The new festival from POD (the people who brought us Electric Picnic, Forbidden Fruit and the RHK concerts), All Together Now, has just dropped it’s first wave of acts for it’s debut on the August Bank Holiday weekend and it already looks fantastic!
The Waterford weekender will see the likes of Fleet Foxes, Underworld, Roisin Murphy, First Aid Kit, Chaka Khan, Nils Frahm and Mogwai hit the stages on the Curraghmore Estate with a a slathering of theatre, comedy and spoken word entertainment still to be announced.
Tickets go on sale Friday at 9am priced €149.50 and can be purchased from ticketmaster.ie
Dublin Acoustic Folk-Rockers The Scratchhave released a breathtaking new video for their instrumental track ‘The Road to Ballyshannon’. The video would put Tourism Ireland to shame, it’s chock full of gorgeous vistas and sprawling coastlines. There’s a bit of craic thrown in at the end as well for good measure. The track features on their recently released Old Songs EP.
If you haven’t heard of The Scratch yet, you’re in for a treat. They describe themselves as ‘acoustic rock music that sounds like a pint of guinness to the ears’. Couldn’t have said it better myself. Recent singles have included ‘The Punisher’, a cautionary tale to pub-talkers everywhere, and Shadow, a collaboration with Loah. Both are absolute earworms that demand repeat listens. I can’t wait to hear what the lads come out with next.
The brilliantly named Oscar Mild are a newly formed four piece progressive folk band hailing from Galway, Mayo and Roscommon. Led by vocalist and main songwriter Philip Mc Mahon with Sean Wynne on drums, the band are a regular pedigree of the west of Ireland’s musical heritage. Joe Padfield, former front man of the fantastic math rock group ‘Race the Flux’ takes up lead guitar as well as overseeing the recording/production/mixing of the bands upcoming debut EP ‘The Boy Who Fell From the Sea’. Tomas Concannon, the former frontman of Galway alt-rockers ‘Ka tet’ completes the line up on bass.
The band have just released their first single ‘Sit Right’ on the new Galway indie label Umbrella Records.
Sit Right starts off simply with a catchy and effective acoustic guitar line, but it quickly sets itself apart from your general folk tune with the addition of lush vocal harmonies and lots of underlying sonic textures. The chorus section is a surprising and welcome lift, further adding to the vast dynamic range on display here. The bright sounding second guitar and shuffling drums compliment Philips gorgeous lead vocal throughout.
Overall an extremely promising start from the Connacht natives, I look forward to seeing what else they’ve got to offer!
TMFTML are happy to premiere ‘First Snow’, the first in four part series of winter themed unplugged style videos from Dublin 4 piece The False and The Fair. Readers of the blog will be no strangers to the band as we covered their last single ‘Gone Tomorrow’, noting how well it showed off their eclectic songwriting style in comparison to previous their release ‘Bald Apes’ . ‘First Snow’ is another beautiful track which illustrates this quality perfectly.
Filmed in drummer Jacob Fry’s sitting room, the track starts off full of harmony between the guitars, vocals and bass with sparse percussion before kicking into an unexpected groove that carries the listener along the lyrical journey towards it’s close. It’s a brand new track written for the series. A new video will be released through their YouTube page each week for the rest of December and will include new arrangements of some old fan favourites.
A group of Ireland’s best noise/prog/math/instrumental and post-rock bands are coming together to raise some much needed funds for Cleft guitarist Dan Wild-Beesley.
Dan is in need of potentially life saving surgery on two brain tumors that will cost upwards of £50,000. A lot of this sum has already been raised and Dublin musicians are uniting to do their bit to help raise the rest.
Dublin instrumentalists Chancer have released a brand new single from their forthcoming EP. ‘Streets of Ragel’ is a blistering bareknuckle ride, rapidly changing between the melodic and chaotic and delivering a beautiful string soaked thematic development throughout. At a hefty 6:19 seconds, it never loses pace and is constantly toying with dynamics and rhythmic oscillations, remaining interesting and engaging from start to finish.
The video for the track features Dublin aerial performer APolly Naria of Tribal Dance Studios performing a variety of high flying and technically impressive circus feats that really suits the accompanying music.
‘Streets of Ragel’ is available as a FREE DOWNLOAD now on Chancer’s Bandcamp page or at the link below.
R.A the Rugged Man is one of those artists that you may not have heard of but who has been omnipresent at the top of the his game for decades. With a AAA list of collaborators that include The Wu-Tang Clan, The Alchemist, Tech N9ne, Talib Kweli, Masta Ace, Kool G Rap and Notorious B.I.G, who famously said in reference to R.A “and I thought I was the illest!”
Take a dive into his back catalogue and you will quickly find yourself hooked into his lyrical flow. R.A’s skills on the mic are undisputable and his lyrics range from funny and sarcastic to deeply angry and profound like on the track ‘Uncommon Valor’ which chronicles his fathers experience in the Vietnam war, whose exposure to Agent Orange left R.A’s brother Maxx physically and visually impaired and his sister Dee Ann unable to walk or speak.
After his albums were shelved by major labels he took things into his own hands, organising independent shows, pressing his own vinyl singles and racking up one of the most impressive resumes in Rap history.
