Friday, October 30, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
Music Snippets # 22 - Ultan Conlon
Hail From : Galway
About :
I have in my hand the debut album from Ultan Conlon, This 10 track gem is just amazing, From start to finish this album transports you into Ultan's world. Beautiful stand out tracks such as "Bless your heart" and "The Will" just make this record so special. An Irish album that deserves to be put up in the top spot of Irish albums in 2009. The artwork seen above reminds me of Bob Dylan's 1963 album "The Freewheelin" just without the women on his arm. Maybe I have it wrong but the lack of this women in the cover transpires in the album as we hear songs such as "The Boy Without" with lines such as "It's been a long time since my heart beat for a girl,a real girl, with explosion and spark, it's been a lonely year for this boy without a city, the boy without a kiss". Ultan sparks every emotion on this album and its one record i know ill be going back to every now and then.
I had the pleasure of seeing Ultan live recently in Galway (Review Here : http://indielimerick.blogspot.com/2009/10/ollie-cole-live-upstairs-at-roisin-dubh.html ) and the tracks he played that night are all hidden in this record, Live I found them even better as he poured his soul out on stage and that raw amazing voice is just that bit better when your in the same room. I also got a copy of a 5 track live album which almost captures this beautiful rawness. I cant wait to see the next chapter in Conlons music book and I am really looking forward to seeing the guy live again. Keep on eye on this one!
GO CHECK THEM OUT HERE:
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Music Snippets # 21 - The Ralphs
About :
Just recently got a hold of these guys debut single (Pic Above), The four guys hailing from Tuam formed in late 2008. Several gigs later and extensive radio play sees the guys firmly on the Irish band scene. The band comprises of brothers a cousin and a best mate. This closeness can be heard on their double single, listening to other tunes on their myspace page such as "The Bus Stop" gives hints of a young sawdoctors band and something I cant quite put my finger on. Its great to hear young bands like this hard at work and ill look forward to hearing better things from the lads as the experience grows. By just listening to their tracks you can almost sense the madness that will ensue in future gigs. Best of luck to them!
GO CHECK THEM OUT HERE:
Gig News - Paul McCartney to play the 02 for Christmas
The rumours were true, Paul is set to play the 02 on the 20th of December as part of his 8 special arena shows across Europe. Its his first Irish gig in 6 years so well worth checking the guy out while you can. Tickets go on sale on Wednesday the 28th, The tickets are pricey but worth it by the sounds of the show the guy puts on. (€86.25 standing and €91.25, €126.25, €156.25 seated).
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Free Fionn Regan Track
The Irish times are currently offering people a free mp3 of Fionn Regan's single Protection Racket here : http://www.irishtimes.com/theticket/fionn-regan/For only two more days its up for grabs, The single comes from his upcoming album "The Shadow of an Empire". This album is due out sometime next year, Fionn is currently on tour so keep track of him over here :www.myspace.com/fionnregan
To read an indielimerick review of his last limerick gig click here : http://indielimerick.blogspot.com/2008/11/fionn-regan-upstairs-dolans-23112008.html
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Pink to Play in Thomond Park next Summer
Pink is to be the Third act to adorn the hallowed turf on the 20th of June 2010. Again not a big fan of the girl but she sure does put on a great live show. Saw her at Oxegen in 2005 while waiting for another band to come on and she is great live. Its great for the city and hopefully one more act for the summer will be announced soon.
Ticket Details :
Tickets for the concert will go on sale from Ticketmaster outlets and Empire Music on O’Connell Street next Friday, October 23, at 9am.
General admission tickets will be priced at €58.30, while seated tickets will be available for €63.20.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
PETER DOHERTY'S IRISH TOUR POSTPONED
From the blurb :
Peter Doherty’s scheduled Heineken Green Spheres gig in Galway this week has been postponed.
A statement was issued today from the artist’s agent: “Last night Peter Doherty was admitted to Swindon Hospital with exhaustion and breathing difficulties. He is currently under observation by doctors.”
The Galway show and his other Irish dates (Belfast, Tuesday 13th and Dublin, Wednesday 14th) are currently being rescheduled with dates to be announced.
Heineken Green Spheres tickets will still be valid for the rescheduled date.
Heineken Music’s thoughts are with Peter and his family at this time.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Editors Live at Dolans 09-10-2009 REVIEW
The band were “Wintersleep”, This Canadian outfit have been around now for 8 years, in those years they have produced 3 albums and have had a serious gig playing career which includes the likes of supporting Paul McCartney, They also were awarded the Juno Award for New Group of the Year in 2008. It’s clear on stage tonight the wealth of experience these guys have as their sound is extremely polished and they are incredibly at ease of being on stage. They play a short but brilliant energetic set of 7 songs. The lead singer Paul Murphy’s voice is akin to Interpol like sounds and the drummer looks like a crazed man when in full flight. The band are clearly brilliant live, giving ever ounce of felling and energy. I got a chance to pick up their 2008 album “Welcome to the night Sky”, Ill look forward to hearing more from this band.
