Author: Breffni Banks

Farah Elle’s long-awaited debut album Fatima arrives next month, on October 7th, the day after Farah’s birthday.

Farah has named her album after her mother, Fatima Hamroush ; an incredible woman who returned from Ireland to Libya in 2011 to become Minister of Health in the Libyan Transitional Government after the fall of Gaddafi. You can read more about their amazing family story in Farah’s recent cover feature with the Sunday Times Culture Magazine, here .

Today, the Libyan-Irish singer and composer shares a wholesome, uplifting new single, ‘Laundry’, which is also a tribute to Fatima – but this is for the woman she calls ‘Mom’.

“The thing I really love about ‘Laundry’ is what it represents. It’s one of the only love songs I’ve ever written and it’s about how I learned what real love is from my mom,” says Farah. “I came home exhausted from playing a festival one day, and I knew I already had a huge pile of laundry waiting! When I opened my bedroom door, to my surprise, I discovered that my mom had already done all of my laundry and left it folded neatly on my bed. At the time, I was going through a rough break-up and was wondering what love was all about. That day, I realized what true love is. It’s legit when you come home and find your laundry done – just because someone wants to make your life that little bit easier. This is a song for the people out there who do the most.”

Blending her signature Arabic-inspired, strong rock vocal with complex piano arrangements, Farah Elle makes timeless music with a modern edge reminiscent of Tori Amos, Kate Bush, Kimbra and Asa.

Farah says of this track: “Laundry is probably the most wholesome track on the album. We recorded it last and it was (engineer / producer) Duane Gallagher’s idea to put it as the last track on the album. He is one of the people who made this album come alive and, like the rest of the team, we all poured so much of our hearts into this one. We got everyone involved in the album, as well as my family and a few friends, to meet in the studio and record the sing-along on the track as a sort of finale. Whenever I play this live, I get the audience to do the same sing-along with me and it gets such a great reaction.” 

Farah Elle’s powerful cadence is a commanding force amongst instantly captivating cinematic soundscapes. Through songwriting, the North African-Irish artist explores her heritage and upbringing and how it manifests as she experiences life.

On her debut album FATIMA , due for release on Friday 7th October 2022, themes of displacement in the period post-Libyan Revolution coexist with songs navigating the challenges of adulthood. Farah describes this introduction as a “coming of age record”, one across which she hears herself “unfolding in the songs”. Farah Elle has melded her combined North African and Irish heritage to create a sound that is thoroughly contemporary and completely her own.

To date, Farah has played numerous prestigious venues and festivals including Vicar Street, The Sugar Club, Electric Picnic, and All Together Now. In November 2021, Farah collaborated with renowned Irish folk musician Liam Ó Maonlaí for a performance commissioned specially for the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards. As well as working as an artist, Farah dedicates time to humanitarian aid work and working with young people from ethnic minorities on creative expression through music. She also gives music and wellness workshops to people of all ages and backgrounds.

Connect with Farah Elle 

www.farahelle.com

SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC | AMAZON MUSIC | BANDCAMP | YOU TUBE

A beguiling vocalist with a storytelling approach to songwriting, Sarah Buckley captured an immediate audience with the release of her debut single ‘You’ve Got Me’.

With a national TV performance, national airplay (1.3 million radio impressions), festival appearances and growing industry interest, it was no surprise when she was nominated for the title of Best Newcomer by Pure M magazine, and was listed as a One To Watch by legendary venue Whelan’s.

‘On the move a lot at the time, Magic Powers is about meeting someone that made you feel you could stand still following a restless period. It talks about how the company of the right person can make the mundane seem special and the tricky parts of life more manageable.’ – Sarah Buckley

Hailing from Cork, and describing herself as an ‘indie folk singer songwriter’, Sarah built on this early success by collaborating and recording with some of Ireland’s leading music producers, Karl Odlum (David Kitt, Gemma Hayes), Darragh Nolan (Ailbhe Reddy) & Richey McCourt (LAOISE, Will Young) over the past year. The results of this will be released as two sister EPs in the coming months. Balancing themes of nature & mysticism, with relatable and razor sharp lyrics, the collections allow Sarah’s infectious and haunting vocal style to shine through.

