It's been a while since we've did one of these round-ups of songs from Northern Ireland that have really taken our interest, but there's been a few songs that have grabbed us over the last few weeks that we felt were very much worth bringing to your attention -
Mark Hegan - Love, Wait For Me
We've been fans of Mark Hegan on the blog for a number of years, both in his former band and now through his solo material - his song "Skyward" made the top 10 of The Metaphorical Boat's Top Songs of 2019.
His first release of the year is "Love, Wait For Me", which has all the characteristics of his solo material - the melding of the electric and rock elements, with a high level of pathos running through it. If you're looking for a less heavy Gang of Youths, then you'll enjoy this one.
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Conchúr White - Bikini Crops
Conchúr White is an artist that we first came across as frontman of Silences, whom we've had much love for over the years. He's now recording under his own name, and having released the great "Daisies" last year, and having come off an Irish tour with Villagers, he has released his first single of 2020.
"Bikini Crops" sees White taking on a more surreal quality to his lyrics - Father John Misty & Alex Turner have been cited as influences - which shows a development in his songwriting since his band days. It's also got a blissfully powerful chorus, it's the most infectious one he's done since "The Sea", and if it's any justice, it will be the song that firmly establishes his solo credentials.
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Dark Tropics - Badlands
The one thing we love about music videos from Northern Irish artists is that their music videos tend to be shot in places we are very familiar with, which always gives us a little sense of satisfaction. Watching the video for "Badlands" by Dark Tropics, we were convinced from the get-go that it's filmed in the Botanic Gardens in Belfast, which we had a great affection for growing up. It's funny how it's the little things that give us a lift.
But anyway, "Badlands" is the debut single from duo Dark Tropics, made up of singer/songwriter Rio and producer Gerard Sands, who's been involved in a few artists we've enjoyed over the years. The song is a slice of dark pop-noir that pulls you in from the get-go. One of fans of Lana Del Rey.
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The Florentinas - Stay
Still in their teens, our interest in The Florentinas was piqued when we saw that Gary Lightbody had been quite complimentary about them. Off the strength of their single "Stay" (which was recorded live in Start Together Studios), we can see that they're a group with a lot of potential in them. It's an atmospheric, hypnotic track that will stay in the back of your head for a while after you've heard it.
They've got a few support gigs coming up in the next few weeks, opening for The Maine and Brand New Friend, so we must make a note to see them live when we can.
Showing posts with label round-up. Show all posts
Showing posts with label round-up. Show all posts
Saturday, 22 February 2020
Friday, 28 July 2017
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round Up #38
So summer. That's a thing that is currently happening. Hope you are all enjoying sunning yourselves, enjoying time off and taking in a much new music as you can? What's that, not really much of the latter? Well just as well The Metaphorical Boat's here for you then.
There's been some rather fine new music from this neck of the woods in the last wee while, so here's a round-up of a few new tunes that we think will float your Metaphorical Boat -
Darren Doherty - Kites (featuring Lauren Bird)
Strabane resident Darren Doherty has been featured on these pages before, as part of his work with the band A Northern Light, who were responsible to two of our favourite local songs of the past few years, "Kill It" and "Paranoia". He's now recording under his own name, and recently released an album, "What You Do", which was recorded over a period of several months, with each track released the moment it was ready.
Our favourite song from the collection is "Kites". Not just because it features Lauren Bird, but because it is a brilliant, powerful stripped-back folk song. A rare delight.
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Terry Conlon - Don't Lead Me On
Terry Conlon's got one of those voices that just couldn't come from anywhere else but here. The Cullyhanna native is releasing his debut album "Homegrown" in September, with "Don't Lead Me On" being the lead single. With a voice that is richer beyond his years and a tune that could cause increased lacrymosity, his music will strike a chord with fans of Ciaran Lavery or Foy Vance.
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CATALAN! - Oka
CATALAN! is the new music project from Ewan Friars, who is perhaps best known as a member of North Coast rockers Axis of. "Oka" is the first socially charged single, combining lyrics about indigenous people and social media with thumping beats and towering guitar riffs. If you were a fan of Axis of, and are also partial to a little bit of The Clash, you'll find something to love here.
There's a music video released to accompany the song, which contains quite a lot of symbolism that we are currently unable to interpret, in spite of our A Level Media Studies knowledge.
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Emer Maguire - Belfast
We'd heard quite a few people talking about Belfast based singer/songwriter Emer Maguire recently, so were glad to be able to catch her live at the Pavilion at the weekend, playing what we believe to be her first full-band performance. It was a quite enjoyable performance, with covers of Muse & Lorde thrown in among her original material, and there was definitely enough going to make sure we keep an eye out for her in the future.
Of her original songs, the one that caught our ear was "Belfast", a great love/hate letter to the city (and funnily enough, the 2nd song we've heard about the city in the past 2 weeks). There's a nice hat-tap towards the Lisburn Road (a street that anyone who's studied at Queen's knows all too well), plus it's nice to hear a synth-bass being used in an acoustic-led song.
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Hunkpapa - Rodeos
And concluding our round-up this month is Armagh band Hunkpapa. We have been reliably informed that the group are one of the most exciting new live bands to come out of Northern Ireland in recent times. We haven't seen them live yet, so we cannot vouch for the accuracy of that claim, but that is something that we hope to remedy at some point in the near future.
For now though, we'll just have to pleasure ourselves with the band's latest single, "Rodeos", which is a great alt-folk-rock single that comes off like a heavier Ben Howard.
There's been some rather fine new music from this neck of the woods in the last wee while, so here's a round-up of a few new tunes that we think will float your Metaphorical Boat -
Darren Doherty - Kites (featuring Lauren Bird)
Strabane resident Darren Doherty has been featured on these pages before, as part of his work with the band A Northern Light, who were responsible to two of our favourite local songs of the past few years, "Kill It" and "Paranoia". He's now recording under his own name, and recently released an album, "What You Do", which was recorded over a period of several months, with each track released the moment it was ready.
Our favourite song from the collection is "Kites". Not just because it features Lauren Bird, but because it is a brilliant, powerful stripped-back folk song. A rare delight.
----------------------------------------------
Terry Conlon - Don't Lead Me On
Terry Conlon's got one of those voices that just couldn't come from anywhere else but here. The Cullyhanna native is releasing his debut album "Homegrown" in September, with "Don't Lead Me On" being the lead single. With a voice that is richer beyond his years and a tune that could cause increased lacrymosity, his music will strike a chord with fans of Ciaran Lavery or Foy Vance.
------------------------------------------------
CATALAN! - Oka
CATALAN! is the new music project from Ewan Friars, who is perhaps best known as a member of North Coast rockers Axis of. "Oka" is the first socially charged single, combining lyrics about indigenous people and social media with thumping beats and towering guitar riffs. If you were a fan of Axis of, and are also partial to a little bit of The Clash, you'll find something to love here.
There's a music video released to accompany the song, which contains quite a lot of symbolism that we are currently unable to interpret, in spite of our A Level Media Studies knowledge.
----------------------------------------------------
Emer Maguire - Belfast
We'd heard quite a few people talking about Belfast based singer/songwriter Emer Maguire recently, so were glad to be able to catch her live at the Pavilion at the weekend, playing what we believe to be her first full-band performance. It was a quite enjoyable performance, with covers of Muse & Lorde thrown in among her original material, and there was definitely enough going to make sure we keep an eye out for her in the future.
Of her original songs, the one that caught our ear was "Belfast", a great love/hate letter to the city (and funnily enough, the 2nd song we've heard about the city in the past 2 weeks). There's a nice hat-tap towards the Lisburn Road (a street that anyone who's studied at Queen's knows all too well), plus it's nice to hear a synth-bass being used in an acoustic-led song.
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Hunkpapa - Rodeos
And concluding our round-up this month is Armagh band Hunkpapa. We have been reliably informed that the group are one of the most exciting new live bands to come out of Northern Ireland in recent times. We haven't seen them live yet, so we cannot vouch for the accuracy of that claim, but that is something that we hope to remedy at some point in the near future.
For now though, we'll just have to pleasure ourselves with the band's latest single, "Rodeos", which is a great alt-folk-rock single that comes off like a heavier Ben Howard.
Saturday, 28 January 2017
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #37
It has been quite a while since we've done one of these, but we've been absolutely inundated with interesting new songs from Northern Ireland in the past few weeks that we couldn't just leave them floating around on the interwebs unloved, so we have pulled some great songs together in one lovely post. Enjoy -
Invaderband - Not Alan Rickman
Invaderband is the project of Derry based Mancunian artist Adam Leonard (formerly of The Owl Service), and features a host of local musicians in the band, including Chris McConaghy of Our Krypton Son.
Their self-titled debut album has just been released, and is a great collection of garage-rock tunes with a spiky, off-kilter sense of humour. Our highlight from the album is most definitely "Not Alan Rickman", a song build around a deceptively simple yet effective guitar riff which pays homage to four of the late actor's most famous roles in under 2 minutes.
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Porphyry - Rip Current
And we stay in Derry for Porphyry, the near unpronounceable project of self-professed freak-folk & synth lover Daryl Coyle. His debut single "Rip Current" is a bit of a cerebral one, and one that very much defies characterisation, being very difficult to tie down to just one style. There's elements of Zero 7's chilled-out acoustronica, there's bits of post-grunge self-appraisal, and the outro goes into full electronic noodling mode. It's an interesting combination of styles, although one suspects that it might be somewhat of an acquired taste. It precedes a debut E.P, "Ursa Minor/Coming Home", which is due to be released on March 1st.
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Oisín ó Scolaí & The Virginia Slims - Intoxicated Waitress
The Derry-based folk collective Oisín ó Scolaí & The Virginia Slims have just released "An E.P Full of Water", a collection of songs that cover many different facets of the folk spectrum in all its forms. Our favourite track from the E.P is "Intoxicated Waitress", a tender, string-swept acoustic tune that seems to be something of an homage to fellow Derry musician Soak. A lovely little tune.
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Electric Octopus - Disenchanted Creative Response
And finishing us off this week is something a bit different. Electric Octopus are a Belfast based trio psychedelic-blues band, and have seemingly became something of a big deal among aficionados of the sub-genre over the past 12 months, even if they remain under the radar in their hometown. Their debut album "This Is Our Culture", has been a surprise success, with over 700,000 streams of the album on YouTube, and a horde of supporters on Bandcamp.
Such has been the success of the album that a new pressing of the album came out a few days ago, so there's still some steam in it yet. Taken from that album is the stoner-rock opener, "Disenchanted Creative Response", which although it is nearly 20 minutes long, is a very rewarding listen if you've got the patience for it.
Invaderband - Not Alan Rickman
Invaderband is the project of Derry based Mancunian artist Adam Leonard (formerly of The Owl Service), and features a host of local musicians in the band, including Chris McConaghy of Our Krypton Son.
Their self-titled debut album has just been released, and is a great collection of garage-rock tunes with a spiky, off-kilter sense of humour. Our highlight from the album is most definitely "Not Alan Rickman", a song build around a deceptively simple yet effective guitar riff which pays homage to four of the late actor's most famous roles in under 2 minutes.
