Cormac O Caoimh – There Must Be A Catch
“The good days outnumber the bad.”
It’s always a good day when Cormac O Caoimh releases new material. The Corkonian’s first single since his widely acclaimed album Swim Crawl Walk Run in 2020 is a beautifully written and sung ode to being surprised by joy.
And the archive Chaplin video is the perfect visual match-up.
Nick says: The People’s Republic of Classic Songwriting.
Five Grand Stereo – Dancing Mary
Come dance with me in Dublin.
Five Grand Stereo pay tribute to one of the last true characters of the Fair City: Mary Dunne aka Mad Mary, who in decades past could be seen dancing and praying on O’Connell Street.
Written by singer Chris Singleton, the song was recorded in London during lockdown and is released by Brown Paper Records/Style Factory.
The video is by Jonny Pollard.
Lads, how about a double album about Bang Bang?
Nick says: A holy show.
Seba Safe – I’m On Fire
I got a bad desire.
Actually the new single by Seba Safe (aka Michael D’Alton, top) is not a cover of the Springsteen classic but an original composition.
Released on the Nettwerk label, it has echoes of vintage Bon Iver.
Michael writes:
“This song is about not feeling good enough for anyone and finding the differences between you and others to use as validation to end things.
“The choruses deal with happier times when things felt better to try again. I blame myself for the relationship ending but ultimately know it was never going to work.”
Nick says: Inflammable material.
Cathal Coughlan – Tangerine
Scare in the community.
Indefatigable firebrand Cathal Coughlan releases a new single from his 4-song EP Of Co-Aklan on Dimple Discs.
Cathal writes:
“The theme of “Tangerine” is the extent to which an ancient festival of remembrance and comfort such as Samhain has had its worth parlayed right down to little more than a colour code and some Disney visual tropes through the heart-free steamroller that is Capital.
“The last few years, especially since the start of the first wave of the pandemic, have shown that a lot of the cushy assumptions we were encouraged to adopt in regard to prosperity, the purpose of paid work, and the “guarantees” made by the modern capitalist society to the citizen can ring hollow in the face of something as dumb as a killer/maimer virus that won’t just give up when it’s told that the public is getting bored with it.
“At the same time, the trinket-selling business of capitalism goes on, hoping that the same old annual or weekly cycle of consumption will remain alive. This can mean anything from chain coffee shops on streets which used to house only independent businesses, to greeting card shops which somehow have to keep the lights on in times of little cheer.
“And so Hallowe’en inevitably rolls around. Once quite a sombre and spartan matter of children’s treats and games, the whole planet has been pressed to adopt the North American way – house “decorations”, horror movie rentals and of course a dedicated set of greeting cards.
“There’s no time to stop and reflect that 2020, especially, was a time of greater bereavement than usual, much of it concealed by lockdown circumstances. No slack cut by the tat hacks. This by-rote pageantry of the seasonal tat for trademark Hallowe’en serves only to mock this true suffering, and by extension, I’d assert, most genuine human feeling at a time when the course of history is perceptibly altering.”
The video is directed by Marry Waterson, of the legendary Waterson folk dynasty.
Nick says: All souls singer.
Right Said Fred – Godsend
“Can we get love to trend?”
The last two years have shown us that there are precious few real rebels left in the entertainment industry.
One of the rare exceptions has come from the unlikeliest of sources: take a bow, Right Said Fred.
Now The Freds have found time in between dropping truth bombs (or ‘medical misinformation’ – the choice is yours!) on Twitter to deliver a heartfelt and soulful new single with an equally arresting video.
Nick says: Never mind the begrudgers and curmudgeons.
Paddy Hanna – Yoko Ono
Paddy power.
Former Grand Pocket Orchestra frontman Paddy Hanna (top) returns with the second single from his forthcoming album Imagine I’m Hoping, due in Autumn on the Strange Brew imprint.
Paddy writes:
“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.”
The video was directed and edited by Alex Lynch and Liam Farrell.
Paddy adds:
“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.”
Nick says: Ono? O yes.
Aoife Nessa Frances – Emptiness Follows
“The state of our city. It answers to pity.”
Rising Dublin indie songstress Aoife Nessa Frances (top) returns with her first video since her acclaimed Land Of No Junction album in 2020, which made into Broadsheet’s Top Ten Irish albums of that year.
A wistful mellotron-friendly tune, it comes with a beguiling video by Zoe Greenway which features Katy Mullins as the gold woman.
Nick says: Mellotronica.
Keeley – To A London Sunrise
England’s dreaming.
Dublin indie pop rising star Keeley continues her powerful musical tribute to the ill-fated German teenager Inga Maria Hauser.
To A London Sunrise is the first glimpse of Keeley’s second EP Echo Everywhere, released by Dimple Discs, and produced by Alan Maguire.
The video was produced and edited by Keeley.
Nick says: Special K.
SJ Talbot – Millisecond
Pop in the name of love.
A graduate of the BIMM Dublin music college, Clontarf’s SJ Talbot (top) has worked as a session singer and keyboardist for various acts over the last four years. In 2017, she began producing her own music, and developing her individual sound.
Her latest single is a heart-tugging break-up song with pristine pop production values.
The lyric video is by MotionGraphic.
Nick says: Talbot street chronicles.
The Whileaways – Toss The Bobbin
This women’s work.
Galway neo-folk trio The Whileaways (Noelie McDonnell, Noriana Kennedy and Nicola Joyce) enchant with the new single from their forthcoming album, due next month.
To quote the press blurb:
“This evocative song tells the story of the 18th Century lacemaking women of Headford in County Galway, where The Whileaways are based and where Nicola grew up.
“Toss the Bobbin imagines the story of four of these women, who survived poverty and famine through bobbin lacemaking, and pieces together the little detail that exists of their lives. It tells of their resilience and the sisterhood that existed between them in the toughest of times as they turned their hands to this intricate work: lace made by the poor and worn only by the rich.”
Their nationwide tour begins in Tuam, County Galway, on June 4.
Nick says: Where angels fear to thread.