With residency support ranging from Tommy McLaughlin (Villagers, SOAK), to Rocky O’Reilly (Gary Lightbody) it’s no great surprise that Sarah’s music has already started to earn domestic and international attention, with two of her compositions becoming semi-finalists in the International Songwriting Competition and a sponsored spot on a Nashville songwriting trip during summer 2022.

In an industry that stacks the odds higher for female artists, through sheer talent and individualism Sarah Buckley is positioned to become everybody’s new favourite singer songwriter.

Connect with Sarah Buckley

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Spotify

Today, SoFFT Productions with the support of Meath Arts announce In The Middle of The Fields, an evening of music, poetry, and performance, created in response to the writing of Mary Lavin. The event will take place on Saturday, 8th October in Dunderry Park, Co. Meath. Tickets are €22.50 and are available from Tickets.ie.

Playwright Deirdre Kinahan has curated this event with musicians, actors, and spoken word artists. Speaking about the event Deirdre Kinahan says: “Each artist is invited to read Mary Lavin’s’ evocative short story collection ‘In The Middle of The Fields’ and see what strikes them, what inspires them. Mary Lavin once described the short story as “akin to ‘Lightning’s Flash’ because it has the ability to light up an entire landscape in one moment.  She was both a brilliantly gifted and quietly subversive storyteller with an unflinching insight into the human soul. Her stories lifted the latch on the screaming passions, conflicting impulses and social barricades that beleaguered Irish life.  There is an electricity to her writing, my hope is that we can tap into some of that extraordinary energy with you ‘In the middle of……the room’. No story is complete without its audience.” 

They will all come together to sing, play, speak, read or perform their responses on the evening of October 8th at Dunderry Park Co. Meath in front of a live audience.

Deirdre Kinahan’s best-known Plays include The Unmanageable Sisters, Rathmines Road, Moment, Halcyon Days, Bogboy, Hue & Cry, Melody, Spinning, and her Irish Revolutionary History Trilogy Wild Sky, Embargo, and Outrage.

Mary Josephine Lavin (1912 – 1996) was a major Irish short story writer and novelist whose work stands in comparison with Chekhov.  She is regarded as a pioneering female author in the traditionally male-dominated world of Irish letters. Lavin’s work contains sharp insights into the quiet tragedies and joys of human life and she is considered one of the great artists of the short story in the English language.

’I myself at times have had such a feeling of life’s rushing past, that I wanted in my stories to arrest that onrush and examine an instant or a character in the same way that a scientist examines a specimen under a microscope: – when you see the many small inner patterns below the large pattern of a whole life.’’ Mary Lavin.

Performing at this special event will be artist and musician Steve Wickham, known as a member of one of Irish most loved bands ‘The Waterboys’. Steve has recorded with scores of artists including Elvis Costello, U2 and Sinead O Connor. He is a multi-instrumentalist and has composed extensively for film and theatre and plays regularly with his own band in Sligo, NoCrows. 

Joining Steve Wickham will be Singer-songwriter Saramai Leech. A member of the art-pop band Pearly (Perlee) her work also spans performance, sound design and composition, music in healthcare, and collaborative work in the areas of theatre and poetry. She has enjoyed radio play across National Irish and French Radio as well as performing at festivals such as Electric Picnic and Other Voices to name a few. 

Having established his music career when he relocated to New York City a decade ago, Michael Brunnock was delighted to have Talking Heads David Byrne cast him to sing the role of an Irish musician whose voice guides Sean Penn through an emotional journey in This Must Be the Place (2012). Michael went on to win an Italian Oscar (Di Donatello) for ‘If it Falls” in the best original song category and recently won the Jury Award at the Bologna Film Festival for his music in the film ‘In the Name of Gerry Conlon’

Wayne Sheehy is an intensely active musician, writer and producer as well as the creator and producer of the TV show “The Last Pub in Ireland”. He has worked with U2 frontman Bono, Van Morrison, Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones and Faces, the Animals’ Eric Burdon, Bo Diddley, Bobby Womack, Paul Brady, Paul Young, the Chieftains, Hot House Flowers, and many more. A Producer/composer and multi-instrumentalist, he owns Ocean Studios located on the shores of Bantry Bay in West Cork. 

