Month: March 2017

Irish alt-folk artist Ailbhe Reddy has now topped 1.5 Million Spotify streams for her debut self released EP ‘Hollowed out Sea’ and is currently receiving some amazing reviews internationally for her new track ‘Relent’, a live video of which has just been released.

Following her recent ‘Sold Out’ shows in London and Dublin and appearance last week on Other Voices Ailbhe heads off to Toronto in April to showcase at Canadian Music Week before embarking on her first Irish Tour.

Irish Tour Dates 

29th April – Waterford, Spraoi Studios ( Sold Out )
3rd May – Galway, Roisin Dubh
5th May – Cork, Connollys of Leap
6th May – Ballydehob, Levis Cornerhouse
10th May – Dundalk, Spirit Store
11th May – Cork, Cyprus Ave ( Music Cork Showcase )
12th May – Belfast, The Mac
13th May – Westport, The Clock Tavern
26th May – Cork, Coughlans

‘Ailbhe Reddy stands head and shoulders above the folk mainstream‘ – The Line of Best Fit

‘Ailbhe Reddy’s realness on her song Relent is staggering‘ – Earmilk

‘Haunting and breathtaking‘ – Wonderland Magazine

‘Prepare to be floored‘ – Record of the Day

‘An immensely dynamic track, engaging and forward-thinking pop music‘ – Music News UK

www.facebook.com/ailbhereddy
Twitter @ailbhereddy
www.ailbhereddy.com

Sharon Shannon returns with her brand-new studio album “Sacred Earth” on 17^th March 2017.

Newly signed to Irish record label Celtic Collections, this is Sharon’s first new studio album in 3 years and her tenth studio album to date.

Sharon Shannon is a musician who likes to surprise. While she is best known for her arrangements of traditional Irish tunes and Irish-influenced compositions, she has always been eager to explore new styles, and to meet and work with other musicians. There are Irish influences here, of course, but these are cheerfully mixed in with often unexpected styles from around the world, including – for the first time – Africa.

Sharon has perfectly mastered an African/Irish crossover. But Sacred Earth is more than this: musical elements from the classical world, the Shetland Fiddle Tradition, Hip Hop, country and blues all conspire to make this album a ground-breaker.

She was helped in the project by Justin Adams, who co-produced the album, plays guitar and a variety of percussion instruments, and was, says Sharon, “the obvious guy to help us get that sound”.  The guitarist in Robert Plant’s band, The Sensational Space Shifters, Justin has long been an expert in African (and Middle Eastern) styles, and produced that great Malian band ‘Tinariwen’. He played on Sharon’s 2007 album ‘Renegade’, and Sharon wanted to work with him again both because of his African connections and because “he’s such a generous musician. I love his fearless approach to trying different ideas”.

As for Justin, he described the collaboration like this: “ever since a late-night music session at her house in Galway, I’ve been aware of the joy and openness that goes alongside Sharon’s rootedness in tradition. My musical passions that have led to immersion in Blues, North and West African music and Reggae sit easily with Sharon’s dancing rhythm, and show the ancient connections from South and East to West and back again, connections we need to celebrate more than ever”.

There is indeed a sense of celebration to this set, as Irish dance tunes interact with music from around the world. The African-influenced material includes rousing instrumentals. Away from Africa, there are more surprises.

A key player in uniting the sound of the tracks is Rushed Eggleston on cello. A virtuoso musician, Rushed can tackle any genre with equal mastery. He switches seamlessly from classical (Bas Pelles / The Merry Widow) to wildness (Pull out the Stops / Rusheen Bay).

‘The Merry Widow’ is a re-working of the waltz from the operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár, first performed at the start of the last century.

Frenchie’s Reel comes from the New England/ Canadian border tradition and was learnt from Rodney Miller. However, the addition of 6 Shetland Fiddlers (recorded on Shetland when Sharon performed there), gives this track a unique twist. The sweet tone of these incredible players also gives a classical, orchestral feel.

Sea Shepherd features the incredible playing of Seckou Keita on the Kora (an Africa Harp). This is in a true African style but the playing again gives a classical, almost regal tone to the piece.

Alongside the instrumentals there are three, very different songs, There’s the Jim Reeves (and Elvis) hit He’ll Have to Go’, now featuring Finbar Furey.

