Apella ‘POINT OF VIEW’

Apella return with their brand new single ‘Point of View’. Alongside this they have also announced the release of their debut album “1963” which is set for release on January 29th, 2021.Formed in Dublin in 2016, Apella burst onto the scene with their radio hit ‘We Met At A Party’ and furthered their success with ‘Graceful Dancer’, ‘Logic’ and ‘City Limits’. After touring all over the country – opening for Twenty One Pilots, appearing at all major Irish music festivals including Electric Picnic, Indiependence, Castlepalooza and Sea Sessions – accompanied by UK tours with Keywest and Don Broco, frontman and singer Dara Quilty moved to New York City to work further on his music career. This period saw him playing in venues like Rockwood Music Hall, Bitter End, Pete’s Candy Store and many more in New York City. The Pandemic brought the music industry to a tragic halt with Dara Quilty completing his work on the album at Empire Underground Studios in Brooklyn, NY. 

Exuding cinematic soundscapes, ‘Point of View’ presents the passionate and emotive musicianship of Apella. The track builds superbly boasting lush, diverse instrumentation from warm guitars, spongy drums to elegant strings which creates an uplifting ethereal atmosphere.The dynamic and graceful elements are enhanced by heartfelt songwriting, hair-raising pop production and dreamy melodies. As ‘Point of View’ progresses the guitars and drums pepper the song in indie rock grit. The warm emotive vocals drift over the tracks bittersweet melody with a soaring elegance as the song builds to its powerful crescendo. ‘Point of View’ is a well created new song from Apella. Looking forward to the album in 2021.

Speaking about the album Dara Quilty said: “I had a goal to produce & record an entire album before I was 30 and I did it. I waited for too long to release this but now is the time. This is my life’s work, this is my twenties. I paid for the entire production of the record myself and I am truly excited to put it out into the world!”

Stream ‘Point of View’ below


Author : Danu

Lost Boys ‘Home For Christmas’

Lost Boys has released their first ever original Christmas song, ‘Home For Christmas’.Lost Boys are a 4 piece indie pop outfit from Limerick, Ireland. Following their formation 2 years ago they have gained a huge following with some of their most recent singles ‘Obvious’ and ‘Sadie’ getting featured on the New Music Friday UK Spotify playlist.

‘Home For Christmas’ is a beautiful track displaying the emotive songwriting of Lost Boys. The band spread a bittersweet melody over tender building instrumentation to create a warm, melancholic soundscape filled with glittering Christmas-y hues and cosy textures. The pulsing heartbeat of the track is provided on drums while supple guitar laments and magical soundscapes flurry about the hopeful chorus. It’s cinematic and majestic all at once as Lost Boys present a sublime heartfelt song for the season.

About the track the band said : “We initially started writing the song following the realisation that because of the pandemic, a lot of people will be spending this Christmas separated from their families. As we get older we are coming to the understanding that the Christmases of our youths, when the whole family gets together to celebrate, were a luxury. As we grow up and move out, we’re now starting to appreciate that we can’t take family for granted at this time of year.” Peadar

“As we were looking for inspiration in our favourite Christmas songs, we soon realised that we all gravitated to those that illustrate the complexity of the season. Christmas is never as perfect as we imagine in our heads and we wanted to try to capture that with this song.” Peter

“Christmas is a hectic time of year and we wanted this song to be somewhat of a respite from that. If it helps someone just take a moment to consider how lucky they are, or to think about others who may not be so lucky, then our job will be done.” Peadar

Stream ‘Home For Christmas’ below


Author : Danu

Abacus Rings ‘Spout’ Album

‘Spout’ is the debut full length album to come from alternative rock / pop band Abacus Rings. This ten track album will have a video for each track. The record was partly recorded at Q Division and Ugly Duck in Boston and engineered by Matt Tahaney (Jimmy Eat World, Franz Ferdinand) and James Bridges (Juliana Hatfield, Fall Out Boy). An “after work” band of professionals, Boston based Abacus Rings is a fun passion project for the four piece. Formed of Michael Ringel (guitars and vocals), Carolyn Ringel (keys and vocals), Douglas “DJ” Johnson (bass), and Bill Kane (drums), the band draw on their life experience which includes time spent as a field biologist in the Amazon, a pastry chef at the Charles Hotel, legal counsel for the state Senate Oversight Committee, and a camper among the Himba people of Namibia.

