with modern music has notably hailed them as one of the most renowned and revered musical groups to this day.

Their repertoire was, and is, largely of Ireland. Well-established dance tunes such as Drowsy Maggie and The Chattering Magpie were given a new invigorating life by the group, not to mention eminent songs and airs that might be described as their signature tunes. Foremost among these must be Mná na hÉireann (The Women of Ireland) whose haunting melody, composed by Seán Ó Riada, continues to resonate and remain relevant in the twenty-first century. Their instrumental version was released in 1973 on the album The Chieftains 4 and their version of the song, based on the Irish of the eighteenth-century poet Peadar Ó Doirnín, features prominently on the sound- track to the film ‘Barry Lyndon’ released in 1975. Kate Bush, Mike Oldfield and Sinéad O’Connor are among the famous performers of the piece.

Their inspirational musicianship is reflected on tracks such as Brian Ború’s March from The Chieftains 2 and Carolan’s Welcome on The Chieftains 9 (Boil The Breakfast Early). Drawing from the vast well of Irish tradition, this ensemble blended old and new and remained totally committed to their genre.

In addition to the audio recordings, Chronicles: 60 years of The Chieftains also includes a bonus DVD that gives an insight to the visual history of the band. The performers’ hairstyles and fashions may have evolved down the years, but even now as they approach their 60th anniversary, that magical experience The Chieftains give their listeners, is as strong and as vibrant as ever.

The legacy of The Chieftains is immense as evident from this collection. Chronicles: 60 years of The Chieftains is a fitting tribute to a unique group of musicians.

Following a phenomenal media reception to new singles ‘The Ground’ and ‘Apocryphal’, Limerick collaborators windings’ prepare to release their upcoming album, Focus On The Past 5, on November 12.

Recorded by Girlband’s Daniel Fox Focus On The Past 5 sees windings delve a little deeper into the ingenuity that has made them one of Ireland’s most captivating and innovative bands over the last decade.

Focus On The Past 5 is an uncompromising, unrelenting, yet rewarding look at life in all its prisms. A deep dive into the half remembered truths of youth, confusion and doubt, uncertainty and fear, the perception and resigned acceptance of the inevitability of end times.  What makes the album stand out in the Irish music landscape is windings awareness of place where they find and take comfort in the familiar. It’s a slice of dystopian edginess from the Limerick outfit, bringing their inimitable musical imaginations to the table once again.

New singles ‘Apocryphal’ and ‘The Ground’ seeped into the consciousness of Irish media and refused to leave. ‘Apocryphal’ is about the seemingly universal human desire for “happiness” and how that desire might become all-encompassing and potentially damaging if we don’t take some time to acknowledge that there are in fact other humans around us, living, breathing, and also trying to be happy. Meanwhile, the fuzzy bass on ‘The Ground’ that sits under the breezy track is indicative of the darker lyrical themes that lie beneath an almost playful facade . . . sometimes it’s hard to keep the mask on.

In recent years, windings have captured imaginations with the Choice Music Prize-nominated, I Am Not The Crow (2012) and Be Honest And Fear Not (2016) – two albums of musical ingenuity, innovation and lyrical complexity.   On the new album the band say: “The songs sat and matured like stinky cheese for all of that year, briefly getting an airing for one or two live streamed shows we were able to do over lockdown. While the music and arrangements didn’t change hugely over the course of the year, the lyrics and themes are very different to the 2019 versions, as life unfurled in many different ways for the different members of windings. “

‘The Ground’, ‘’Apocryphal’ and the subsequent album Focus On The Past 5 are getting their release on one of Ireland’s longest standing and critically renowned independent labels, Out on a Limb Records. Focus On The Past 5 was recorded & mixed by Daniel Fox at Sonic Studios and mastered by Richard Dowling at WAV Mastering.

windings are a 5-piece rock/alt/pop/indie/folk band from Limerick City featuring Stephen Ryan, Liam Marley, Patrick O’Brien, Mike Gavin, and Brian Meaney. A one-time one-man endeavour since Giveamanakick’s Steve Ryan released the eponymous Windings album in 2005, the band expanded to a quintet by It’s Never Night in 2010. Since the release of their Choice nominated third album I Am Not The Crow in 2012, the band released split record with Dublin indie outfit Land Lovers in 2014 and collaborated with fellow Limerick act Rusangano Family and Naive Ted. The Choice nominated Be Honest and Fear Not was a return to form in 2016. During lockdown, windings members kept themselves busy with solo projects (King Pallas), recording and mixing other bands (Powpig, Annas Anchor, Japanese Jesus) and collaborations and album guest spots with the likes of Denise Chaila and Murli.

‘Focus on the Past 5’ is out Friday November 12th.