Nialler9's New Irish Music: Ódú, Talos, David Holmes and more

SONGS OF THE WEEK

Talos – Your Love Is An Island

Eoin French has arguably the most beautiful voice in Ireland at the moment. His delicate expressive falsetto anchors his subtly-treated ambient reverb-applied singer-songwriter style and at an Icelandic takeover Homebeat gig in D-Light Studios this week, his voice shone through a set of increasingly dynamic music. Latest single Y

our Love Is An Island

is a slow-burner but by the time the lyric “your love is an island / I'm scorched in the sands of it” comes around, you'll want to be engulfed.

Ódú - Feed You Lies

Sally Ó Dúnlaing's debut single

Different

has a refreshing tropical pop swing to it and the follow-up from the New York-raised Bray resident is straight up shimmering pop music.

Feed You Lies

is a song about the singer “cockblocking herself.” “I kept telling myself I was too old or not good enough. This song was me finally telling myself to ‘get the f**k over yourself and move forward'”.

Raglans – Who Knows

Dublin indie rock band Raglans have never quite hit the heights that have been reached by some of the peers but maybe that'll change if they keep releasing anthemic singalong tracks like this. The band recently recorded their new album in Los Angeles with with Chris Murguia and Jason Wade of Lifehouse and will be released later this year. They play Knockanstockan this weekend.

Ruth – Who Are You Living For?

A new Kerry artist based in Dublin, Ruth Cronin and her band have recently supported This Is The Kit and Ivy Nation. Her debut single, originally released is a fine slice of live band pop smarts. You can catch her Friday in Dublin at Whelan's Summer Ones To Watch night.

Unloved – This Is The Time 

Belfast musician and composer David Holmes is back with a new project of "raw 60s pop-noir psychedelia with a contemporary and edgy twist..

Unloved

features Holmes on programming and percussion, LA songwriter Jade Vincent on vocals and

True Detective

TV composer Keefus Cancia on keyboards & programming.

This Is The Time

is the main single taken from the album (now on Spotify) and the lyrics were written by BP Fallon.

RELEASE OF THE WEEK
The Shaker Hymn - Do You Think You're Clever?

This Cork five-piece band recently released album two last month. A guitar band through and through, the album has a strong nostalgic indie feel to it with inspirations ranging from 1990s sensibilities to 1970s psychedelic-tinged rock. Singer Caoilian Sherlock pleasantly sounds a lot like Supergrass' Gaz Coombes and while the music is largely spun in the indie-rock vein, there are enough variation on the arrangements and productions to keep you coming back, whether it's the western dusky gallop of W

aters Of Sea Change

or the Beatles-stained

Another One Of You.

NEW ARTIST OF THE WEEK
Alex Smyth

Trading in instrumental guitar-lead soundscapes,

[ Alex Smyth ]

takes inspiration from ambient and acoustic pop music to create music that is a little bit lo-fi, a little bit Balearic and a little bit chillwave. Live, it's a guitar, FX and loop pedal set-up. He counts Tycho as an inspiration and his debut single

CXCVII

certainly has that cinematic smudge to it. A debut EP,

The Utopian Dream,

is forthcoming.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK
The Henry Girls -

Falling In Love Again
Directed by Charlie Joe Doherty

Taking advantage in the boon of credibility in the landscape of Donegal brought to the world's attention by the recent filming of

Star Wars

, The Henry Girls, who are from Donegal themselves, chose to set their new sepai-tinted heartstring-pulling video in and around the stunning locale of Inishowen.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK
This Side Up - Signs ft. Verb T & Moreone

Directed by Peter Martin

Sligo rappers This Side Up are keeping things old-school in their style and Peter Martin's video keeps things simple by keeping the focus on the lyricists using a slow close-up shot throughout to tie together the video's look.