‘Spout’ is a peppy light indie pop album laced in Abacus Rings’ vibrant and genre blending sound.Using warm indie rock guitar and animated percussion each track maintains a quirky bounce and peppy radiance. The band use intricate and rich musicianship to create a refined backdrop to their heartfelt and sometimes humorous lyrics. Their jangly pop sound floods tracks ‘Back At School’ and ‘Twilight’ in catchy light tones and positive vibes which exudes a playful atmosphere within the songs. Lush harmonies and sweet melodies saturate the tunes in a honey coating while the sometimes sharp guitar and intricate bass grooves maintain a rock flavour and edge. 

Abacus Rings have created a fun and melodically lush collection of tracks that are upbeat, sweet and full of wholesome goodness.

Stream ‘Spout’ below


Author : Danu

Joe Romersa ‘Where We Go From Here’

Inspired by his relationship with his girlfriend, ‘Where We Go From Here’ is the brand new single to come from Joe Romersa. Written from a place of love and feeling like his relationship was in a perfect place, ‘Where We Go From Here’ questions what will happen next. Recorded in his home studio, Joe Romersa plays most of the instruments on the record with Doug Hamblin (John Prine, Johnny Rivers) stepping in on electric guitar. Drummer / Songwriter / Sound Engineer Joe Romersa is a professional drummer with extensive studio experience on both sides of the glass. His work can be heard on numerous albums, including the 1992 Grammy award-winning ‘The Missing Years’ by John Prine

‘Where We Go From Here’ is a bluesy rock track saturated in Joe Romersa’s immersive songwriting. His deep whispered vocals create a dark sultry tone to the track while the luring beat entices in the background. Well crafted, the song balances vaporous blues rock with spaghetti western-esque country rock to create a tense and steamy number. The track builds superbly becoming more expressive as it reaches its rock infused fiery crescendo. With elements of Leonard Cohen flickering through a multi genre and lush textured backdrop, ‘Where We Go From Here’ is an intoxicating new single from Romersa. 

Stream ‘Where We Go From Here’ below


Author : Danu

AJ Wander ‘Way We Walk’

Following the success of his debut single, ‘Time Out’, London-based pop singer-songwriter AJ Wander has now released his second track, ‘Way We Walk’. “Time Out” received 850k+ streams and 450k+ monthly listeners in only 3 weeks. Prior to the ongoing pandemic, AJ Wander had been running himself ragged playing covers at piano bars and hotels across the United Kingdom. Once lockdown hit, he turned all his energy and focus into creating his own music and pushing forward his solo career. Wander’s drive paid off as his new music led him to sign a management and recording deal with Elevation, a USA-based music company that specializes in artist development, and a publishing deal with BDi Music, administered globally by Bucks Music Group.

Melodically lush and heartfelt, ‘Way We Walk’ continues AJ Wander’s spine-tingling emotive song writing. Doused in uplifting and inspiring tones which contrast the earnest lyrics ‘Way We Walk’ drifts through anthemic instrumentation as a bright piano melody weaves between bubbling rhythms and warm guitar refrains creating an indie pop edge and expansive wall of sound. There are folk elements glimmering through lush pop soundscapes while the mesmerising, warm vocals of AJ Wander tie all the vibrant components together. He coos through the pulsing verses and showcases his rich depths and power through the explosive chorus as the instrumentation pushes and pulls creating a tense yet animated backdrop. ‘Way We Walk’ is a stunning second release from AJ Wander.

Lyrically, ‘Way We Walk’ centers around the end of a relationship, as Wander states, “I wrote ‘Way We Walk’ after an ex and I discovered the lie we’d been living together. We finally saw the truth that we weren’t made for each other and that ignorance isn’t always bliss.” 

 Stream ‘Way We Walk’ below


Author : Danu

Quiet Like A Thief ‘LAK’

Boston and Long Island based pop punk duo Quiet Like A Thief have released the video for their latest single ‘LAK’.An incredible tribute to lead singer Alex Kouvaris’ father who passed away from Covid-19 this year, the single and video feature heartfelt lyrics and an incredibly impassioned performance.