Then there’s the stomping rockabilly/bluesy ‘Let’s Go’, which started out as an instrumental, but then acquired lyrics, thanks to an Australian based duo called ‘Hat Fitz and Cara’. Real Blues royalty was added to this song in Chicago in the shape of Greg Guy, son of the legendary Buddy Guy, on guitar. Harmonica was supplied by Majiec Zawarone. This track has the distinction of having been recorded and mixed in 5 different countries; Ireland, England, Australia, USA and Poland!

The third song comes out of the touring experience in New Mexico, where Sharon met Alyra Rose. The Machine is a song political in nature and a musical hybrid of hip hop and a traditional Irish style reel.

“ It’s this free-wheeling approach that makes Sharon Shannon so exciting. And she puts it all down to the time she spent working with The Waterboys, when there were “no rules as to the type of music played…we could move very easily from a punk song to an old timey American waltz to Irish jigs and reels and onto New Orleans-type blues”. As a soloist, she has continued that approach. Working with Denis Bovell on ‘Out The Gap’, back in 1994, she found that “the reggae rhythm lent a very groovy backing to an Irish reel”. Since then there have been excursions into Argentinian tango, Breton music, American folk and country, and much more besides – including, of course, that massively-successful collaboration with Steve Earle on ‘The Galway Girl’.

Sharon Shannon has had a remarkable and adventurous career. ‘Sacred Earth’ is a rousing reminder of why she is still so unique.”  Robin Denselow

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharon.shannon1

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Gaffalo

St. Patrick’s Festival is proud to present Young Blood: The Beats and Voices of our Generation Live at the National Concert Hall this Saturday, 18th March.

When the rhythms, the musings and the mutterings of a young Irish generation intertwine it’s bound to be one of those special nights you just have to witness.

Young Blood will meander through the genres of hip hop and spoken word in what promises to be a powerful collective performance of Ireland’s smartest, expressive young musicians, rappers and poets. Curated by Aoife Woodlock, Music Producer of Other Voices, the line up includes: RTÉ Choice Music Prize winners, Rusangano Family, Dublin’s soul pop rappers, Hare Squead, named in NME’s top ten BEST new bands to watch for in 2017, Kojey Radical (UK), nominated for two MOBO awards in 2016 and credited for his explosive live shows and subversive storytelling ability.

Dublin poet Stephen James Smith’s response to a spoken word commission on the Festival’s theme Ireland You Are ….. inspired Young Blood. Smith is central to the rise of the vibrant spoken word genre in Ireland today. His passionate delivery of epic new poem My Ireland, most recently performed at the Oscar Wilde Awards in LA, is something not to be missed.

Smith is joined by poets: Abby Oliveria; the formidable Emmet Kirwan (Heartbreak, Dublin Oldschool, RIOT); Colm Keegan, John Cummins; 16 year old Natalya O’ Flaherty; Felispeaks and Sarah Clancy. Vocalist and musician Katie Laffan completes the stellar line up, although expect more surprises on the night!

Young Blood will amplify the voice of a generation!!

https://www.nch.ie/Online/St-Patricks-Festival-18Mar17

The Journal of Music has announced Anna Murray as Assistant Editor.

A composer, writer and concert manager, Anna has been contributing to The Journal of Music since 2009, writing important articles on Kaleidoscope, Kirkos Ensemble, New Music Dublin and more.

Anna studied music at NUI Maynooth and subsequently completed an M. Phil. in Music and Media Technologies at Trinity College.

She is currently Secretary of the Association of Irish Composers and also concerts manager for the Quiet Music Ensemble. Previous roles include Press Officer with the Irish Composers’ Collective, Artist Management Assistant with Lundstrom Arts Management, and project manager for a variety of music events.

Toner Quinn, Editor of The Journal of Music, commented, “I’m delighted that Anna is joining The Journal of Music. Not only is she an important music writer with a fresh perspective on the current Irish music scene, but with the launch this week of our two new music writer mentoring schemes, her project-management skills will be of enormous benefit.

As a composer, Anna’s work has been performed by Crash Ensemble, Lucy Railton, and Michelle O’Rourke and Michael McHale, and last year she was the commissioned composer at the first Music Currents electronic music festival.”