Gerardette Bailey is an award-winning singer-songwriter who has toured and recorded extensively both at home and abroad. Her voice and music have been used in the film, dance, installation, and animation works, winning many accolades and awards. She is currently working on a collaborative project with an album due for release in 2023.

Actress Catherine Byrne will bring Lavin’s voice into the room performing from the stories that inspired the artist’s new works. Catherine trained at The Abbey School of Acting and is an accomplished actress known for The Tudors, Taffin, Nightflyers, Dancing at Lughnasa, and as Dr. Judith Dillon in Fair City. 

Sasha Terfous ​​is the current poet Laureate for Wexford and one of the most important figures in Ireland’s spoken word community. With her knowledge, eloquence, and passion, she aims to narrate life’s experiences and encourage her audience to reflect upon themselves and their decisions. Using her work as a form of activism, her poetry draws attention to the voices that should be heard and issues that need to be addressed.

Brother Josh, aka Josh Bass, is building on the success of his first two singles, ‘Crawl Back’ and ‘Waves’, with a new single ‘Build It Back’ to be released on September 14 and his debut 5-track EP of the same name on October 21, 2022.

‘Build It Back’ the single has a vocal that swaggers and swings on top of chunky full-blooded guitars and drums, and a definite whiff of classy pop. The eagerly-awaited Build It Back EP will include all three singles, plus ‘Turn the Page’ and ‘Cut A Switch’ to concoct a generous slab of frontline Irish pop-rock.

All five tracks poured from Dubliner Josh’s songwriting pen in an intense creative period during the last lockdown. As Josh himself explains, “The absence of live music and face-to-face interaction with other writers during the lockdowns created a logjam of emotions that is now pouring out in exciting new recordings. In truth, I’ve never been this excited about my music, and I know that other musicians feel the same about theirs. Although the competition out there among bands is very healthy and very competitive, all the feedback we’re getting from music fans about the state of Irish music right now is to be celebrated.”

His debut single ‘Crawl Back’ showcased Josh’s dramatic vocal style and his expressive way with lyrics but the on-line response surprised him. “We had terrific feedback in Ireland but we were amazed to see that 80% of streams of ‘Crawl Back’ were actually from overseas, including the USA and Britain.”

Modern technology enabled Josh to work on the basic structures of his songs via the Garage Band app and then build on that in the studio with Josh himself on guitar and vocals, plus his cousin Daire Bass on guitar and backing vocals, the inventive Bulgarian producer Yanko Genov and drummer Alan Connon.

With his tongue only slightly in his cheek, Josh reckons the band is well on its way to fulfilling the prophecy of music guru Louis Walsh who spotted them on RTE’s programme Sessions From Oblivion and said, “I reckon that if Brother Josh makes the right moves he has the creative potential to do really well.”

So it’s no surprise that Damien Dempsey then offered Brother Josh a support slot on his recent nationwide tour. Nor that Alan Corr on www.rte.ie described ‘Crawl Back’ as “a vaudevillian waltz of doom” or that Jackie Hayden of Hot Press said, ‘Crawl Back’ is where post-lockdown passion meets high-intensity drama. We need more if it.”

All five tracks on Build It Back will be available on Spotify and all key global platforms from October 21.

Joe Dolan, one of Ireland’s greatest singers!

Throughout his singing career his energetic and charismatic stage performances thrilled audiences throughout the world. From his first hit in 1964, ‘The Answer To Everything’, through the 70’s with hits such as ‘I Need You’ and ‘Sweet Little Rock ‘n’ Roller’, the 80’s with ‘More and More’, It’s You, It’s You, It’s You’ and ‘Goodbye Venice Goodbye’, The 90’s with ‘The Universal’ and into the new century with a musical collaboration with The RTE Concert Orchestra.

15 years since his passing in 2007, his music is as popular as ever.

To mark his 15^th Anniversary, Joe’s family are  taking their show ‘Remembering Joe’ on a Nationwide Tour.

