I'm beginning to get really excited about going to CorkXSW this coming weekend. Set in the Liss Ard estate it contains for me a dream line-up of artists that I adore both internationally and homegrown as well as a bunch of excellent artists I'm looking forward to discover. I'm going to write about the artists I'm looking forward to seeing. Bring it on: http://www.corkxsw.com/
Yep Ruben S7one are new to me too. The Cork band describes their music as 'Rock Electro MOBO Pop Jazz'. They sound to me like they could be at the forefront of an 80's Spandau Ballet/Thompson Twins style revival or a band confused and delusional. The jury is still out but after a few listens I'm beginning to hear really good stuff;
I'm beginning to get really excited about going to CorkXSW this coming weekend. Set in the Liss Ard estate it contains for me a dream line-up of artists that I adore both internationally and homegrown as well as a bunch of excellent artists I'm looking forward to discover. I'm going to write about the artists I'm looking forward to seeing. Bring it on: http://www.corkxsw.com/
The Full Line-up was announced on facebook yesterday:
SATURDAY JUNE 4TH
Gavin Moore
Dr Millar
The Shed
B-Positives
Alien Envoy
Meeting House
Guidewires
'Spider' John Koerner
Ivan St John
Patti Smith - Spoken Word Performance
Avatar
We Cut Corners
Mick Flannery
Interference
Drugstore
Favourite Sons
Peter Hook & The Light performing Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures
Echo and the Bunnymen
plus
VIBRATIONS Eco Area
Tir na bPaisti
Slow Food Village
SUNDAY JUNE 5TH
Sean Taylor
Ruben S7one
Lousy Rocks
The Ceili Allstars
Nina Hynes
Michael McGoldrick Trio
LOWmountain
Axel Krygier
Jape
Yuck
Katell Keineg
Fred
God Is An Astronaut
Balkan Beat Box
Patti Smith and Band
plus
VIBRATIONS Eco Area
Tir na bPaisti
Slow Food Village
I've yet to see Jape live but now I have my chance is the mini heatwave we've been promised for next weekend. Jape recently shared his new single 'Hands of Fire' on Soundcloud and it sounds pretty good!
I'm beginning to get really excited about going to CorkXSW next weekend. Set in the Liss Ard estate it contains for me a dream line-up of artists that I adore both internationally and homegrown as well as a bunch of excellent artists I'm looking forward to discover. Bring it on: http://www.corkxsw.com/
One band I'm so excited about seeing live is God is an Astronaut. [I'm hoping the stage time does not clash with Patti Smith!] The band are constantly touring around the world bringing their instrumental apocalyptic rock sound to places far and wide.
Today The Kings of Leon will perform in Slane Castle today to 80,000 people. The concert has gained a worldwide reputation over the 30 years. The line-ups below contain some of the best live bands in the world along with Bryan Adams. Check out some of the Irish artists to have been given the pleasure of performing in Slane.
ROLLING STONES
J.Geils Band/The Chieftans/George Thorogood and the Destroyers
1983 - The 'Slane Concert' had to be moved to The Phoenix Park and therefore there's conflicting reports of a 'Slane' gig that year. I suppose it can't be a Slane gig if it didn't happen in Slane!
I'm beginning to get really excited about going to CorkXSW next weekend. Set in the Liss Ard estate it contains for me a dream line-up of artists that I adore both internationally and homegrown as well as a bunch of excellent artists I'm looking forward to discover. Bring it on: http://www.corkxsw.com/
LOWmountain deserve an 'Introducing To ...' post as the Cork band have never been featured on 2UIBestow before. However .... LOWmountain are brilliant. The three piece write the type country folk music which is normally associated with a Wainwright or two.
For today's 'Amhran Gach La' I'm going to share two amazing tracks. Listen to the gorgeous 'Swimming At Dawn' with that haunting cello over the male/female harmonies:
Superb debut album from rock/pop band Storyfold. 'Rocket Science' is full to the brim of catchy tunes which are composed to make you bop your head, tap your foot and sing the songs. Even though reviewing an album isn't rocket science I found it very difficult to review this album.
