With much of the summer taken up by blockbuster festivals that simply hoover up all the biggest buzz bands to sell tickets, or a big race to the middle of road, Open Ear is a […]
Category: Gig previews
Mango x Mathman’s last taps-aff rave of the year
Around a year ago I interviewed duo Mango x Mathman about the amazing 2017 they’d had — and they’ve only gone and doubled and tripled their efforts this year. From their usual festival shut-downs, to […]
Fontaines DC: Taking Liberties
Dublin punk act Fontaines DC started 2018 with an underground ‘ones to watch’ ripple, and ended the year with four brilliant EPs unapologetically rooted to their Liberties roots, cock-sure festival performances and support slots with […]
DENZEL CURRY: Punching up through SoundCloud
It seems odd that Florida hip-hop star Denzel Curry made his name as a figurehead in SoundCloud rap — with him crossing over into the relative mainstream with reviews and interviews on all the big […]
Gangsta rap revivalist YG keeping it Cocky
Compton gangsta rap revivalist YG did his bit for political discourse in 2016 with his anti-Trump hit-job FDT (you can guess what he did there), and his Still Brazy album was a narrative-driven deep listening […]
Julia Holter’s constant reinvention
Julia Holter’s latest album Aviary opens with Turn the Lights On – a wall of sound that sounds like a passage in a Swans song when they’re in full transcendent mode. And it gets more […]
Low Sea: Like the Drive soundtrack reimagined by Mazzy Star
Ireland-based duo Low Sea cast a dusky coldwave dream pop spell on their third album Portals, out this month after years on hiatus. The album is another dip into wispy synths, high-fret post-punk basslines and […]
