Are we there yet? Sharon Van Etten’s ‘Seventeen’, a disappearing Dublin, and me

On my way to and from work, no matter which way I travel – by busy Luas or slightly-rushed foot – I pass building sites. A new layer to Dublin is being built before my eyes, or sometimes, like with the former Camden Street dingy hostel that’s to become a Wetherspoon’s Hotel, is being assembled…

The final Sweet Oblivion on 2XM… and Camden Crawl Dublin gigs

Tonight will see the last Sweet Oblivion go out on RTÉ 2XM at 11pm. It has been a hard decision to make, but for now I’ve decided to take a break from the show. Sweet Oblivion has been going out on the digital station for almost four years, and aside from a year or two’s break…

Sam Jackson, David Turpin, Christian Bookshop

A pic I took of Sarah Grimes of September Girls before a Community of Independents interview  There are two new (and radically different) albums out now that I’d love to draw your attention to. One of the bands, Christian Bookshop, have featured on the blog before. A duo of Jimmy Monaghan and Aisling Walsh, they’re…

Community of Independents & Hard Working Class Heroes Festival

If you’re someone with an interest in the Irish music scene as a whole, a great festival to give you an insight into what’s going on here is Hard Working Class Heroes. Yes, it doesn’t cover every single band in the country but it’s a good snapshot of what’s happening nationwide. One interesting aspect to the…

Focus on: Stop/Run

It never fails to amaze me how many people are creating beautiful, challenging and eye-opening music in Ireland. And in turn, it never fails to amaze me how many people get up off their arses and put on unusual gigs, or unique events, simply with the aim of bringing new sounds to people and exploring…

Let’s get Popical!

Has it really been a year since the Popical Island compilation #1 was released!? Strike me down with a feather. It has been a pretty amazing year for this Dublin-based collective, thanks to a stream of excellent shows and releases and a constant focus on keeping things fun, accessible and smart. The first compilation helped…

Concerning a Sufjan Stevens sighting, The Olympia, Dublin

Great musicians become great musicians because of one thing: innovation. Think David Bowie’s flirtation with a new musical persona; Talking Heads’ layered basslines and polyrhythmic experimentation on Remain in Light; or Tom Waits’ ability to consistently reinvent himself while staying true to his grizzly spirit. The history of artists reinventing their careers does feature some…

Twin Shadow – Dublin date announced

A Dublin date has been announced for new kid on the block and current Sweet Oblivion fave, Twin Shadow. If you haven’t heard of this young fellow (aka George Lewis Jr) then please run to this website and have a listen to his debut album, Forget, for free. Being that I am a fan of…