Joe’s brother Ben, who shared the stage with his younger brother for 47 fun-filled years will highlight Joe’s successful singing career. He will be joined on stage by Joe’s Niece Sandra, Nephew’s Adrian and Ray with Singer Karen Carroll and members of Joe’s original backing band. A nostalgic evening of hit after hit.

’No Show Like A Joe Show’ was the catchphrase used to describe Joe’s live shows and how they used to put people in a happy mood.

Celebrate the Music of One of Ireland’s Greatest Singers at – ‘Remembering Joe’, you will be singing and dancing along to all those famous Joe hits!

‘I still miss him everyday, but his music and meeting our friends at the shows keeps me going, I don’t feel 88’- Ben Dolan

Tickets for the Remembering Joe 15^th Anniversary Tour go on sale Friday 16^th September at 10am from Venue box office and ticketmaster.ie

28/12/22 The Landmark Hotel  Carrick on Shannon ( Ticketmaster.ie )

28/01/23 UCH Limerick (Box Office www.uch.ie or 061 331549)

03/02/23 Tullamore Court Hotel (Ticketmaster.ie)

11/02/23 THT Galway (tht.ie)

18/02/23 Glencarn Hotel Castleblayney (Ticketmaster.ie)

25/2/23 Cork Opera House (Corkoperahouse.ie)

Czech Republic native Yana has an Irish heart. Having established herself on the singer/songwriter scene by writing deep lyrics wrapped in atmospheric melodies, she released her debut EP “Distant Shore in 2020. She worked with the likes of Liam Ó Maonlaí (Hothouse Flowers) or Colm Mac Con Iomaire (The Frames).

The pandemic gave her more time to be creative which resulted in the collection of songs that will form her debut album “Journey of the Soul”. The first single “Reach Out”, carrying a theme of mental health, was released in February 2022, receiving good support from reviewers and the radios alike. Second taste of the album, “Calm Before the Storm”, came out in June 2022.

Now, Yana releases the third, entitled “Funeral of Life”. Inspired by and written during lockdown, the song sees Yana play 12 string guitar and Daryl Ball (Stripped) adds an oriental vibe with strumstick dulcimer. The song is about adapting to changes and everything life throws in your way.

“Lockdowns were tough for everybody, the creative industry suffered immensely yet the situation made us reflect and not take even the smallest things for granted”, says Yana. “The title may sound like a desperately sad piece. Quite the opposite. I hope its message will inspire the listeners. There are things in life we cannot predict but even the worst times don’t last forever.”

“Funeral of Life” comes out on September 21^st 2022.

Connect with Yana

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Photo: Dave Keegan

Róisín Seoighe & IMLÉ  are set to release their new single Éad on Friday September 16th.

The single is produced by Gary O’Reilly of Irish duo Mix & Fairbanks. This new remix version of last year’s collab between Róisín Seoighe & IMLÉ takes the song from its RnB origins to a more dance orientated sound, all the while showcasing Seoighe’s incredible vocal performance.

IMLÉ are a collective of musicians under stewardship of Dublin based musician and producer Cian Mac Cárthaigh. IMLÉ mix different musical styles and artforms together in a way that has never been seen or heard before in the Irish language musical sphere. Their second album FÁILTE ISTEACH is available now,and sees Mac Cárthaigh working with an eclectic group of musicians, namely: Ríona Sally Hartman, Róisín Seoighe, MC Muipéad, Fergal Moloney agus Dave Hingerty, with Karl Odlum and Ross Whyte on remixing duties.

Róisín Seoighe   Róisín Seoighe is a musician and singer from Conamara in Galway. Her music mixes different genres from pop & folk to traditional music. Róisín began her musical life as a Seán Nós Singer and you can still hear traces of that in her work. Róisín aims to mix different styles in a way that has never been heard before, especially in the Irish language. Her music and lyrics cover many different topics from language rights, our relationship with the world around us and finding hope in despair.

Up-coming gigs Cian Mac Cárthaigh, Róisín Seoighe and Ríona Sally Hartman will be the Belfast International Arts festival on October 14^th, playing songs new and old from IMLÉ’s catalogue at Áras Mhic Reachtain. Kerry based poet & rapper Súil Amháin will also be playing a set on the night.

