POST CATEGORY : Blues

‘BarryGruff V Knoxville Morning’: w/ We Went Down + Ciaran Lenehan + Appo + Phil McDermott :: Thurs, Sept 26th :: Flanagan’s, Newbridge

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This Thursday two of Newbridge’s biggest musical mouth pieces will go head-to-head in Flanagan’s, for this one-off ‘BarryGruff V Knoxville Morning‘. 

It should be a great night of live music as we bring you a show with four excellent acts, with sets from We Went Down (KM), Ciaran Lenehan (BG), Appo (BG) & Phil McDermott (KM). There’s been some cracking nights in Flanagan’s and elsewhere over the past two years or so, and Thursday night’s ructions shouldn’t be any different.

It’s FREE in as always & we’ll be kicking things off at 8:30. Much more info and sounds after the jump. RSVP here.

We Went Down (KM):

Heartfelt Folk’ n Roll three-piece from Tallaght, Dublin. In there own words: “Two chancers bumped into a lad in an off licence, Questions were asked, We drank cans, We jammed tunes, We Went Down.” There music speaks louder than any promo/pr nonsense. Check it below.

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Ciaran Lenehan (BG):

The second of two Tallaght acts, Ciaran Lenehan, has become a firm favourite in Newbridge and makes a welcome return to the town, ahead of the release of his long-awaited debut album, These Stories, in November. To keep it relatively short; Lenehan is a songwriter to be reckoned with. Simple, assured and engaging and most importantly he has the talent to make wonderful stories into fantastic songs.

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The Last Monroes – Today FM Session

We were first introduced to The Last Monroes a while ago, when the Wicklow duo released Live From The Barn, an excellent insight to what they’re all about.

Given the lasting impression left by Live From The  Barn, any opportunity to revisit their supercharged blasts of heavy blues riffage was always going to be gladly lapped up. This opportunity has come a’knocking as The Last Monroes were in with Paul McCloone last week to do a session for his radio show. They sounded absolutely superb as it goes, preforming three songs, ‘Underneath The Streetlight’, ‘Dead In The Water’ and ‘Devil’s Girl’ (the latter two coming from an earlier release). These guys appear to have this whole two-piece noise making machine buzz, down to a tee. One bashes drums and the other sings and slugs his guitar, it always amazes me how two people can somehow manage to make such an almighty racket. A racket yes, but a pleasant one at that.

You can listen to the three tracks from the session below or download Live From The Barn gratis from bandcamp now.

(Video) The Last Monroes – ‘Underneath the Streetlight’

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We heard from The Last Monroes a while back with the release of Live From The Barn, a great introduction to what they’re all about.

The Wicklow duo (of Simon Quinn and Konrad Sheane) are back with a new video for ‘Underneath the Streetlight’, directed by Shane Doyle. ‘Underneath the Streetlight’ is a supercharged blast of heavy blues riffage, a serious jam designed to be played loud and veritably burst out of the speakers and it’s the pick of the bunch from the aforementioned release. It is always a pleasure to discover bands who, with just two bodies, somehow manage to make such an almighty racket. All in all an exhilarating listen and hopefully there’s plenty more where that came from in the future.

You can download Live From The Barn gratis from bandcamp now.

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Introducing: The Last Monroes

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The Last Monroes are the Wicklow duo of Simon Quinn and Konrad Sheane, who take their cue from the White Stripes/Black Keys school of rock, where one bashes drums and the other sings and slugs his guitar.

It is two guys, guitar and drums, resulting in raw, edgy and rather muscular blues rock with a hint grunge and punk. The duo’s latest release, Live From The Barn, is a great introduction to what they’re all about. From the heavy blues riffage of ‘Underneath The Streetlight’ or ‘Thieves’, a more grunge tinged approach to this genre. Basically what we’ve got here are two top-notch blasts of good old fashion rock ‘n roll, and there’s nothing wrong with that at all.

You can listen to ‘Underneath The Streetlight’ & ‘Thieves’ below or, if you prefer, download Live From The Barn for free from bandcamp.

The Revellions – ‘Don’t Wait For Me’

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Remember The Revellions? Back in 2009 they released their rather excellent self-titled debut,  a devastating mix of ’60s rock ‘n roll and gut wrenchingly raw garage sounds. 

They have been relatively quiet since then. Now, after a two year break working on their forthcoming second album Give It Time, The Revellions are back with ‘Don’t Wait For Me’, the first track taken from the aforementioned second LP. ‘Don’t Wait For Me’ is just marvelous. Refining their ’60s rock ‘n roll influenced sound, The Revellions have swapped rawness for a more soulful vibe, due in no small part to the oh so soulful voice of Ali Moore. It has been far too long an absence from The Revellions but it’s great to have them back with us once again. You can listen to ‘Don’t Wait For Me’ and an oldie ‘I Don’t Mind’ below. 

