Author: Breffni Banks

Spearside are a three-piece, lead by brothers Oisín (vocals/guitar) and Cian Walsh (vocals/bass), along with Dylan Zovich (drums). The band produces all of their music from their own home-studio in Trim, Co. Meath.

Their single “Bus Stop” was released on 17th August 2022 through new independent Irish label Kill Cool.

The Steve Lamacq Show on B.B.C. 6 Music instantly championed “Bus Stop” and compared Spearside to the Ulster punk bands of the late 70s from Good Vibrations Records, notably The Undertones, as well as Ash, who continued the Ulster guitar pop tradition through the 90s.

Keiran Rogers of Clout said, “Debut single ‘Bus Stop’ is short and sweet, but is a wonderful showcase of both how melodic and emphatic their sound can be.”

Early November will see Spearside release their second single “Crack In My Brain” which shows their Teenage Fanclub and Power Pop influences shining through.

Drawing on influences such as The Byrds, The Stooges, Badfinger, The Saints, Agent Orange, Dinosaur Jr, and Teenage Fanclub, the Walsh brothers focus on moulding their influences to fit their own identity, rather than moulding themselves to fit their influences. The reality of multiple influences competing for the same space makes it hard to fit Spearside into a category cleanly, as they sound like everything and nothing you’ve heard before.

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Cork based producer Bantum releases his latest single “On The Double” on Tuesday October 4th. Following his 2021 EP “New Leaf” and 2020 single “Gully” Bantum is back with an epic two part instrumental track!

Having garnered a reputation for collaborating with artists across the country spanning multiple genres, Bantum is returning with this solo orchestral electronic funk workout. Heavily inspired by the likes of DJ Shadow, Moby, Caribou, Jon Hopkins & Olafur Arnolds “On The Double” opens with a rolling delayed piano with beautiful cellos backed by Bantums signature electro funk beats. The track builds towards an epic second part mixing orchestral string samples, bass synths, cello, bass guitar and much more.

In his words “I began working on the first part of the track in late 2021 in Cork before coming up with the second part while traveling to Los Angeles for a gig with Loah. The track itself really feels like two parts coming together, and they both evoke feelings of two very different places to me. Even the artwork by Shane O’Driscoll adds to the story depicting an image of LAX. It’s essentially a bridging point between the two places. This was my last travel destination pre lockdown and happened to be my first travel destination post lockdown. The title “On The Double” references the two parts of the track alongside an urgency I felt while working on it. I absolutely love mixing strings and electronic elements to my music. Having done this before with Gully I feel like this is another progression sonically. It feels like a precursor to another direction I’m hoping to take next year with more collaborators”

Music mixed, produced and mastered by Ruairi Lynch. Artwork by Shane O’Driscoll.

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Paddy Hanna shared his bright new alt-pop single ‘Nightmares’ on Wednesday, 28th September 2022 , and announces the release of his fourth studio album Imagine I’m Hoping via Strange Brew on Friday, 21st October 2022 .

Imagine I’m Hoping will be available digitally and on limited edition Buffalo Yellow vinyl. Pre-order it now from Strange Brew . 

‘Nightmares’ sounds like anything but; a sunburst of piano and sweet harmonies soar throughout the track. Paddy knows how to craft a delectable pop melody.

“There aren’t enough love songs about nightmares,” Paddy shares about the new single.

“My partner and I often have very troublesome dreams, the kind where you find yourself waking with a scream and a gasp for air. On many of these occasions my partner would be there to offer comfort and assurance that everything was alright, upon reflection I realised this was an achingly romantic notion, that of a frightened soul being comforted by the person they love the most, of love waiting for you at the opposite end of darkness. The song pretty much wrote itself from there,” he explains.

There are few artists who could count Burt Bacharach and Fontaines DC amongst their fans but Paddy is one of them. The Dubliner has long eschewed passing fads in favour of timeless melodies and fine songwriting, leading indie music bible The Quietus to call him “a songwriter with a propensity for wildly infectious hooks and choruses that burrow into your brain with no intention of leaving.”

