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Month: December 2018

HamsandwicH Share New Single ‘Reaction’

HamsandwicH are delighted to announce the unexpected dropping of their new single-bomb ‘Reactions’, a sonically charged surprise release from one of Ireland’s most enduring independent bands ahead of their December shows around the country.

Following up last year’s single ‘Bodies’ and on the heels of their triumphant return to The Electric Picnic and the IndiePendence Festival ’18, HamsandwicH hit the road for a handful of dates around the country in December 2018.

“Reactions was started as a very short zippy little verse chorus demo and we reworked it into a 3 part piece. It explores deeper into song writing where we had even more fun than usual! Lots of new areas and influences covered from a choppy verse vocal to more unconventional odd harmonies based around a simple hook. The song has very different rhythms which we battled & hopefully managed to blend together. One big influence from the off was Prince as it was written around the time he passed away. Hopefully it’s a track the man himself would dig.” – Podge SandwicH

We are continuing down the path we took with our last track Bodies. We are excited to be writing in new territory and think the live shows will benefit hugely by the new music. It’s going to be even better. We can’t wait for this December tour! It’s different stuff but we’re excited to hear what people think” – D’Arcy SandwicH

One of Ireland’s most enthralling live acts in recent times, Kells, Co. Meath band HamsandwicH are well known for their incendiary live performances which has established them as one of the top touring acts in the country. Featuring their signature calling card of Niamh Farrell’s powerful yet sweet vocal and Podge McNamee’s juxtaposing baritone, if ever there was a band to feed off their audience it is HamsandwicH; melodic, hook-laden, and heart-warmingly charming. HamsandwicH will be touring throughout 2018 performing new music as well as the old favourites.

Having sold out Dublin’s prestigious Olympia Theatre three times, supported Arcade Fire and The Pixies, played on the main stage at both the Electric Picnic and Longitude Festivals, performing at the legendary Slane Castle with Bon Jovi, been personally invited by Mumford & Sons to support them in Phoenix Park, to selling out their legendary acoustic show Dublin’s Christchurch Cathedral on the day tickets went on-sale, HamsandwicH continue to thrive having established themselves in the upper-echelon of must-see acts on the road today.

Back in April 2015 the band’s third album ‘Stories From The Surface’ debuted straight into the number 1 spot on Ireland’s official album chart, the first time an independent and unsigned Irish act accomplished this feat. With producer Karl Odlum (who also produced ‘White Fox’ and the band’s 2008 debut, ‘Carry The Meek’) at the helm again, the album was recorded throughout Dublin in 2014 in Westland Studios, Windmill Lane Studios, Bow Lane Studios as well as his own studio. Along with such a continuous thread stitched throughout the band’s existence is – as Podge has referenced – a quest to be different yet distinctive.“You want to aim for, achieve and retain these,” says Niamh, “so that people can listen to the new material and know it isn’t going to sound like previous albums, yet it’s still going to sound like HamsandwicH. You want, ideally, people to hear the song on the radio without the DJ or presenter introducing the band name, but the listener will know it’s us.”

‘Stories From The Surface’ was mixed by American Danny Kalb in his Cincinnati, Ohio studio who’s past work includes Beck, Ben Harper, Karen O, Rilo Kiley, Neon Neon, just to name a few, was a bonafide attraction. “We met Danny and he is such a hard working optimistic guy you can’t help but like him; his mixes opened up a new dimension for HamsandwicH”, muses drummer Ollie Murphy. ‘Stories From The Surface’ was mastered by Greg Calbi who’s credits include albums by St.Vincent, The National, War on Drugs, Bruce Springsteen, Talking Heads, Paul Simon, John Lennon, amongst other, at Sterling Sound in New York City.

