Month: July 2019

In an era where beats are considered more important than lyrics, and drops are a bigger focus than a killer chorus, Klara McDonnell is a refreshing breath of air, a reminder of times gone by, and a confirmation that if you dig deep enough, you’ll still find good old-fashioned songs that can make you forget about the world for just 3 minutes.

‘Wasted’, the latest single from Klara, sees the singer/songwriter collaborate again with Beardfire Music Production Studio who were at the helm of previous single ‘Sinking Unknowing’, which felt like a breakthrough of sorts for the Dublin native, building airplay at radio in Germany, Australia, Holland, South Africa, the UK, US and Ireland.

While the latest single ‘Wasted’ will likely receive similar attention from alternative and specialist stations, Klara’s music never feels made for radio, or indeed custom-built for Spotify playlists – a disturbing act that is common practice nowadays amongst the big record labels. Instead there is a small-town story-telling feel to her work, and the understated Americana-style production is likely to lend itself well to live performances. 

Already acclaimed by blogs such as Room Full of Music and Essentially Pop, Klara’s vocal is the star of the show on ‘Wasted’ – sultry, emotive, fragile at times, angry at others – her work as an actress is put to good use in the song. When Klara sings, “I wish you could get sober, don’t let the past define now, we’re only getting older,” the anguish and longing in her voice is palpable. 

“Her songs are for the furtively lost and the lonely,” said Derek Foley of Buzz.ie, but Klara’s take on her own music is a little lighter. She explains: “Although ‘Wasted’ deals with the depths of addictions and is melancholy, I feel overall there is a hopeful tone  to the song which I hope will resonate.” 

‘The Wind Is Free’ is the brand new single inspired by a true story of love and adventure from Conor Ward.

You meet someone. You fall for one another. 

Then they say, “Let’s buy a boat and sail the world”. 

You’ve never even set foot on a sailboat let alone thought about sailing the world on one.

Do you give up your daily routine and home comforts for a life of spending weeks at a time completely cut off from the outside world?

Just you, new love, the vast ocean and endless possibility. Do you stay or sail

Hailing from the West of Ireland, Conor Ward has been making waves in the Irish music scene since the release of his debut EP ‘Wanderlust’. Described by HotPress as one of Ireland’s Rising Acts, his music has received airplay from Today FM, 4FM, Newstalk, Spin SouthWest, Red FM and iRadio.

Growing up in Mayo, Conor harboured ambitions of playing his songs all over the world and has gone on to play to audiences in Dubai, Bolivia, Peru, Australia and Vietnam. Closer to these shores he has played support to Hermitage Green (Roisin Dubh), The Stunning (Dolan’s Warehouse), Paddy Casey (Garbo’s) and Mundy (UCH) as well as packing out shows of his own in iconic venues like Whelan’s and Dolan’s alongside a slot at Electric Picnic.

His latest single, ‘The Wind Is Free’, is a catchy upbeat track with an infectious hook. 

‘The Wind Is Free’ is available to stream now on Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and of course, Tidal!

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“Life is for living you’re not a machine.” 

This is the fundamental message, as well as the opening line of Billow Wood’s new single ‘Carpe Diem’.  Many people find themselves moving through life, ticking boxes, just because it is what they think they should be doing, but ultimately finding a part of them incomplete. 

‘Carpe Diem’ (seize the day) is a song that encourages someone to make the most of the present as it is not the things we do in life that we regret, rather it is the things we don’t do. This harmony driven up tempo song captures that motivational Latin message. 

Billow Wood’s unique ability to combine male and female vocals along with acoustic instruments, fused with mainstream rhythm, allows them to create a modern folk/indie song with clever production. The sound of a grandfather clock in verse three indicating the passing of time, a subtle reminder to get up and go. 

Billow Wood are an exciting new band committed to creating a new fusion sound for people of all ages to enjoy. 