-------------------------------------
Porphyry - Rip Current
And we stay in Derry for Porphyry, the near unpronounceable project of self-professed freak-folk & synth lover Daryl Coyle. His debut single "Rip Current" is a bit of a cerebral one, and one that very much defies characterisation, being very difficult to tie down to just one style. There's elements of Zero 7's chilled-out acoustronica, there's bits of post-grunge self-appraisal, and the outro goes into full electronic noodling mode. It's an interesting combination of styles, although one suspects that it might be somewhat of an acquired taste. It precedes a debut E.P, "Ursa Minor/Coming Home", which is due to be released on March 1st.
---------------------------------------------------
Oisín ó Scolaí & The Virginia Slims - Intoxicated Waitress
The Derry-based folk collective Oisín ó Scolaí & The Virginia Slims have just released "An E.P Full of Water", a collection of songs that cover many different facets of the folk spectrum in all its forms. Our favourite track from the E.P is "Intoxicated Waitress", a tender, string-swept acoustic tune that seems to be something of an homage to fellow Derry musician Soak. A lovely little tune.
------------------------------------------------
Electric Octopus - Disenchanted Creative Response
And finishing us off this week is something a bit different. Electric Octopus are a Belfast based trio psychedelic-blues band, and have seemingly became something of a big deal among aficionados of the sub-genre over the past 12 months, even if they remain under the radar in their hometown. Their debut album "This Is Our Culture", has been a surprise success, with over 700,000 streams of the album on YouTube, and a horde of supporters on Bandcamp.
Such has been the success of the album that a new pressing of the album came out a few days ago, so there's still some steam in it yet. Taken from that album is the stoner-rock opener, "Disenchanted Creative Response", which although it is nearly 20 minutes long, is a very rewarding listen if you've got the patience for it.
Saturday, 16 April 2016
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #36
It's been quite a while since we've done a round-up of a few songs from Northern Ireland from Northern Ireland that we haven't featured on the blog before that have floated our Metaphorical Boat, so there's no time like the present to fix said predicament -
Brand New Friend - I Was An Astronaut
We've mentioned Taylor Johnson, Northern Ireland's answer to the Duracell Bunny, on TMB on several occasions, both in relation to the music blog he runs, the fabulous Encore NI, as well as his music ventures (he was the lead singer of Paper Man, a band whom we briefly featured in a Round-Up in 2013).
Now firmly back in the musical saddle, at the tail end of last year he formed Brand New Friend with his sister Lauren. In the short few months that 2016 has been a thing, they've started to make a mark for themselves. They were the winners of Chordblossom's Kickstart competition (previous winner have included blog favourites such as In An Instant, Lauren Bird, and most notably, SOAK), and were featured on Tom Robinson's Mixtape on 6music.
"I Was An Astronaut" is their debut single, and although it's a little bit rough around the edges, you can really hear the potential of the group coming through. It's an enjoyable indie-rock song filled with youthful exuberance and pleasant interlocking vocals from the Johnsons.
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Dandelion Tea -The Crystal Dawn
The debut single from Belfast 4-piece Dandelion Tea, "The Crystal Dawn" seems to be a constituent of a sub-genre that we like to dub 'floaty cloud music', i.e music so relaxing and therapeutic that it's like a aural equivalent of floating across the sky on a massive cloud. It's a lovely mix of glacial synths, acoustic guitars and the right amount of heart. It's due to feature on their first E.P "A Picnic In Limbo", and if "The Crystal Dawn" is anything to go by, it'll by a luscious release indeed.
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Bisous - Lie After Lie
There's not a lot of information floating around the interwebs about Belfast's Bisous. We're not even entirely sure as to whether it's just one guy or a group. Either way, the single "Lie After Lie" has got us enthralled with its sunny lo-fi synth pop aesthetic. I expect that there's a lot more to come from him/them as his/their sound develops, but it's an interesting beginning nonetheless
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Strength - Northern Ireland Yes
And we finish off this month's round-up with perhaps the most bizarre band from Derry that we've had the pleasure/opportunity (delete as appropriate) to see in the past few years. We saw Strength a few months back after they were the support act for Beauty Sleep's debut gig. The band appeared to be more of a performance art project than just a band, with the group mixing esoteric spoken word, synths that appeared to be taken from the soundtrack from Age of Empires, and interpretive dance. Their bassist also has the most ludicrous haircut we have ever seen in our life.
Still, they definitely made an impact, at least to the point of wanting to check out more of their music after the gig. Check out their most recent single, the deliciously nutty "Northern Ireland Yes", as well as the video for said single, and keep in mind that live, they are at least ten times more stark-raving bonkers.
Brand New Friend - I Was An Astronaut
We've mentioned Taylor Johnson, Northern Ireland's answer to the Duracell Bunny, on TMB on several occasions, both in relation to the music blog he runs, the fabulous Encore NI, as well as his music ventures (he was the lead singer of Paper Man, a band whom we briefly featured in a Round-Up in 2013).
Now firmly back in the musical saddle, at the tail end of last year he formed Brand New Friend with his sister Lauren. In the short few months that 2016 has been a thing, they've started to make a mark for themselves. They were the winners of Chordblossom's Kickstart competition (previous winner have included blog favourites such as In An Instant, Lauren Bird, and most notably, SOAK), and were featured on Tom Robinson's Mixtape on 6music.
"I Was An Astronaut" is their debut single, and although it's a little bit rough around the edges, you can really hear the potential of the group coming through. It's an enjoyable indie-rock song filled with youthful exuberance and pleasant interlocking vocals from the Johnsons.
----------------------------------------------
Dandelion Tea -The Crystal Dawn
The debut single from Belfast 4-piece Dandelion Tea, "The Crystal Dawn" seems to be a constituent of a sub-genre that we like to dub 'floaty cloud music', i.e music so relaxing and therapeutic that it's like a aural equivalent of floating across the sky on a massive cloud. It's a lovely mix of glacial synths, acoustic guitars and the right amount of heart. It's due to feature on their first E.P "A Picnic In Limbo", and if "The Crystal Dawn" is anything to go by, it'll by a luscious release indeed.
----------------------------------------
Bisous - Lie After Lie
There's not a lot of information floating around the interwebs about Belfast's Bisous. We're not even entirely sure as to whether it's just one guy or a group. Either way, the single "Lie After Lie" has got us enthralled with its sunny lo-fi synth pop aesthetic. I expect that there's a lot more to come from him/them as his/their sound develops, but it's an interesting beginning nonetheless
-------------------------------------------------
Strength - Northern Ireland Yes
And we finish off this month's round-up with perhaps the most bizarre band from Derry that we've had the pleasure/opportunity (delete as appropriate) to see in the past few years. We saw Strength a few months back after they were the support act for Beauty Sleep's debut gig. The band appeared to be more of a performance art project than just a band, with the group mixing esoteric spoken word, synths that appeared to be taken from the soundtrack from Age of Empires, and interpretive dance. Their bassist also has the most ludicrous haircut we have ever seen in our life.
Still, they definitely made an impact, at least to the point of wanting to check out more of their music after the gig. Check out their most recent single, the deliciously nutty "Northern Ireland Yes", as well as the video for said single, and keep in mind that live, they are at least ten times more stark-raving bonkers.
Sunday, 31 May 2015
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round Up #35
It's been a while, hasn't it? Well, let's keep this preamble brief then and get right into this month's batch of wonderful tunes from Northern Ireland that have been floating The Metaphorical Boat this month -
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Hot Cops - Decay
We haven't written about Hot Cops on this site in over a year now, but it's fair to say that a band have really developed in the time since then. We've seen them live a few times, and have been very impressed with how well they come across, and they have been busy building up a caché of admirers, which culminated in them playing a slot at this year's Radio 1 Big Weekend in exotic Norwich (you can see part of their set on the BBC website, although it's probably be coming down soon enough).
The trio recently released a new double-A side single on a pay what you want basis, the best of the bunch being "Decay", a track which showcases their masterful mix of slackerish rock with grunge overtones. Plus this one oddly enough reminds us a little bit of The Magic Numbers, which is something a bit different, I guess.
There's a funny story as to how we first heard of Hot Cops when we first wrote about them last year. However, now is not the time to regale you with that particular story. In the meanwhile, enjoy "Decay":
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Vokxen - Somebody
Vokxen have already picked up quite a bit of love despite only being a going concern for the past few months, the highlight of which being played on Cool FM (I know - a local band, being featured on a local commercial radio station. It's almost unthinkable, really). Although it's easy to see why their debut single "Somebody" has gone over so well with those of a radio-y persuasion, as they are one of the first groups from here to embrace such an overwhelmingly pop outlook for some time, quite possibly since the Wonder Villains. "Somebody" is a fantastic debut single, which mixes girl-group vocal harmonies with some juicy sounding keyboards and an incredibly infectious melody. Probably the group from here most likely to nab a slot supporting The Saturdays in the near future.
Although this is their debut single, we have covered some of the band's work in the past, as keyboardist Claire McCartney was formerly a member of Futurescope.
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Shadow Police - Sleep Tonight
The best thing about the film Drive (aside from the presence of Christina Hendricks, obviously), is that its soundtrack has given us a new comparison touchstone for comparing electronic music to, instead of just vaguely saying that something sounds like it comes 'from the 80s.' Which brings us neatly to "Sleep Tonight" by electro-pop duo Shadow Police, a song that does indeed sound like it would fit very neatly onto the soundtrack of said Ryan Gosling film, with its squelching electronic bass and rather distant vocals.
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Alice Signal Fires - Starting Gun
It's a real shame among new and emerging bands that so many of them deliver some fantastic material, then subsequently split up before they can really reach their full potential. A few years ago, we were really excited by Carryduff based pop-punk band Kept Under Glass after being thoroughly won over by their song "I Don't Really Like Clubs". However, despite releasing a fore more tracks and gaining a bit of momentum, the band split up, never to be heard from again.
However, one of the members of that band, Declan McCrory, has teamed up with his brother and a few others to start a new project, Alice Signal Fires, and released the album "Ghosts" as a free download a few months back. Taken from the album is "Starting Gun", a track that's a little bit Americana, a little bit country, a little bit Neutral Milk Hotel, a little bit "Horse With No Name", and a little bit epic as well.
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Hot Cops - Decay
We haven't written about Hot Cops on this site in over a year now, but it's fair to say that a band have really developed in the time since then. We've seen them live a few times, and have been very impressed with how well they come across, and they have been busy building up a caché of admirers, which culminated in them playing a slot at this year's Radio 1 Big Weekend in exotic Norwich (you can see part of their set on the BBC website, although it's probably be coming down soon enough).
The trio recently released a new double-A side single on a pay what you want basis, the best of the bunch being "Decay", a track which showcases their masterful mix of slackerish rock with grunge overtones. Plus this one oddly enough reminds us a little bit of The Magic Numbers, which is something a bit different, I guess.
There's a funny story as to how we first heard of Hot Cops when we first wrote about them last year. However, now is not the time to regale you with that particular story. In the meanwhile, enjoy "Decay":
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Vokxen - Somebody
Vokxen have already picked up quite a bit of love despite only being a going concern for the past few months, the highlight of which being played on Cool FM (I know - a local band, being featured on a local commercial radio station. It's almost unthinkable, really). Although it's easy to see why their debut single "Somebody" has gone over so well with those of a radio-y persuasion, as they are one of the first groups from here to embrace such an overwhelmingly pop outlook for some time, quite possibly since the Wonder Villains. "Somebody" is a fantastic debut single, which mixes girl-group vocal harmonies with some juicy sounding keyboards and an incredibly infectious melody. Probably the group from here most likely to nab a slot supporting The Saturdays in the near future.
