POST CATEGORY : Irish Music

Ailbhe Reddy – ‘Looking Happy’

Dubliner Ailbhe Reddy is gearing up to release her debut album, Personal History, on October 2 and has been teasing the record with singles ‘Time Difference’ and ‘Between Your Teeth’, and now ‘Looking Happy’.

‘Looking Happy’ is a buoyant and bouncy indie-pop jam that is simultaneously happy and sad.Punchy guitars dance above a bouncy beat, jerky groove and splashes of cosmic synth while Reddy’s vocals soar powerfully above. ‘Looking Happy’ is a bright and buoyant indie-pop-powerhouse, adorned with addictive hooks you could hang your hat on but with melancholic themes seeping through as lyrically, Reddy laments an ex’s life unfolding on social media. An irresistible jam that exquisitely blurs the lines of beauty and darkness.

Listen to ‘Looking Happy’ below and keep an eye out for debut album, Personal History, on October 2. 

Arms That Fit Like Legs – ‘What it is is’

Arms That Fit Like Legs are an electronic instrumental-rock trio from Dublin – composed of Mark Lynch, Gordon McCaughley & Mike Mahon – who take their cue from the likes of El Ten Eleven, Battles, Redneck Manifesto, Fridge and Aphex Twin among others.

We were introduced to their electronic experimentations with ‘My Mind is Going’ and accompanying album Legwork earlier in the year, and have shared new single ‘What it is is’ and revealed plans for a new record next year. The single is an immersive and hypnotic cut, elegantly blurring the lines between experimental electronica and propulsive Krautrock leanings. It is a transfixed coming together of glistening guitars, soft synths and breezy chilled-out vibes that gracefully mingle above lush, fast paced grooves the woo the soul before all culminating an epic climax – and then, silence. It is majestic sound, one that is vividly imaginative and elegant, and all consuming.

Listen to ‘What it is is’below and why not check out their most recent album Legwork, here.

Video Premiere: Tomorrows – ‘Night Boat to Franklin’

Trading in psych, prog and pop, Dublin outfit Tomorrows have been treating our ears to wonky psychedelic pop songs for half a decade now, and back in February (that feels like a long time ago now) they released their stellar third album, The Night Chorus Part 2.

The core of the band, Conor Deasy, Ben Shorten, Michael Murphy, and Jethro Pickett, were joined by Will Whyte on drums, Ruth Kennington on synth and Julian Banks & Aran O’Grady on saxophone with a wonderful, wonky and beguiling record the outcome.

The latest single to be lifted from The Night Chorus Part 2 is album opener ‘Night Boat to Franklin’ – a woozy, meandering and lush slice of seductive cosmic pop – and it is my absolute pleasure to bring you the premiere of the video. 

Film maker Ursula Woods and Jethro from the band live on the edge of the world in Glaziers Bay Tasmania. Their house, an old apple shed turned livable cabin, sits on poles in the Huon River. ‘Night Boat to Franklin’ is a song that was written and partly recorded there when Conor visited them in 2019.

A beguiling, lush, neo-psychedelic beauty, the track bubbles along an undulating groove, dripping with melody and plenty of off-kilter sax appeal – ‘Night Boat to Franklin’ captures some of the river energy that can only be experienced at the dusk of day.

The video was made when Ursula and Jethro were isolating after returning from Ireland in March 2020. With a real sense of cabin fever, they literally took the boat out and headed for Franklin.

On the journey there was an eerie scene in the sky that particular day as Forestry Tasmania were burning large areas of woodland. The flames and smoke were hanging heavy in the sky with the freezing winter waters below. Upstream, the boat choked and came to a complete still. Ursula kept the camera rolling during the rescue, the video is what it is. Anything can happen on a Night Boat to Franklin.

Check out the video below and if you haven’t done so already, give The Night Chorus Part 2 a spin here.

Slim Tin Fox – ‘Feed Me’

We were introduced to Slim Tin Fox‘s energetic and no nonsense rock ‘n’ roll with ‘Molly’ toward the end of last year and the Dublin-based foursome are back with double a-side ‘Feed Me’ & ‘Hometown Blues’.

‘Feed Me’ continues in the same vein as before; it is a thrilling blend of indie, rock, blues, garage, post-punk and punk. Vocals snarl, delivered with a rasp while brash and muscular rhythm rumbles below a deluge of meaty riffs, guitars and feedback. It is powerful, all-action jam delivered with a swagger and an ear for a hooky tune. All this is just a long winded way of saying this foursome from Dublin have come up with yet another thrilling tune.

Listen to ‘Feed Me’ below now:

Tebi Rex – ‘I Got My Whole’

Tebi Rex are a hip hop pairing – Max Zanga and Matt O – based in Maynooth, Co Kildare, who together craft slick and easy on the ear jams.

New single ‘I Got My Whole’ is a case in point; a lush, dreamy and sunny pop-infused track. It is a track of irresistible charm as the pair’s sweet, smooth and melodic vocals (delivering tongue in cheek lyrics) drift elegantly above a steady and seductive beat/groove al amid a plush and charming twinkling chime of shimmering synths and blanket of hazy electronic tones.It is a beautiful and delightfully addictive cut – one that will be stuck on your head for AGES.

