Alternative folk mainstay Junior Brother boldly stakes out new ground with a fresh and daring single called ‘The Men Who Eat Ringforts’ , out Wednesday 22nd November, 2023 via Strange Brew , and the accompanying music video. In support of this exciting new release, Junior Brother will tour Ireland, the U.K. and Europe from November into February of next year, including a full band show in Whelan’s , Dublin on December 23rd . Tickets and more information are available at www.juniorbrother.com
“The song recounts a scene in rural Ireland all too common today: the bulldozing of a ringfort for a coming motorway,” explains Junior Brother, a.k.a. County Kerry’s Ronan Kealy. ‘The Men Who Eat Ringforts’ is a twitch of frustration, spat into modernity’s hollow wheel before it clears the way. Sacred things unseen to the suits are still there for them willing to look.”
The unsettling music video, directed by Ellius Grace , features Junior Brother himself as one of those suits, being held captive by a mummer and ultimately succumbing to his own hubris. The visuals “represent the push-and-pull between modernity and the earth, and how the two are ultimately interlinked,” Junior Brother shares.
The brand new release follows on from June’s epic Junior Brother’s Favourite EP and 2022’s highly acclaimed Double LP The Great Irish Famine , its “wry songs of anxiety and frustration” (The Guardian) described by MOJO Magazine as being “Truly unforgettable”. Now, this new single boldly signposts an exciting new chapter for the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards and Choice Music Prize nominee’s stunningly distinctive sound.
A truly unmissable live act, “equal parts familiar and bracingly unique … If you get a chance to catch Junior Brother live, do not pass it up” (Dazed Magazine).
You can also listen to Junior Brother on The IMRO Podcast with Zara Hedderman from September 2022:
Junior Brother Tour Dates
Mon 20th Nov: Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Tue 21st Nov: Poppodium Hedon, Zwolle, Netherlands
Wed 22nd Nov: Victory Podium, Alkmaar, Netherlands
Thu 23rd Nov: Poppodium Twente, Enschede, Netherlands
Fri 24th Nov: De Oosterpoort, Da Groningen, Netherlands
Sun 26th Nov: Headcrash, Hamburg, Germany
Mon 27th Nov: Marie-Antoinette, Berlin, Germany
Tue 28th Nov: Café V lese, Praha, Czech Republic
Wed 29th Nov: VooDoo Club, Warszawa, Poland
Thu 30th Nov: Pod Minogą, Poznań, Poland
Fri 1st Dec: Flex, Vienna, Austria
Tue 5th Dec: Cactus Club, Brugge, Belgium
Wed 6th Dec: Merleyn, Nijmegen, Netherlands
Sun 17th Dec: Dolans Warehouse, Limerick, Ireland
Sat 23rd Dec: Whelan’s, Dublin, Ireland
Thu 28th Dec: DeBarras Folk Club, Clonakilty, Ireland
Thu 1st Feb: Bobik’s, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK
Fri 2nd Feb: The Hug and Pint, Glasgow, UK
Sat 3rd Feb: Gullivers, Manchester, UK
Sun 4th Feb: Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds, UK
Wed 7th Feb: Hare & Hounds, Birmingham, UK
Thu 8th Feb: Canteen, Bristol, UK
Fri 9th Feb: The Star Inn, Guildford, UK
Sat 10th Feb: The Smokehouse, Ipswich, UK
Mon 12th Feb: The George Tavern, London, UK