Looking back on the band’s 2010 second album, Podge McNamee reflects “It’s good that the songs on ‘White Fox’ are still loved; for such a short album it’s had a remarkably lengthy life, and to be honest, reworking ‘White Fox’ through many gigs slowed down the writing for ‘Stories From The Surface’; in fact, we almost rewrote ‘White Fox’, and that was something we weren’t used to. Most bands will tell you that the real way to learn your material is to get out of your comfort zone, and strip the songs down to the bare bones.” The ‘White Fox’ album is featured in Irish Times’ writer Tony Clayton-Lea’s acclaimed book ‘101 Irish Records You Must Hear Before You Die’, describing it as a “masterclass in quality indie pop.”

Prior to the release of their debut album ‘Carry The Meek’ in 2008, HamsandwicH were initially known as a singles-band with a successful run of independent and self-financed singles between 2005 to 2008 – ‘Sad Songs’, ‘St. Christopher’, ‘Words’, ‘Click…Click…Boom!’, ‘Keepsake’, ‘Never Talk’, and ‘Broken Glass’. The ‘Carry The Meek’ album was released in early 2008 compiling these singles plus three addition songs. Following the album’s release the band were presented with the Hope for 2008 Meteor Award as voted for by the listeners of RTE 2FM.

HamsandwicH ::: LIVE ::: Upcoming December Irish Shows

Thu – Dec 13 – Dublin – Whelans – support: Third Smoke
Fri – Dec 14 – Dublin – Whelans – support: The Innocent Bystander
Sat – Dec 15 – Dublin – Whelans – support: Roe
Sun – Dec 23 – Kilkenny – Set Theatre
Fri – Dec 28 – Galway – Roisin Dubh
Sat – Dec 29 – Limerick – Dolan’s Warehouse

‘Reaction’ digital Release available from iTunes / Google Play from 7/12/18

Saint Sister, Kormac and Jafaris Share Collaboration Video

Saint Sister, Kormac & Jafaris have released a video for their collaboration of ‘Causing Trouble’. Recorded at Saint Sister’s recent headline show, the video captures the unique performance of the hit song in the stunning surroundings of one of Dublin’s most famous venues, the Olympia Theatre.

This summer all three artists collaborated with Three for its #MadebyMusic initiative with each creating a visually stunning music video for one of their songs. ‘Made by Music’ celebrates and recognises the power of music to unite people and create lasting connections, and with the release of this unique take on Saint Sister’s ‘Causing Trouble’ these artists have made the ultimate music connection.

An organic music connection evolved when the three artists came together to perform this truly unique version of the Saint Sister tract at the exclusive launch of the campaign. Each artist brought their distinct style to the popular song creating a really innovative sound.

The overwhelming positive response to this once-off musical collaboration has led to the artists preforming the track live on national radio and at leading Irish festival, Electric Picnic. Most recently, Saint Sister invited Kormac and Jafaris to join them on stage at their first headline show in the Olympia Theatre. A venue which has played host to many amazing performances, the surprise collaboration brought the audience to their feet, receiving a rapturous ovation from the crowd in attendance.

The first of its kind, ‘Made by Music’ is an innovative move from Three to team up with three emerging Irish artists, each with very different music styles, with the aim of helping them to spread their talent to new audiences, the success of which can be seen in the incredible performance of the videos on YouTube, collectively amassing over 6 million views.

‘Causing Trouble’ by Saint Sister featuring Kormac & Jafaris is available across all streaming platforms now! Listen here

Watch #MadebyMusic video series:

Jafaris: If You Love Me (Directed by Shane Griffin)

Saint Sister: Causing Trouble (Directed by Brendan Canty)

Kormac: New Day featuring Jack O’Rourke (Directed by William Armstrong)

#MadeByMusic

Fí Releases ‘Feel Better’

Fí is a Dublin based electro-pop artist hailing from the musical town of Mullingar.  She is inspired by fellow luminaries such as Halsey, Tove Lo, Lapsley, Lorde, Banks, Dua Lipa and Verite. She’s a self taught musician who started writing after buying her first guitar in college and has spent the last few years crafting songs from her bedroom. She released her first single, ‘Éalú’ late 2016 and since the release has been collaborating, writing and working with different producers in London and Dublin and LA this Summer.

