GOAT GIRL: Grand Social, Dublin, tonight (€12.50)
“Build a bonfire, build a bonfire, put the Tories on the top/Put the DUP in the middle and we’ll burn the fucking lot.” No, it’s not some obscure socialist Irish rebel song, but Burnt at the Stake on the debut album by young south London indie-punks Goat Girl.
The story goes that the four then-teenagers signed their deal with Rough Trade the day Britain voted for Brexit, so their debut LP can’t help but kick against these pricks.
With 20 songs over 40 minutes, it doesn’t hang about, and Clottie Cream, LED, Naima Jelly and Rosy Bones (fire emoji for the names) keep up the snarls and black humour throughout.
Tinfoil: Connolly’s of Leap, Cork, tonight (€12); Index, Dublin, tomorrow (€15)
Irish duo Tinfoil, aka Sunil Sharpe and Matt ‘DefeKt’ Flanagan create visceral, take no prisoners analogue techno, and they’re launching their debut album On a Roll at these two gigs. Don’t expect DJ tool production-line ‘bangers’, as Sunil says: “When we get to the end of the set, all bets are off and we’re gonna crucify you.” I met up with Sunil and Matt a few days ago – check out a full interview and gig preview here.
COLUMBIA MILLS, Button Factory, Dublin, tonight (€15)
Wicklow act Columbia Mills released one of the best Irish guitar albums of last year with their debut A Safe Distance To Watch — melancholy wall of sound shoegaze and electronica that recalls Joy Division, Glasvegas and Jesus and Mary Chain.
Catch them at their biggest Irish show yet, before a short UK tour and festival season — they’ve also promised to debut new material.
Support is from indie-folk rock act Orchid Collective, and anthemic rocker Outsider, busting out the Twin Shadow/Springsteen vibes.
Harry Styles, 3Arena, Dublin, Monday, (€50-70)
This time last year critics were losing the plot praising Harry Styles’ debut solo single — with the Guardian shamelessly asking, “Is Harry Styles the new David Bowie?” In one of the clickbait headlines of the year.
Sign of the Times and his self-titled debut album is a few tiers above the boyband fluff of One Direction, but steady on. Sure enough, it’s a pleasant surprise that Styles has gone for 70s soft rock and glam over Niall Horan’s style of treacly folk-pop, but ZAYN got in there first in 2016 with his on-point pop and R&B slow jams, which is what the kids should really be listening to.
Still Harry’s got plenty rock numbers to pull off his moves like Jagger, and he’ll be dropping in some 1D songs for the diehards, and Fleetwood Mac covers for the chaperones.
WORD UP PRESENTS ISSA VIBE: Workmans Club, Dublin, Tuesday (€10)
Dublin crew Word Up Collective are at the centre of the current rise of Irish hip-hop, R&B, spoken word and urban pop – with 12 tracks on Spotify’s recent playlist The New Eire.
With almost weekly gigs, releases and festival announcements, they’re due a showcase to take stock, and this MusicTown 18 event will fit that brief.
Get there early to pack it all in – live sets from JYellowL (pictured), Loud Motive, Sequence, Verified, TED and Kevi Knight, and spoken word and poetry from Felispeaks, Sasha Terfous and Dagogo Hart. And in a nice Odd Future touch, streetwear brand Kulture Klub is hosting a pop-up shop.
Moo Kid 