One thing is for sure, since 2014’s debut Leafy Stiletto , 2018’s Frankly, I Mutuate , and 2020’s The Hill , Paddy has been basking in the light of something quite pure, and perhaps unexpected from someone who has previously been influenced by darker subject matter—love.

“Everything about this new record is borne out of love, which is the first time I can say that,” he says. “During the pandemic, I got engaged and married. The album was recorded while there was a baby in my wife’s belly. Everyone who worked on the album, I have the greatest affection for. It was just a lovely experience. It was love on top of love. The album, thematically, is about letting go of things.”

Album opener ‘Look For Tomorrow,’ with its bright strums of guitar and Paddy’s impressive falsetto, certainly embodies this sentiment of moving on from the past. The song ends on a bombastic note, buoyed by brass fanfare; it’s a watershed moment to prepare us for the rest of Imagine I’m Hoping.

‘A Dancer’ follows with indie fervour: furiously cascading piano, sleigh bells on the chorus, and an ebullience that propels you to the dancefloor. Paddy’s delivery is whisper-soft on the classic pop tune ‘New York Sidewalk,’ made with the help of frequent collaborator Daniel Fox (Gilla Band ).

“The whole crux of ‘New York Sidewalk’ is that things in life that happen that can be bad can become funny in later life, you know,” he explains. “So, like, going to New York and trying to make a name for yourself out there, but instead making a tit out of yourself. But then the song ends looking back in a bit of a Hemingway situation, where you’re telling the story to someone and it’s like ‘It made you laugh, saw you smiling, that’ll do.’ See what I mean? It’s about not being a victim to the past anymore.”

Despite Paddy’s more summery sound on Imagine I’m Hoping , he is still deeply influenced by horror movies and all things macabre.

The record as a whole is cinematic; ‘Say Goodbye’ and ‘Yellow Buffalo’ would be right at home in a modern Western, thrumming with harmonica and rattling, Americana-inspired percussion. The jazzy ‘Symphony Bacalao’ is positively vaudevillian, and Paddy shows off his unexpected sense of humour here, declaring, “Oh, what a shit show!”

Rollicking single ‘Yoko Ono’ is accompanied by an appropriately colourful and bizarre music video featuring a surreal talent show and Paddy himself, of course. Directed and edited by Alex Lynch (who’s previously worked on videos for SOAK , Irish Women in Harmony , and more) and Liam Farrell, the video proves just as playful as the song itself.

Paddy says: “I feel the directors and crew captured the fear, anxiety and joyful absurdity of a performer’s life. Perhaps the most concerning part is that despite the video’s peculiarities, it mirrors reality to an almost uncomfortable degree.”

“The song started as an improvised rap about Mike love from The Beach Boys, and over time it mutated into a cheerful bop about an identity crisis. There isn’t a day where I don’t feel like an imposter, so why not write a catchy tune about it,” he shares.

The much-anticipated follow-up to 2020’s The Hill , this new record has already gained early acclaim with lead single ‘New York Sidewalk’ proving one jangly, jovial chord at a time that it is possible to climb the radio charts with a song that as far from generic as they come. Nialler9 wrote that it “bursts with shimmering piano notes, parps of brass and gorgeous backing”  and Stereogum speculating that the “wistful, lush song, all plinking piano and cooing background vocals” may be signalling a new direction for Hanna.

With a new, more optimistic Paddy Hanna now in the driving seat, 2022 may well be the year that this idiosyncratic underdog rises up to take his rightful place centre-stage.

