Mugger Dave Crawl Up Self Released 8/10 . There is something so immediately likable about Mugger Dave. I’ve been struggling to put my finger on exactly what that is since the Galway alt rockers first pick up a guitar in anger more than two years ago and now I think I have finally cracked it. [...]
Mail Order Messiahs Plain Self Released 8/10 . Don’t be put off by the fact that this album probably wont get a spin on mainstream radio – at least not before midnight – this is a really tasty record. Having set a high bar for themselves with their 2008 Par Avion EP, this album delivers [...]
Colm Lynch Tickety Boo Self Reseased 7/10 . One of the album that seems to have slip through the cracks of the Autumn rush to release, Tickety Boo is the second album from Dublin singer songwriter Colm Lynch. Three years after the release of debut record, A Whisper in a Riot, Tickety Boo is an [...]
Alexander Rybak Fairytales EMI/Universal 5/10 . I don’t know what you’re into – but I’d guess it’s probably not this. You may remember Alexander Rybak from such musical moments as this years Eurovision Song Contest – a contest which he won for Norway with a record 387 points. Fairtales is the 23-year-olds debut album which [...]
The Basics Keep Your Friends Close AIS 6/10 . We love their soaps and their wine – but we just can’t take their music. With the few notable exception (Nick Cave, AC/DC, INXS), the musician of Australia have consistently struggled to make an impact on the world stage. Their international breakthroughs can be counted on [...]
Heartland – Songs for Croà Various Artists Croà Records 7/10 . . Charity albums can be largely insipid affairs. With artist lobbing out their musical rejects – donating essentially failed songs to a good cause with the promise a little good PR – the overall package can be a little lacking in the quality stakes. [...]
Flea Market Poets Dirty Days Lemontree Records 6/10 . It’s hard to think about Baltimore these days without mentioning the Wire. Headed up by former Baltimorian Jason Serious, The Flea Market Poets are, creatively speaking, a hundred miles or more away from the gritty underbelly shown off in David Simon’s series. The band are an [...]
Sharon Shannon Saints and Scoundrels Claddagh Records 9/10 . Say what you like about Sharon Shannon, but she is never ever boring. Saints and Scoundrels is the eight studio album released by the Ruan superstar, and by all accounts it’s one of her most expansive and exciting to date. For this album Shannon has pulled [...]
Muse The Resistance Warner 7/10 . . Very slowly over the last decade, Muse have transformed themselves from an alternative rock band of great promise to a fully fledged stadium band – complete with the gravitas that such a change requires. Just how this came about is a bit of a mystery, but the fact [...]
8BAll With All Your Friends Self Released 8/10 . . If music were chocolate, then With All My Friends would be a Galaxy – rich, tasty and effortlessly tempting. Though there must have been some who thought that we just might have seen the last of 8BAll, the Dublin four piece are back with an [...]
Recent Comments