Since the single release, Fí has been working hard, grafting behind the scenes and honing her sound by collaborating with different producers here and overseas. She has been working on demos with producers here like Chris Edwards (Little Hours) and is currently over and back to London a good bit working with different producers like Lewis Gardiner (Kobalt) who shes worked on 3 tracks with (Ellie Goulding, Kloe, Prides) and Aminor. She spent her Summer working  with writers and producers in LA like Heidi Rojas (Ruth Anne, Cheryl Cole, Little Mix) and Kyrsta Youngs and Julia Ross (Chainsmokers, Miley Cyrus) .

As well as this she was chosen to work with Carla Marie Williams (Beyoncé, Girls Aloud, Britney) at her Girls iRate songwriting camp in May in association with IMRO in Camden Studios. Alongside 11 other girls from across the country they were given the opportunity to create a song and collaborate together,

Her second single, ‘Feel Better’  was released on  Friday, the 30th of November which was recorded in Los Angeles with Shayan Amiri and co-written with Esjay Jones (Nile Rogers, Justin Tranter, Sean Kingston). Mixed by Michael Heffernan in Dublin. We can get so caught up in self comparison; chasing numbers and ideals in life that we forget the things that are real and important. We use measures to escape reality, whether that be music, alcohol, whatever we need to distract ourselves to make us feel, ‘ a little better’.

So far, the song has been aired on Spin 1038, RTE Pulse with more airplay coming in the next week. The song was, ‘track of the day’ in HotPress as well as a  featured interview in U Magazine. It’s also been featured in many notable international blogs like Wonky Sensitive,  Staccatofy and Kings of A & R.

‘Feel Better’ is out on all platforms now.

https://www.instagram.com/fimusicofficial/
https://www.facebook.com/FiMusicOfficial
https://twitter.com/fimusicofficial

Rocstrong Releases ‘All On Black’ EP Today

Genre defying Irish musician Rocstrong follows up his latest single ‘Ching Ching Ching’, which has seen strong support from the likes of Spotify, Official Charts, Nialler9 and Today FM, among others, with his brand new sophomore EP titled ‘All On Black’. Released via West One Music Group, the ‘All On Black’ EP is produced by Rocstrong, Marcin Ciszczon and Keith O’Reilly, and finds its central theme around the power of money and the wealth disparity in today’s society.

Backed by heavy guitar riffs, hard-hitting drum arrangements and superb alternative rock sensibilities throughout, the EP begins with the riotous ‘Blood Spilling’, which sees Rocstrong painfully tracing back his heritage to the Congo DRC, and addressing the ongoing war in the region without fear, while ‘Homicide’ sees the Irish musician in braggadocios and defiant mood, as he waxes lyrical about his self-belief and bold confidence in his abilities as an artist.

The rest of the EP highlights Rocstrong paying homage to his South Dublin hometown Tallaght in ‘Talla Boy’, where the Irish Congolese native taps into his inner Johnny Cash, to tell a vivid and hard-hitting story of growing up in Dublin, and he closes out the EP with the experimental bonus track ‘Gold Glow’, which sees Rocstrong exploring a different theme from the EP’s preceding tracks, as he pays homage to all women, calling them to live their best lives and shine brighter.

Speaking about the inspiration behind the ‘All On Black’ EP, Rocstrong says, “the power of money is the key message of ‘All On Black’. We have given it so much power that now things have shifted into money having power over us. How much money you have decides how far you go and how long you can survive in this modern world. This change has caused a huge gap and those that can’t keep up are forgotten, cut off and no longer accepted in society.

My parents are from Congo DRC but relocated to Ireland for a better life so that their children could have a better life. It wasn’t by choice. This also gets me questioning why Congo DRC, one of the richest countries in the world (natural resources wise) is a place with the poorest people? For my dreams to even come close to coming true, I had to leave my birthplace and chase it elsewhere. Greed has crippled where I’m from and the same will happen globally sooner or later”.

ALL ON BLACK EP TRACKLIST

  1. Blood Spilling
  2. Ching Ching Ching
  3. Homicide
  4. Talla Boy
  5. Gold Glow

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/rocstrong

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/officialrocstrong

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/r0cstr0ng

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/rocstrongmusic

Job Opportunity | Music Generation Development Officer (Roscommon)

Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB) is now inviting applications for the position of Music Generation Development Officer

Reference number: R18-02

A Music Generation Development Officer will be appointed by GRETB and will be responsible for managing an extensive performance music education programme on behalf of the Roscommon Music Education Partnership.

County Roscommon has been selected for participation in Music Generation – Ireland’s National Music Education Programme, which is co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Skills and Local Music Education Partnerships.

Three-year, fixed-term contract.

Application form, job description and person specification available online: www.galwayroscommon.etb.ie

Closing date for receipt of completed application forms: 12 noon, Monday 17 December, 2018

Late applications will not be accepted.

Based on the volume of applications received short-listing may apply. Short-listing will take place on the basis of the information provided in the application form. Depending on the qualifications and experience of applicants, short-listing thresholds may be significantly higher than the minimum standards set out.

GRETB is an equal opportunities employer.

 

IMRO at Other Voices 2018/Day One

Has it really been 17 years since Other Voices first started its mission to take a stance on giving those on the periphery a piece of the action? Indeed, it is, and that provides (we’re shrewdly guessing) a number of the younger acts performing in Dingle across the weekend no small amount of serious thought. Some of them (and yes, we’re looking at you, PowPig) were barely out of Pampers when Other Voices first pitched its tent in the centre of Dingle. Many other acts and musicians were probably still in primary or secondary school. The former, it is fair to say, knew little of the transformative power of music. The latter crowd quite likely had some idea of what music could do – how it could change you as a person, how it could shape your thoughts about certain things, how it could make you feel.

It isn’t too much of a stretch of the imagination that to say that these musicians grew up with Other Voices; it was part of their cultural landscape in the same way that the Internet has been part of their lives since they were born or from a very young age. For them, there was no ‘before’ Other Voices – it has always been there. This was referenced in a recent article in the Irish Times’ Ticket magazine, when Other Voices Music Producer, Aoife Woodlock, told Una Mullally that young musicians are “citing Other Voices as an influence on them when they’re 13, 14, and they’re on the show in their 20s. It’s a nice nod, that you’re doing something right.”

Things change as years pass, however, and Other Voices is no different to the many other events that have gone through transformations of varying kinds. And yet, despite (or because of) such alterations, Other Voices has kept itself on its toes. Only the die-hards remember its early years, when it was virtually a secret, known only to those working in the media and the music industry. It had, as Una Mullally pointed out in her Irish Times article, “the curious intimacy of a festival that wasn’t a festival.”

Over the past five years, however, the notion that Other Voices is a secret shared only amongst clued-in media and music industry people is now nonsense. The extension of music acts performing only in the calm surroundings of St. James Church proved to be the first game-changer. For starters, the arrival of the IMRO Other Room provided a crucial impetus for more bands and musicians to head down to Dingle to tender their wares. After this, the gates were opened a bit more with the emergence of the Music Trail, the first year of which had just over a couple of handfuls of emerging music acts playing across the weekend. Now, the Music Trail is (controversial view alert) arguably more of a music fan magnet than the gigs in St James Church. If it isn’t (controversial view balanced with measured comment), then it is certainly a considerable contributing factor to the reason why more and more people have been travelling to Dingle each year.

But sure, lookit – here we are! Another year, another reason to have a blast of a weekend, catch up with your mates, have a meander around the town’s pubs and bump into people you haven’t seen in ages.

Today (Saturday) is when IMRO plays its part, of course. As you know by now, IMRO has been a supporter of Other Voices for many years, with IMRO’s Other Room an integral part of Other Voices that recognizes the talents of emerging Irish musicians and songwriters. In a second blog post, which will be online via the IMRO website from tomorrow, I’ll be reviewing all of the IMRO Other Room acts that are performing at An Chonair Bar from 1pm: I Have A Tribe, Mango & Mathman, Kitt Phillippa, Columbia Mills, and PowPig (who were definitely in playschool when Other Voices started!)