Storyfold write songs which follow a certain formula. The tracks on 'Rocket Science' are all of a very high quality in composition, musicianship and execution. Any one of the main eleven tracks could belong on the playlists of the most popular radio stations. The formula is generally to have an intense tempo from the start with strong vocals and lyrics describing a certain interaction. The lyrics often include vivid emotions which the listener can connect with as well as instrumentation which enhances the vocals and lyrics. All of this with delicate piano playing and backing vocals means we have an album of highly entertaining and instantly likable songs.
'Rocket Science' kicks off with a cracking tune 'Ciara Don't Be Angry' which I'm sure has to be a future single. It's a highly catchy tune which has the ability to be recalled in the head in a heartbeat. The current single 'Trick of Light' is another superb slice of pop music. For me the best track is 'The Sweetest Silence' where Lindsey provides lead vocals but it's the female/male harmonies which hit the spot. I really like the initial change of tempo for 'You're Still There' but it still has a catchy chorus and the strings enable the tempo to gain momentum by the end of the track.
The reason why I found this review difficult to write is because it reminds me of when I reviewed The Dirty 9's debut album last year. Back then I wrote about The Dirty 9's album as not really connecting with me and it created a conflict within me. One the one hand I admire Storyfold greatly and I think 'Rocket Science' is a superb album of quality tunes. Just like The Dirty 9's I think Storyfold are one of Ireland's best live bands and 'Rocket Science' is a must buy for anyone wanting good, honest, catchy, rock tunes. However, it doesn't light a fire within me to the extent that 'Rocket Science' might not be an album I'll be returning to on a regular basis.
The Riot Tapes headlined Slane .... well Boyles of Slane last night and were simply amazing. They finished the gig with a cover of Adele's Rolling in the Deep which sounded a little like the following video:
Tonight Friday the band are headlining Whelans. Entry is just a fiver!
One of Ireland's most promising rock bands is Mullingar's 'We Go Go'. They are busy recording, writing, gigging and building up a profile for themselves. They write clever rock songs and have a superb frontman.
In May of 2009 I discovered the music of Andrew Handrick at an independent music festival in Conary, Co. Wicklow. I seen some really good artists but the act which stood out for me was Dubliner Andrew Handrick. His performance and deliverance was outstanding and conjured up Elliott Smith or Willy Mason comparisons. Andrew released his debut album 'The True Riches of Life' way back in 2006 and has re-located to Italy. In this interview Andrew talks about his career to date, his motivations and the plan for the future.
Hi Andrew, what have you been up to since you released your debut album 'The True Riches of Life' in 2006?
Well I could write a book about what I've been up to...lol...I quit my job and headed straight to San Francisco and was playing off and on there for about 15 months which was a great experience and really helped me develop as a musician and songwriter. Nothing like travel to get inspiration.I took a year out from gigging after that for personal reasons, which I won't bore you with, but continued writing and recording and at this time began collaborating with different lyricist around the world and basically writing music for others lyrics. This was great cause it kinda freed me up to concentrate more on the music side of things and that always brings up new ideas and ways of seeing music and songs. I was using my own recording interface at this time, so I was also learning more about the recording process, trial and error, in fact a lot of error...haha... I suppose in the back of my mind I was always trying to work out my next album.I got back out playing live at the end of 2008 which was great cause thats what I love to do. Feeds my soul I suppose. I then started spending time in Northern Italy and found my way to recording an 5 track instrumental CD, only made it available through my website for reasons I have yet to realise.I also recorded some tracks which went on a yoga cd in the states.
All this time I was still trying to figure out my 2nd album..it ain't easy.... and playing some gigs in Ireland and Italy, back and forth...Then came the birth of my daughter Sofia so things kinda got put on the back burner for a little while again..sleep was more important...lol and then I finally realised I was trying to record my 3rd album not my second. I had written a lot of songs when I was in the US and never recorded them due to just playing them live and the time out I took when I came back, so its funny how the mind works, I was kinda stuck and could not really move on until I had recorded these songs..and thats what I am doing now. My mom also passed away a couple of months ago, so maybe something with that made things click into place, hard to know really, it's all a strange process.I actually recorded 9 demo songs in two evenings and its pretty much the bones of my next album.
