Month: November 2019

Ian Ashford recently released his debut solo album on the 23^rd of November 2019.

The new album, titled ‘Symbols’, and was recorded between Ireland and France.

The songs are intimate, authentic and even naive in their honesty. The music has a textural cinematic feel and is almost entirely instrumental.

“I had written and arranged the songs with a certain vision for the production. I was lucky enough to get good musicians around me to realise the project. The musicians I worked with were, Irish, French and Bulgarian which I feel gave the album personality. I’m not sure what genre the album fits to be honest as I did not write these songs with an audience in mind.”

Ian decided to take time out in October 2018 to focus on completing eight songs for the album and finished the project in October 2019.

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Following a jam-packed year, Lisa reflects on the comforts of Christmas at home with loved ones in her new Christmas song ‘Home With A Heartbeat’ – The track is released today!

Lisa co-wrote the song with Australian pal Katrina Burgoyne who resides in Nashville, both living away from home at the time and …   “when writing the song, they realised that they have so many things to be excited for this Christmas as they’re getting to enjoy that traditional Christmas this year at home with their families,” – That’s when ‘Home With A Heartbeat’ was created.

The song is filled with childhood memories and captures the magic of Christmas preparations for families around the country.

Of the song, Lisa says, “I wanted to write a song that described a traditional Christmas Day, that most people whether they are 5 or 95 could relate to. I wanted a warm, feel good song but also one that captures the excitement and everything else that goes with Christmas at home and we’re both delighted with end-result.“

Lisa will perform at this New Year’s Eve Festival Dublin Countdown Concert on at Custom House Quay alongside Walking On Cars and Ash , tickets are available HERE.

London-based Northern Irish musician Aislinn Logan made a great impression with ‘Spree’, ‘Fair Game’ and ‘Wait On Me’ highlighted by new music champions The Line of Best Fit and Clash, alongside HotPress. They also earned significant airplay at 6 Music, BBC Radio 1, and playlist at RTÉ 2FM. 

Back with a bounce in 2019, October’s ‘Joyride’ (produced by Dan Mc Intyre – lullahush Æ MAK) packed a punch with its hard-hitting message effortlessly wound through breezy pop melodies and got radio support from 2FM (with Tara Stewart playlisting it on her show on 2FM), as well as Radio X, BBC 6 among others.

Now, Aislinn gives us the second single off her upcoming EP, ‘Look I’m Flyin’, with ‘Everything In Between’. 

Produced with the help of Kristofer Harris (Belle and Sebastian, Ghost Poet, Bears Den) , ‘Everything In Between’, marks Logan’s most personal release yet. Questioning the impact of unfortunate logistics on human connection, it’s a lo-fi pop brood on ‘what if?’. 

As Aislinn explains, “The track was born out of a time at the end of something – that deafening silence you can be left with, and trying to make sense of it all. Because you’re on your own with what went before – an experience that only you really know, you can feel a bit like you’re going mad. You question your decision-making, what really happened, you can question it all I guess – and you’ve no longer got a ‘fact-checker’. I wanted to capture that struggle.” 

Traces of Aislinn’s eclectic musical interests inform everything she does without being obvious touchstones. The influence of the xx’s ambient minimalism here is evident, but its marked difference with her other material shows just how far her sonic palette can stretch. With the ‘Look, I’m Flyin’ EP coming soon, watch this space. 

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Lovers of food and music are in for a special treat this coming Sunday, December 8^th when musician and Clare FM presenter Eoin O’Neill joins Ennis-born music legend Mike Hanrahan for conversation, songs and anecdotes from his acclaimed new book Beautiful Affair – a story of music, food and friendship. The evening takes place in Hotel Doolin from 7pm-10pm and is presented by Anam Music.   

Mike Hanrahan is an acclaimed cook, teacher, songwriter and musician. From the early days of his music with Stockton’s Wing to training at Ballymaloe Cookery School, food and music have been parallel lines that have inspired him. In the book Mike takes us backstage into the kitchens of a bohemian, international and surprisingly foodie group of Irish household names, including Ronnie Drew, Finbar Furey, Maura O’Connell, Leslie Dowdall, Pat Shortt, Eleanor Shanley and Sharon Shannon.

Mike penned hit singles ‘Beautiful Affair’ and ‘Walk Away’ for Stockton’s Wing, from which a world of touring and behind-the-scenes escapades began. With affectionate portraits of the legendary personalities he came to know along the way, Beautiful Affair rings with the sheer graft, dedication and serious sense of humour of a life well spent on stage – and in the kitchen.