Although this is their debut single, we have covered some of the band's work in the past, as keyboardist Claire McCartney was formerly a member of Futurescope.
----------------------------------------------------------
Shadow Police - Sleep Tonight
The best thing about the film Drive (aside from the presence of Christina Hendricks, obviously), is that its soundtrack has given us a new comparison touchstone for comparing electronic music to, instead of just vaguely saying that something sounds like it comes 'from the 80s.' Which brings us neatly to "Sleep Tonight" by electro-pop duo Shadow Police, a song that does indeed sound like it would fit very neatly onto the soundtrack of said Ryan Gosling film, with its squelching electronic bass and rather distant vocals.
--------------------------------------------------
Alice Signal Fires - Starting Gun
It's a real shame among new and emerging bands that so many of them deliver some fantastic material, then subsequently split up before they can really reach their full potential. A few years ago, we were really excited by Carryduff based pop-punk band Kept Under Glass after being thoroughly won over by their song "I Don't Really Like Clubs". However, despite releasing a fore more tracks and gaining a bit of momentum, the band split up, never to be heard from again.
However, one of the members of that band, Declan McCrory, has teamed up with his brother and a few others to start a new project, Alice Signal Fires, and released the album "Ghosts" as a free download a few months back. Taken from the album is "Starting Gun", a track that's a little bit Americana, a little bit country, a little bit Neutral Milk Hotel, a little bit "Horse With No Name", and a little bit epic as well.
Sunday, 29 March 2015
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #34
Just when you think you've covered all the fantastic Northern Irish tunes that you can for the month, your attention is immediately drawn to another fantastic bunch of songs that you have no choice but to write about. As far as problems go, it's relatively minor, but still something worth rectifying.
So here's another bunch of great songs from here we hope float your Metaphorical Boat this month -
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Malojian - Communion Girls
I've mentioned before how my passion for local Northern Irish music stems largely from a Los Campesinos! gig that I went to see in July 2008, for which the band were ably supported by three great local bands - Two Door Cinema Club (whatever happened to them?), Kowalski, and the duo who opened the night, folk duo Cat Malojian. The band released two great albums (the latter of which, "The Dawn Chorus", I heardedly recommend checking out if you can track down a copy) before they went their seperate ways.
Stevie Scullion continued on the act under the simpler name of Malojian, and having released one album under the name ("The Deer's Cry), is lining up #2, "Southlands", in the next few months. The first track to be taken from the album, "Communion Girls" has already picked up a lot of love from Radio Ulster and BBC 6music. The music video's pretty great too, a dark yet charming animation which is well worth your attention.
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New Portals - Standing Over Here
"Standing Over Here" might be the first single from the band, but New Portals aren't exactly a new act, more one made up of old friends, given that they're the new project of Ruth & Michael Aicken, who we've written about in the past under the name The Jepettos. "Standing Over Here" sees the band exchange the "lullaby-folk" that they've become known for over the past few years for sleek, futuristic electro-pop. It's an interesting new direction for the duo, and although one hopes it doesn't mean that they've retired their Jepettos moniker, it'll be interesting to see where they go with this one.
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Patrick Gardiner - I'm Your Creation
County Down born Patrick Gardiner is lining up to release his first E.P in three years, "Carcassone", on April 1st, and if that news doesn't immediately excite you, then the lead track from the E.P, "I'm Your Creation", surely should. The song is a loving ode to his parents, wrapped up in an 'everything up to, and including, the kitchen sink' approach to percussion, with its vaudevillian charm calling to mind a more embryonic version of Duke Special. There's also a video for the song, inspired by Frankenstein, which is available now for your oracular pleasure.
He's launching the E.P in Voodoo, Belfast on Thursday April 9th.
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Jealous Of The Birds - Goji Berry Sunset
We came across Jealous of The Birds, the moniker of 18 year-old Portadown native Naomi Hamilton, after local super-producer Rocky O'Reilly brought her to our attention on Twitter. Needless to say, her debut E.P "Capricorn" should be enough to understand why she's already received praise in high places. The entire E.P is a stunningly lo-fi collection of tunes, and if we could bring your attention to just one of them, it would be the opening track, "Goji Berry Sunset". It's a charming little song, underpinned by the earwormiest of whistling hooks.
If you're looking to see her live, thankfully you won't have long to wait, as she's going to be supporting Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly's Sam Duckworth in The Bar With No Name, Belfast on Thursday 9th April.
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Comrade Hat - One Of Them
And concluding things this week is Comrade Hat, the moniker of Derry producer Neil Burns. Inspired by his time writing in the cold, dark depths of the Canadian rockies, he produces icy electronic music with deep atmospherics. "One Of Them" is taken from his E.P "The Winter Takes It All", which sounds like a cross between Air and Lorde, as fronted by Vampire Weekend. It's a song that's best suited for repeat listens, as you discovered something new hidden within the song's intricacies every single time.
So here's another bunch of great songs from here we hope float your Metaphorical Boat this month -
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Malojian - Communion Girls
I've mentioned before how my passion for local Northern Irish music stems largely from a Los Campesinos! gig that I went to see in July 2008, for which the band were ably supported by three great local bands - Two Door Cinema Club (whatever happened to them?), Kowalski, and the duo who opened the night, folk duo Cat Malojian. The band released two great albums (the latter of which, "The Dawn Chorus", I heardedly recommend checking out if you can track down a copy) before they went their seperate ways.
Stevie Scullion continued on the act under the simpler name of Malojian, and having released one album under the name ("The Deer's Cry), is lining up #2, "Southlands", in the next few months. The first track to be taken from the album, "Communion Girls" has already picked up a lot of love from Radio Ulster and BBC 6music. The music video's pretty great too, a dark yet charming animation which is well worth your attention.
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New Portals - Standing Over Here
"Standing Over Here" might be the first single from the band, but New Portals aren't exactly a new act, more one made up of old friends, given that they're the new project of Ruth & Michael Aicken, who we've written about in the past under the name The Jepettos. "Standing Over Here" sees the band exchange the "lullaby-folk" that they've become known for over the past few years for sleek, futuristic electro-pop. It's an interesting new direction for the duo, and although one hopes it doesn't mean that they've retired their Jepettos moniker, it'll be interesting to see where they go with this one.
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Patrick Gardiner - I'm Your Creation
County Down born Patrick Gardiner is lining up to release his first E.P in three years, "Carcassone", on April 1st, and if that news doesn't immediately excite you, then the lead track from the E.P, "I'm Your Creation", surely should. The song is a loving ode to his parents, wrapped up in an 'everything up to, and including, the kitchen sink' approach to percussion, with its vaudevillian charm calling to mind a more embryonic version of Duke Special. There's also a video for the song, inspired by Frankenstein, which is available now for your oracular pleasure.
He's launching the E.P in Voodoo, Belfast on Thursday April 9th.
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Jealous Of The Birds - Goji Berry Sunset
We came across Jealous of The Birds, the moniker of 18 year-old Portadown native Naomi Hamilton, after local super-producer Rocky O'Reilly brought her to our attention on Twitter. Needless to say, her debut E.P "Capricorn" should be enough to understand why she's already received praise in high places. The entire E.P is a stunningly lo-fi collection of tunes, and if we could bring your attention to just one of them, it would be the opening track, "Goji Berry Sunset". It's a charming little song, underpinned by the earwormiest of whistling hooks.
If you're looking to see her live, thankfully you won't have long to wait, as she's going to be supporting Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly's Sam Duckworth in The Bar With No Name, Belfast on Thursday 9th April.
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Comrade Hat - One Of Them
And concluding things this week is Comrade Hat, the moniker of Derry producer Neil Burns. Inspired by his time writing in the cold, dark depths of the Canadian rockies, he produces icy electronic music with deep atmospherics. "One Of Them" is taken from his E.P "The Winter Takes It All", which sounds like a cross between Air and Lorde, as fronted by Vampire Weekend. It's a song that's best suited for repeat listens, as you discovered something new hidden within the song's intricacies every single time.
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #33
It's been a while, but it's time for another round-up of some great tunes which have emanated from Northern Ireland over the past few weeks. There's been so many that it's not been possible to include them all here, but hopefully there's a little something for everyone in the six that really floated the Metaphorical Boat this week -
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Best Boy Grip - Sharks
Eoin O'Callghan, aka Best Boy Grip, has built his reputation over the past few years with his sincere yet subversive piano-pop tunes. This is why hearing his new single, "Sharks" for the first time took a lot of people aback, given that it ditches the ivories altogether and takes his sound in a rockier, slightly punkier direction. There's a Best Boy Grip album on its way in a few months time, and it will be interesting to see if there's a few more curve balls like this in store when it's released.
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Lilla Vargen - This Is Love
For reasons we've talked about before, with a few minor exceptions, Northern Irish acts haven't usually tended to make that much of an impact on the wider blogosphere, so when an artist does pick up a lot of traction online especially with a debut single, it is always a positive sign. When Belfast based singer/songwriter Lilla Vargen released "This Is Love" a few weeks back, it immediately won favour with lots of bloggers, picking up lots of love on the Hype Machine. It's hard not to to be won over, mind you, with this sparse, piano ballad which puts pure emotion heart and centre.
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Runabay - Moon Turns Blue
Of course I'm going to love a song that name checks the Cave Hill, Belfast's own Mount Everest. "Moon Turns Blue" is the new single from Antrim based sextet Runabay, which is a great modern folk tune filled with wonderful harmonies, and more fiddle than you can shake a stick at. There's a great lot of fantastic folk bands coming through in Northern Ireland at the moment (such as Emerald Armada and New Ancestors), and if looks as if Runabay are going to make a real impact over the next while as well.
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Rebekah Wilson - Nothing (Me & You)
After charming us several months ago with one of her early demos, Belfast singer/singwriter/local music enthusiast Rebekah Wilson has just released her first official single, "Nothing (Me & You)". Produced by Michael Mormecha of Mojo Fury fame, not only delivers on the promise that her earlier songs shown, but smashes right through it. The song is a soaring rock anthem in waiting, the kind of song that you can easily imagine being used at the end of an episode of one of those American teen dramas where the main character is making an overwrought declaration of love. It's a fantastic (official) debut from Rebekah Wilson, and given that she's still only 17, there's bound to be even more great gems like this to come in the future.
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Ciaran Lavery & Ryan Vail - The Colour Blue
Folk troubadour (and one of local music's most successful artists on Spotify - his track "Shame" alone has racked up nearly 5 million streams) Ciaran Lavery and electronic wizard Ryan Vail have come together to release "Sea Legs" a mini-album which will bring together both artists' very disparate styles over seven tracks. The first track to be released from the project is "The Colour Blue", which mixes the acoustic wistfulness of Lavery with ambient soundscapes courtesy of Vail. If you enjoyed the collaboration album between Jon Hopkins and King Creosote, one imagines you will find something to like in this, and if you want to get more involved, then they are currently crowd funding the release on Pledge Music.
