Tag Archives: new Irish music

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I Am the Cosmos – new single and launch gig this weekend

01. Ross Turner and Cian Murphy are Dublin electronic duo I Am the Cosmos.

02. 2013’s debut album Monochrome was an impressive statement of intent, and made off with Nialler9’s Album of the Year. They’ve kept appearances scarce since, but have signed a publishing deal with magnates Faber Music.

03. Streaming above is the band’s new single Letting It Go, released earlier this month via Happy Valley Records digitally and on 7″.

04. Launch show goes down tomorrow night at the Bello Bar in Dublin. Support from Padraig Moore and a DJ set from the good folk behind culture blog/collective This Greedy Pig. A tenner in, tickets available here.

Verdict: Minimal, yet spacey electronica with a stern-faced, almost post-punk sensibility.

I Am the Cosmos

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Jimmy Penguin – New album Rust

What you may need to know…

01. Galway-based skratchologist and manipulator of sounds Jimmy Penguin unleashes Rust, his fifth (!) long-player this year.

02. He’s been throwing them out on the DL, and moving in a more techno/minimal direction all the while, including collab albums with fellow Galwegian Acidfeen and DJ Chile. Find his discography here, much of it free/donations.

03. Streaming above is Rust, a platter of wonky, alien breaks and beats released a week or two back.

04. When not constantly moving his own game forward, he also runs Alkalinear Recordings, an online label dedicated to left-of-centre electronics. He’s also a co-founder of Galway’s annual Community Skratch Games.

Verdict: Forward-thinking, fearless and p-p-prolific as of recent, JImmy Penguin shows ’em how it’s done.

Jimmy Penguin

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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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Nxstalgic_ – releases Motorola beat tape on Soft Boy Records

What you may need to know…

01. Decent (instrumental) Irish hip-hop from Leeside beatmaker Nxstalgic_.

02. Independently released an album and two EPs between August of last year and February, all available here.

03. Streaming above in its entirety is new beat tape Motorola, available for pay-what-you-want download.

04. Released via upstart Irish hip-hop collective Soft Boy Records, among them former Broadsheet featuree Kojaque, Matt Finnegan and Kean Kavanagh.

Verdict: Impossibly smooth, yet suitably gritty. Don’t sleep on it.

Nxstalgic_

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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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Ghostking – released new EP

What you may need to know…

01. Oddball, noisy/reverby pop is the order of the day for Cork’s Matt Corrigan, operating under the pseudonym Ghostking.

02. Surfacing as a solo project from Cork’s diminutive but feverishly active all-ages music scene, Corrigan garnered local attention with a (since deleted) debut EP earlier this year.

03. Streaming above is new extended-player Journal of Public Affairs, available now for free download.

04. You know you’re onto something when an artist willingly labels themselves as “Post-Mortem”. In fairness.

Verdict: All manner of hyper-self-aware sarcasm, alongside a healthy disregard for anyone else’s opinion on same, married to some nicely barebones songwriting.

Ghostking

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ELLLL – new EP due soon on Art for Blind

What you may need to know…

01. Ellen King, aka ELLLL, specialises in a brooding, minimal, dark techno.

02. Emerging quietly from Cork’s noise and sound art scene, ELLLL’s work has taken a beatsier turn in recent years. A founder member of the GASH Collective, a platform for women in Irish electronica, she’s pictured above in the middle of her recent set for Boiler Room in Dublin, having also recently featured at Life and Open Ear festivals.

03. Streaming above is the video for recent single ROMANCE. Video compiled and edited by Louise Adelaide McKeown.

04. King’s debut EP is due for physical release by the end of the summer on Cork/Sligo/Leeds label Art for Blind Records. Catch her next at Bastardo Electrico’s next night at Cyprus Avenue in Cork, sharing a bill with Berlin electronic collective Killekill.

Verdict: A quiet but assured presence in Irish electronic music. Propulsive without sacrificing atmosphere or minimalism, the upcoming extended-play ought to be a treat.

ELLLL

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Harvester – new EP Harmonic Ruptures and launch gigs

What you may need to know…

01. Galway sludge/doom metallers Harvester are back from an extended period of (dis)quiet with their second EP.

02. First EP The Blind Summit Recordings kind of flew under a lot of radars when released in late 2012, but is a solid slab of Sabbathesque rock ‘n’ roll, the release of which led to support for Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats a year later in Dublin.

03. Streaming above in its entirety is Harmonic Ruptures. Recorded by James Eager at The Hive Studios in Kilcoole, it was mastered by go-to heft technician James Plotkin.

04. The band are doing the rounds to back the EP’s digital release, playing the Roisin Dubh tomorrow night with Okus and Ten Ton Slug, again with Okus in The Hut in Phibsborough on Friday night and in Cleere’s in Kilkenny with The Kilo 1977 on Saturday. They’ll also be at the next Siege of Limerick in October.

Verdict: A big, dirty bag of riffs that’ll keep doom worshippers and stoner-rock aficionados engaged.

Harvester

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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

Photo: Ruth Medjber

Heathers – release new single Call Home

What you may need to know…

01. Twins Ellie and Louise MacNamara (by their powers combined) are alternative/folk duo Heathers.

02. A well-travelled and seasoned outfit, they’ve trod stages worldwide, from touring Ireland with math-rockers Adebisi Shank, to the festival grind, to performing at JJ Abrams’ pre-Oscars party after the latter and his daughter became fans.

03. Streaming above is the video for new single Call Home, directed by Crooked Gentlemen.

04. Also available for download from iTunes, and streaming on Spotify.

Verdict: An opening up of Heathers’ sound, taking the duo’s strong knack for harmonies in a more polished direction.

Heathers

Pic: Ruth Medjber