On a lighter note...

Dublin’s Dark Room Notes are the latest Irish band to sign a record deal with a UK label in recent months

Dublin's Dark Room Notes are the latest Irish band to sign a record deal with a UK label in recent months. The electro-poppers were picked up by Berlin/London-based BBE Records, who will release their debut album, We Love You Dark Matter, worldwide next year.

Other Irish acts faring similarly well with UK labels in recent months include Adrian Crowley (Chemikal Underground) and Villagers (Domino).

Speaking to The Ticket, DRN guitarist Rúairí Ferrie said that the deal was somewhat unexpected. "We were aware that someone had passed on a copy of the album to BBE and their parent label !K7, and while walking around in a daze on Saturday afternoon at Electric Picnic we got a phonecall expressing their interest in the album," he said.

“Things were still up in the air at that stage, and negotiations were ongoing so we couldnt tell anyone – but we spent the rest of the weekend naturally elated. The real work starts here, but we’re hugely looking forward to taking the album to the masses overseas. All we need now is a new van.”