Chase The River - Everything's Ok
And closing us out this week is Belfast duo Chase The River, who were recently finalists in Chordblossom's Kickstart competition (and congratulations to Lauren Bird, who was crowned the winner). "Everything's Ok" is a great introduction to the group, which is a jaunty folk-pop duet between Lauren Malloy and Stuart Lunn.
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Best Boy Grip - Sharks
Eoin O'Callghan, aka Best Boy Grip, has built his reputation over the past few years with his sincere yet subversive piano-pop tunes. This is why hearing his new single, "Sharks" for the first time took a lot of people aback, given that it ditches the ivories altogether and takes his sound in a rockier, slightly punkier direction. There's a Best Boy Grip album on its way in a few months time, and it will be interesting to see if there's a few more curve balls like this in store when it's released.
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Lilla Vargen - This Is Love
For reasons we've talked about before, with a few minor exceptions, Northern Irish acts haven't usually tended to make that much of an impact on the wider blogosphere, so when an artist does pick up a lot of traction online especially with a debut single, it is always a positive sign. When Belfast based singer/songwriter Lilla Vargen released "This Is Love" a few weeks back, it immediately won favour with lots of bloggers, picking up lots of love on the Hype Machine. It's hard not to to be won over, mind you, with this sparse, piano ballad which puts pure emotion heart and centre.
----------------------------------------------------
Runabay - Moon Turns Blue
Of course I'm going to love a song that name checks the Cave Hill, Belfast's own Mount Everest. "Moon Turns Blue" is the new single from Antrim based sextet Runabay, which is a great modern folk tune filled with wonderful harmonies, and more fiddle than you can shake a stick at. There's a great lot of fantastic folk bands coming through in Northern Ireland at the moment (such as Emerald Armada and New Ancestors), and if looks as if Runabay are going to make a real impact over the next while as well.
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Rebekah Wilson - Nothing (Me & You)
After charming us several months ago with one of her early demos, Belfast singer/singwriter/local music enthusiast Rebekah Wilson has just released her first official single, "Nothing (Me & You)". Produced by Michael Mormecha of Mojo Fury fame, not only delivers on the promise that her earlier songs shown, but smashes right through it. The song is a soaring rock anthem in waiting, the kind of song that you can easily imagine being used at the end of an episode of one of those American teen dramas where the main character is making an overwrought declaration of love. It's a fantastic (official) debut from Rebekah Wilson, and given that she's still only 17, there's bound to be even more great gems like this to come in the future.
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Ciaran Lavery & Ryan Vail - The Colour Blue
Folk troubadour (and one of local music's most successful artists on Spotify - his track "Shame" alone has racked up nearly 5 million streams) Ciaran Lavery and electronic wizard Ryan Vail have come together to release "Sea Legs" a mini-album which will bring together both artists' very disparate styles over seven tracks. The first track to be released from the project is "The Colour Blue", which mixes the acoustic wistfulness of Lavery with ambient soundscapes courtesy of Vail. If you enjoyed the collaboration album between Jon Hopkins and King Creosote, one imagines you will find something to like in this, and if you want to get more involved, then they are currently crowd funding the release on Pledge Music.
Chase The River - Everything's Ok
And closing us out this week is Belfast duo Chase The River, who were recently finalists in Chordblossom's Kickstart competition (and congratulations to Lauren Bird, who was crowned the winner). "Everything's Ok" is a great introduction to the group, which is a jaunty folk-pop duet between Lauren Malloy and Stuart Lunn.
Tuesday, 23 December 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #32
It's always great doing the annual round-up of this blog's favourite releases of 2014, however one thing it means is that we focus all our attention towards it, and a result there might be some great songs that we may have written about but didn't get around to due to our laser-focused attentions being elsewhere. So to remedy this, here's a few tracks from Northern Ireland that we've been rather taken by in the past few weeks that we think will float your Metaphorical Boat -
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Viola Dust - Trick
Having featured on this blog on several occasions throughout 2014, you'd think that Newry band Viola Dust don't need any introduction, but I never let that stop me.
Viola Dust have built up a stellar reputation, and a little bit of blog lovin', with their rather intelligent take on electronic-pop. As of today, "The Big Hop" has racked up over 25,000 streams on Soundcloud, which is pretty fantastic going for a band who've only being a going concern since May. Their latest single to made available is "Trick", a fantastic single with a monster of a chorus. It would not surprise me if Jay-Z nicked it as the main hook of his next hit single. It's available to download for free, which is a steal if I ever saw one.
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Lauren Bird - Goodbye, Good Luck
Last month, I went down to Dawsons in Belfast city centre to watch a friend of the blog who was taking part in a singer/songwriter competition that they were running. As part of the competition, they had to perform two songs, one original song and one cover. Although most of them were okay, I was completely blown away by one performer in particular. Armed with a ukulele, she broke into one of the most downbeat songs ever made, "No Surprises", and turned it into a thing of beauty. I joked on Twitter at the time that I refuse to listen to that song unless it's played by a girl from Strabane on the ukulele, but the more I think about it, the more I agree with myself.
I later learned that her name is Lauren Bird (having spent hours searching for her music in vain after mishearing it as Byrne), and discovered that she released a self-titled E.P of her own songs a few months ago, which is available on a pay-what-you-want basis. Taken from the E.P is "Goodbye, Good Luck", which was the song that she performed alongside "No Surprises" when I saw her last month. It's a heartfelt ode to a relationship gone awry, which calls to mind a more acoustic version of Kate Nash.
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Aspen Pales - Blue
And finishing off the round-up this month is Rostrevor band Aspen Pales. The track "Blue" premièred on Chordblossom earlier this month, taken from a recently released self-titled album. It's a deceptively simple song that ebbs and flows throughout, whilst burying itself deep under your skin without you realising it. It's one of those songs that seems to have existed in a time bubble, as if it has always been ever-present in the background, like cosmic radiation.
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Viola Dust - Trick
Having featured on this blog on several occasions throughout 2014, you'd think that Newry band Viola Dust don't need any introduction, but I never let that stop me.
Viola Dust have built up a stellar reputation, and a little bit of blog lovin', with their rather intelligent take on electronic-pop. As of today, "The Big Hop" has racked up over 25,000 streams on Soundcloud, which is pretty fantastic going for a band who've only being a going concern since May. Their latest single to made available is "Trick", a fantastic single with a monster of a chorus. It would not surprise me if Jay-Z nicked it as the main hook of his next hit single. It's available to download for free, which is a steal if I ever saw one.
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Lauren Bird - Goodbye, Good Luck
Last month, I went down to Dawsons in Belfast city centre to watch a friend of the blog who was taking part in a singer/songwriter competition that they were running. As part of the competition, they had to perform two songs, one original song and one cover. Although most of them were okay, I was completely blown away by one performer in particular. Armed with a ukulele, she broke into one of the most downbeat songs ever made, "No Surprises", and turned it into a thing of beauty. I joked on Twitter at the time that I refuse to listen to that song unless it's played by a girl from Strabane on the ukulele, but the more I think about it, the more I agree with myself.
I later learned that her name is Lauren Bird (having spent hours searching for her music in vain after mishearing it as Byrne), and discovered that she released a self-titled E.P of her own songs a few months ago, which is available on a pay-what-you-want basis. Taken from the E.P is "Goodbye, Good Luck", which was the song that she performed alongside "No Surprises" when I saw her last month. It's a heartfelt ode to a relationship gone awry, which calls to mind a more acoustic version of Kate Nash.
-------------------------------------
Aspen Pales - Blue
And finishing off the round-up this month is Rostrevor band Aspen Pales. The track "Blue" premièred on Chordblossom earlier this month, taken from a recently released self-titled album. It's a deceptively simple song that ebbs and flows throughout, whilst burying itself deep under your skin without you realising it. It's one of those songs that seems to have existed in a time bubble, as if it has always been ever-present in the background, like cosmic radiation.
Tuesday, 14 October 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #31
We hope you've been having a great October so far. If not, we've got the perfect remedy to your condition - a round-up of some great new music coming out of Northern Ireland at the moment -
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White Male Actors - Mysteries And Histories
It's nice to see that how healthy the music scene in Strabane is at the moment. We've already brought you music from Freak's and Those Ghosts over the past year or so, and now we've got a new name to add to the mix - White Male Actors. The band apparently received the seal of approval from former R.E.M member Bill Berry on one of their demos, and are about to release their debut E.P, "Ghosts", on October 20th. The lead track from the E.P is "Mysteries & Histories", and listening to it it's clear to see why they went down so well - it's a well produced, highly polished alternative-rock tune, which should go down well with fans of U2 and the aforementioned R.E.M.
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The Elliott Duo - Nashville Dreamer
Not one, but TWO Strabane based bands for you this month? You lucky, lucky people. The Elliott Duo are brother and sister Gary & Kim. Their song "Nashville Dreamer" combines Southern rock with a bit of country into something incredibly radio-friendly and Tennessee-pleasing, and not too dissimilar to another NI brother/sister duo doing well at the moment, Southern. I wonder if this would be up the metaphorical street of fellow country-loving Strabanite Hugo Duncan? Perhaps a bit too cool for him, methinks.
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Treehome - Keep Our Loving Discrete
Belfast trio Treehome describe themselves as mixing 'elements of Soul, Funk, Jazz and Rock backed up by catchy melodies, tasty riffs and pop sensibilities'. We'll take their word for it. Have a listen to their debut single "Keep Our Loving Discrete", which is definitely a more novel take on indie-rock for the young band.
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¿Que-Pasa? - The Logic of Matthew Dixon
And finishing us off this week is the schoolboy septet from Lugan, Dromore & Banbridge, who go by the name ¿Que-Pasa? & claim to have invented the genre of "swez". Their debue E.P "Mellon" has just been released, and taken from it is "The Logic of Matthew Dixon", a pretty upbeat track that mixes rock, brassy funk, pop, and a little bit of rap into a song that reminds us of both The Cat Empire and the song "Centerfold". It's nice to hear a band making such delightful with their tongues held firmly in cheek.
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White Male Actors - Mysteries And Histories
It's nice to see that how healthy the music scene in Strabane is at the moment. We've already brought you music from Freak's and Those Ghosts over the past year or so, and now we've got a new name to add to the mix - White Male Actors. The band apparently received the seal of approval from former R.E.M member Bill Berry on one of their demos, and are about to release their debut E.P, "Ghosts", on October 20th. The lead track from the E.P is "Mysteries & Histories", and listening to it it's clear to see why they went down so well - it's a well produced, highly polished alternative-rock tune, which should go down well with fans of U2 and the aforementioned R.E.M.
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The Elliott Duo - Nashville Dreamer
Not one, but TWO Strabane based bands for you this month? You lucky, lucky people. The Elliott Duo are brother and sister Gary & Kim. Their song "Nashville Dreamer" combines Southern rock with a bit of country into something incredibly radio-friendly and Tennessee-pleasing, and not too dissimilar to another NI brother/sister duo doing well at the moment, Southern. I wonder if this would be up the metaphorical street of fellow country-loving Strabanite Hugo Duncan? Perhaps a bit too cool for him, methinks.
------------------------------------
Treehome - Keep Our Loving Discrete
Belfast trio Treehome describe themselves as mixing 'elements of Soul, Funk, Jazz and Rock backed up by catchy melodies, tasty riffs and pop sensibilities'. We'll take their word for it. Have a listen to their debut single "Keep Our Loving Discrete", which is definitely a more novel take on indie-rock for the young band.
