Tag Archives: zhOra

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Filmmaker John Mulvaney is one of many to turn his lens on music in Ireland, in lieu of any support for the community by the industry/officialdom.

Thus was born Fractured, a documentary series with an eye on metal and other harsh noises in Ireland, running on Metal Ireland and screening at various festivals and events throughout the past year.

The newest episode focuses on Clonmel prog/sludge outfit zhOra, and explores the band, their music, and growing/sustaining music outside of the industry in Ireland.

New episodes will appear here as they happen, also, but for now, here’s a catch-up playlist of the rest of the series so far, with eight episodes ready to watch.

Fractured

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zhOraheading to Wacken, helping launch new metal night in Cork

What you may need to know…

01. Sludgy, progressive metal emerges from the Premier County in the form of beardy four-piece zhOra.

02. Formed in 2011, the band quickly set about getting on metal bills around the country, currying favourable comparison with the likes of Mastodon in reviews. 2012’s EP Feet Nailed to the Ground was a glimpse at some promising heft.

03. Streaming above in its entirety is the band’s last release, 2013’s Almaz. Mastered by the standard-bearer of stupidly heavy tones, James Plotkin (Khanate, OLD). 2014’s live set at the Siege of Limerick was also committed to ones and zeroes, and is available for free download here.

04. The boys recently won the annual W:O:A Metal Battle, pipping several other Irish metal outfits to a slot at the world’s biggest metal festival, Wacken Open Air. As a warm-up, the lads are taking to Cork’s UrbanJungle on July 9th, headlining the debut edition of Welcome to the Jungle, a new monthly metal night.

Verdict:  A well-deserved step onto a bigger stage for the Tipperary heftmongers. Here’s hoping it leads to further new material in due course.

zhOra