Tony Clayton-Lea

IMRO at Other Voices 2018/IMRO Other Room Reviews

 

This year five music acts performed at An Chonair Bar, as part of the IMRO Other Room at Other Voices. Tony Clayton-Lea was there to review all of them.

I HAVE A TRIBE

Patrick O’Laoghaire has a knack – a very quiet knack, it must be said, but a knack nonetheless – to mine emotions from the most basic of instruments, notably his tranquil voice and minimalist keyboards. Under the umbrella title of I Have A Tribe he released his debut album, Beneath A Yellow Moon, two years ago, and has since aimed to maintain awareness in his music without any serious level of radio play. As any musician knows, life isn’t a bowl of cherries, but people like O’Laoghaire soldier on because he knows full well that what he does has worth. This is proven song after song during his set  – there is a gentleness to his music that belies its strengths. Even a fragile version of Amy Winehouse’s Back To Black manages to pinpoint what is really special about this guy: his vulnerability is his armour, and it fits him, protects him, like a glove.

POWPIG

The winners of the 2FM Listeners Choice for the IMRO Other Room may have yet to master the art of working a room as they stand around after a soundcheck, waiting for certain things to happen, but that Oscar Wilde maxim of youth being wasted on the young is nonsense when it comes to PowPig. The Limerick group (whose Twitter bio amusingly states that they are ‘a 14-piece boy band from Sligo’) haven’t been around too long either in years (they heard the news of their slot on the Other Room line-up when they were at school) or as a music unit. Not to worry – as is the case these days with pesky kids they display a maturity and skill set far beyond their age. You could argue that for a group of their experience they are still a work in progress (aren’t we all?), but what seems indisputable here is the potential.

KITT PHILIPPA

Recent winner of the NI Music Prize for Best Single (for Human), Belfast’s Kitt Philippa is the kind of singer-songwriter that casts an observational eye over all she sees. Over the past few years, she has developed in such a way that she has deservedly taken those several important steps up the ladder. Judging by her elegant performance in the IMRO Room it seems obvious that the way forward is just to keep on doing what she has done for the past while. Performing with just drums and piano – the latter played with virtuosic levels of skill, which is not surprising as she is classically trained, the former astutely understated – Philippa delivers a sequence of softly-softly tunes that perfectly complement the mid-afternoon vibe. She also looks the part, dressed down in black and white, and with her hair slicked back. It is an overall smart and sharp demeanour that is as compelling as the music is complete and calming.

COLUMBIA MILLS

Sometimes all your simple needs are taken care of by a band that knows how to solve complex problems. Columbia Mills are one such. They released their debut album, A Safe Distance To Watch, last year (“layered tunes that leave an indelible imprint”, noted the Irish Times review), and it hit the spots that so many other album didn’t by virtue of music that was influenced by classic post-punk greats as well as more contemporary acts. Influence, of course, is one thing, but they’re not worth a damn if you don’t know how to make something different out of them. This is where Columbia Mills come up with the goods. Despite a sound problem that is more apparent onstage than for those in the audience, the music sounds just fine. It is urgent, it is forceful, it is often eyes-closed beautiful.

MANGO & MATHMAN

‘Eyes-closed beautiful’ might not be the right way to describe Dublin hip hop duo Mango & Mathman, but if you’re looking for the kind of rhythms that shake the bones from tip to toe and back again, then you won’t go wrong with Karl Mangan and Adam Fogarty. The previous night in the same venue, the pair almost blew the roof off with a frantic performance that perfectly caught the mood of Dingle’s merry midnight ramblers. A Mango & Mathman late afternoon performance the next day may not have had the same effect, but there was still enough bouncy energy on display to make people forget the time and vibe them up for the evening ahead.

And then it was over. Another year of the IMRO Room at Other Voices comes to an end. It was exciting, original, emotional, heart warming, and enlightening. Next stop? 2019…

 

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