Is your permanent base now in Northern Italy and how has this affected your songwriting and musical direction?
Yes I am pretty much full time in North West Italy now.. I wouldn't say it has affected my songwriting or musical direction to be honest.. I think my time in the US pretty much solidified my direction and songwriting.. I suppose I have always been more influenced by the American sound more so than Europe..I just get inspiration from life so it does not matter where I am, there is always something to write about or some feelings to share..
What are the main topics or themes for the new songs?
Main topics and themes... they never seem to change...lol...relationships and life experience..growing, healing and learning...I suppose travel as well and meeting different people at different stages in life... I don't do much political stuff...doesn't sit comfortably with me at the moment.. I have a few songs along those lines, maybe for another EP or album who knows...I actually wrote a song inspired by Hugo Chavez.... not sure the world is ready for that one...haha..
Have you a completion or release date in mind for the new album?
I was hoping to have the new album finished before I head to NY at the end of the month...which still might happen so keep an eye on my website, but it might just stay a demo album for a while...I was toying with the idea of just putting it out really raw... I mean as an indpendent artist it can get frustrating trying to match the production levels people in the industry expect... so I was thinkin of an anti industry recording..lol...of course that might be shooting myself in the foot...though BBC Radio played songs I recorded myself with no problem, can you sense my indecision...lol...it's a curse...
Congratulations to Charles McAleer whose allocated number was chosen at random on http://www.random.org/ and will be contacted in the coming days by the PR representative of Relentless Energy Drink.
The interest in the competition was excellent. I need to thanks all the people who entered the competition including the one person who unfortunately got the question wrong. :-(
I must thank the people at Relentless Energy Drink for the opportunity to bring the considerable prize to the 2UIBestow Readers.
I must thank The Sea Sessions people for sharing the info of the competition on Facebook and Twitter. The festival line-up is top class and in these recession times it represents the best value for money in Irish festivals this season.
With thanks to Relentless Energy Drink I have 2 weekend camping tickets to give away today for the Sea Sessions Festival taking place in Bundoran from June 24th - 26th.
The question is simple. Storyfold are playing The Sea Sessions on the Friday night but tonight they are launching their debut album in Whelans.
What is the name of Storyfold's debut album?
Get the answer to me by email to mixtape4melfi::@::gmail.com by midnight tonight [Friday 20th May] when the competition closes. A winner will be selected at random and notified within seven days.
This week on the blog we have our first ever Competition! The prize is pretty special too. There are 2 weekend camping tickets for The Sea Sessions courtesy of Relentless Energy Drink available to the lucky winner of Friday's competition.
This week on the blog we have our first ever Competition! The prize is pretty special too. There are 2 weekend camping tickets for The Sea Sessions courtesy of Relentless Energy Drink available to the lucky winner of Friday's competition.
When a band disappears for quite some time there's always the question mark over their existence. Thankfully after a hiatus of sorts Codes are on The Sea Sessions bill playing on the Friday night.
The band's 2009 debut Trees Dream in Algebra gained a Choice nod and includes this wonderful track:
The Cold Pro Festival intrigues me! It's similar to The Sea Sessions but takes place over the June Bank Holiday weekend and takes place in White Strand, Co. Clare.
The line-up is impressive with many interesting international artists such as Peter Hook, Kate Walsh, Jamie XX, Scott Matthews and North Atlantic Oscillation. However there's a great line-up of Irish acts booked as well. Here's a mix of the best music to offer at Cold Pro.