Mike’s time training with Ballymaloe’s Darina Allen would see his hobby become a second career. Here, he shares favourite recipes from home, friends and professional kitchens across the country – from family recipes cooked on country hearths to vegetarian folk-club grub and tour-bus pressure-cooker stews. Beautiful Affair tells tales of the Irish music scene from the 1970s through to today, and wends its way through a lifelong love affair with Irish food.

‘This is much more than my story. In Beautiful Affair I introduce you to my friends – who share memories, recipes and quite a few amusing anecdotes that add so much sparkle to my life.’ – Mike Hanrahan

Tickets for this special event are priced €15 plus booking fee and are available via the Eventbrite.ie website. See https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/mike-hanrahan-in-conversation-with-eoin-oneill-tickets-81607878361

After a two year hiatus, the online Irish alternative music programme This Ain’t No Disco returns for its highly anticipated second season to be released on Christmas Day 2019.

The new season will feature a cross-section of Ireland’s thriving music and spoken word scene, representing some of the most talented yet under-represented visionaries in Ireland today.  This dynamic audio visual showcase seeks to examine not only where the boundaries are being pushed today, but also where this music is rooted both historically and geographically. 

Hosted by DJ (and former host of the cult 90’s TV program, No Disco) Donal Dineen, This Ain’t No Disco is voluntarily produced by a skeleton crew of friends and music enthusiasts, directed by music documentarian and award-winning cinematographer Myles O’Reilly.

Season II of This Ain’t No Disco will comprise of four 1-hour long episodes to be released quarterly over 2020 via Patreon and Facebook.

Quote from Myles O’Reilly:

“I can’t express how necessary and important it is that people of all ages in Ireland get to experience the joy of discovering new and emerging music from their own country. There are so many fresh sounds being created here in bedrooms, kitchens, living rooms, pubs, clubs and just about anywhere you can swing a guitar, which need to be heard and amplified, because they are the sounds of our country growing, and of our culture evolving. After a two year hiatus to allow for new growth, This Ain’t No Disco is coming back for a second season, and what we ultimately hope to achieve pull focus on what it means to be Irish today, through expression in sound happening all around us.”

Quote from Donal Dineen:

“There is an embarrassment of riches in Irish music at present, so Myles and I try to pick out strands of golden thread and stitch each episode together with due care. There is a collaboration of sorts at the heart of each edition. For the new series, we plan to spread the net wider and dig deeper again, to unearth these stories. It’s just a snapshot of what’s happening. To map the whole rich tapestry would be impossible so we concentrate on important parts of the pattern as we see it and do our best to faithfully present that in the best light possible. For historical purposes alone, we feel it’s an important endeavour.”

Save the date now and tune in to This Ain’t No Disco on Christmas Day. Support the project on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/thisaintnodisco

This Ain’t No Disco Season II is made possible by the generous support of our Patreon donators, and partnership with IMRO.

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Bobbi Arlo is set to release her official debut single, ‘Berries’, this Friday 29^th November.

On the single Arlo says, “Initially I wrote the song as a joke because that day I had accidentally gone “viral” on Twitter slagging my colourful fashion sense and how I had every outfit every Balamory character ever wore. As I continued to write it, I couldn’t help but think maybe there’s something here? I rewrote the verses and turned the track itself into a light-hearted anthem for the youth of today’s world. Its inspiration was a relationship I had where the person wanted nothing more than fun; no connections, no commitments, the song is basically one huge metaphor.”

Bobbi Arlo, born and raised in Dublin, began performing in her teens. In 2018 she unveiled her first track ‘People’ on SoundCloud, closely followed by ‘Bye’, which gained her a very small dedicated fan group. Since then she’s performed on some of the biggest stages in Ireland including the main stage at Longitude 2019, where she showcased her ability to hold and entertain the masses. 

Arlo has worked up an impressive CV in her short time in the industry working with some of Ireland’s most loved acts of today including Tebi Rex on their acclaimed album ‘The Young Will Eat The Old’.

Arlo’s mellow, almost hypnotic sounding voice paired with her infectiously catchy lyrics and beats make for a combination it would be impossible not to be entranced by. Her music is nothing short of feel good, feel deeply. 

‘Berries’ is released Friday 29^th November.

https://www.facebook.com/Bobbi-Arlo 
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Irish songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Anna Mieke has teamed up with film-maker Myles O’Reilly (Arbutus Yarns) to create a captivating new live video for her debut album title track ‘Idle Mind’.