Praise for Paddy Hanna

“wickedly smart” – NME

“a wonderfully idiosyncratic musician, crafting songs that could have something classicist and occasionally straight-up Old World to them, but filtering them through a modern disposition” — Stereogum

“beautifully crafted, thoughtful work” — The Irish Times

Connect with Paddy Hanna

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The Black Captain are a 3-piece band from Balrothery Co Dublin. Featured in 2013 by 2XM as best of Irish for their debut single ‘Calling to you’ the band went on to release their self-titled debut EP in 2015. After a long hiatus the band reformed in 2019 and began working on their debut album in Crookedwood studios Slane with producer Dave Arkins.

In July 2022 they released their most recent single ‘One Last

Summer’ which gained critical acclaim in Hotpress magazine who premiered the video and described the track as ‘Infectiously catchy, gripping you from the first listen’  and The Last Mixed Tape who described it as ‘Big, ambitious indie-rock that leaves a lasting impression’. The band have also recently received airplay on RED FM, RTE 2XM, KCLR FM, BEAT 102/103, LMFM, and performed a live acoustic session on South Dublin FM. The single was also featured on Playlists by Hotpress, Goldenplec and HearOne.

The band are made up of close friends Paul Rock, Alan Lynch and Dermot Hagan and have been creating music together as long as they can remember. The name comes from navigating life’s challenges through the darkness and back into the light. The Black Captain’s sound is rooted in Alternative rock, indie and Americana taking in elements of Sam Fender, The Killers, Bruce Springsteen, The lemonheads and with a touch of 90’s guitar pop sprinkled on top. Drenched in festival sing along choruses and soaring melodies their latest music is sure to grab a hold of you and never let go.

SUNSHINE IN MY MIND:

Hot on the heels of their recent critically acclaimed single ‘One Last Summer’,

The Black Captain are back with their highly anticipated second single ‘Sunshine in my mind’.

According to the band it’s a raucous indie anthem, driven by a relentless frustration and the seemingly endless noise that is disconnecting and isolating people the world over. Sunshine in my mind captures the pressure that society places on people to exist rather than live and how the power to change lies inside each and every one of us.The band are excited to share this singalong anthem rooted in influences from Indie, alternative and americana.

Fans of artists like Sam Fender, Radiohead, Bruce Springsteen, Oasis, and The Killers will love this record.

The track was written by Paul Rock (Vocalist and Guitarist),

arranged by The Black Captain, recorded, and produced by David Arkins @

Crookedwood studios, Slane Co. Meath, and Mastered by SoundPorter in Nashville, Tennessee.

“Big ambitious indie-rock from The Black Captain, the driving sound of ‘One Last Summer’ finds The Black Captain has a jangled, laid back sound that leaves a lasting impression” – The Last Mixed Tape

 “Infectiously catchy, gripping you from the first listen” – HotPress

Connect with The Black Captain

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“A poet turned musician – or, perhaps, the opposite, Christian Wethered is a delicate, slow-burning artist who explores life through his lens, with subtle songwriting and poetic lyrics.” – James Hendicott (Goldenplec, NME, Dublin Live)

“Drawing influence from the legendary likes of Leonard Cohen and Lou Reed, Dublin-based singer-songwriter Christian Wethered is poised for major success on these shores and beyond, with the release of his debut album, Mon Petit Jardin, later his year” – Hotpress

Dublin based poet and singer-songwriter Christian Wethered is back for an intimate gig at  Arthur’s Jazz and Blues Bar, and a double-headliner slot with Paul Sherry. After his mainstage performance at Beyond the Pale Festival, he will be bringing the autumnal vibes with his highly anticipated single ‘Wait’. The gig will also showcase his quiet sound in a more acoustic venue, featuring his partner Sachita Suryanarayan on backing vocals, and Evin O’Brien on electric guitar.

