New Orleans rapper Jay Electronica is a social media pioneer of sorts — first making his name on MySpace with his viral (at least for those days) beatless composition Act I: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge), […]
Author: Conor McCaffrey
Fist-up dance floor defiance on Louisahhh’s Feral Rhythm
The clue’s in the title here — Louisahhh’s new EP Feral Rhythm is a straight-up classic call to arms track about dancefloor escapism. The Paris-based New Yorker hits the club with a techno-punk snarl and […]
No Journeys End: Radio doc traces the life and work of cult musician Michael O’Shea
“A master musician demands attention,” says Dublin poet and artist Larry Burns in the intro to a brilliant new RTE Lyric FM documentary about the life and work of his late friend Michael O’Shea. O’Shea […]
All the right noises: Moo Kid’s August 2019
Winter is coming, but here’s the last dregs of summer in audio form: Prodigal prog, Brexit paranoia, self-cannibalising power electronics, industrial noise, electro abstractions, blacked out dub, vaporwave nostalgia, militaristic techno, ambient drones and horror […]
10 hyped acts at Electric Picnic 2019
Electric Picnic is now a far cry from its ‘boutique’ beginnings in 2004, with the site expanding to 57,000 this year, and a move in recent years to include huge pop stars among the leftfield […]
Stiff Little Fingers: ‘Still putting the fast back in Belfast’
When stiff little fingers formed in Belfast in the late 70s, the idea of them playing an outdoor gig for thousands beside the High Court would have been beyond a surreal joke. But the veteran […]
The Murder Capital strike Fears
With post-punks Fontaines DC this year becoming the most hyped band in Ireland — or anywhere else — fellow Dubs have quite a lot of ground to make up, to capitalise on the buzz around Fontaines’ […]
Spread the Love Sensation
In the last few years, Pride events in Ireland have grown exponentially, we voted an emphatic Yes in the marriage referendum, and no one batted a false eyelash when drag queen Panti Bliss was declared […]
Post Malone might be shit, but just get over it
Most mega-successful stars – maybe with the exception of Queen of the Universe Beyonce – can be pretty divisive, with uber stan fans going to bat while half the population scratches their heads. Pop-rap superstar […]
The Human League: It could’ve all been so different
In a parallel electronic universe, the Human League could’ve been a cult industrial act, instead of one of the most celebrated synth-pop acts of all time. Formed in 1977 by Phil Oakey, Martyn Ware and […]
If you want Blood… Russian Circles
Grabbing elements of metal, post-rock and experimental prog and jazz, Russian Circles are one of the most intense live acts around. The Chicago instrumental act have just released their seventh album Blood Year, some 40 […]
Waterford’s getting it Together
With so many festivals in Ireland these days and new ones popping up almost weekly during the summer, it’s easy to take them for granted – miss one and you’ll get your kicks soon enough […]
Beatyard’s bittersweet five-year plan
Since 2015, Beatyard has been one of the more joyous city festivals, throwing parties in Dun Laoghaire thar are family-friendly while still retaining an underground and left-field vibe. But its annual slot at Dun Laoghaire […]
Dreadzone: Decades in dub
Formed in 1993 from members of Big Audio Dynamite and Julian Cope’s band, Londoners Dreadzone explored the dub, reggae and new wave avant-garde of their earlier bands and added more breaks and emerging electronics for […]
Orbital: When Chime becomes a loop…
A few months ago, Phil Hartnoll lit up Tengu in Dublin with an Easter Sunday DJ set of Orbital classics, with a few deep cuts and exclusives, including an amazing new cosmic krautrock jam remix […]
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