Anna Mieke says:

“This performance of ‘Idle Mind’ was filmed in the docklands in north Dublin. Cranes were hovering above us like vultures, with yet another shiny office block or hotel on the horizon. The song expresses a frustration towards apathy, in the face of dramatically changing landscapes. Working with Myles was an obvious choice – we’ve worked together before and he’s a brilliant filmmaker. Our original plan was to shoot the performance inside, but Myles insisted on an outside shot in the dimming light.”

Anna Mieke’s album ‘Idle Mind’, released last April, was warmly received: “It’s a strikingly confident collection of 10 songs, full of blue sky thinking and wide open horizons… A deliriously renewable energy source.” ★★★★ –Siobhán Long, The Irish Times

“‘Idle Mind’ is not just a stunning debut record, nor is it just an amazing Irish record: it’s a record that proves Mieke to be one of the most promising artists on the Irish independent sphere and mature musician and songwriter whose work deserves to be heard far and wide.” – The Thin Air

Anna Mieke was recently awarded the Next Generation Bursary Award from the Arts Council of Ireland, and will be taking time to work on new material at an artist residency in Co. Kerry in early spring. She is currently planning a UK and Ireland tour in May and June 2020, with dates to be announced.

Closing out 2019, see Anna Mieke perform live at Canton Casey’s Mullingar November 29th, and Other Voices, Dingle, 30-31st November.

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A year after the release of their critically acclaimed debut album ‘Constancy’, alternative 5-piece Spies have shared a remix of ‘Watchman’, one of the albums more club focused tracks.

This remix comes courtesy of Dublin producer R.Kitt who describes the track as ‘Acid Dub’.

Those who have seen Kitt live recently will be familiar with the remix which he has featured in his sets at Boiler Room x AVA Festival 2019 and All Together Now.

This is the first of three remixes to be shared by the band with upcoming collaborations with producer Rían Trench slated for release in the new year.

In addition to this release the band have announced a new show in Dublin’s Whelans on February 15th. Tickets are on sale from Eventbrite at 10am on Friday, 29th of November.

Whelans, Dublin – Saturday 15th February 2020. Tix on sale Friday 29th. https://bit.ly/2pWLNLn

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Bell X1 have just released extra production holds across their three-night residency at Vicar Street this weekend, Friday 29^th November, Saturday 30^th November and Sunday 1^st December 2019. Tickets €38.50 available now from Ticketmaster.

2018 witnessed Bell X1, one of Ireland’s most treasured bands, celebrate 20 years together with a remarkable five-night sold-out residency at Vicar Street. Bell X1 are now pleased to announce that the band will end 2019 performing their very special Acoustic-ish + Dowry Strings show at the venue, 29^th & 30^th November and 1^st December. Dowry is the solo project of composer Éna Brennan. 

“The shows with Dowry strings were such a joy, and we found ourselves imagining what we could do with many more of our songs. So we’re going to get into it again with them, and are looking forward to flinging more paint around together” says Paul.

Since the release of their acclaimed 7th studio album ‘Arms’, the group have spent time touring in America, Australia, the United Kingdom & Europe.  They’ve also released new material with their various side projects.  Paul has been working on his first solo LP with The Gloaming’s Thomas Bartlett, and Dave has been touring and releasing new material with Join Me In the Pines.

Bell X1 are Paul Noonan, Dave Geraghty & Dominic Philips.

Live performance of “Tongue” filmed at the National Concert Hall 360 video: 

Bell X1 “Tongue 360°” (Acoustic-ish with Dowry Strings) from DESIGN FOR LIFE on Vimeo.

Following a string of multiple sold out live shows to date, Columbia Mills are delighted to announce they will headline Dublin’s Button Factory on Friday, 24^th April with special guest Christian Cohle proudly presented by Aiken Promotions.

‘Strange Game’ and ‘Who Am I Supposed To Talk To Now’ are the first two singles released of their upcoming sophomore album ‘CCTV’ due for release in 2020.

Both singles have premiered on John Kennedy’s show on Radio X, featured Play Irish Artist of the week with Today FM, Dan Hegarty’s (2FM) Track of The Week and heavy airplay across all national and regional radio stations. 

The band’s mission statement was to merge electronica, dance and pop while fostering a spirit of inclusion always evident at the long-gone club in Dublin’s docklands from where they took their name.

Columbia Mills’ burgeoning fanbase will be in no way surprised that the tracks on their sophomore album, CCTV (due for release in 2020) sees continuing evidence of that constant music development.

Columbia Mills
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Tickets for COLUMBIA MILLS + special guest Christian Cohle live at The Button Factory are available from this Friday at 9AM

24hr Credit Card Bookings 0818 719 300 (ROI) / 0844 847 2455  (NI)

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Book online www.ticketmaster.ie