I saw Orquesta play a deadly DJ set in the Pavilion a couple weeks ago for Floating Points 3. In the interim he’s played Camden Crawl Dublin (at which that photo above was taken) and shared a new song, ‘Qingming’. It’s an instrumental jam that’s heavy on drums, clicks and summery sounds. You can download it for free via Soundcloud, via Dummy
I was sad to hear that Hello Moon are splitting up after they release their next EP. It’s called An Elephant Pining and, over the course of six songs, displays everything that I liked about the band – it’s so carefree, so happy and infectious. Sadly it’s not being released on CD or record, but rather 50 T-shirts will be made up with the EP artwork screen-printed by killertees.ie from Galway. The idea, the band says, is you buy a T-shirt for €10 and you also get the download code for the EP. So they’re calling it a limited edition t-shirt/download package. An Elephant Pining is released on Any Other City Records on May 31. You can stream the EP below and after the jump is an interview with the bassist, Alan. He tells us why the band are saying Goodbye Moon, why they have no regrets and why the EP has nothing to do with elephants.
You might remember that Midlake played Live at the Marquee a couple of years back, on a bill that also featured Grizzly Bear, Camera Obscura and what then were fledgling Villagers. The Texan five piece are returning to Cork on Tuesday, August 13, for a date in Cyprus Avenue. It’s been a while since last album The Courage Of Others, so expect to hear lots of new songs. Midlake will also be playing Galway’s Roisin Dubh on Monday, August 12, and Dolan’s Warehouse in Limerick on Wednesday, August 14. Back in Cork, it’s looking like a stellar week of gigs in Cyprus Avenue, with Midlake on the Tuesday, Swans on the Friday, and Low on the next Monday. Who needs festivals, eh? Tickets for Midlake cost €22.50 plus fees and can be purchased from the Old Oak or here.
Some nice festival news today. Body & Soul, which takes place in Ballinlough Castle, Co Westmeath, on June 21-23, has added James ‘I’m not getting LCD Soundsystem back together’ Murphy and Nicolas Jaar to its already pretty deadly lineup. Murphy will be doing a DJ set while Jaar will be doing a live set. His last album, Space Is Only Noise If You Can See, is two years old but still getting plenty of mileage around here. And he’s kind of amazing live. Also added to B&S 2013 is Doldrums, from Montreal, Kid Karate, and Rootical Soundsystem. Three-day camping tickets are available for €139, payable over two instalments with the first due tomorrow, Friday, May 17, and the second payable by Friday, May 31. You can get your tickets here. Here’s a Spotify playlist of almost all of the artists announced for the festival to date.
After the jump is news of additions to the Cork festival Indiependence, taking place on the August bank holiday weekend.
The First Second label describes itself as “a team of producers, DJs, promoters and more importantly lovers of music. We are releasing free music to promote Ireland’s young and upcoming talent from the dance scene, weather it be disco, techno, house or dubstep, bass or even minimal.” The label has released plenty of singles since it was set up in 2011, including its first compilation in December of that year. This second compilation, uploaded to its bulging Bandcamp page last night, comprises 17 tracks and can be download on a pay what you want basis. I only recognise a few names, like Lumigraph, Lemonada, Lorem Ipsum and one or two more, but First Second has released music by many of the featured artists over the last two years. It’s a great collection of tunes, and you’ll find at lease a couple of acts who you’ll want to investigate further. Hello Best Available Technology…
Dublin five piece Meltybrains? have released a couple of singles over the past year (more on Bandcamp) and release a new EP, entitled Attention! Now That We Have Your Attention, next Monday, May 20. The video above is of one of the tracks from said EP, ‘Intros Are So Original’. It was recorded by Andrew Jordan at Vicar Street in December. It’s a grand live video, but it’s the song which has me hooked. One of the Meltybrains?, Fergus, told State this week: “We are still trying to write that perfect theme song, and as soon as we do, we’ll give up making music and return to our true calling, mystery solving.” Attention! Now That We Have Your Attention will be released via a limited number of T-shirts that the band have made themselves. The T-shirts come with an individual download code that you can enter on the band’s website. The EP will also be made available for streaming on the Meltybrain’s Bandcamp and Soundcloud pages on Monday. They’ve set a high bar with ‘Intros Are So Original’. Meltybrain’s will be supporting the Notas at the Workman’s Club on May 29.
Dublin three-piece Sounds of System Breakdown are gearing up for the release of their second album Nomad on Friday week. ‘Neon Contrails’ is the second taster we’ve had of it, following on from ‘Mayfly‘. Clocking in at just over four minutes, it’s an irresistible slice of dance-rock with a woah-oh-oh chorus that you won’t be able to get away from. I’m not going to compare them to LCD Soundsystem or Friendly Fires, but… well you try coming up with another reference point! The single is backed by a slow-burning remix of ‘Neon Contrails’ by Adultrock that proves just as infectious. You can download both of these for free at SoSB’s Bandcamp page. They launch Nomad on Friday, May 24, in the Grand Social, with support coming from the wonderful Liza Flume and New Zealand band Pikachunes.
Slow Skies released their second EP Close last week. It’s safe to say that I absolutely loved it. A three piece, Karen Sheridan, Conal Herron and Patrick O’Laoghaire have really made something special and, well, the sky’s the limit. I asked Karen some questions about the band, how they got together, whether it’s difficult being so upfront with her lyrics, and what the plans are for the future.
Castlepalooza is the last music festival to reveal its lineup I think. It’s held in Charleville Castle, Tullamore, Co Offaly, on the August bank holiday weekend, August 2-4. That’s the same weekend as Oxegen and Cork’s Indiependence so it’ll be a battle between the three for punters. This is the seventh year of the festival, which I’ve only heard positive things about from past festival-goers. Headlining this year are Ghostpoet, And So I Watch You From Afar, and Luke Vibert. Underneath those names is a healthy Irish contingent, who you’ll also be seeing at many other festivals this year. The full lineup is after the jump. Here’s a Soundcloud playlist featuring 50 of the 60 acts announced today.
Check out the video for kool thing‘s ‘TV Tower’, the main single from their self-titled debut album, which came out a couple weeks ago. It’s kind of like Lord of the Rings, with the band carrying a burden, in this case a bag with something mysterious in it, across the harsh terrain. The big reveal, which I won’t reveal, instantly made me think of what happened in the WWE/F when Mae Young went into labour with Mark Henry’s child. Still the most WTF moment in the WWE’s WTF-heavy history. You can listen and buy kool thing’s album (you really should) over at their Bandcamp page. The video was directed by Robin Plessy. First person to spot the TV Tower wins!