This comes only a few days after the video for his single ‘La Madeleine’ was made an ‘Official Selection’ for the Dublin International Short Film and Music Festival. As well as being an acclaimed musician, his debut poetry book, ‘Harbour’ also won the 2021 Melita Hume Prize. Blending his two passions, Christian’s spoken, poetic sound is something that stands him out from the crowd, offering Leonard Cohen-parlando sounds alongside sharp imagery and spare melodies. Having already picked up widespread acclaim from the release of his album Mon Petit Jardin, alongside radio play on RTE1, RTE Culture and Today FM, Christian Wethered has built a reputation for himself and boasts an ever growing fanbase, with performances all over Ireland including The Ruby Sessions, First Fortnight, Beyond the Pale and Electric Picnic.

Christian Wethered // Paul Sherry will play Arthur’s October 22nd

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The first ‘Views of the Valley’ songwriting retreat, supported by IMRO, took place last week in Shillelagh, Co. Wicklow.

15 Songwriters and Producers came together from all corners of Ireland to focus on writing songs to pitch for Eurovision 2023.

Songwriters were able to express interest throughout the month of June. After a large volume of expressions of interest, 15 Songwriters, Producers and Artists were chosen to participate.

The participants came from a diverse range of genres, including folk, EDM and R&B.

The event was held on the remote, beautiful grounds of Minmore Mews, where the participants stayed for the duration of the retreat.

Guest visitors included Charlie McGettigan, who shared an insight into his 1994 Eurovision win and his experience as a Songwriter, as well as lending an ear to the songwriting sessions.

For more information on this retreat and future retreats, follow @viewsofthevalley on Instagram.

‘…and the Sea’ is the fifth studio album release by Irish singer-songwriter, David Hope. Both lyrically and musically, this is the deepest dive that Hope has taken into his songwriting and recording. Through capturing a mix of raw emotional acoustic tracks and full band epics, this makes for his most complete album to date.

The album was recorded and produced by Christian Best at Monique Studios, Middleton, Cork. The approach taken by Hope and Best to the album’s production was to try and capture the performance of each song in as much of a ‘live’ way as possible. This was in an effort to be as true to each song, but ultimately to have an overall ‘Album’ sound, rather than a collection of individual recordings: – “There are different styles and different inflections to the songs on this album, but there is definitely a thread that connects them from how we approached the recording process. I wanted a late night, close feel to the sound and I think between Christian’s recording style, the players who were part of the project and the songs themselves, we achieved that.”

Hope was joined for the recording sessions which took place in July – October 2019 and February 2020 by Steffi Hess from Switzerland on double bass and vocals. From Ireland, session musician, Kealan Kenny from Cork, features on electric guitar; alongside Darragh Keary from Limerick on piano and keys. Additionally, Chris McCarthy from Cork also makes an appearance on E bass. Christian Best lends his talents on drums and percussion, just as he did on Hope’s previous album ‘Tough Love’ (2017).  “I have been extremely lucky to work with many great musicians over the years, both live and in the studio. While the recording sessions for this album were some of the most personally draining and hard to deal with, from a musical perspective, they were some of my favourite times spent in the studio. The excellence of the musicians involved along with the mix of personalities and energies made for incredibly productive and genuinely fun recording sessions. I owe them a great deal.” The first release from Hope in almost four years marks an evolution of his sound, of which signs were present on his last album, ‘Tough Love’ (2017). With the benefit of having time to flourish, both musically and lyrically, this collection of songs is Hope’s most accomplished work to date.

Reflecting on the album David say “My new album is called ‘…and the Sea’, and although it has a lot to do with ‘The Old man…’; specifically my old man and less so Hemingway. This album is largely my attempt to find the words to deal with the loss of my father.  A man I loved “to the moon and back” and respected deeply. He was every bit as much my Dad as he was my best friend; so letting go and saying goodbye was and is terribly hard. While in the effort to find the words to express my grief and love for him, I also found the words to finally write a song about my home county of Clare. The song ‘Lovers Leap’ is the type of song which he was always encouraging me to write. I also found words which I’d long tucked away of: “I hope you find your way back home” – a farewell refrain to my grandmother, Maggie King.  While this album is deeply personal, and inevitably sad at points, I do hope it is equally universal in the sense that if we are lucky, we’ll get to live long enough to say goodbye to those we love. This is the ultimate beauty and tragedy of life.”

