Irish Bands & Musicians 2016: Electro, Lively and Diverse
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I don't think you'll be surprised to know that I spent hours listening to music to select these musicians for you, be them bands or solo artists. I never realised just how diverse and exciting the Irish music scene in and I certainly underestimated the amount of Irish artists out there. It was certainly an eye opener, from listening to electro, rock and grunge I found myself sampling sounds I wouldn't have necessarily listened to, and that's a good thing I feel. We're all so used to listening to music from musicians far from the shore of our little island and I really think we need to stop focusing on the bigger picture in terms of music and delve into the sounds being created right HERE in our own country. Enjoy!
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Richie Egan is the mastermind behind Jape. The genre they fit under is electronic rock.
I heard about Jape first on RTE 2’s “Other Voices”, where electic, diverse and
very talented musicians from all over showcase their talent. It’s an excellent
way to discover new artists. Something to note about all of Jape’s songs, they all have a
groovy beat. They’ll be right down your alley if you’re interested in musicians
such as Bell X1, Delorentos or Republic of Loose. There’s a clear electro pop
vibe audible throughout. I would really call Jape quirky, not exactly something
I would like on the first listen but I can definitely see the tunes I’ve listed below to grow on me.
Floating
Love On The Crest Of A Wave
To the Sea
2. BRASS PHANTOMS
Brass Phantoms are based in Dublin, according to their
Facebook they can be described as Indie Rock/Post Punk. I can tell you their
four song EP “City of Wolves” is pretty lively. The tunes begin with either a
blasting guitar/bass riff or an infectious loud drum beat. They remind me of
Mullingar band The Academic, but a little rockier and sound harsher. I do get
festival vibes from them and I would enjoy dancing to their songs at a
gig. In the song "Every Sensation" I dedicated influences from possibly Two Door Cinema Club.
City of Wolves
Every Sensation
3. OTHERKIN
Otherkin are a lively four piece band from Dublin who
describe their sound as “Grunge Pop”. I came across them simply because their
tune “AY AY” appeared in my Discover Weekly playlist a few weeks ago. I didn’t
even know they were Irish until I began research for this blog post. First off, “AY AY” is a banger of a song, it begins with a
lively drum beat and then a hefty loud riff. I’m fairly sure now when I think
about it that I’ve seen their name on many a poster advertising Irish music
festivals, which is fantastic. “I Was Born” is the band’s latest release and it’s
definitely rock pop. The lead singer’s voice has a real Dublin twang here, yet
he sounds very similar to the lead singer of Mullingar band The Academic.
AY AY
20 to 11
I Was Born
Flesh
St Verena
Birth
5. THE FALLEN DRAKES
I was so excited to come across The Fallen Drakes while delving DEEP into Spotify. I was using a method of searching for Irish artists and then progressing to the "Related Artists". Out of the group of musicians I've spoken about this is the band with the most melody in their music. The instruments used are gorgeous. The lead singer has a beautiful voice, he reminds me a little of Simon Neil (lead of Biffy Clyro)
Anymore Cinema
The Ones That Got Out
Girl From New York
6. HAM SANDWICH
Again, I'm fairly sure that Ants by this duo showed up in my Spotify Discover Weekly a long time ago, but my friend Katie (KT) reminded me about them while I was making a list about them. They are from Kells, Co Meath. When I think of that place I think of an ancient magic, I suppose because it makes me think of The Book of Kells. The female singer within this band has a unique voice, I was struck by the instrumentals at first when listening to their music. They would be largely described as indie rock but I think there's a little bit of folk to be heard in there. For me "The Naturist" and "OH-OH" stand out that most. There is beautiful guitar in "The Naturist" particularly, I found it very sweet. Their newer tunes have more of rock vibe to them that I really like, such as "Square 3" and "In Perfect Rhymes". I love how the male and female singers compliment eachother's voices beautifully.
Ants
Square 3
The Naturist
Illuminate
OH-OH
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I have to admit, I was thrown out of my depth when delving
into this list of musicians. I only discovered more than half of them when I
went looking for Irish musicians in the first place. I’m annoyed at myself for
not doing this sooner. There’s a whole world of Irish music out there that I’ve
never had the chance to listen to before. I've decided to put the list of musicians that I came across while searching for musicians to talk about. I had decided to pick only five, so this is why these musicians were not talked about. Go take a look for yourselves, each band name will link you to a song of theirs. And YES, they're ALL IRISH! Happy exploring.
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