freezerRoom gear up for Hazel Wood launch with new album
After months of speculation and teaser releases Cork collaborators freezerRoom are due to release their full length album Fire on the Ocean September 1 with a live launch September 2 at midnight in the Hazel Wood Stage at Electric Picnic accompanied onstage by no less than 20 musicians. The core of freezerRoom is production duo Graham White and Rory Dempsey. The pair has been making music together for over 15 years since they first met in acclaimed Irish downbeat act The Shades. On Fire on the Ocean they continue their brand of alternative rock with electronic and orchestral elements and are joined on the album by many luminaries from the Irish music scene and beyond. Always keen to collaborate, White and Dempsey have teamed up with some of their favourite singers to craft a collection of breathtaking songs. Fire on the Ocean features an array of guest vocalists writing songs such as Joe O’Leary (Fred), Fish Go Deep hitmaker Tracey K, Jack O’Rourke, Ray Scannell, Berlin’s Clara Hill and Wallis Bird on backing vocal duties. As on previous releases Christian Eigner (Depeche Mode) recorded drums in Austria with Graham, Tracey K and Clara Hill writing and adding vocals in Berlin and Rory roped in the string talents of some of his Heritage Orchestra friends in London to create a broader palette. With freezerRoom as the foundation it allows Fire on the Ocean to absorb the essence of its contributing vocalists. Ranging from the funky rhythm on “I’m not Waiting” featuring Joe O’Leary, to the spectral with Ray Scannall’s “On The Surface” with its inference of The Shades’ single ‘Cider Horizon’ and the experimental baroque electronica of “Friends That Bite” featuring Jack O’Rourke. freezerRoom have provided the perfect songwriters haven allowing collaborators freedom to make their mark while the production duo of White and Dempsey add depth and edge by drawing out strengths and qualities from both sides that stretch and lengthen the creative scope. Catch freezerRoom live at The Hazel Wood Stage, Saturday September...
Hvmmingbyrd set to impress with new release
Kildare/Dublin duo Hvmmingbyrd have been growing in stature and confidence since we last met them. The band have spent the summer touring but this by no way explains their latest release ‘Gozo’ which is out now. The confidence in their writing and sound is perfectly illustrated with this latest release. Combining traditional Irish song writing troupes with a bleepy electronic soundscape that sounds more international means the duo have been listening, learning and know exactly what they want to produce. Expect to hear these two playing more international festivals next year so make sure you catch them while you can on these shores where they have three remaining dates on their national tour. Aug 31 – DeBarra’s, Clonakilty Oct 13 – The Spirit Store, Dundalk Nov 17 – Leo’s Tavern,...
King Kong Company release new music ahead of Picnic date
To celebrate the end of their busiest summer yet King Kong Company have released “Involved”. It’s their first new track since last year’s acclaimed self-titled debut album. It’s also a little taster of what to expect at their Electric Picnic gig. A gig that could be their biggest one yet. The track was written and recorded on the road. We mean literally on the road, in the band van. The lo-fi video was entirely shot on mobile phones by the band, by the crew and by fans in the crowds who sent in their gig footage. You might even recognise the jammed Body & Soul set, if you were lucky enough to get in. If you’ve seen King Kong Company this summer, you’ve heard iterations of “Involved”. It’s the slow building banger that’s been opening the gigs at Glastonbury, Boomtown, Townlands, Body & Soul, Sunflower Fest and their hometown gig on the streets of Waterford for Spraoi. A gig that attracted the largest crowd in Spraoi’s 25 year history and an experience the band called humbling and unforgettable. “Involved” might be the fruits of a summer on the road, but the summer’s not over yet and King Kong Company have one almighty send off planned this weekend. at Electric Picnic and at Festival of Drift in Kilkenny (Saturday). Upcoming King Kong Company gigs; Festival of Drift, Kilkenny Saturday September 2nd Electric Picnic, September 1st – Sunday 3rd Skylite Room, Warrenpoint, Friday September 9th Limelight, Belfast, Friday September 15th Cork Opera House, Friday October...
Bobby Green takes at a look at the new single from The Felonies
Review by Bobby Green “Drunk (3am)” is the third single from Wicklow’s alternative rock groovers The Felonies, and they feel it’s their best song to date. One of the most exciting upcoming live bands on the Irish music scene for a while now building on blazing through 2015 with a string of great live sets and releasing their debut EP. 2016 saw them picking up the Searchlight Development Deal, where the band spent the next five months in live pre-production in The Button Factory, and recording new material in Temple Lane Studios. Now in 2017, with 2 Single’s under their belt so far, The Felonies look set to re-cement their position as one of Ireland’s most exciting bands with a tour to promote the release of “Drunk (3am)”. The single romps thorough 4 minutes of everything an Indie anthem needs, sing along chorus, chugging rhythms and a thunderous bass sounding like a finely tuned Ducati. Drop outs, solos but above all quality song writing. And I also tried it, it does sound amazing when you’re drunk at 3am. I know that might be ironic considering the single looks at alcoholism, but quality music will always sound good no matter what your surrounding influences are. Check out Felonies live.. You won’t regret it....
Otherkin continue to rise with new single
Review by Bobby Green 2017 has certainly been Otherkin’s year, Playing with Dead Kennedys and Guns n Roses, championed by Metallica’s Lars Ulrich on his radio show but above all else being a kick ass live band who can transform that energy to the recording studio. With ‘Come on , Hello’ they give their fanbase a final teaser for their debut album OK due out in late September. OK was recorded in Ireland with David Prendergast, Jason Boland and the band at the controls. The tracks were mixed in London by Jolyon Thomas, best known for his work with Slaves and Royal Blood. To support the release of the album, Otherkin will be out on tour as both special guests of INHEAVEN in the UK and headlining their own gigs in fifteen European countries. They are also confirmed for the Leeds / Reading festival at the end of August. Their meteoric rise this year has impressed us all here at musician.ie because they have all the ingredients a band should have to succeed. A hard work attitude, great live presence a close connection with their fanbase and a killer ability to write fucking great songs. If you look around at the music scene in Ireland over the last few years there’s so much to be excited about with these young bands ‘killing’ everything that went before them, it’s how it’s meant to happen. But the respect shown to the old guard hasn’t gone unnoticed with old geezers like myself. It’s an exciting time to be a young adult who’s into music, there’s a quality out there that has been missing for a while, and I think if ‘OK’ is as great as its singles suggest then Otherkin could just be the band of the year. Tour dates: 15th December – Button Factory, Dublin,...
Social commentary from The Clockworks
Drawing comparisons to the likes of The Streets, Artic Monkeys and The Libertines Galway Indie-Punk band The Clockworks make writing social commentary attached to a catchy hook look easy. The groups latest single “The World Owes Me A Favour” is some of their strongest writing to date and they are backing it up with Irish and UK dates. Wedged full with precise comments and razor sharp observations The Clockworks take the Irish political system to task. And they do so while referencing some of the great Indie-Punk social commentators of recent times creating a sound that is International but is playing out in each of our living rooms. Rusangano Family did it from Limerick and now The Clockworks are embracing the values of punk to decry the current state of affairs in Ireland from outside the capital. Heralding a situation where meaningful commentary is being created in the vacuum left by Dublin demanding to be heard. Catch The Clockworks when they play: Aug 26 – 96/1 Festival, Cork Sept 21 – Roisin Dubh, Galway Watch the video for “Te World Owes Me A Favour”...