THE BIG TOP / SATURDAY
Peter Hook & ‘The Light’ present Joy Divisions Unknown Pleasures
The Amplifetes
Scott Mathews
Ben Howard
Ellen and the Escapades
Friska Viljor
Kate Walsh
THE ISLAND / SATURDAY
Jamie XX
Africa Hitech (aka Mark Pritchard & Steve Spacek)
Sir Vinyl (Will West)
Bass Clef Live
The Nextmen ft. MC Wrec
Wildcookie (aka Freddie Cruger & Anthony Mills)
Trojan Sound System
Serocee
Sir Vinyl (Catrina D’Olive)
Prince Fatty Sound System ft. Hollie Cook & Horseman
ASTRAY STAGE / SATURDAY
James Owen Fender
Masters In France
Sleep Thieves
The Heroic Present
Satellite Generals
DJ Lefto
Flako Live
Electric Wire Hustle Live
Falling Up
Cinnaman
Fulgeance Live
Debruit Live
Shigeto Live
TY and Big Ted
Paul White Live
Eric Lau
Mynameisjohn
ASTRAY STAGE / SUNDAY
Miracle Bell
Heathers
Brother and Bones
Zombie Computer
This week on the blog we have our first ever Competition! The prize is pretty special too. There are 2 weekend camping tickets for The Sea Sessions courtesy of Relentless Energy Drink available to the lucky winner of Friday's competition.
The Walls are a band who deserve respect [and radio time] for their wonderful back catalogue and history but when this EP was released in March there was barely a whimper from the establishment.
The main single 'Bird in a Cage' is a return to form but I like this instrumental which brings me back to the old b-sides on 'value for money' singles I used to buy from Freebirds for 50p!
In what I hope is the only festival cancelled this year Sham Rock announced this today!
This is a terrible shame but the silver lining is that the festival got cancelled with plenty of time to spare so it shouldn't be too much or a disruption to the bands or gig goers!
This week on the blog we have our first ever Competition! The prize is pretty special too. There are 2 weekend camping tickets for The Sea Sessions courtesy of Relentless Energy Drink available to the lucky winner of Friday's competition.
Here's the tasty line-up for The Sea Sessions taking place in Bundoran from June 24th - 26th.
Friday
VILLAGERS
JAPANESE POPSTARS
THE DELAYS
O EMPEROR
BONA FIDA FEDERATION
HAM SANDWICH
CODES
THE MINUTES
STORYFOLD
SURF CHICXXX
INDECISION
HERBALISER
Saturday
BELLX1
GRANDMASTER FLASH
GO! TEAM
SKATALITES
GEMMA HAYES
RIPTIDE MOVEMENT
ROY SEVEN
CASHIER NO. 9
BITCHES WITH WOLVES
BRIAN DEADY
FUNERAL SUITS
BAND BATTLE
EROL ALKAN
Sunday
ZIGGY MARLEY
NORMAN JAY
CHARLES BRADLEY
FRED
KANYU TREE
IVAN SAINT JOHN
THE WALLS
BOXTIE
THE DANGER IS
HAT N CARA
WINDINGS
THE SHOOS
ROOFTOP ANTHEM
SCRATCH PERVERTS
All this week I'll be talking about Irish bands you must check out at The Sea Sessions beginning with Belfast's Cashier No. 9.
There's a great buzz about this band over the last few months and their debut album will be one of the most anticipated albums of the year when it's released on June 20th. Check out the song 'Lost at Sea' and you'll hear something a bit different and special:
Difficult forth album from a maturing band who write clever tunes. It's a good album but I'm left wanting something that isn't there from a band I really admire.
'Leaving My Empire' is the forth album from Fred who are one of Ireland's best live bands. Much of the 2008 album 'Go God Go' was of the highest quality and brought them to Canada and increased their worldwide fan-base. After a bit of a hiatus they recorded the album with Howard Bilerman in Montreal. The breakthrough to the next level just didn't happen with Fred and I don't think 'Leaving My Empire' will move the band forward because in the current music industry, this album compares unfavourably with their contemporaries.
I'd urge anyone interested in the album to begin in reverse because the album finisher 'We Are The City Now' is the best track on the album with a fantastic sing-a-long chorus. The other highlights for me are the funky 'Trial by Fire', the album opener 'If Not Now When' and Elvis Costello-esque 'Villains' sung by the bassist.