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¿Que-Pasa? - The Logic of Matthew Dixon
And finishing us off this week is the schoolboy septet from Lugan, Dromore & Banbridge, who go by the name ¿Que-Pasa? & claim to have invented the genre of "swez". Their debue E.P "Mellon" has just been released, and taken from it is "The Logic of Matthew Dixon", a pretty upbeat track that mixes rock, brassy funk, pop, and a little bit of rap into a song that reminds us of both The Cat Empire and the song "Centerfold". It's nice to hear a band making such delightful with their tongues held firmly in cheek.
Sunday, 17 August 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #30
We're in to August now in Belfast, which means that the summer is well and truly here. Well, we say summer, what we really mean is that the the usual Found Fossil grey skies are more of an Almost Oyster instead, at least if the Dulux Colour Scheme is anything to go by.
But anyway, you haven't came here to hear about multiple shades of grey, you want music, and new Northern Irish music at that. So here's a few new songs from here that are sure to float your Metaphorical Boat this month:
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Hit The B Button! - Martial
Belfast based trio Hit The B Button! seem to experiment with what alternative rock is expected to be on their interesting debut E.P "Apartments". The choice cut from the record is the opening track "Martial", which sees the band mix subtle elements of chiptune and other electronic interestingness into the sound. It reminds me a little bit of the band Gay Dad in places, which by the way is a good thing (despite that band being seen as a running joke for bands who were hyped to the high heavens but failed to deliver, I actually have a soft spot for them. After all, you'd have to be particularly begrudging not to admit admirable qualities in the songs "Joy!" and "From Earth With Love").
Note - "Martial" should not be confused with the song "Marshall" by Wonder Villains. It's pronounced the same, but spelt differently.
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Mons Olympus - Critical Mass
Formed from the derelict remains of Chocolate Love Factory, prog-rock trio Mons Olympus have unleashed upon us their epic debut single. "Critical Mass" is an 8 minute pummelling behemoth of a song, full of twists, turns and paranoia, a bit like Muse at their most bombastic and apocalyptic, albeit much, much heavier.
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Rebekah Wilson - One Day More
Anyone who is aware of the Northern Irish music scene will have came across Rebekah Wilson at some point - after all, she is probably the biggest supporter we have of local music. Whether it's being a part of the brilliant Volume Control initiative, banging on about the latest releases on her Twitter page or seemingly trying to cover every Northern Irish song ever on YouTube, her passion for the scene is something quite special.
But as well as being an uber music fan, she's also an artist in her own right, and has just released her first single, "One Day More". Quite impressively, despite being only 16 years old, not only has she played all the instruments on the recording herself, she also producing, mixed and mastered it as well. With such a prodigious talent, she is only going to get better and better over the next few years. And Northern Irish music will be privileged to have her with us.
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Tatsuhiro - 時計の針が (Valentine)
I don't think we've ever had any drum and bass on The Metaphorical Boat to date, so there's no time like the present to remedy that. Belfast based producer Daniel Carville has just released an E.P under the moniker Tatsuhiro, which mixes regular drum and bass with influences mined from J-Pop. Taken from the E.P is the single "時計の針が (Valentine)" (which apparently translates as "The Clock's Hands"), which is quite an interesting sounding track indeed.
But anyway, you haven't came here to hear about multiple shades of grey, you want music, and new Northern Irish music at that. So here's a few new songs from here that are sure to float your Metaphorical Boat this month:
---------------------------------------------------
Hit The B Button! - Martial
Belfast based trio Hit The B Button! seem to experiment with what alternative rock is expected to be on their interesting debut E.P "Apartments". The choice cut from the record is the opening track "Martial", which sees the band mix subtle elements of chiptune and other electronic interestingness into the sound. It reminds me a little bit of the band Gay Dad in places, which by the way is a good thing (despite that band being seen as a running joke for bands who were hyped to the high heavens but failed to deliver, I actually have a soft spot for them. After all, you'd have to be particularly begrudging not to admit admirable qualities in the songs "Joy!" and "From Earth With Love").
Note - "Martial" should not be confused with the song "Marshall" by Wonder Villains. It's pronounced the same, but spelt differently.
-------------------------------------------------
Mons Olympus - Critical Mass
Formed from the derelict remains of Chocolate Love Factory, prog-rock trio Mons Olympus have unleashed upon us their epic debut single. "Critical Mass" is an 8 minute pummelling behemoth of a song, full of twists, turns and paranoia, a bit like Muse at their most bombastic and apocalyptic, albeit much, much heavier.
---------------------------------------------------------
Rebekah Wilson - One Day More
Anyone who is aware of the Northern Irish music scene will have came across Rebekah Wilson at some point - after all, she is probably the biggest supporter we have of local music. Whether it's being a part of the brilliant Volume Control initiative, banging on about the latest releases on her Twitter page or seemingly trying to cover every Northern Irish song ever on YouTube, her passion for the scene is something quite special.
But as well as being an uber music fan, she's also an artist in her own right, and has just released her first single, "One Day More". Quite impressively, despite being only 16 years old, not only has she played all the instruments on the recording herself, she also producing, mixed and mastered it as well. With such a prodigious talent, she is only going to get better and better over the next few years. And Northern Irish music will be privileged to have her with us.
------------------------------------------------------
Tatsuhiro - 時計の針が (Valentine)
I don't think we've ever had any drum and bass on The Metaphorical Boat to date, so there's no time like the present to remedy that. Belfast based producer Daniel Carville has just released an E.P under the moniker Tatsuhiro, which mixes regular drum and bass with influences mined from J-Pop. Taken from the E.P is the single "時計の針が (Valentine)" (which apparently translates as "The Clock's Hands"), which is quite an interesting sounding track indeed.
Saturday, 19 July 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #29
Despite summer normally being seen as a quiet month for new releases, it's good to see that there's quite a few new tunes coming out at this time. Here's a couple of new songs from Northern Ireland that should float your Metaphorical Boat this month -
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Sister Ghost - Scent
Last year, Derry band Vanilla Gloom picked up a lot of praise on the basis of their sole E.P "Lemons & Wine". Solid radio play, as well as festival appearances and a tour of Scotland followed, before the split up rather out of the blue just before Halloween. For all those who are still getting over their sudden demise, you'll be glad to hear that their former frontwoman Shannon O'Neill is back with a new project, Sister Ghost. She plays all the instruments on her debut single, "Scent", a song very much indebted to the grunge/alt-rock boom of the early 90s.
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LORIS - Do It Right
Following on from a well received debut single, "I've Been Quiet", Belfast electro-pop trio LORIS have just released their follow-up, "Do It Right". It's a sweet, yet somewhat ice-y gem.
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Robocobra Quartet - Artbook Flipping
And now for something completely different. Robocobra Quartet are an experimental "chamber-punk" band who mix improvisational jazz with acoustic hip-hop to create a sound that is quite unique (although there is slight hints of Melt Yourself Down, not that I'm complaining mind) . Have a listen to their dual saxophone-led single "Artbook Flipping", and find yourself sucked in to their world.
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Goodbye Nola - Testified
Closing out our round-up this week are Goodbye Nola, a Belfast band that came to our attention this month after Ash frontman Tim Wheeler tweeted a link to their music, and we're not going to argue with the taste of the man who wrote "Kung Fu". "Testified" is taken from their first E.P, which is a rather nice, straightforward rock and roll tune.
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Sister Ghost - Scent
Last year, Derry band Vanilla Gloom picked up a lot of praise on the basis of their sole E.P "Lemons & Wine". Solid radio play, as well as festival appearances and a tour of Scotland followed, before the split up rather out of the blue just before Halloween. For all those who are still getting over their sudden demise, you'll be glad to hear that their former frontwoman Shannon O'Neill is back with a new project, Sister Ghost. She plays all the instruments on her debut single, "Scent", a song very much indebted to the grunge/alt-rock boom of the early 90s.
-----------------------------------------------------
LORIS - Do It Right
Following on from a well received debut single, "I've Been Quiet", Belfast electro-pop trio LORIS have just released their follow-up, "Do It Right". It's a sweet, yet somewhat ice-y gem.
--------------------------------------------------------
Robocobra Quartet - Artbook Flipping
And now for something completely different. Robocobra Quartet are an experimental "chamber-punk" band who mix improvisational jazz with acoustic hip-hop to create a sound that is quite unique (although there is slight hints of Melt Yourself Down, not that I'm complaining mind) . Have a listen to their dual saxophone-led single "Artbook Flipping", and find yourself sucked in to their world.
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Goodbye Nola - Testified
Closing out our round-up this week are Goodbye Nola, a Belfast band that came to our attention this month after Ash frontman Tim Wheeler tweeted a link to their music, and we're not going to argue with the taste of the man who wrote "Kung Fu". "Testified" is taken from their first E.P, which is a rather nice, straightforward rock and roll tune.
Sunday, 18 May 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #27
Here's a round-up of a few songs from "our wee province" that are likely to float your Metaphorical Boat in the month of May, with a little bit of something for everyone, provided the something that everyone is after includes indie, hardcore, singer-songwriters, and something a little bit nutty -
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Callum Stewart - Free
17-year old Magherafelt singer/songwriter Callum Stewart may have only just released his debut single "Free" this month, but it's fair to say that he hasn't already made an impact. He was longlisted for Chordblossom's Kickstart competition, has received airplay on local radio, and its music video has already recorded over 3,000 hits in two weeks (which for an NI artist is pretty good going). And it's no surprise, as "Free" is a pretty great, finely produced pop-rock song, very much in the mould of early 00s American MOR radio rock. If he can keep up the quality, he is going to be a force to be reckoned with.
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3D Shark - My Name Is Brian Clough
And from the sublime to the sublimely ridiculous. 3D Shark are a Belfast four-piece who make power-pop with pop-culture references and a pretty hilarious sense of humour. Their most recent E.P, "Some Boys Like To Hide Away", contains such gems like "Ronnie O'Sullivan", an ode to one of the most successful snooker players of his generation, and "Spuds", a song mourning the loss of one of the finest post-drinking food establishments within the vicinity of Queen's University. The highlight of the E.P however is "My Name Is Brian Clough", a semi-spoken word song looking at the various successes and failure of the eponymous football manager. It's rare to see many local bands embracing a sense of silliness, so it's great to know that we've got bands like 3D Shark plying their trade here.
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Hot Cops - Kenzie's Farmhouse
Belfast indie-rock 5-piece Hot Cops released their debut E.P "Another Teen Age" back in March. Taken from it is "Kenzie's Farmhouse", a decent Vaccines-esque tune that doesn't need to resort to gimmickry to make an impact.
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Towers - Untitled
And to conclude this month's batch, here's something a little heavier than usual from Belfast hardcore 4-piece Towers. "Untitled" is taken from the band's debut E.P "Seasons", which the band have kindly offered as a free download. Northern Ireland does have a good reputation for well constructed metal, so Towers are sure to find a certain amount of favour.
------------------------------------------
Callum Stewart - Free
17-year old Magherafelt singer/songwriter Callum Stewart may have only just released his debut single "Free" this month, but it's fair to say that he hasn't already made an impact. He was longlisted for Chordblossom's Kickstart competition, has received airplay on local radio, and its music video has already recorded over 3,000 hits in two weeks (which for an NI artist is pretty good going). And it's no surprise, as "Free" is a pretty great, finely produced pop-rock song, very much in the mould of early 00s American MOR radio rock. If he can keep up the quality, he is going to be a force to be reckoned with.