Based in the West of Ireland, Billow Wood produce original music that can be considered Folk, Indie Folk, Indie Rock/Pop. Their fresh sound integrates Irish instrumentation (harp, tin-whistle, accordion, fiddle) and mainstream sounds (guitar, bass and percussion) with mainstream pop/folk vocals and harmonies.

Following the release of their debut EP ‘Can You See Me’ to a sell out crowd in Whelan’s music venue, they were featured in Volume 41 issue 21 of the very prestigious HotPress magazine in their ‘Rising Acts You Should Keep an Eye and Ear on’ section. Their first single ‘Turn Out The Light’ was the official song for Pieta House fundraising campaign “On Your Bike to Save a Life”, which they showcased live in Today FM with Fergal D’Arcy. Their singles ‘Two Doves’ and ‘Pushin And Shovin’ were both featured as JOE.ie’s Song of the Day upon their release, and received a fantastic response from the followers of the site. 

Billow Wood have just completed a 19 concert tour in Germany with Irish Hearbeat Tour where they showcased their original music. 

They are looking forward to their second US tour this Autumn, taking in Orlando, Chicago, Nashville, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Milwaukee on their travels with funding from Culture Ireland. The band have also picked up advice and tricks of the trade from established Irish artists while supporting Aslan, Mundy and De Dannan to name a few. 

‘Carpe Diem is available on all music streaming sites. Download your copy now!’ 

Live Dates
21st July – Claremorris Folk Festival
18th August- Fleadh Ceol na hEireann Gig Rig
28th August- 30th September – US TOUR **venues tba**

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Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5jonCzFhMyr6jpWpG4I7js?si=-Du8v3XITz6YPdMv-LKd3w
Breaking Tunes: https://www.breakingtunes.com/billowwood

BRÍDÍN, West Co. Sligo native, carries on the tradition of Irish music into the fourth generation of her family. BRÍDÍN plays harp, flute, piano and dances sean nós. BRÍDÍN’s musical talent emerged at a very early age. Over the years she has achieved many accolades for her musical ability. Her love of music lead her to pursue a musical career, having studied music at University College Cork achieving a degree and masters in music and performance. BRÍDÍN’s performances include radio, television and music festivals both home and abroad.

Over the past number of years, BRÍDÍN has developed her own style influenced by her natural surroundings and rooted in her background in traditional Irish music. BRÍDÍN uses her loop and effect pedals to create her musical pieces. Her layered melodies on harp and voice blend beautifully with contrapuntal fiddle, electric guitar and bass, woven together with pulsating drums.

‘Wysteria’, the title track from her forthcoming EP is now available on all music platforms.

Itunes/Spotify – https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/brdn1/wysteria
FB: @BridinMusic | IG: @BridinMusic

New Jersey native Jared Dylan has just released his brand new single ‘Here I Am’, co-written with Paddy Casey at Grouse Lodge. The track is out now across all streaming platforms and digital formats.

Upon his arrival at Grouse Lodge, Jared Dylan was consumed by the magic of Ireland. It was his first time visiting the country and he came with a purpose. “I don’t think a song like this could have been written in the states” Jared speculates.

Paddy Casey and Dylan met in the studio on the day of Dylan’s arrival. They immediately clicked and they proceeded to work through the night. By 6am they had completed an 11 minute demo of the sonic masterpiece that is ‘Here I Am’. 

“It is an anthem for risk takers,” says Dylan, when discussing the inspiration for the song.  Genuine creativity is clearly paramount to this young artist as he continues to describe his effort to remain as vulnerable as possible in his artistic and romantic endeavors. “They are all love songs” is how he describes his vast catalog of original compositions. “I love what I do, so I see every song as a love song on some level”.

Jared toured Ireland for the better part of 2018; opening for Paddy Casey, Aslan, and Ryan O’Shaughnessy as well as writing with Stephanie Rainey, Joolz Jones, and Ryan Sheridan to name just a few.

Out now, ‘Here I Am’ is available across all streaming platforms and digital formats.