Commenting on her appointment, Anna said, “I am thrilled to be appointed as the new Assistant Editor. The Journal of Music has always provided a platform for writing on music that is stimulating and insightful, and it is exciting to be a part of it. I am looking forward in particular to working with the participants of the new music writer mentoring schemes.”

Anna will take up her new part-time position on 20 March.

After a series of successful appearances and performances, Scullion play their first headline show in Dublin for some time on Friday 31st March. It promises to be the return that has long been anticipated ahead of some new recordings and special shows being planned throughout Ireland, to be announced later in 2017. The shows intend on bringing together and inviting in some of the many musical acquaintances and collaborators that the band have crossed paths with along their adventures.

This band has been on a musical expedition since its inception…

“We have played in back rooms, front rooms, bar rooms and bedrooms, flat bed trucks, concert halls The Albert Hall and everywhere else in between,” says Philip King

“The urge to sit and play in some of these rooms especially in the Ireland in 2017 is powerful. The exchange that happens when engaging live with an audience is more alluring and vital than ever in this age of virtual connection. We have an amazingly diverse musical language on this creative island and many of those strands are woven into Scullion’s musical DNA”

Sonny Condell the creative core and inspiration for the band continues to invent and innovate. He writes music and songs that are powerful, poetic, soulful and joyful. He is one of Ireland’s most enduring creative artists and with Robbie Overson and Philip King creates the signature sound that is Scullion.

Scullion’s back pages include the anthems, ‘Down In the City’, ‘Eyelids into Snow’ and ‘John the Baptist’. Recent Scullion performances have sold out in a heartbeat, reconfirming their status as one of the best bands ever.

Scullion grew from a chance meeting in the late seventies, of its two main founders, Philip King and Sonny Condell. As a band they started rehearsing and writing in a small apartment above a chip shop in Dún Laoghaire, County Dublin, which eventually followed with regular appearances at various Dublin haunts including the Meeting Place in Dorset St. Dublin…and on out into the world.

The band’s founding members, Sonny Condell and Philip King, have not so much floated as careened below the radar for over three decades now, surfacing with some of the sharpest and most original songs written this side of the Brill Building. Quite why they never made their millions on the back of such perfect pop as ‘Oh Carol’, or at the very least discharged a pair of sizeable mortgages on the back of ‘Eyelids Into Snow’, remains one of the enduring mysteries of the music world, but such quotidian distractions are not the stuff of which founding member and aesthete, Sonny Condell, is made.

Scullion recorded 5 albums, Scullion (Produced by P.J Curtis), Balance and Control (Produced by John Martyn), The White Side of Night, (Produced by Enya Producer Nicky Ryan) Spin and LongwaveA live St Under The Moon was released last year

Quote from Sonny Condell:
“The band never stopped, we just have some periods of intense rest! Philip is a successful film maker and broadcaster and produces Other Voices and I have my own band and recording career, Robbie plays the music the world over, so we come together when the time is right for us.”

Tickets €25 from www.tickets.ie

http://www.scullion.com/

Mark Geary and Farah Elle have just been announced to perform at the next IMRO First Cuts Showcases at Abner Brown’s. The April edition of the new monthly showcase, will take place on Thursday 6th April at 8.00pm. Admission is FREE but due to limited capacity booking is essential: email events@nullimro.ie To guarantee entry those on guestlist must arrive by 8.15pm.

IMRO First Cuts Showcases at Abner Brown’s feature the best up and coming as well as established Irish acts. In the intimate setting performers are given the opportunity to debut new tracks along with their current material. Performance highlights and interviews with all acts who perform are later streamed online at www.IMRO.ie and across IMRO’s social media channels. The first showcase featured Marc O’Reilly and Ailbhe Reddy.

Described as a “quintessential singer-songwriter”, Dublin-native Mark Geary is a celebrated musician who began his career over 20 years ago and has gone on to tour all over Europe, the US and Australia, and has shared the stage with performers such as The Swell Season, Glen Hansard, The Frames, Josh Ritter, Bell X1, Coldplay, Elvis Costello, The Pretenders and Joe Strummer.  In recent years, he has played shows and festivals in both the US and across Europe notably in Switzerland, Austria and Germany, including a headline spot on the critically acclaimed Songs from Ireland: Old and New tour. He also supported Glen Hansard on several of his European dates in 2015 and 2016. With his 5th studio album now mixed and mastered, 2017 sees Mark road-testing the songs from the new album which will be released later this year.