Listen to  ‘I Got My Whole’ below.


Denise Chaila – ‘Chaila’

Limerick MC Denise Chaila has been on the up since the release of ‘Copper Bullet’ / ‘Duel Citizenship’ early last year but 2020 has been a big one.

In March Chaila appeared alongside other guests on God Know’s banger ‘Who’s Asking? South West Allstars Remix’ before a show stopping performance as part of Other Voices Courage 2020 series – and now, released a brilliant new single ‘Chaila’. A perfect blend of poise and poetry, it is slick, smooth and suave as it bobs along a ridiculously addicting groove and guitar riff – the latter is the hook that everything else is built on, providing an alluring platform for the syrupy smooth vocals to thrive as powerful and poignant lyrics. A superb track and one that’s been on constant rotation for the best part of the summer.

Listen to ‘Chaila’ below:

Sprints – ‘The Cheek’

Sprints are Dublin-based post-punk foursome of Karla Chubb (vocals/guitar), Colm O’Reilly (guitar), Sam McCann (bass) and Jack Callan (drums).

Together, Sprints create a raw, raucous and potent post-punk sound – one filled with a ferocious blend snarling vocals, driving rhythms, meaty riffs, swagger and noise. The aforementioned attributes are captured perfectly by their latest single ‘The Cheek’; re-released as part of  Nice Swan Records’ monthly singles club. ‘The Cheek’ is loud, confident, and defiant. Driven by a fierce and propulsive bass line, it grabs you from the off and refuses to relent as it swaggers along barrelling drumbeat. Guitars rumble, buzz and crunch amidst the hail of noise and feedback as Chubb’s vocals increase their bite, growing increasingly defiant, leading the charge to an electrifying climax. A huge, thrilling and furious jam, delivered with a swagger and laced with sarcasm, ‘The Cheek’ tackles sexuality head on.

An absolutely massive tune, listen ‘The Cheek’ below:

Eoin Dolan – ‘June Hope’

Whenever Galway musician and singer-songwriter Eoin Dolan, one of Ireland’s finest talents as it goes, releases new material it is a great day.

Following on from last year’s Commander of Sapiens – Dolan’s third album to date – new EP June Hope is a gentle, carefully crafted collection of psych-inflected indie-pop. Dolan has a remarkable ability for crafting sci-fi-tinged surf pop, marrying heartbreaking melodies and gentle instrumentation, sadness with beauty and interstellar psych-pop exploration – and this signature sound is all over ‘June Hope’. Breezy, light and thoughtful, it charts a journey from youth to young adulthood through the prism of seasonal change. It is woozy and dreamy as it drifts along a gently waltzing groove flanked by Dolan’s breezy air and twinkly guitar, while radiating a sense of hopeful optimism. As always, Dolan has delivered an absolute treasure.

Listen to the single below and check out the David Boland aka New Pope crafted video – the EP is here too.


FONDA – ‘No Begonias’

It’s been four years since we’ve heard new material from Irish post-punk outfit FONDA but the intervening period was anything but boring.

Lead singer and frontman Liam O’Connor did a stint with brilliant Limerick post-punk powerhouse Slow Riot through to their conclusion and subsequent posthumous album release, while Patrick Bourke & Laura Kelly left for pastures new in North America.

All that aside, O’Connor and FONDA are back with a new line-up featuring fellow Limerick musicians; John Ahern (Hey Rusty), Paul Cosgrave (Slow Riot) and Sean O’Mahony (Inner City Radio) and the first fruits from this new formation comes in the shape of powerful new single ‘No Begonias’. It is a huge and epic post-punk anthem with dark and dramatic vocal soaring stridently above as urgent guitars burn, riffs surge with intense and searing intensity, and meaty basslines relentless rhythm reverberate amid the distortion below. A gripping, insistent and emotionally charged post-punk fervour – a triumphant return from FONDA.

Listen to ‘No Begonias’ below:

Martha Ffion Announces New Album; shares ‘After the Fact’

Glasgow-based Irish singer-songwriter Martha Ffion (aka Claire McKay) has returned with a wonderful new single ‘After the Fact’.

Working with the excellent Lost Map Records again, ‘After the Fact’ is the first taste of from her forthcoming much-anticipated second album Nights to Forget, which will be released on August 14, 2020.

Ffion’s 2018 debut LP Sunday Best is a beautiful record, filled with gleaming guitar-pop, wistful-ballads, swooning sixties inspired indie-pop and touches of folk & country, and being as it was one the finest records of that year, the expectancy levels for its follow-up are set rather high. New single ‘After the Fact’ is magnificent; it is a glorious ray of gleaming indie-pop with an underbelly of melancholy and disquiet. A fractured pop song, Ffion’s honeyed lilting vocal is juxtaposed by the stuttering groove interspersed with angular riffs and stabs of off-kilter guitar, and the results are a glorious. This captures all that is greatest about Martha Ffion’s work in just three-and-a-half-minutes – a marvelous songwriting wrapped with bittersweet indie-pop.

Check out the new single below – and keep the eyes peeled for the new record coming in August: