Tag Archives: Limerick

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Anna’s Anchor – new single Hampton and album

What you may need to know…

01. Limerick singer-songwriter Marty Ryan lives and works on the road under the nom-de-guerre Anna’s Anchor.

02. Never short on ambition, the indie/emo-influenced troubadour has self-released singles, EPs and a zine; travelled to each of the islands off our coasts and written/released a song about each; and in the process of shooting the massive album artwork for new album Nautical Miles (available for pre-order here), wound up catching pneumonia.

03. Streaming above is the video for the album’s lead-off single, Signal Tower. Filmed while on tour around Ireland, it takes in 200 locations and over 1300 road-miles. Also above, brand-new single Hampton, available for free download.

04. Playing this Sunday at the Nvr Mnt Records BBQ in Greystones, you can catch him throughout August in Belfast, Tralee and Cork.

Verdict: Honest in his endeavours, and earnest in his creations, without being either overwrought or cliched. A journey worth taking in, stories worth sitting down for.

Anna’s Anchor

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Same D4ence – new EP released this morning

What you may need to know…

01. Recent featurees in this column, the trio of Size, Hazey and MC B more than merit repeated mention.

02. Following the release of the video for A Beauty Named Shannon, as well as an acapella appearance at The Hip Neck Blues Collective‘s farewell show, the trio release their second EP, Exclamation Marks!, via Limerick hip-hop cornerstone The Unscene.

03. Stream (and download) the EP in its entirety in the widget above. Production from one-man duo Deviant & Naive Ted, and guest appearances from members of trad iconoclasts Lynched and beatmaker Mankyy.

04. A compelling bonus take from the shoot for the Beauty video, a freestyle filmed in an old handball court and making the most of the acoustics there, can be found at the band’s Facebook.

Verdict: A singular, focused slab of eloquent, yet distinctively Limerick-accented hip-hop, that raises the bar that little bit higher.

Same D4ence

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Iron Mountain – playing Dolan’s alongside Shardborne

What you may need to know…

01. Woodwind and uilleann pipes lead the prog-rock march of Limerick five-piece Iron Mountain.

02. Debut album Unum, initially a self-release, has recently been reissued and repackaged as part of their deal with German metal label/distributor Prophecy Productions.

03. Streaming above is the video for leadoff single, Enthralldom.

04. See them next on Monday July 25th at the Kasbah in Dolan’s, Limerick, as part of a double-dose of hometown prog, alongside the phenomenal Shardborne.

05. They then head away to Germany to partake in Prophecy Fest, in Balve, alongside bands like black metal/shoegaze luminaries Alcest and Les Discrets.

Verdict: Progressive, psychedelic and krautrock influences provide another new angle on our own trad/folk, with impressive results.

Iron Mountain

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windings – new music en route

What you may need to know…

01. Limerick five-piece windings have outlived and outlasted their DIY forebears and become a staple of Irish independent music.

02. Emerging from the ashes of beloved hardcore duo giveamanakick, they’ve since trod the boards with Daniel Johnston, Smog/Bill Callahan, Bob Mould, Okkervil River, Caribou, Iron And Wine, Villagers, Teenage Fanclub, Kurt Vile, and Modest Mouse on their way to releasing three full-lengths and multiple singles.

03. Streaming above is the band’s most recent release, digital single Stray Dogs/Helicopters. Production on the B-side from Limrock noise-hop luminary Naive Ted.

04. New album Be Honest and Fear Not is on the way, and the band’s label is clearing house to make room. Long-running Shannonside label Out on a Limb currently have a summer sale on, with 25% off everything with discount code OOALSALE. Music on CD, vinyl and tape, including Rest, Owensie, Shardborne, and reissues from giveamanakick and Tooth.

Verdict: A hint at a more foreboding, eclectic direction for the veteran alternative outfit.

Windings

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Same D4ence – releasing the video for A Beauty Called Shannon

What you may need to know…

01. Limerick rappers Size, Hazey Haze and MCB, along with collaborators, are Same D4ence.

02. Coming to prominence in the last two years after an appearance at 2014’s Make-a-Move festival, the collective has hit the ground running, taking in appearances at Scrobarnach and Electric Picnic.

03. Last year’s Basic Instinct EP featured production from Irish hip-hop luminaries Naive Ted and mynameisjOhn.

04. Streaming above is new single for A Beauty Called Shannon, which sees Ted reprise production duties and members of Lynched provide instrumentation. Video production from Steve Savage.

