Peppy
Info: In our latest round-up of the best tracks we've come across over the last few weeks we of course have mostly hot of the press numbers, but also one or two acts which (thankfully) only came to our attention in the last week and a song which we definitely thought was worth another outing.
We open with Leila Jane's 'Look Away From Our Creation' from her EP Decision Maker which has quite frankly been blowing our socks off across it's six tracks, this is a collection of songs you need in your life and ears right now, you can hear the rest of it and read our review here. Mullingar act Good Strangers are up next, and we have their last single 'Visions In The Dark' which was released in August, a new one is imminent and you'll catch it here in the near future. With Good Strangers you know you are getting a sound that is borne from equal parts passion for their craft and very catchy synth-pop elements.
Good Strangers - Visions In The Dark
Robert John Ardiff's 'Paint Your Nails' pinged Sufjan Stevens' Carrie & Lowell to me in many ways, but it's so nice to get that feeling of an album you love, only to drift away from it after a few listens, it wanes and Ardiff's single stands entirely on it's own. It's a very beautiful piece of song-writing that etches itself on you with great ease, like a toothbrush on your heart, it's with curious interest that we look forward to future releases.
Next up we have an act from Mayo that I was lucky to catch in Whelan's during the week in the form of Peppy. Just as much at home behind the piano as he is with guitar, Peppy's pop vocal and delivery is a noticeable notch above the vast majority of his peers here in Ireland. 'I Don't Think You Understand' packs its emotion and energy tightly into its 4-plus minutes, rolling keys and layered vocal harmonies really make the track stand out for me.
Like a well-produced but raw-sounding version of early Black Keys, Dublin trio Heavy Soda released a double single last week, the A-Side of which we feature here, 'Elephant', (to check out its accompanying track go here.) It's a smooth and dirty blues-rock inspired number and as it progresses nods it's head to an old school Happy Mondays / Primal Scream mash-up, lovely.
Like a well-produced but raw-sounding version of early Black Keys, Dublin trio Heavy Soda released a double single last week, the A-Side of which we feature here, 'Elephant', (to check out its accompanying track go here.) It's a smooth and dirty blues-rock inspired number and as it progresses nods it's head to an old school Happy Mondays / Primal Scream mash-up, lovely.
Wyvern Lingo - 'Out Of My Hands'
One of our favourite electronic acts Will De Burca released his latest single 'Madrid' earlier this month, the opening track from his wonderful Embedded album which came out earlier this year. In our review of his self-produced album back in May we noted; "The first thing you notice about 'Embedded' is it's sheer force and power, immediately hitting home on opening track 'Madrid', it's like an Eno track shorn of its calm ambience and injected with a stellar intensity."
Not much of an introduction required for Bray trio Wyvern Lingo who shared new single 'Out Of My Hands' with video (above) earlier this month. The track is inspired by and captures very well, the ongoing and seemingly never ending social issues afflicting Ireland such as homelessness and women's rights. The song's protagonist is representative of those who acknowledge and see injustice daily but have become numb to it, personal tragedy no longer impacting on them. It's a powerful video and theme that Wyvern Lingo have addressed, and as mentioned in a recent post about Derry band The Woodburning Savages and their anger at the state of affairs in the six counties, it's something I would like to see more of in Irish music.
Emma Lohan
The duo simultaneously shared two new singles from their respective forthcoming albums, Lohan's 'Wander Free' and Mullarkey's 'Baby Dragon' on Friday. 'Wander Free' is airy and uplifting with its title being entirely appropriate for the sense of insouciance it imparts on the listener, whilst Mullarkey's 'Baby Dragon' is a dark and atmospheric slice of downtempo electronic escapism. The duos tour kicked of earlier this week in the U.K. and upcoming Irish dates include The Black Gate in Galway on the 25th, Anseo on Camden Street on the 26th and will finish at The Cobblestone in Smithfield on the 29th.
We finish our latest playlist with another Galway solo act New Pope who's latest single 'Boys Can Be So Cruel' really is one to drift right off into with it's lo-fi mood sprawling across almost 8 minutes that you really don't notice going by at all. Fans of Death Cab For Cutie or The Shins will enjoy this one a lot. The moniker of songwriter David Boland, New Pope has released two albums: Youth (2015) and Love (2016), both of which were named as The Irish Times' 'Release of The Week' and received widespread critical acclaim.
For our previous independent Irish playlist, head along here to listen to Issue #13 here https://thebestofmusicandfilm.blogspot.ie/2017/10/playlist-remy-asiwyfa-marc-oreilly-beautysleep-supersilly-alltvvins-ailbhereddy.html