Farah El Neihum, otherwise known as ‘Farah Elle’; is a songwriter with an alternative pop sound influenced by an eclectic taste of genres; from hiphop to R&B and ska, while featuring Arabian echoes from her Libyan background. She is currently based in Dublin, having moved to Ireland with her family when she was 2. Her rhythmic lyrics, piano driven songs and distinctive voice aim to reveal something of the beauty in the ephemeral everyday. She is currently writing her debut album at home, and collaborating with different artists and producers – For the meantime, her single “Silk” is available on Spotify, iTunes & Soundcloud – as well as “Feel It Out” a collaboration track with BANTUM, lyrics and melody written by Farah Elle.

Abner Brown’s is not only the coolest barbershop in town, it’s also one of Dublin’s most unique venues. The unlikely Rathmines venue has already seen performances from hundreds of acts such as Ash, Gavin Glass, Duke Special, David Geraghty (of Bell X1 fame), The Young Folk, Molly Sterling, Mundy, The Hot Sprockets and many more. REM’s Michael Stipe has even paid a visit.

IMRO is a national organisation that administers the performing right in copyright music in Ireland on behalf of its members (songwriters, composers and music publishers) and on behalf of members of the international overseas societies that are affiliated to it. Music users such as broadcasters, venues and businesses must pay for their use of copyright music by way of a blanket licence fee. IMRO’s Mission is to protect, promote and develop the collection and distribution of music royalties; foster music creation and promote the value of music to the creative, cultural and business communities in Ireland.

Tickets for IMRO First Cuts at Abner Brown’s are FREE but due to limited capacity booking is essential. To reserve tickets please email events@nullimro.ie

For More Information:
http://imro.ie
https://www.facebook.com/AbnerBrownsBarbershop/
https://www.facebook.com/farahellemusic
http://markgeary.com/

KARMS are a thundering indie rock 4 piece from Dublin made up of brothers Colm and Stephen O’Loughlin with best friends Danny Farrelly and Jay Maleney.

Recorded with acclaimed producer Tony Doogan (Mogwai, Belle & Sebastian), ‘We Always Lose’ is the huge debut single from KARMS. The Dublin 4 piece honed their wall of sound with Tony, recording 10 tracks over 5 days in Attica Audio, Donegal.

KARMS debut single We Always Lose is available for download and streaming on April 21st.

www.karmsmusic.com

Music producer Stephen Dunwoody explains just some of the very real benefits of becoming a member of IMRO.

“I have never made much money from my music. I have never tried to. To me it is a gift, a joy and simply a way of life. Six months ago I made a decision that totally changed the way I view music, and now suddenly I find I have real earning potential.

For over 25 years I have written, played and recorded my compositions; from early cassettes to four track, reel to reel and now with my current home multitrack studio. Performing for years on the pub and club circuit I could slip in the odd original piece of music, perhaps two songs during the customary two hour set. I released my first album in 1995, trotting out another every five years ago. I used them to promote me; in other words, I sent them off to promoters to get real paying gigs. They were nothing more than a loss leader for me, a jobbing musician with a young family to support.

On advice from a friend, I took the step of registering my songs with the Irish Musicians’ Rights Organisation IMRO. Having been a long time member, I used to baulk at the seemingly impossible mass of paperwork giving myself the reasonable excuse ‘it’s not worth the hassle’. However it can all be done now online.

IMRO say: ‘We make it possible for businesses to tap into the many commercial benefits of using music and ensure that the creators of this music are rightly rewarded for the public use of their work’.

So what’s not to like about that? And another thing – there is no fee for IMRO membership for either writer or publisher applicants. With a new album ‘Trouble in Mind’ due for release I plunged ahead, also signing up with CD Baby who, for a one off payment, take care of Digital distribution on iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon, Google Play, Tidal, Deezer, and dozens more.  There are other ways and companies that do this, but this one suited my needs.

Last month I received my first royalty check from IMRO. It’s never going to break the bank but it was the most thrilling real cash I have ever earned. It validates what I do. Someone somewhere is playing my song; it might be in an elevator in Hong Kong or a restaurant in Estonia, who knows.