------------------------------------
3D Shark - My Name Is Brian Clough
And from the sublime to the sublimely ridiculous. 3D Shark are a Belfast four-piece who make power-pop with pop-culture references and a pretty hilarious sense of humour. Their most recent E.P, "Some Boys Like To Hide Away", contains such gems like "Ronnie O'Sullivan", an ode to one of the most successful snooker players of his generation, and "Spuds", a song mourning the loss of one of the finest post-drinking food establishments within the vicinity of Queen's University. The highlight of the E.P however is "My Name Is Brian Clough", a semi-spoken word song looking at the various successes and failure of the eponymous football manager. It's rare to see many local bands embracing a sense of silliness, so it's great to know that we've got bands like 3D Shark plying their trade here.
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Hot Cops - Kenzie's Farmhouse
Belfast indie-rock 5-piece Hot Cops released their debut E.P "Another Teen Age" back in March. Taken from it is "Kenzie's Farmhouse", a decent Vaccines-esque tune that doesn't need to resort to gimmickry to make an impact.
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Towers - Untitled
And to conclude this month's batch, here's something a little heavier than usual from Belfast hardcore 4-piece Towers. "Untitled" is taken from the band's debut E.P "Seasons", which the band have kindly offered as a free download. Northern Ireland does have a good reputation for well constructed metal, so Towers are sure to find a certain amount of favour.
Saturday, 5 April 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #26
We're into April already? Where did the time go? I'm sure there are philosophers and scientists who can answer that question with more certainly than this humble music blogger, so I'll safely leave that question in their capable hands.
One of the things I love about doing this quick round-up of tunes from Northern Ireland is that it shows the great variety of artists and music styles that 'our wee province' has to offer. You'd be hard pressed to find many similarities between the acts featured in this month's round-up, and sometimes that diversity we have here is sometimes overlooked.
But anyway, here endeth the babble, and on with the tunes that are sure to float your Metaphorical Boat this month -
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Selene - Not Enough
It's safe to say that Northern Ireland is not a place synonymous with symphonic metal. One band looking to change that is Derry band four-piece Selene. Okay, it might not be true symphonic metal, given that they use keyboards instead of live strings, but in fairness to the group, hiring an orchestra is rather expensive. Their latest single is "Not Enough", a song that fans of Lacuna Coil and Nightwish might enjoy immensely.
---------------------------------------------
Dramatic Tiger Club - Something About Beats and Breath
It's fair to say that Derry sextet Dramatic Tiger Club really do have their own unique sound, or 'folkspoke rock' as they call it. Their song "Something About Beats and Breath" is a mixture of spoken word vocals over jazzy yet subtle piano chords, complimented by a strong, emotion baiting chorus. It's hard to draw comparisons with other groups, but I imagine that if you liked Black Box Recorder, but were looking for something a little less poppy and more stripped back, you might find something to like in DTC.
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Ocean of Lights - A Deep Breath Before the Plunge
And the winner of the most pretentious song title from a Belfast music this month goes to...Daniel Thornton, aka Ocean of Lights, for his instrumental ambient post-rock song "A Deep Breath Before The Plunge". If you're a music supervisor on a nature documentary looking for something to soundtrack a montage of the animal world, then you may have just the track you need here.
------------------------------------------------
Shane McCaul - Barefoot
If you have even the slightest passing interest in Northern Irish music (and let's face it - you wouldn't be reading this blog if that wasn't the case), then you will probably have come across Derry man Shane McCaul before. Having performed backing vocals to Best Boy Grip both live and on record, he has just released his debut E.P, "Barefoot". The title track is a great introduction to his music, which is broadly acoustic rock with soulful vocals.
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The Nouvelles - Rising
And we finish up this month's round-up with The Nouvelles. Technically they're a Wigan band, but given that their lead singer is from Belfast, it felt right to include them, especially given the strength of their song "Rising". Want to know whether you should hit play? If you've ever wanted to know what "Don't Stop Believin" would sound like in the 21st century, only with male/female vocals and rave synths instead of guitars, then hit the orange button below and be won over.
One of the things I love about doing this quick round-up of tunes from Northern Ireland is that it shows the great variety of artists and music styles that 'our wee province' has to offer. You'd be hard pressed to find many similarities between the acts featured in this month's round-up, and sometimes that diversity we have here is sometimes overlooked.
But anyway, here endeth the babble, and on with the tunes that are sure to float your Metaphorical Boat this month -
--------------------------------------------------------------
Selene - Not Enough
It's safe to say that Northern Ireland is not a place synonymous with symphonic metal. One band looking to change that is Derry band four-piece Selene. Okay, it might not be true symphonic metal, given that they use keyboards instead of live strings, but in fairness to the group, hiring an orchestra is rather expensive. Their latest single is "Not Enough", a song that fans of Lacuna Coil and Nightwish might enjoy immensely.
---------------------------------------------
Dramatic Tiger Club - Something About Beats and Breath
It's fair to say that Derry sextet Dramatic Tiger Club really do have their own unique sound, or 'folkspoke rock' as they call it. Their song "Something About Beats and Breath" is a mixture of spoken word vocals over jazzy yet subtle piano chords, complimented by a strong, emotion baiting chorus. It's hard to draw comparisons with other groups, but I imagine that if you liked Black Box Recorder, but were looking for something a little less poppy and more stripped back, you might find something to like in DTC.
---------------------------------------------------------
Ocean of Lights - A Deep Breath Before the Plunge
And the winner of the most pretentious song title from a Belfast music this month goes to...Daniel Thornton, aka Ocean of Lights, for his instrumental ambient post-rock song "A Deep Breath Before The Plunge". If you're a music supervisor on a nature documentary looking for something to soundtrack a montage of the animal world, then you may have just the track you need here.
------------------------------------------------
Shane McCaul - Barefoot
If you have even the slightest passing interest in Northern Irish music (and let's face it - you wouldn't be reading this blog if that wasn't the case), then you will probably have come across Derry man Shane McCaul before. Having performed backing vocals to Best Boy Grip both live and on record, he has just released his debut E.P, "Barefoot". The title track is a great introduction to his music, which is broadly acoustic rock with soulful vocals.
-------------------------------------------
The Nouvelles - Rising
And we finish up this month's round-up with The Nouvelles. Technically they're a Wigan band, but given that their lead singer is from Belfast, it felt right to include them, especially given the strength of their song "Rising". Want to know whether you should hit play? If you've ever wanted to know what "Don't Stop Believin" would sound like in the 21st century, only with male/female vocals and rave synths instead of guitars, then hit the orange button below and be won over.
Monday, 17 March 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #25
A happy March to each and every one of you. March is always a good month here on TMB, especially as it contains the birth date of your humble Captain (a day that we're happy to share with the nicest man in rock, Guy Garvey).
And in the spirit of this month's happiness, we would like to extend congratulations towards Bangor band In An Instant, one of the blogs Tips For 2014, for winning the Chordblossom Kickstart competition. Previous winners include SOAK and Those Ghosts, and the prizes this year include a slot at this year's Stendhal Festival, studio time, and PR, all of which is invaluable for artists at the start of their career. Hopefully it gives them the boost that they deserve - I've been eagerly awaiting their upcoming E.P with giddy abandon.
And keeping it local, here's a few tunes from here we've come across this month that have floated The Metaphorical Boat -
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Daniel James - The Bridge
Northern Irish lad Daniel James is seemingly being groomed for international superstardom, having recently toured with million selling man of the moment Sam Smith and due to support Saint Raymond quite soon. He's got a lot of support behind him, so I imagine that by the end of the year he'll be getting a major push for next year's "Sound Of'..." polls. Until then, enjoy his new single, "The Bridge", which will be released on April 21st. It's fairly inoffensive radio-friendly singer-songwriter-y stuff, which should find favour with those who are keen on Kodaline and Hudson Taylor.
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Runabay - Cold Outside
Although In An Instant took home the Chordblossom Kickstart prize, that's not to say they didn't have stiff competition to get there. One of the other finalists who impressed greatly were Cushendall's Runabay, who won the crowd over with their folk-rock sound, in spite of the fact they had only just played their first gig. Given the sound of their debut release "Cold Outside", this might come as a surprise, as they have the sound of a band who have been around for years. Imagine a heavier Bon Iver, and you might be slightly on the way to describing how they sound.
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HOW - Woo Hoo
A part of me always wonders if Blur's 90s classic "Song 2" would have hit the number 1 spot had it instead been called, as may people still believe it to be, "Woo Hoo"? We'll never know the answer to that question, although I guess it's a bit of serendipity that the song ended up peaking at #2 instead.
However, when it comes to Armagh trio HOW, there's no chance of making that mistake, given that they've named their song after the one bit of the song that will stick in your head long after you've stopped listening to the song. Altogether now - "Woo Hoo! (handclaps). Woo Hoo! (handclaps)"
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The Dandy Horses - Driving Toward Blue Skies
And concluding this month's round-up is Belfast quintet The Dandy Horses. They'll be launching their 2nd E.P, the tweefully titled "Hat On The Sun", on Saturday 22nd March in The Black Box, Belfast. Taken from the E.P is the absolutely lovely "Driving Towards Blue Skies", a country-folk tune, which they guarantee will kick away the winter blues.
And in the spirit of this month's happiness, we would like to extend congratulations towards Bangor band In An Instant, one of the blogs Tips For 2014, for winning the Chordblossom Kickstart competition. Previous winners include SOAK and Those Ghosts, and the prizes this year include a slot at this year's Stendhal Festival, studio time, and PR, all of which is invaluable for artists at the start of their career. Hopefully it gives them the boost that they deserve - I've been eagerly awaiting their upcoming E.P with giddy abandon.
And keeping it local, here's a few tunes from here we've come across this month that have floated The Metaphorical Boat -
---------------------------------------------
Daniel James - The Bridge
Northern Irish lad Daniel James is seemingly being groomed for international superstardom, having recently toured with million selling man of the moment Sam Smith and due to support Saint Raymond quite soon. He's got a lot of support behind him, so I imagine that by the end of the year he'll be getting a major push for next year's "Sound Of'..." polls. Until then, enjoy his new single, "The Bridge", which will be released on April 21st. It's fairly inoffensive radio-friendly singer-songwriter-y stuff, which should find favour with those who are keen on Kodaline and Hudson Taylor.
-------------------------------------------------
Runabay - Cold Outside
Although In An Instant took home the Chordblossom Kickstart prize, that's not to say they didn't have stiff competition to get there. One of the other finalists who impressed greatly were Cushendall's Runabay, who won the crowd over with their folk-rock sound, in spite of the fact they had only just played their first gig. Given the sound of their debut release "Cold Outside", this might come as a surprise, as they have the sound of a band who have been around for years. Imagine a heavier Bon Iver, and you might be slightly on the way to describing how they sound.
-----------------------------------------------
HOW - Woo Hoo
A part of me always wonders if Blur's 90s classic "Song 2" would have hit the number 1 spot had it instead been called, as may people still believe it to be, "Woo Hoo"? We'll never know the answer to that question, although I guess it's a bit of serendipity that the song ended up peaking at #2 instead.