The vocals on the album bother me. With the radio hits from 'Go God Go' the vocals were fine and there were a few tracks including backing vocals. On 'Leaving My Empire' the vocals duties rest on lead single Joseph with that one exception in 'Villains' mentioned above. The vocals don't encourage multiple listens and I'm often moved to press skip to move on from the weaker tracks like 'Somewhere Else' and 'As You See'.
'Leaving My Empire' has some good moments but in general it's one of the worst albums I'm likely to review this year and I can't see how Fred will make it to the next stage up from Whelans/Workmans Club etc. This is such a pitty as I've seen Fred play a number of times and the band is one of my favourites. If they do a 'Best of Fred' it'll be jammed full of good tunes however on the basis of this album there probably won't be much demand for it.
Fred - Leaving My Empire [6 out of 12]
I seen this picture on the band's Facebook page and I couldn't resist putting in on here:
10 piece funky soul dance pop outfit Mob Fandango have an EP on the go and it's brilliant. Based on these four tracks I'm going to do my very best to catch the band live in the near future:
Here's the best track from the EP: She Might Be Crazy
Apart from writing wonderful little pop tunes I Am Not Lefthanded place much emphasis on their home-made videos for their singles. Check out the thought-provoking video to the new song 'Alone (It's Not So Bad)
I've found some really good bands who are playing this weekend's 'Clockwork Apple' mini festival. One of the best is I Phoenix whose brand of Electro-Rock is driven with energy and big sounds like this one:
Jukebox Gypsy release an excellent album which connects with me at this moment in time. It's an album to sing to, that perks you up and gives you a much needed shot of happiness.
'The Month' flirts with a range of genres and therefore has the ability to appeal to many people while still being considered a folk band. Each band member brings a song to the group for development but they generally display the composer's stamp. On the tracks lead guitarist Isaac sings the band flirts with Country music and deal with topics such as 'Butch Cassidy' and 'Arkansas'. Dave the lead singer provides the main vocals on the soulful tracks. Joanna contributes mainly backing vocals on the album but the song 'Riverbed' where she sings lead vocals remind me of Kate Rusby and is a simply gorgeous track. For me the best songs on the album are when Ben provides lead vocals. The title track in particular is such a great song and would hit home to anyone who recently experienced loss in their life.
".... but these are fading pictures now falling from my wall ..."
While there's a large amount of variety within the album it does all fit together and make sense mainly due to the superb musicianship on display. There really is no better sound then intricate acoustic lead guitar over acoustic guitar, banjo and double bass. The other key factor which makes Jukebox Gypsy stand out are the catchy multiple harmonies in the songs. Along with the title track the other recommended tracks include 'Marine St. West', 'Long Way 'Round' and this track 'Waves'.
For a debut EP the radio friendly tunes sound good but all the more remarkable for the fact that the band are still in school and in their mid teens. The Crossfire consists of:
Seán Buckley - Lead Vocals
Matthew Brady - Lead guitar/Backing vocals
Chris Murphy - Rhythm guitar
Sean Keeley - Bass
Adam Shanahan - Drums
I mentioned yesterday that this ShamRock festival looks so interesting. I'd be fascinated to find out if the punters move away from the cover bands to check out all the quality original music planned for the weekend. There are lots of attractions there such as a food hall, fairground and three stages of music.
Annette Buckley is one of Ireland's most talented songwriters with a fabulous voice. She should be known worldwide based on the quality of her 2005 debut album.
Here she performs 'Whirlwind' from that debut with Jamie Lawson backstage at Cyprus Avenue in Cork on Wednesday of this week.
It's a shame it clashes with my trip to CXSW because it's an interesting line-up. One band I'd encourage everyone to check out is the shoegazing sounds of Percolator. I seen them in Whelans a few years back and they were superb!
Friday is covers day and I came across this during the week from Wicker Bones which sounds amazing and given the week we've had it's a very relevant song:
The Spook of the Thirteenth Lock are being talked about in high regard as they have begun gigging again in the run up to the release of the band's second album. Here's my favourite track from the self-titled debut.
In fact for just a fiver you can see the band with 8 other superb bands in Whelans this Saturday in the Hefty Fest:
Go on over to Harmless Noise to hear a special mixtape of all the bands listed in the poster:
