Month: May 2019

Dean Maywood has announced details of his latest release.

The five track EP out June 7^th is the final part in a long journey for the Donegal singer-songwriter, he has spent the past four years doing the hard miles all over Ireland, attempting to further hone his craft and get his music to a wider audience. “I’ve played some amazing venues and festivals along the way and been lucky enough to support some great artists including Jason Wilber (USA), The 4 Of Us, Jonny Fean & Jim Lockhart (Horslips), The Whileaways, and Goats Don’t Shave to name a few.”

The EP was recorded last year in Studio 347 in Strabane County Tyrone and produced by fellow singer songwriter Darren Doherty. The songs on the record deal in the narrative of the everyman, stories we all know; love, loss, isolation, joy, fear, desperation and of course the universal musical Rosetta stone… heart ache.

Sonically Maywood was inspired by vintage 70’s golden era, rock, pop and country and attempts to distil them down to the common theme they all hold, simple beautiful melody and lyrics with heart.

Since the turn of the year the first two singles released from the EP have both received coverage on RTE and BBC radio and glowing reviews in online and print media. Then there was a sell-out show with his band ‘Dogriver’ in the Balor Theatre in Donegal on May 17^th to promote the EP release.  Maywood tells us “I just can’t wait to share this record with everyone, I’ve put everything into it and I think you will hear that in the songs and hopefully the honesty in there connects with people”.

Check out his social media for updates about releases and upcoming gigs.

The eponymous ‘Dean Maywood’ EP is available on all platforms on June 7^th.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/deanmaywood 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeanMaywood
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deanmaywood/

Photo: Wrapped In Plastic Photography

Rising Irish neo-soul star Nnic returns with latest single ‘The Place’ ahead of her headline Dublin show in Whelans this month.

The silky smooth production and powerhouse vocals shine through effortlessly.  With a strong focus on mixing delicate vocal delivery with larger belting notes, to give the song a strong soft to hard progression.BIO

Dublin native Nnic (pronounced Nick) is an upcoming female solo artist with a neo – soul/electronic edge. 

With over 10 years of classical vocal training under her belt, Nnics sound and songwriting passion brings a mixture of ballad-like melodies, with fresh electronic sampling. Nnics three releases to date have garnered over 600,000 plays on Spotify and through the success of ‘Pillars’ and the follow on single ‘8th Wonder’, Nnic has received national radio support from BBC, Radio X, Today FM, 2FM and online press from tastemakers such as Nialler9, District Magazine, The Last Mixtape and HotPress magazine.

Nnic quotes the words of psychotherapist Esther Perel as part of the inspiration for ‘The Place’:

“The quality of your life ultimately depends on the quality of your relationships“.”

‘The Place’ is an ode to those words and to the everyday moments that build a relationship’s unique foundation. 

Produced by Adam O’Regan and Dylan Lynch of Soda Blonde, and mastered by Adam O’Regan. The track has a strong focus on mixing delicate vocal delivery with larger belting notes, to give the song a strong soft to hard progression. 

LIVE

30/05 Headline show in Whelan’s, Dublin tickets here
20/06 The Camden Chapel, London tickets here

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Dublin four-piece The Riptide Movement have released the brand new video for their new single ‘I’ll Be There’, which it is out now across all streaming platforms and digital formats. Produced and directed by BAFTA award winning Jam Media, the video is a 2D live action animation that really compliments this uplifting track.

The song itself is an energising, guitar driven anthem with a massive chorus and is without doubt a return to form for the band. Co-produced in Attica Studios with the legendary Tommy McLoughlin (Villagers, SOAK) ‘I’ll Be There’ could possibly be their best offering to date.

With four studio albums to their name – most notably The RTÉ Choice Music Prize nominated, Gold selling, Number 1 Album ‘Getting Through’ – The Riptide Movement are renowned for their phenomenal live shows and soaring, guitar driven, energetic tracks. Having toured extensively throughout 2018 on the back of critically-acclaimed releases ‘All Works Out’, ‘Elephant in the Room’ and ‘Changeling’, a busy summer awaits, with The Riptide Movement embarking on a series of festival appearances across Ireland in June 2019.

SUMMER FESTIVAL DATES

1 June: Bandon Music Festival, Bandon, Ireland
2 June: The Leixlip Festival @ The Courtyard Hotel, Leixlip, Ireland
22 June: Midsummer Arts Festival St. David’s Church, Naas, Ireland
29 June: Kaleidoscope Festival – Russborough House, Wicklow, Ireland
13 July:  Sult Feile, Donegal, Ireland
20 July: Boyle Arts Festival, Boyle, Ireland
26 July: The Séamus Ennis Arts Centre & Café, Naul, Ireland
27 July: Ballinrobe Festival, Ballinrobe, Ireland
3 August: The Scariff Harbour Festival, Dock Road, Ireland
4 August: Cappa Fest (Cappawhite Gaa), Cappawhite, Ireland
30 August: Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival, Lisdoonvarna, Ireland

“’I’ll Be There’ the brand new single from The Riptide Movement, is out on all streaming platforms and digital formats now.

https://riptidemovement.com
https://www.facebook.com/TheRiptideMovement/
https://twitter.com/riptidemovement
https://www.instagram.com/theriptidemovement/

The Thrash Blues [T.T.B] are set to release their new single ‘Halo’ worldwide via Tailbone Music.

‘Halo’ recasts the bands incredible live energy into this rousing and galvanising studio version. With its smooth low-end rumble, sweet vocal hooks, rolling rhythms and a killer guitar riff, ‘Halo’s’ sustained and steadfast groove swells into a climax of pure proto-punk energy.

“Dynamite band with an explosive sound,” Pete Holidai -Trouble Pilgrims

Available digitally on all platforms from 07/06/2019 (pre-save on Spotify from May 24th).

Taken from Joe Chester’s lost album ‘She Darks Me’, the most melodic and liberating of Joe’s releases, ‘Foreign Correspondent’ has been given the 2019 remaster treatment adding a new dimension of sonic elegance. Rich vocals and flowing layers of crisp guitar lines give us an intricate landscape to indulge. Joe once again proves his worth as a producer of substantial skill and artistry. He is at the peak of his indie-pop powers on this very fine cut representing his talent for creating a catchy tune with real depth and honesty.

Joe say’s of the single, “It’s about people who have forgotten how to love, if they ever knew how. Love, for them, becomes something to be measured out like the advancing and retreating of the ocean. A spiteful love. About the moment you realise that love is gone. It just shrinks and disappears in front of your eyes like erosion and you’re a stranger and time slows down to nothing.”

A Lazarus Soul release their new single ‘Long Balconies’, taken from the critically acclaimed album ‘The D They Put Between The R&L’. The single is released 14th June.

Best described by Nadine O’Regan in the Sunday Business Post, ‘Long Balconies’ is…“a story of hope prevailing against “jobless anger” in the community which may be one of the best songs this reviewer has heard this year”.

A Lazarus Soul frontman and lyricist, Brian Brannigan, say’s of the recording of ‘Long Balconies’, “The album was finished and we were sitting on it for a while… then I wrote ‘Long Balconies’. I called Joe and told him I had another song. He didn’t tell me to fuck off. We were under pressure and running out of time before I had to get my flight home from Joe’s studio. I told him to think Vic Chestnut and while not exactly Vic, he hit on another Athens, Georgia band and he played a riff worthy of REM. My only gripe was the tambourine. It sounded like it was from Blackrock, so I told him to make it sound more like it was from the flats. He got it in one.”

Country star Larissa Tormey has announced a new single on the way for next month, and the tune, penned by some heavy-weight songwriters, is all set to showcase the softer side to the midlands based singer, while continuing her exploration of gospel, spiritual, and soul-searching music.

Larissa’s current release, ‘The Big Man’ – which came out in February – has proven to be another favourite of country radio, spending time in the Irish Country Music Radio Airplay chart Top 10, while also reaching the same heights on the Hot-Disc British & Irish chart. While Larissa has never been shy about putting her heart into her music, new single ‘Only My Heart Knows’ (set to drop mid-May) promises to take that to a whole new level, as Larissa explains…

“This is a beautiful song from two fabulous writers, Chris Eaton – a very famous gospel songwriter – and Franceska Aeschlimann, and it definitely shows a softer side to what I do. To tell you the truth, I fell in love with ‘Only My Heart Knows’ as soon as I heard it, and I’m delighted to have been able to record it. It’s the kind of song that might have a different meaning to every listener, but I’m sure everyone who hears it will connect with it in a very personal way. That’s what happened to me. And when you get that feeling from a song, you know the song is special, so you just hope that you can do it justice.”

If the pedigree of ‘Only My Heart Knows”s writers is anything to go by, then Larissa is right on the mark when she describes her next single as being a special song. Franceska Aeschlimann has written for Petula Clark, Jermaine Jackson, George De Angelis (who has worked with Seal), Rob Fusari (who has worked with Lady Gaga), and of course her co-writer on this one, Chris Eaton. Eaton himself can lay claim to his songs being recorded by such distinguished names as pop legend Sir Cliff Richard, country superstars Vince Gill and Keith Urban, as well as Jessica Simpson, Donna Summer and countless more. 

www.larissatormey.com

“Sometimes you don’t realise how dark it’s been, until you see the light again,”, Robert O’Connor sings on his new single ‘Real Good Fight’.

“It’s about how you don’t ask yourself ‘am I happy’, and then you find real happiness, and you realise, I wasn’t happy at all, I was just in a rut, sleepwalking through life,” Robert explains.

Robert found that happiness in 2018, after returning to the music scene following a five year hiatus, during which he worked as a journalist for numerous lifestyle titles. “Each article I would write became more vapid than the last, and each editor I encountered was more insufferable and overbearing – I had to get out of that industry and get back to being creative, but I honestly felt I had lost the ability, and the momentum.”

Knowing he had an uphill battle on his hands, Robert sacrified a salary for a full-time hustle with new music, and it paid off – his three single releases in 2018 received strong radio support on both sides of the Atlantic, an unusual feat for an artist without a label, manager or publicist. 

“I only write singles,” Robert says. It keeps him in the moment, he claims, never thinking too far into the future, while also improving his skills as a songwriter. “When I write a song now, if the hook isn’t there, or lyrically the message doesn’t feel strong, it goes in the bin. There’s a level of quality control you have to maintain when you know the track is gonna be a single and you’re gonna spend the next couple months promoting it – it’s gotta be your best every time”.

Each single has shown a different side to O’Connor, and ‘Real Good Fight’ continues the trend. Fusing a simple story-telling lyric – a hallmark of country songwriting – with more experimental electronic production, Robert says he threw out the rule book while recording his latest work with frequent collaborator Stuart Gray of Jealoustown Studios in Ireland.

“There’s a freedom in creating singles, because everything is standalone, you don’t feel pressured to make it fit into a greater puzzle, so each single is exactly what I wanted to make at that particular time, without compromise.” He cites Pet Shop Boys, ‘Ray of Light’-era Madonna and Ibiza’s Café Del Mar series as his sonic influences for the track, which he describes as “a chill banger”.

In the final verse of the song, Robert sings, “And I know the mountain’s gonna be real steep, but I gotta have faith, I’ve got to believe,” with a cheeky nod to the late George Michael, one of the singer’s biggest inspirations. “I’d had a few years of feeling hopeless, that my ship had sailed – but last year taught me that sometimes you really do get out what you put in, and you’ve got to believe, because if you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect anyone else to?” 

‘Real Good Fight’ is released worldwide on May 31.

Official website: www.iamrobertoconnor.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/iamrobertoconnor
Facebook: www.facebook.com/iamrobertoconnor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/robertoconnor
YouTube: www.youtube.com/robertoconnormusic
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3cGgPditxbsHzV6v6jRAXC?si=QB3D9HbuRpGw28y27FMnyg

KARMS first turned heads in 2017 with single, We Always Lose, an energetic anthem that just never seemed to quit.

Not leaving too much time for breathing, the band soon released their EP, River, a bone crushing selection of songs politely polished off with the silky, tender, Beautiful Magic.

Not one to shy away from a show, KARMS have been lucky enough to take on supports with Fatherson, The Amazons, Arcane Roots and The Strypes. KARMS have headlined sold out shows at Whelan’s, Dublin and played at last year’s Other Voices in Ballina.

In 2018, KARMS released their debut album Satellites and are ready to release new music this summer with a wealth of new singles, creatively some of the best the band has ever produced.

KARMS are back with the incredible ‘Tell Me When This One Ends’, a song for anyone who has ever struggled with self-doubt, self-awareness, hurt and an uncontrollable mind. Released on 23rd June, this track was produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by the band themselves and is a powerful beginning to the releases they have planned this year.