After 15 years at the top of their game, The High Kings are still selling out venues around the world to an ever-growing army of loyal fans. 

Having already surpassed a million listeners on Spotify as well as 2 platinum albums in their time, The High Kings are celebrating 15 years together by releasing 15 brand new tracks to their fans as well as 22 dates tour of Ireland with “The High Kings XV TOUR”

Widely regarded as the standard-bearer for their genre The High Kings continue to surprise and delight and The High Kings XV TOUR together with 15 newly reimagined tracks is just the beginning of their electrifying plans for 2023.

In their time together, ‘The High Kings’  have charted across the world and performed for hundreds of thousands of fans, as well as in many prestigious situations including for the Prime Minister of England (2011), Barak Obama( 2012) & George W Bush ( 2009 at the White House and at The Pentagon (2015)

Notable performances include Glastonbury, the Isle of Wight ( 3 times – headlining in 2015), They appeared in Time Square & also headlined the St Patrick’s Day concert in Trafalgar Square London (2015). The High Kings continue to set the bar extremely high for Irish folk bands across the world and 2023 will be no different.

Speaking about “The High Kings XV TOUR” Brian Dunphy said: It’s been an amazing journey so far and to be celebrating such a milestone with a huge Irish tour is amazing. We can’t wait to bring our brand new stage show, and our new music to our Irish fans – and we have a few surprises too!

Fri 9th Dec: Maritime Hotel, Bantry

Sat 10th Dec: Langtons Hotel, Kilkenny

Sun 11th Dec: I.N.E.C., Killarney

Tues 27th Dec: Waterfront Hall, Belfast

Thurs 29th Dec: Fairways Hotel, Dundalk

Sat 7th Jan: Theatre Royal, Waterford

Fri 13th Jan: City North Hotel, Balbriggan

Sat 14th Jan: National Opera House, Wexford

Fri 20th Jan: Sligo Park Hotel

Thurs 26th Jan: Millennium Forum, Derry

Sat 28th Jan: Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan

Tues 1st Feb: Cork Opera House

Fri 3rd Feb: University Concert Hall, Limerick

Sat 4th Feb: Kilmore Hotel, Cavan

Sun 5th Feb: Vicar St., Dublin

Fri 10th Feb: Radisson Hotel, Athlone

Sat 11th Feb: Leisureland, Galway

Sun 12th Feb: Keadeen Hotel, Newbridge

Proudly presented by Singular Artists 

Tickets on sale from Friday 9th September

Paul Sherry is one of Northern Ireland’s most respected musicians. An award winning guitar player since the age of sixteen and husband to the infamous Grainne Duffy who he also performs with, he has just released his solo album titled ‘Let it Flow’ which has received album of the week on RTE Lyric Fm and is currently getting regular airplay nationwide.

Performing with a number of music projects and touring internationally with his wife Grainne, 2022 will see Paul’s busiest year to date!

His new album” Let It Flow” is a mixture of meditative acoustic with electric roots, rock songs.

His raw rust and dust vocals and guitar playing live is a journey from acoustic to electric that flows from start to finish with energy, spirit and feel.

arbutus are an Irish Pop/Electronic trio who quit their jobs and moved to Canada on separate journeys. Whilst over there they met and formed the group arbutus. The name originates from the street they lived on in Vancouver, where they wrote their first songs together.

The group consists of members Dylan Kelly (Lead vocals & Producer), Josh Murray (Vocals & Guitar) and Jonny McIvor (Guitar & Bass).

Their new single ‘Faded’ is the second instalment in a trilogy of songs that they are releasing that describes the path from trepidation to termination of a couple’s demise.

‘Faded’ describes the realization phase of the demise of the relationship. The song has a serious, solemn message delivered with an energetic, uplifting beat that makes it very digestible. arbutus’ music paints a picture of behaviours that they have observed in modern life in a sometimes satirical way using catchy hooks to get their message across.

Their goal is to show people how important it is to pursue your passion no matter what stage of life you are at. “People are too constrained by societal standards and we want them to break out of that”.

With ‘Faded’ being the second instalment of the trilogy, the anticipation builds for the third and final instalment of the story.