Impact single ‘Burning Question’ is released on 9th September and is a song of deep reflection woven in a tapestry of a lonely pilgrimage. A journey to back to start, to rediscover one’s drive, one’s purpose: “…in search of the source of this raging river, that has no water” and to once again, to be true to oneself: “The burning question is do you remember what you promised yourself you would be”.

Clare singer-songwriter, David Hope kicked 2022 off with the two new singles, ‘Moon and back’ and ‘Whiskey Mornings’. Both singles are from his forthcoming fifth studio album ‘…and the Sea’ which is out in September 2022. Having previously worked with Irish folk legends, Terry Woods and Declan Sinnott, Hope has collaborated yet again with legendary producer and drummer, Christian Best, on his new album.

‘…and the Sea’ is the fifth studio album release by Irish singer-songwriter, David Hope. Both lyrically and musically, this is the deepest dive that Hope has taken into his songwriting and recording. Through capturing a mix of raw emotional acoustic tracks and full band epics, this makes for his most complete album to date.

The album was recorded and produced by Christian Best at Monique Studios, Midleton, Cork. The approach taken by Hope and Best to the album’s production was to try and capture the performance of each song in as much of a ‘live’ way as possible. This was in an effort to be as true to each song, but ultimately to have an overall ‘Album’ sound, rather than a collection of individual recordings: –

 “There are different styles and different inflections to the songs on this album, but there is definitely a thread that connects them from how we approached the recording process. I wanted a late night, close feel to the sound and I think between Christian’s recording style, the players who were part of the project and the songs themselves, we achieved that.”

Hope was joined for the recording sessions which took place in July – October 2019 and February 2020 by Steffi Hess from Switzerland on double bass and vocals. From Ireland, session musician, Kealan Kenny from Cork, features on electric guitar; alongside Darragh Keary from Limerick on piano and keys. Additionally, Chris McCarthy from Cork also makes an appearance on E bass. Christian Best lends his talents on drums and percussion, just as he did on Hope’s previous album ‘Tough Love’ (2017).

“I have been extremely lucky to work with many great musicians over the years, both live and in the studio. While the recording sessions for this album were some of the most personally draining and hard to deal with, from a musical perspective, they were some of my favourite times spent in the studio. The excellence of the musicians involved along with the mix of personalities and energies made for incredibly productive and genuinely fun recording sessions. I owe them a great deal.”

The first release from Hope in almost four years marks an evolution of his sound, of which signs were present on his last album, ‘Tough Love’ (2017). With the benefit of having time to flourish, both musically and lyrically, this collection of songs is Hope’s most accomplished work to date.

Hope has gigged and toured extensively in both his native Ireland and mainland Europe, averaging in excess of 200 shows per year. During this time, Hope has built a reputation as one of the very best live performers on the touring circuit today.
‘Tough Love’ (2017) built on the success of ‘Scarecrow’ (2013) which garnered extensive radio play and successive tours both in Europe and Hope’s native Ireland. The first single from ‘Tough Love’, ‘Christmas Day’, was chosen as the RTE Radio 1 song selected for the European Broadcasting Union Christmas Music Project and featured on a playlist across all member states.

Connect with David Hope

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Cormac Russell releases the latest track ‘Holes’ from his forthcoming album A House In Kyiv. Listen below:

Canadian born but raised in Ireland, Cormac Russell has taken his music across the globe, including tours in England and China. He released his acclaimed fourth album titled ‘Ghost Town’ last year, which won some very favourable reviews in the press, as well as airplay on national and international radio. He will be releasing his fifth LP titled ‘A House In Kyiv’ this November. Playing all the instruments himself, he draws from a wide range of influences; from indie contemporaries like Kurt Vile and Bill Callahan to literary giants like Whitman and Rimbaud.

Connect with Cormac Russell

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