You can also catch The Revellions live at Retro Revival Club w/ September Girls + The Vincent(s) + Evil Sons on Saturday April 6th in Sweeneys, Dame St. Dublin. Doors: 9pm Adm: €5

(Video) Appo – ‘Cold Hearted Baby’ & ‘Long time Coming’

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While other artists in Newbridge have gained note and notoriety as prying eyes (and ears) look in amazement and steady stream of quality music emerging from this town, one man in particular has somehow managed to avoid this gaze; Appo. The gravelly voiced troubadour (real name David Aspell) has remained one of Newbridge’s best kept secrets for quite a long time.

This narrative might be about to change with news he is currently recording a debut release (an album as far as I can gather). This excellent news also provides a perfect excuse to share some recordings from an impromptu session late last year (recorded in Newbridge by Stephen & Ciara Connelly).

Like has been said before, Appo is a wonderful songwriter, who’s powerful blues/folk is a work of genuine veracity.

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Album of the Week: Nathan Conway & The River Valley Band – Sonny Boy

Sometimes we can all be a little guilty of preoccupying ourselves with seeking the next big innovation in music. Yet, by and large, most things in music tend to be borrowed from the past, and baring that in mind, we are left with music that’s either good or bad – surely that’s all that really matters at the end of day.

Nathan Conway & The River Valley Band certainly borrow from the past to create a timeless soulful country sound. Having teamed up with The River Valley Band after releasing Run on Diesel with The Bottlestoppers in 2011, Conway & Co. have found their niche. The tone is soulful country, set to overarching themes of demise and redemption, draped in Conway’s intuitive storytelling which paints vivid pictures with his words.

Mostly you feel that Conway and band are really working together, from the swinging, uptempo ‘Where’s the Love in My Heart’ and ‘It’ll All Come Back On Me, Someday’ to the less blustery, slower numbers ‘Song from the Engine of the Model T’ and ‘Lord I Got it Bad’ or ‘Freckles’. They have a rapport with one another; brass, percussion strings and Conway’s deep bellowed croon, all work in perfect tandem.

Sonny Boy requires a degree of patience, understanding and repeated listens to be fully appreciated. It is a beautiful, timeless and assured album. You can tell from the get go that the musicians know exactly what they’re doing. There might not be anything else like this around at the moment which only adds further measure to what they have achieved here.

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(Video) Turrentine Jones – Slam The Door

Mancunian’s Turrentine Jones have, by all accounts, been causing quite a stir in their native Manchester on the back of several self-released demos.

The bands first single proper, ‘Slam The Door’, sees a melding of a slew of rock and blues influences combine with swirling organ, rapid-fire drumming and lead singer Neville’s distinctive croaky drawl. What we are left with is a rousing sound of effortless swagger, a kind of bastard child of The Stones and The Animals.

‘Slam The Door’ is released as the A-side of Le Debut and the video is below.

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 Turrentine Jones – Slam The Door

The Black Keys – ‘Lonely Boy’

The Black Keys are back with the first taster from their forthcoming album, El Camino, due out in early December.

‘Lonely Boy’ is the first proper cut from the follow up to 2010’s Brothers. It is a catchy, energetic and racey blues rock song, just the kind of thing that we have come to love from the duo. Let’s just say it is sounding pretty on the first 30 or so listens.

Watch the video and listen to the song below.

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The Black Keys – Lonely Boy

Introducing: Henry’s Funeral Shoe

Comprised of brothers Aled and Brennig Clifford, Henry’s Funeral Shoe evoke the ferious blues rock spirit of the Deep South, rather than the Welsh Valleys from which they hail.

Occupying the same space on the musical spectrum as The Black Keys, White Stripes and The Soledad Brothers they specialize in rousing numbers ranging from the stomping ‘Love Is A Fever’ and ‘Be Your Own Invention’ to their contrasting softer side on acoustic-driven tracks such as “Heart on Fire” and ‘Bottom to Top’. This is blues infused rock ‘n’ roll at it’s very best, there is an abundance of talent here and they make a hell of a racket into the bargain.

Henry’s Funeral Shoe release their second album Donkey Jacket on October 11th via Alive Naturalsound Records. 

 Henry’s Funeral Shoe – Bottom to Top

Download: Henry’s Funeral Shoe – Dog Scratch Ear via Mixtape Muse