However, when it comes to Armagh trio HOW, there's no chance of making that mistake, given that they've named their song after the one bit of the song that will stick in your head long after you've stopped listening to the song. Altogether now - "Woo Hoo! (handclaps). Woo Hoo! (handclaps)"
------------------------------------------------------------
The Dandy Horses - Driving Toward Blue Skies
And concluding this month's round-up is Belfast quintet The Dandy Horses. They'll be launching their 2nd E.P, the tweefully titled "Hat On The Sun", on Saturday 22nd March in The Black Box, Belfast. Taken from the E.P is the absolutely lovely "Driving Towards Blue Skies", a country-folk tune, which they guarantee will kick away the winter blues.
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-Up #23
Don't you just love February? By the end of it, you'll be one month closer to spring time, one month closer to the summer, and one month closer to your birthday (provided your birthday isn't in February, of course). And if you don't love February then hopefully this will help. Here's a few tunes from Northern Ireland which are sure to float your Metaphorical Boat this month:
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Alana Henderson - The Banks of The Roses
Alana Henderson has taken time away from her original cello-led compositions to record "Windfall", an album (extended E.P?) of folk songs from the north of Ireland reinterpreted with more contemporary arrangements. The first track on the record is wonderful version of "The Banks of The Roses", a song that really shows off Alana's voice. I'm looking forward to the release of more of Alana's original material, but for now the tracks on "Windfall" offer a wonderful diversion.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Gardener - He's Not Right For You
Magheralin teenager Patrick Gardener seems to have been picking up steam in the past few months. He's been tipped by The Guardian, picked up airplay locally, and just this week his song "He's Not Right For You" was featured on Tom Robinson's BBC Introducing Mixtape. And it's no surprise why he's coming in for such praise - "He's Not Right..." is a wonderful song that sounds both timeless and solidly produced. I'm somewhat ashamed that it's taken so long for me to come across him (the E.P this song was taken from, "Save Myself", was released back in 2012).
He's also worth following on Twitter. His timeline skirts the fine line between genius and downright bonkers.
---------------------------------------------------
Surfhouse - Take It Back
Now here's something you don't come across very often - an Antrim based baggy influenced band, which is what Surfhouse are. The trio are still in the early stages of their career, and still have some room for development. Case in point - one of the songs on their debut E.P actually samples "Loaded" by Primal Scream. Talk about wearing you influences on your sleeve.
That doesn't mean they don't have heaps of potential, as their instrumental "Take It Back" evidently shows. It's a wonderful mix of dance-y break beats and greater guitar work, which is a real early 90s authenticity to it.
-------------------------------------------
Amanda St. John - Big Strong Man
Jazzy rockabilly is the order of the day for Belfast based singer/songwriter Amanda St John. Her new single "Big Strong Man" has already picked up daytime radio play on Radio Ulster, and it's not hard to understand why. The song is a fun little ditty which, in a world where Imelda May and Caro Emerald can make a healthy living off similar music style, should go down very well indeed. She'll be launching the single at The Harp Bar in Belfast on March 2nd, ahead of its release the next day.
-------------------------------------------------------
Candy's Eyes - For The Birds
And we finish off the round-up with something a little bit on the nutty side. Elizabeth McGeown was formerly the vocalist in well respected electro-poppers Uber Glitterati. She's now reinvented herself as Candy's Eyes, which she describes as striking "a balance between acoustic folk and jazz".
It does not strike the balance very well, is no bad thing when you come off with such eccentric offerings like "For The Birds", a demented little ditty which mixes a calm acoustic backing with quasi-operatic vocals and sinister organ sounds. It's a very acquired taste, but if it's your thing it is one you will truly savour.
---------------------------------------------
Alana Henderson - The Banks of The Roses
Alana Henderson has taken time away from her original cello-led compositions to record "Windfall", an album (extended E.P?) of folk songs from the north of Ireland reinterpreted with more contemporary arrangements. The first track on the record is wonderful version of "The Banks of The Roses", a song that really shows off Alana's voice. I'm looking forward to the release of more of Alana's original material, but for now the tracks on "Windfall" offer a wonderful diversion.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Gardener - He's Not Right For You
Magheralin teenager Patrick Gardener seems to have been picking up steam in the past few months. He's been tipped by The Guardian, picked up airplay locally, and just this week his song "He's Not Right For You" was featured on Tom Robinson's BBC Introducing Mixtape. And it's no surprise why he's coming in for such praise - "He's Not Right..." is a wonderful song that sounds both timeless and solidly produced. I'm somewhat ashamed that it's taken so long for me to come across him (the E.P this song was taken from, "Save Myself", was released back in 2012).
He's also worth following on Twitter. His timeline skirts the fine line between genius and downright bonkers.
---------------------------------------------------
Surfhouse - Take It Back
Now here's something you don't come across very often - an Antrim based baggy influenced band, which is what Surfhouse are. The trio are still in the early stages of their career, and still have some room for development. Case in point - one of the songs on their debut E.P actually samples "Loaded" by Primal Scream. Talk about wearing you influences on your sleeve.
That doesn't mean they don't have heaps of potential, as their instrumental "Take It Back" evidently shows. It's a wonderful mix of dance-y break beats and greater guitar work, which is a real early 90s authenticity to it.
-------------------------------------------
Amanda St. John - Big Strong Man
Jazzy rockabilly is the order of the day for Belfast based singer/songwriter Amanda St John. Her new single "Big Strong Man" has already picked up daytime radio play on Radio Ulster, and it's not hard to understand why. The song is a fun little ditty which, in a world where Imelda May and Caro Emerald can make a healthy living off similar music style, should go down very well indeed. She'll be launching the single at The Harp Bar in Belfast on March 2nd, ahead of its release the next day.
-------------------------------------------------------
Candy's Eyes - For The Birds
And we finish off the round-up with something a little bit on the nutty side. Elizabeth McGeown was formerly the vocalist in well respected electro-poppers Uber Glitterati. She's now reinvented herself as Candy's Eyes, which she describes as striking "a balance between acoustic folk and jazz".
It does not strike the balance very well, is no bad thing when you come off with such eccentric offerings like "For The Birds", a demented little ditty which mixes a calm acoustic backing with quasi-operatic vocals and sinister organ sounds. It's a very acquired taste, but if it's your thing it is one you will truly savour.
Tuesday, 14 January 2014
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-up #22
It's a new year for all of us (obviously - that's how time works), and in terms of music-y things from Northern Ireland 2014 has got off to a cracking start, with news that Good Vibrations, the film about the birth of the region's punk scene in the 1970s, has been unexpectedly nominated for a BAFTA. The film was one of the best films released last year, with the legendary Mark Kermode calling it the best, so if you haven't seen it yet, then definitely get around to it.
But let's not reflect on the past for too long, for there have been some lovely wee tunes from here floating The Metaphorical Boat this month. Here's a few of them:
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Rory Nellis - Mind Control
Rory Nellis has taken some time out from his Seven Summits duties in order to record a solo E.P, "Moon", which will be launched on February 1st at the Sunflower Bar in Belfast, one of the best new venues to pop up here in the past year. Taken from that release is the breezy "Mind Control", which is a great, uncomplicated little guitar-pop ditty.
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Mojo Gogo - 4.20
You've got to love a song with a rollicking, thunderingly great drum intro, like "4.20" by Derry 4-piece Mojo Gogo. Thankfully, the rest of the song is pretty decent too. Think "Dakota" by Stereophonics with a little bit more of an edge and you've got a good idea of what they sound like. It's the lead track from their E.P "Streets, Backstreets & Envy", which will be out around March.
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Morgan Macintyre - Dancing Down Ravenhill
Morgan Macintyre has only fairly recently begun to make a name for herself locally, but it's safe to say that she must have made a good first impression, with Gary Lightbody singing her praises and a well received launch gig in The Empire for her E.P, "Dancing Down Ravenhill". Listening that E.P's title track, it's easy to see why the praise has been to deserved - she's got a voice as delicate and beautiful as Hannah from London Grammar, which is shown off to great effect on this powerful, folky tune. Keep an eye on her - she's destined for great things.
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Meb Jon Sol - Captain Of This Ship
Well, there's no way I couldn't feature a fellow captain on TMB, couldn't I?
Meb Jon Sol is the new project of Michael McCullough, who was previously a member of the much lauded Colenso Parade (a band that also featured a certain Mr. Phil Taggart). His debut single is "Captain Of This Ship", a song which could be the first song in the newly-Christened genre of 'shanty-punk' (seapunk's already been taken). It's a great wee opening gambit of a song, and it's good to know that if this blog ever becomes important enough to warrant its own theme tune, we know exactly who we could turn to to write it.
But let's not reflect on the past for too long, for there have been some lovely wee tunes from here floating The Metaphorical Boat this month. Here's a few of them:
----------------------------------------------------------
Rory Nellis - Mind Control
Rory Nellis has taken some time out from his Seven Summits duties in order to record a solo E.P, "Moon", which will be launched on February 1st at the Sunflower Bar in Belfast, one of the best new venues to pop up here in the past year. Taken from that release is the breezy "Mind Control", which is a great, uncomplicated little guitar-pop ditty.
----------------------------------
Mojo Gogo - 4.20
You've got to love a song with a rollicking, thunderingly great drum intro, like "4.20" by Derry 4-piece Mojo Gogo. Thankfully, the rest of the song is pretty decent too. Think "Dakota" by Stereophonics with a little bit more of an edge and you've got a good idea of what they sound like. It's the lead track from their E.P "Streets, Backstreets & Envy", which will be out around March.
---------------------------------------
Morgan Macintyre - Dancing Down Ravenhill
Morgan Macintyre has only fairly recently begun to make a name for herself locally, but it's safe to say that she must have made a good first impression, with Gary Lightbody singing her praises and a well received launch gig in The Empire for her E.P, "Dancing Down Ravenhill". Listening that E.P's title track, it's easy to see why the praise has been to deserved - she's got a voice as delicate and beautiful as Hannah from London Grammar, which is shown off to great effect on this powerful, folky tune. Keep an eye on her - she's destined for great things.
----------------------------------------------------
Meb Jon Sol - Captain Of This Ship
Well, there's no way I couldn't feature a fellow captain on TMB, couldn't I?
Meb Jon Sol is the new project of Michael McCullough, who was previously a member of the much lauded Colenso Parade (a band that also featured a certain Mr. Phil Taggart). His debut single is "Captain Of This Ship", a song which could be the first song in the newly-Christened genre of 'shanty-punk' (seapunk's already been taken). It's a great wee opening gambit of a song, and it's good to know that if this blog ever becomes important enough to warrant its own theme tune, we know exactly who we could turn to to write it.
Thursday, 12 December 2013
Assorted Tunes - Round-up #21
It's been nice being a bit nostalgic, looking at some of our most favourite songs of the year over the past two weeks, but it's also great to be able to keep the fantastic new tunes coming, especially in the run-up to Christmas. Here's a few assorted tunes that have been floating The Metaphorical Boat recently:
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Clean Bandit ft Jess Glynne - Rather Be
2013 isn't even over yet, but Clean Bandit are staking their claim early for the biggest radio hit of 2014 with their new single "Rather Be". The song features guest vocals from Jess Glynne, and sees the band continue with their trademark mix of orchestral music and dance, albeit in a more commercially-minded manner than they have attempted before. "Mozart's House" was one of the oddest songs to make the top 40 in 2013, but if "Rather Be" does not spend many weeks in the top 10, then I will be very surprised indeed.