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Dave Geraghty is most well-known to audiences as a founding member of Bell X1 but in recent years he has been exploring a new solo direction under the moniker Join Me in the Pines. 

JMITP latest single ‘She Steps into The Light’ is taken from the new album ‘Monomania’ which brims with Dave’s distinctive vocal and song-writing style but this time he has conjured a more edgy 80’s synth world. The album was mixed by the masterful Ross Dowling (James Vincent McMorrow, Talos, Brian Deady) and will be released on Decal Records on August 30 2019.

The JMITP band are currently in the middle of a festival tour which included Vantastival, Forbidden Fruit, Kaleidoscope and they’re set to play this year’s Electric Picnic. They were invited to open for Hall & Oates in Dublin’s Iveagh Gardens and the Cork Marquee gigs.  Join Me in the Pines also opened for David Gray in the Marquee. Joining Dave on-stage are: Marc Aubele (keys and vocals), Mick Major (bass and vocals) and Tim O Donovan (drums and vocals). 

Sat 31 Aug      Electric Picnic, Stradbally, Co.Laois    
Fri Oct 11        The Commercial, Limerick
Sat Oct 12       The Black Gate Theatre, Galway
Fri Oct 18        Coughlan’s, Cork
Sat Oct 19       Lost Lane, Dublin

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A dark slice of electronica to a thumping reggae-style groove, ‘Freefall (Single Version)’ is the second single from the debut album ‘Primero’ by Dublin-based A Band Called Paul. The single is due to be released on all major platforms on Monday 29th July, 2019.

‘Freefall’ presents a radically different sound to that previously heard on the independent Irish artist’s first single, the latin-jazz infused ‘Hero Two’, which was released in May. That debut release has accumulated 1,500 video views on YouTube and over 16,000 streams on Spotify to date.

The mood of ‘Freefall’ aims to capture the conflicted mental state experienced during withdrawal from an addictive substance. The release is accompanied by an equally visceral and moderately disturbing music video. which can be viewed below.

In addition to the main single release, the band has also produced a CLUB REMIX of the track – ‘Freefall (Land On Your Feet Mix)’ – which is included with this submission for potential airplay. The club remix is available now to those who join the band’s mailing list from their web site abandcalledpaul.com, and will go on general release on Monday 5th August, 2019.

A Band Called Paul is the creation of former orchestral percussionist, soundtrack composer and session musician Paul McDonnell. Based in Dublin, Ireland, the band’s music showcases the broad experience and influences from Paul’s career with deft lane-changes between hard rock, Latin Jazz, electronica, pop, reggae and world music.

The band’s debut album ‘Primero’ was released on February 21st, 2019. It is available to stream on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music and Deezer. It’s also available to purchase on iTunes, Google Play and Amazon Music.

https://abandcalledpaul.com
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Following Villagers breathtaking sold out outdoor show at Iveagh Gardens, Villagers announce a very special intimate show in Vicar Street, 13^th December 2019. Tickets €35.00 inclusive of booking fee, on sale this Friday at 9AM. 

Villagers have released a brand-new single ‘Summer’s Song’. Written and produced by Conor O’Brien and mixed by the legendary Dave Fridmann (Tame Impala, Flaming Lips, MGMT).  In Conor’s words: “’Summer’s Song’ is the closest I’ll ever get to writing a pure pop song. I just had to roll with it and I’m glad I did; it was really just an excuse to make the horns sound like sunbeams. Boy it’s fun to play live. I can’t quite believe we managed to get the magical touch of Dave Fridmann in on the mix”.

Villagers released their acclaimed fourth album ‘The Art Of Pretending To Swim’ last year and O’Brien has a string of accolades under his belt including two Ivor Novello Awards, two Mercury Music Prize nominations and is a previous winner of Ireland’s Choice Music Prize.

Additionally, Villagers’ music has featured in both seasons of HBO drama ‘Big Little Lies’ – reaching the Top 60 Shazam charts in the UK and US last month – and their Spotify session of ‘Nothing Arrived’ has hit over 130 million streams.

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