Wintersleep Setlist:
Drunk
Archaeologist
Experience
Weighty Ghost
Murderer
Oblivion
Black Camera
Editors arrived out on stage to a heaving dolans crowd, there were people everywhere for this eagerly anticipated show. I have had tickets in my procession since the start of June and it sold out within minutes. Having worn out playing the bands debut album “The Back Room” several times it was incredibly exciting to be witnessing these songs live in your home town alongside 400 odd people. Limerick is clearly on the gig map for bands nowadays and long may it stay that way, it was nice to purchase a tour t-shirt to see Limerick in amongst the vast amount of cites these guys will play over the next few months.
The crowd throughout the gig didn’t stop dancing and the hands never stopped clapping. The gig was biting at the heels of all the gigs I have witnessed this year to be the top dog. The energy from both the crowd and band were so intense. The lead singer seems almost possessed by his own creations and completely embodies every note and beat being played. The band is visibly happy interacting with the exited crowd as Tom repeatedly says it’s good to be back in Ireland. The guys just released there third album of there 7 year stint as the Editors last week. This album is completely different to the previous two albums as they opt for a more electronic feel to their indie joy division sound. At first I wasn’t sure this was working but hearing it come alive on stage, it all makes sense. Listening to the album now gives a completely different perspective on the sound and these guys have got it all right. “In This Light and on this evening” will finish high on peoples top albums of the year list, Live is still what this band does best and the music just transports you into this brilliant place. The night was just amazing and it’s hard to describe all this energy in text, the videos below give a little insight into this magnificent night of music. It will be hard to top a gig like it. Congrats to Dolans for reeling in these guys and thanks to both bands for an awesome night!
Editors Setlist:
In This Light and On This Evening
Bullets (Video Below)
An End Has A Start
You Don't Know Love
All Sparks
Like Treasure
Bones (Video Below)
The Racing Rats
Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool
The Big Exit
Lights
You Are Fading
Camera
Smokers (Video Below)
Bricks And Mortar
Encore:
Walk The Fleet Road
Munich (Video Below)
Papillon (Video Below)
Fingers In The Factories
Editors Video Playlist of 5 Videos
Friday, October 9, 2009
Fred's Rolling into town once more!
The band take on Dolans once more on the 19th of November. Support comes from Spiral Beach . If you havent witnessed a night of Fred live your missing out. Guaranteed a great night of fun!
Check out some past review's here :
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Belltable in Session this Thursday
The next installment of the highly popular Belltable Acoustic Sessions is to take place tomorrow evening in the Red Cross Hall. This sessions sees Newcastle West born Emmet Scanlan take to the stage with his Galway based outfit "Emmet Scanlan & What The Good Thought". They release they debut album "Hands" back in March and have been gigging extensively since including a spot at electric picnic. Joining the guys on the bill Thursday are Kev Fox, Si and Beautiful Rooms. These sessions are great evening of music and you cant complain with the ten euro fee. For more info on the sessions and bands check out these links :Monday, October 5, 2009
Coors Light Peak - Galway Review (03/10/2009)
When I arrived (Late) the second smaller stage nearer the bar was in full swing and it was non-other than local Galway band disconnect 4. These guys are incredible hard working band and seem to be at every live event that happens in Galway. The actual were at the gig I was at the night previous because they had given a loan of their equipment to Oliver Cole for his gig. Tonight saw them using this equipment to blast out songs to a really packed docklands. The songs they were playing mainly came from their latest EP “Modern Love”. Its hard not to make similarities to other bands throughout their set, such as the Cure, Bravery,The Killers but I guess this is were they drew their sound and look from. The band are a great superb live act and look forward to hearing their live again and hearing their upcoming album.