Verdict: Tackling the topics of suicide, mental health, and the search and rescue operations in their hometown, it makes for uncompromising but compelling listening.

Same D4ence

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The Hip-Neck Blues Collective – farewell gig in Limerick tonight

What you may need to know…

01. Hip-hop with a live blues/folk tinge was the order of the day for Limerick five-piece The Hip-Neck Blues Collective.

02. Forming in 2011, the band quickly garnering followings in their respective genres in Ireland, and sharing stages with Scroobius Pip, B.Dolan, DJ Woody and Sneaky Soundsystem, amid gigging around Ireland and various radio session appearances.

03. Streaming above are the band’s sole EP, Millie, released in 2012, and the following year’s Bill Murray video, directed by Shane Serrano.

04. Their last gig ever (for now) happens tonight at Cobblestone Joe’s in Limerick. Kick-off at 9pm, free in.

Verdict: A Venn diagram of sounds and influences that came together in distinctive fashion. Get out and bid them farewell if you can.

The Hip-Neck Blues Collective

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Zealot Cult – Eternal Winter

What you may need to know…

1. Hailing from Limerick, four-piece Zealot Cult offer up an uncompromising slab of death metal heft, paying homage to the the genre’s old masters.

2. Appearing regularly on metal bills and all-dayers around the country over the past few years, the band have notched up a solid live rep, including shared stages with Exhumed, Primordial and Decapitated among others.

3. Eternal Winter is taken from their new EP Karmenian Crypt, available directly from the band on CD. No digital downloads or any other such fripperies exist as of (Word)press time.

4. The band appear next on May 13th in Fibbers on Parnell Street, as part of Carnage Metal Club, with Malthusian and Coscradh.

Verdict: As mentioned on other online outlets, there’s a bit of Floridian genre legends Obituary here, right down to the Tardy-esque vocals. There’s polish and weight to it, without sacrificing the intensity that makes them worth seeing live if you’ve the chance.

Zealot Cult

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Jonen Dekay – Passionate Example mixtape

What you may need to know…

01. Released last Friday, 17-year-old wordsmith Jonen Dekay‘s debut mixtape Passionate Example (streaming above) showcases the Limerick rapper’s scarily accomplished lyrical prowess and maturity.

02. Dekay is the product of the current swathe of Music Generation workshops in Limerick, overseen by Rusangano Family rappers GodKnows and Murli, and Andy Connolly, better known as one-man duo Deviant & Naive Ted.

03. The latter’s fingerprints are subtly identifiable throughout the mixtape, as the masked man stepped out of his box of pro-wrestling VHS to get behind the desk to record and mix the whole affair.

04. The whole mixtape can also be streamed and individual tracks downloaded via Soundcloud here.

Verdict: Dekay’s stream-of-consciousness style, seething observations and unabashedly accented delivery give an indicator of what we can expect from the Limerick rapper in the future. Daycent Irish hip-hop, to say the least.

Jonen Dekay

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Michael Noonan at the Limerick Count Centre last night

Michael Noonan has this morning taken one of the last two seats in Limerick city..

Frilly Keane writes:

A media blackout on Noonan was in place until the call…In the end it was 393 Surplus transfers from Shinner Maurice Quinlivan that actually got him elected (without reaching the quota BTW )

So here’s what I want ta’ know, will Miriam [O’Callaghan] be asking Michael Noonan to say thank you to Sinn Féin?

Previously: Grace, Noonan And Monageer

Pic Eric Clarke

Mick-T-Woc

 

T-Woc – Jetstar Vol. II E.P.

Here’s what you might need to know:

1. Producer from Wicklow releasing through Limerick’s The Unscene label, responsible for putting out some of the cream of Irish hip-hop in recent years.

2. Wonky, bassy, dubby instrumental hip-hop with a gentle tinge of psychedelia and noise. “On a bit more of a tropical tip these days”, says himself.

3. Supported Eek-A-Mouse on Irish tour, and has produced an acclaimed mix for All City Records, among other things.

4. New E.P. Jetstar Vol. II came out this week on The Unscene’s Bandcamp page, available for streaming and download in the platform’s usual ridiculous array of formats.

5. This release was preceded with the first ever press release your writer has ever received that has been written entirely in the form of dialogue.

Verdict: Dig in. Quality, quirky, dubby instrumentalness that’s well worth a lash.