Interestingly it was my composition ‘Miami’ that seems to have garnered the most interest and revenue. Maybe over time I’ll find out just why.

So, barely a year after my last album, I have just mixed and mastered my latest (yes this is real Beatles productivity) called ‘Blue Promenade’. Some blues and some good old fashioned soft rock.
I just hope somebody keeps pressing that elevator button.”

Stephen Dunwoody is an independent musician who has supported numerous international acts during a 25 year career, including Jools Holland, Ally McBeal star Vonda Sheperd, Wishbone Ash, The Corrs, Tom Robinson, Kirsty McColl and Bjorn Again.

In 2015, Stephen was voted Number One in the VTYO world music video charts. He eventually rose to number 4 in the overall chart for his live recording of Nina Simone’s ‘Nobody’s Fault’.
His song and video ‘Miami’ has been featured in NME and reached number one in the VTYO charts in 2016. Stephen’s new album Blue Promenade is due out in May this year.

You can follow Stephen Dunwoody on Facebook, Twitter and SoundCloud

The AVA Emerging Competitions are back for their third year, this time calling all emerging electronic music producers, DJ’s and Visual Artists based across the UK and Ireland. AVA is committed to showcasing both local and international talent and their AVA Emerging competitions are the perfect opportunity to shine a light on the strength of the thriving underground scene. The competitions have continued to progress each year and offer a genuine opportunity and platform for emerging artists to get their work showcased to a wider audience. For 2017, AVA has added a new Emerging Visual Artist Category and brought on a host of new exciting partners.

The Emerging Producer competition will see AVA team up with Native Instruments and Extended Play. The winning track and producer will be signed to Extended Play as well as securing a feature on the FMB Blog and airtime on BBC’s Across The Line. On top of this they will receive tech support from Native instruments and mentoring and artist development support from JMX & T-BONE.

AVA will collaborate again with Belfast Underground Records for the Emerging DJ competition, which gives the opportunity for an up and coming DJ to showcase their skills in a 30 minute mini mix, with 3 finalists performing in a live final on Belfast Underground Records Radio. The winning DJ will join the AVA 2017 lineup and perform at the festival as well as showcase on Belfast Underground Records Radio.

The new Emerging Visual Artist competition will see AVA co-partner with Dazed & Confused, Bullitt Hotel and Belfast Photo Festival to offer an artist with significant potential and creativity both media & City-wide exposure. The three categories include photography, moving image or audio-visual arts. The theme for 2017s Emerging Visual Artist is Belfast and the prize is open to emerging artists of all ages and career paths. The finalists will be showcased across AVA Festival & Conference 2017. There will be a shortlist made in each category with one overall Visual Artist winner that will get a feature in Dazed & Confused. The highest ranked Photography entry will be selected to do an AVA Festival Photo Diary that will be showcased by a selected publication. The shortlisted moving image and audio-visual entries will be showcased across the city and at AVA Festival.

Since last year, 2016 Emerging Producer competition winner Quinton Campbell has gone on to Debut his EP ‘FM Patterns‘ on Extended Play Recordings be nominated by Nialler9/Tower Records as one of the Top Club Tracks of 2016 and Best Irish Songs of 2016. He has also gone on to play shows at ADE with AVA X Percolate, District 8 and Pygmalion. The Emerging DJ winner Bine has also gone on to play for Northern Irish heavyweights Shine on NYE, The Night Institute as well as features on Belfast Underground Radio and Rawsum Radio.

Applications now open. Closing date Friday May 5th.

Entry, more info and criteria at www.hiive.co.uk/AVAFestival

AVA FESTIVAL AND CONFERENCE 2017 – 02-03 June 2017
T13 – Titanic Quarter – Belfast

Rusangano Family has been announced as the winner of the RTÉ Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year 2016 for the album Let The Dead Bury The Dead (self-released). The judging panel, made up of Irish music media professionals, deliberated at length tonight before choosing the winning album. Instead of using sales or airplay as criteria, the judges focus, simply and solely, on the music.

Snow Patrol’s Jonny Quinn presented Rusangano Family with the award.

The winner of the RTÉ Choice Music Prize Irish Song of the Year was also announced and Picture This won the prize for the song “Take My Hand”. Decided by the public via the RTÉ and Choice Music Prize websites, there was a great response as fans got behind their favourite song.