Next up was the one-man-band Jeremy Hickey under the pseudonym of R.S.A.G(Rarely Seen Above Ground). Having seen the guy play the last Peak even it kinda is hard to write a review without saying all the same things. Tonight saw him play a very similar set and the sound was again fantastic. The crowd was much bigger for galway and they truly enjoyed his performance. The visuals once again were top notch, If you want to find out more info check out my review of his set at the limerick even here : http://indielimerick.blogspot.com/2009/09/coors-light-peak-limerick-review.html
As Jape set up for the last of the nights acts , drummers played upon the metal containers surrounded the docklands area. I thought this was a great touch by the Coors Light people, You can see as the events go on , they are improving it ever so lightly. Jape got straight down to business and had the crowd in a frenzy before you knew it. Admittedly the limerick gig the week previous (Review Here : http://indielimerick.blogspot.com/2009/09/dolans-warehouse-guinness-250.html) was much better, but I think that’s because some of the energy was lost in the night air and the vastness of the area in galway count not contain the Jape madness. Having said that the set was still amazing and Jape live is just a sight to behold. He told us he is to be Married this Friday and we would like to send out our best wishes to him and his bride to be for the special day, I wonder what band they have booked for the day :) The crowd were in great spirits despite the cold, there was many a crowd surf and people on shoulders. Like limerick for Jape’s song “StreetWise” he accompanied by a fan for the chorus, this time it was a guy by the name of “Milo”. He really had some great moves and was very entertaining to watch his excitement singing with Richie. The video’s below are all a bit shite due to the closeness of the speakers but worth the watch anyway. The set ended with the backing track of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” with the word love being replaced and sung as Fuck by both Richie and the crowd. This saw another end to a fantastic Coors light peak event. If you can get yourself to one log onto to their website and apply for tickets. The event is free and I guarantee a fantastic night of music. Next event is on in Waterford on the 27th of October. No bands are listed yet but keep checking here : http://www.coorslightpeak.ie. Thanks for a great night Coors!
Jape Video Playlist
Oliver Cole Live Upstairs at the Roisin Dubh, Galway (02/10/09) REVIEW
I real wet Friday night in galway saw my first visit to the upstairs area in the Roisin Dubh for a gig. I was in town to see the Coors Light peak event the next night but saw that ex Turn member “Oliver Cole” was to play upstairs. Ten euro entrance fee brilliantly included a copy of his three track EP “What Will You Do?”. The EP had been launched in the capital the night previous.
The crowd and room were small as the first figure arrived on stage. This figure was to be “Ultan Conlan”. This guy actually blew me away with his voice and amazing lyrics. How I haven’t heard this guy before is beyond me. The voice just hits you like several punches to the heart. The silky smooth voice and Leonardcohenesque lyrics made an amazing combination. The guy has bags of talent and can’t wait to get hold of his debut album “Bless Your Heart” which comes out later this month. There is a fantastic single on his myspace called "Really Gone" which includes the late great John Martyn in the mix. I cant speak highly enough about this guys raw emotional performance on front of 18 people before he jetted off to work. He will be one to watch like a hawk, let’s hope we see him come to limerick soon. I expect huge things for this man and if not something is wrong in the industry.
Next up was Oliver Cole. You may remember the guy from the really successful Irish band “Turn”, that band came in went in the years 1998 to 2006. Tonight saw Cole being backed by a bassist and drummer, the only thing remaining from the Turn days is his red electric guitar. The songs nowadays are aged and mellowed but like a nice wine. Most songs were converted from piano songs to this layout and it work perfect. The sound was great and you can see the years of gigging as put ollie in a position of complete ease playing live. The band were in a reflective mood and shared fantastic on the road stories. Ollie’s guitar was cursed tonight as it saw two broken strings, but this gave the band more time for telling yarns. The “what goes on tour stays on tour” motto doesn’t seem to apply to these guys as we were treated to stories of threesomes where Ollie’s bassist told us of a night where he brought back a girl to his apartment were Ollie was uninvitingly staying too. Ollie decided to walk into their room and see if he could get in on the action. To secure the deal he said “I promise I won’t touch your mickey”. The tales were hilarious and great to hear and the night turned into a lovely storytelling night between songs. He told us the tale of the red guitar, which involved a member of the crowd at a gig steal the guitar. Not until several years later did they get an e-mail from a guy who was at a house party and over heard the host boosting about stealing Turn’s Guitar. They eventually tracked the guy down and got the guitar back. They spoke of a night bumping into the bass player from the stone roses where he tipped them off about a great bar to frequent. When arriving to this bar they could only get served Cocaine and Moonshine while Ollie played Pool with a big black guy with a gun. They got out of their sharpish. The music was fantastic throughout as they whittled through their paired down set and pints of Galway Hooker to a room of about 18 people. We heard such songs as "Too Many People" which i had heard before as it was featured on the Charity album "The Cake Sale", This project involved many Irish artists writing songs and other people singing them, Glen Hansard sang his song on the album. He also played a an old reworked Turn song and many other that will feature on his upcoming album. Ollie’s album is out very soon and I for one will be checking it out.
SetList :
Oh My Girl
Too Many People
What Will You Do?
Close Your Eyes
We Albatri
Little Bad Dream
Drug Song
Need you Stray
Moths Wing
Holding Your Heart
Life's Great Advice
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Albums Worth Listening to in October 09
This will be added too id say as the month goes on. A great month for releases. I will hopefully get around to an album review of Sanzkrit's Debut "After the wedding", for now check them out here :http://sanzkrit.com/
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