In 2015, R.A ran a freestyle contest on Youtube for young unknown rappers. It was here he came across A-F-R-O, or All Flows Reach Out (Real name James Gutierrez), a then 17 year old bespectacled afro sporting kid from Southern California. R.A took AFRO under his wing and now the two are partners in paying homage to the rap greats and continuing to push the boundaries of the craft.
Under R.A’s mentorship, A-F-R-O is ushering in a new era of excellence for rap traditionalists, spitting sick rhymes over simple beats. No auto-tune, no trap breakdowns and certainly no pop starlets in the chorus. This is old school to its core. AFRO raps so fast sometimes it’s difficult to even keep up and his ability to do this straight off the top of his head is nothing short of mind blowing.
Next month’s show will be a rare opportunity to see these 2 hip hop heavyweights up close and personal in an intimate setting and I for one cannot wait!
We’re getting in to the spirit of Halloween with a lineup of acts that are guaranteed to make you scream!
Headlining on the night and launching their incredible new single ‘Streets of Ragel’ are Dublin instrumental math wizards Chancer. Originally a solo side project of Val Normal‘s Dara Walsh, the band has expanded to a 4-piece and have just completed their first Irish tour. Their music is complex in nature but instantly accessible, full of mind bending loops and ear grabbing hooks. For fans of Adebisi Shank, And So I Watch You From Afar and TTNG.
”Chancer deliver punchy hooks and off-kilter ear-worms. The band has transitioned from a solo project to duo, from power-trio to power-quattro, with members from other local bands stepping in and filling the interstices. The band’s latest single ‘Banger’ is bound to get you bouncing.”Feckingbahamas.com
Support on the night comes from Wexford riffsmiths WOLFF, purveyors of the finest thrash blues the southeast has to offer. WOLLF is the brainchild of Johhny Stewart who, along with his hard hitting bandmates, has carved a niche through the Irish music landscape over the last 2 years with a combination of killer tunes and hard graft. Their new single ‘Freak Like Me’ comes out TODAY so be sure to check it out! For Fans of Queens of the Stone Age, The Black Keys and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (Official Page)
Markas and Koach from the foot stompin blues spewin Markas Carcas and the Trail Gang are opening the show for us as well! Markas Carcas is the musical moniker of Dubliner Mark Flynn, whose musical journey started early having learnt the piano at a young age before dropping the instrument in favour of the guitar. Those early years training his fingers on the keys shine through in his unique style of finger picking and highly rhythmic strumming. His music is straight up delta blues, flown from Mississippi with a detour through Dublin.
We’ll have prizes on the night for ‘Best Costume’ so be sure to get your trusty Bin Bag Batman out of the back of the wardrobe!
Entry is FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE and doors are at 8:30pm. See you in the front row!
Wexford riffsmiths WOLFF are back with a brand new single ‘Freak Like Me’, their first release since their debut EP ‘Flesh, Blood, Skin and Bone’.
‘Freak Like Me’ is a return to form, chock full of headbanging trashy blues riffs and driven home by a pounding rhythm section. The verse sections lead you along a steady path before bursting into their catchiest chorus to date. It’s play on repeat goodness.
WOLLF have been hard at work over the last 2 years gathering a large swathe of followers and fans at home and abroad, with their music featuring on HBO, Fox Sports and Showtime to name a few. Lead singer Johnny Stewart’s regular vlogs into the processes behind the art are always a treat to watch.
Continuing our series of curated shows, we’re back with an evening acoustic leaning acts to ease you in to the Autumn dusk.
Headlining on the night are Leila Jane & The Healers. Leila Jane’s voice is as unmistakable as it is unique. Drawing influence from the Delta Blues and the sweet sounding tones of 50’s Rock and Roll and Country, their music is blissful and serene but not afraid to bite. Raw, heartfelt lyrics reveal an old soul hiding inside a youthful visage. Think Janis Joplin singing the songs of Joni Mitchell.
“Donegal native Leila Jane evokes the best of classic blues while adding a fresh native twist. Her vocals and guitar playing call to mind the sultry folk of Karen Dalton, but she never runs the risk of losing her Irish twang.” Hot Press Magazine
Cavan singer-songwriter Mike Paterson cut his teeth as the lead singer of blues-rockers Travis Oaks, touring at home and abroad extensively. The band came to an end in 2016, after which Mike hid out in his native county, contemplating the next steps in his musical journey. What followed was a series of stripped back acoustic tracks, featuring simple but unforgettable vocal melodies laid over finger style guitar. Mike is creating songs to paint pictures of nostalgia. His first live single, Outside Lines was released on May 30th 2017. Think Neil Young indulging his more reflective side.
Tullamore native Eoin Martin has spent the last number of years honing his craft and finding his own voice in the crowded singer-songwriter scene. And what a voice! Eoin mixes percussive acoustic guitar with complex finger picked melodies and rounds things off with a truly captivating vocal style, full of harmony and punctuated rhythms. Think Bon Iver and Newton Faulkner meeting up for a few sneaky pints.
” As far as guitars go, nothing beats the acoustic guitar when it’s played expertly. Eoin Martin, from Offaly, is such an expert. He plays so beautifully that he cannot fail to impress. His riffs would rival Metallica and his use of harmonics is exquisite but restrained.” Pure M
Entry is FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE and doors are at 8:30pm. See you in the front row!
We’re getting in to the spirit of Halloween with a lineup of acts that are guaranteed to make you scream!
Wexford riffsmiths 