Our Krypton Son - Can't Make You Come Back
One of Derry's most poetic singer/songwriters, Chris McConaghy, aka Our Krypton Son, will be releasing a new mini-album "A Graveyard of Stars" in the new year. On the 16th December, he will be releasing its first track, "Can't Make You Come Back", a song that sees Chris wearing his heart very firmly on his sleeve.
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Freak's - Old Piano
Strabane's Freak's made their E.P "...With An Apostrophe" available as a free download last month. Taken from it is "Old Piano", a quirky little lo-fi indie-rock song about how the ivory-infused instrument is left unused because guitars are awesome. At least that's what I think it's about.
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Liam O'Donnell - Nothing That I'm Scared Of
Liam O'Donnell has taken some time away from fronting indie-rock group Various Cruelties (the band who deserved to have a monster hit with "Great Unknown") to record some music in LA under his own name. If the first song he's made available, "Nothing That I'm Scared Of", doesn't help to increase his profile, then I will be very disappointed. He's always had a great voice, but now he seems to have tailored it to a sound that is very much of the here and now. You could almost imagine Sam Smith or John Newman performing "Nothing That I'm Scared Of" at Radio One's Big Weekend.
------------------------------------------
Clean Bandit ft Jess Glynne - Rather Be
2013 isn't even over yet, but Clean Bandit are staking their claim early for the biggest radio hit of 2014 with their new single "Rather Be". The song features guest vocals from Jess Glynne, and sees the band continue with their trademark mix of orchestral music and dance, albeit in a more commercially-minded manner than they have attempted before. "Mozart's House" was one of the oddest songs to make the top 40 in 2013, but if "Rather Be" does not spend many weeks in the top 10, then I will be very surprised indeed.
Our Krypton Son - Can't Make You Come Back
One of Derry's most poetic singer/songwriters, Chris McConaghy, aka Our Krypton Son, will be releasing a new mini-album "A Graveyard of Stars" in the new year. On the 16th December, he will be releasing its first track, "Can't Make You Come Back", a song that sees Chris wearing his heart very firmly on his sleeve.
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Freak's - Old Piano
Strabane's Freak's made their E.P "...With An Apostrophe" available as a free download last month. Taken from it is "Old Piano", a quirky little lo-fi indie-rock song about how the ivory-infused instrument is left unused because guitars are awesome. At least that's what I think it's about.
--------------------------------------------------
Liam O'Donnell - Nothing That I'm Scared Of
Liam O'Donnell has taken some time away from fronting indie-rock group Various Cruelties (the band who deserved to have a monster hit with "Great Unknown") to record some music in LA under his own name. If the first song he's made available, "Nothing That I'm Scared Of", doesn't help to increase his profile, then I will be very disappointed. He's always had a great voice, but now he seems to have tailored it to a sound that is very much of the here and now. You could almost imagine Sam Smith or John Newman performing "Nothing That I'm Scared Of" at Radio One's Big Weekend.
Saturday, 16 November 2013
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-up #20
So have we all enjoyed this year's Belfast Music Week? I very much hope so. There was some great events that we really enjoyed this year. The Northern Ireland Music Prize, the Belfast Music Week Showcase (which I didn't enjoy as much as last year despite some enjoyable performances, unfortunately), and the opportunity to see the fantastic Public Service Broadcasting live for the second time (and it was great to see local band Yes Cadets, whom we've written about in the past, supporting them. They seem to have completely changed their line-up and sound since the last time we saw them, but they still sound fantastic. Expect to hear more from them on this blog in the near future). But as is usually the case, there's just so much music, and so little time. Here's a few songs from NI that have been floating The Metaphorical Boat. Some old, some new, and some in between:
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Mojo Fury - Origami Bird
One of the most respected bands on the local scene, Mojo Fury, are about to launch their second album "The Difference Between", a record which has been funded by their fans via a PledgeMusic campaign. Based on the album's latest single "Origami Bird", a song which has picked up a great amount of local airplay, as well as seemingly being played over the PA of every event during Belfast Music Week, they were worth every single penny. Alternative heavy rock at its finest.
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Cashier No.9 - Moonbeam Song
In 2011 psych-rockers Cashier No.9 released their much awaiting debut album "To The Death Of Fun", a wonderful album which ranks among the best albums from here from the last few years (although ashamedly, due to an oversight on our part it didn't feature in our own countdown of albums in 2011. If we repeated the list now, they would have easily taken the #1 spot. Sorry, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart). They recently announced that their follow-up album is due to be released in 2014, and to whet our appetite, they have recorded a few covers of their favourite songs. The first release is "Moonbeam Song", a cover of American singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson.
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Seven Summits - Little Twist
With two albums and countless local gigs under their belt, it seems rather surprising that this blog had not seen Seven Summits live until they took part in the Belfast Music Week Showcase on Thursday. And it's fair to say that they were very impressive, and not at all like I expected them to be. For some reason I'd got it into my head they were a bunch Mumford-esque banjo botherers, and thankfully my expectations were confounded. They closed with brand new single "Little Twist", a song inspired by one of the members fracturing their fibula. It's a fine slice of alternative-rock, one which may give this blog reason to reassess its opinion of the band for the better.
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Skymas - This River
And to close this month off we have Skymas, an electronic-rock trio based in Belfast. They recently released their debut two track E.P (or as it was called in the old days, a 'double A-side'), and taken from it is "This River", an LCD Soundsystem inspired song with a hypnotic base line.
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Mojo Fury - Origami Bird
One of the most respected bands on the local scene, Mojo Fury, are about to launch their second album "The Difference Between", a record which has been funded by their fans via a PledgeMusic campaign. Based on the album's latest single "Origami Bird", a song which has picked up a great amount of local airplay, as well as seemingly being played over the PA of every event during Belfast Music Week, they were worth every single penny. Alternative heavy rock at its finest.
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Cashier No.9 - Moonbeam Song
In 2011 psych-rockers Cashier No.9 released their much awaiting debut album "To The Death Of Fun", a wonderful album which ranks among the best albums from here from the last few years (although ashamedly, due to an oversight on our part it didn't feature in our own countdown of albums in 2011. If we repeated the list now, they would have easily taken the #1 spot. Sorry, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart). They recently announced that their follow-up album is due to be released in 2014, and to whet our appetite, they have recorded a few covers of their favourite songs. The first release is "Moonbeam Song", a cover of American singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson.
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Seven Summits - Little Twist
With two albums and countless local gigs under their belt, it seems rather surprising that this blog had not seen Seven Summits live until they took part in the Belfast Music Week Showcase on Thursday. And it's fair to say that they were very impressive, and not at all like I expected them to be. For some reason I'd got it into my head they were a bunch Mumford-esque banjo botherers, and thankfully my expectations were confounded. They closed with brand new single "Little Twist", a song inspired by one of the members fracturing their fibula. It's a fine slice of alternative-rock, one which may give this blog reason to reassess its opinion of the band for the better.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Skymas - This River
And to close this month off we have Skymas, an electronic-rock trio based in Belfast. They recently released their debut two track E.P (or as it was called in the old days, a 'double A-side'), and taken from it is "This River", an LCD Soundsystem inspired song with a hypnotic base line.
Saturday, 12 October 2013
Northern Ireland Tunes - Round-up #19
Sometimes, getting new music from Northern Ireland can be like waiting for a bus. You wait ages for one to come, then you decide that you're done waiting and decide instead to walk home, enjoying the scenery and happy that you were able to get some exercise in.
Whoops. That's not it. I'll start again.
Sometimes, getting new music from Northern Ireland can be like waiting for a bus. You think that there's nothing worth waiting for coming, and then all of a sudden you're inundated with so many buses that it's not possible to board them all, so you have to make the decision of which bus to take and which ones to ignore, and hope that those bus drivers don't feel heartbroken that you decided not to go with them.
Actually, on second thoughts, getting new music from here is absolutely nothing like getting a bus. I honestly don't know why I tried to make that comparison.
Nonetheless, here's a few new tunes from Northern Ireland which have been floating The Metaphorical Boat so far this month. None of them are about buses:
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Sullivan and Gold - Lonely
Whoops. That's not it. I'll start again.
Sometimes, getting new music from Northern Ireland can be like waiting for a bus. You think that there's nothing worth waiting for coming, and then all of a sudden you're inundated with so many buses that it's not possible to board them all, so you have to make the decision of which bus to take and which ones to ignore, and hope that those bus drivers don't feel heartbroken that you decided not to go with them.
Actually, on second thoughts, getting new music from here is absolutely nothing like getting a bus. I honestly don't know why I tried to make that comparison.
Nonetheless, here's a few new tunes from Northern Ireland which have been floating The Metaphorical Boat so far this month. None of them are about buses:
-----------------------------------------------
Sullivan and Gold - Lonely
Local record label Smalltown America is perhaps best known for releasing music very much on the heavier side of the rock spectrum. Having been formed to release material from Jetplane Landing, the label has put our records by artists like Lafaro, More Than Conquerors and Axis of. However, more recently the label seems to have signed a few artists on the softer, more folksier end of the musical spectrum. Earlier this year they signed the wonderful Little Bear (who, if there is justice in this world, will be absolutely massive in 2014), and later this year they will be releasing "For Foes", the debut album from Derry duo Sullivan and Gold.
Taken from that album, which will be released on November 25th, is the lovely single "Lonely". The song has great harmony vocals, and is made even more notable by containing a piano line that in places seems more in keeping with a house track than a song of the folksy variety.
Taken from that album, which will be released on November 25th, is the lovely single "Lonely". The song has great harmony vocals, and is made even more notable by containing a piano line that in places seems more in keeping with a house track than a song of the folksy variety.
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Paper Man - The Only Sea for Miles and Miles
Ballyclare four-piece Paper Man released their debut E.P "After Effects" this week. Taken from the E.P is "The Only Sea For Miles and Miles", a track which seems to have been tailor made for the Kerrang! Radio playlist, given that their angsty sound calls to mind the bands such as Feeder & You Me At Six. Whether or not their music director takes to their music like a duck takes to water remains to be seen.
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Cordials - Head in the Clouds
Ooh, Britpop-y sounds from the Portrush/Coleraine area? Cordials, you have made me a very satisfied captain indeed. "Head in the Clouds" is an upbeat sounding guitar-pop tune which Supergrass would be more than happy to put their name towards. And being such nice fellows, the band have made that track, alongside their self-titled E.P, free to download.
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PigsAsPeople - The Art of Leaving Your House
When a band list as their influences acts whom I have never heard of, it normally means that they are purveyors of genres that I have no real deep knowledge of, either sludgy doom-y metal-y music or jazz. Pigsaspeople claim that their new E.P, "Idles & Us", was inspired by artists such as Converge, Slint & Touche Amore, and I gather from those names that the band aren't likely to be going off into 7 minute saxophone solos in the middle of their sets. Or are they? Find out at The Speakeasy, Belfast on 24th October, where they will be launching the E.P alongside El Ten Eleven and Droids. But for now, listen to "The Art of Leaving Your House", and embrace the riff.
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