‘LAK’ is a passionate alternative rock number saturated in crashing instrumentation and Quiet Like A Thief’s emotive musicianship. The track pulses with pummeling drums and a buoyant rhythmic foundation while the majestic, coarse guitars batter and clash into the blazing alternative rock backdrop. The band douse the melancholic melody in uplifting tones while the emotive vocals express the longing and shattering impact of loss within the lyrics. Quiet Like A Thief display their powerful pop punk through heartfelt lyrics and surging emotion to create a dynamic and wholly consuming track.

“Due to COVID-19, my father was unable to have a proper wake or funeral. We were forced to host a service via Zoom, and there was absolutely no closure. I wrote this song for him, and my band has shot an incredible music video as a tribute to honor the kind of man he was.” explains Alex.  “Ryan and I found beauty in this disaster, taking advantage of our time during COVID to create a positive outlet and to finally write music together again. It’s a tribute my father deserves.”

Watch the video for ‘LAK’ below


Author : Danu

Honeybone ‘Spheres’ Album

Honeybone have released their new album ‘Spheres’. Bringing you a collection of songs written between 2015 and 2019, ‘Spheres’ split the writing equally between drummer Rachel Trainor and guitarist Drew Handcock. Recorded in 2019, the band took a DIY approach, mostly recording at their home studio and Three Phase Studios in Brunswick, Melbourne, with Drew producing and mixing the album. Honeybone is a three-piece Psychedelic/Garage Rock band based in Melbourne, Australia, and hail from the city of Dunedin, in the deep south of New Zealand. The band is formed of drummer and vocalist Rachel Trainor, bass and backing vocalist Peter Jermakoff, and guitarist/vocalist Drew Handcock. Since their debut EP release in 2010, Honeybone have shared a stage with Beastwars, Wofat, The Datsuns, Dragon, and Luger Boa and released their first full length studio album in 2013.

Submerged in psychedelic shoegaze, ‘Spheres’ is a pool of rich musicianship as Honeybone delve deep into their heavy multi dimensional sound. The band blend Rachel’s and Drew’s vocals to create a diverse and wholly engaging collection of tracks. Edgier rock smattered tunes ‘Bruises’ and ‘Stratosphere’ surge with energy and allow the band to explore their more abrasive side as the swirls on guitars, pummeling drums and expansive blasts of distortion create a swagger-drenched rock soundscape. There are ample shredding guitar moments on the album as the band flesh out their expressive guitar prowess in ‘Sands’ and ‘Metathesiophobia’ with thick bluesy riffs and strut ready confidence. These tracks are ballsy and powerful.

There is no shortage of mighty courses within ‘Spheres.’ Honeybone display their ability to create eargasmic melodies and anthemic choruses with ease; the dreamy progressions and instrumentals within the songs capture the band’s musical vigor as wild solo’s and pounding drums create a hefty wall of sound for the slinky bass to weave between. Each song on ‘Spheres’ carries weight and power as the band tease, entice and lure between fantastic mosh pit worthy instrumental drops.

The band explain:“There’s an undercurrent theme throughout the album of unease with the state of the world, alongside concerns for the environment and relationships”


‘Spheres’ is a well-crafted album and a joy to listen to. The second album to come from Honeybone shows real growth and maturity in their sound and songwriting style.

Stream ‘Spheres’ below


Author : Danu

A Chat With : Moncrieff ‘Class Of 2020’ EP

Having been featured on a host of 2020 hot lists and named as one of Her.ie’s ‘Ones To Watch’ for 2020, Moncrieff has had a monumental year. Now he is set to release his second EP ‘The Class of 2020’, which is out on December 11th. I caught up with Chris Breheny aka Moncrieff to talk about the new EP and his slight shift in musical style. This EP, like all of Moncrieff’s collections to date, express his journey through life so far through the medium of music as he navigates being in his 20’s during Covid 19 while at the same time providing the listener with catchy, witty lyrics and showcasing deft musicianship in the process.

In true Breheny manner our chat meanders through many topics, from Christmas plans to EP track titles and then ventures into many tangents from there as we discuss how people are coping mentally with the Covid crises, the gym and the dangers of doing a workout beside the kitchen fridge.

“The first lockdown all the gyms were closed for however long so we just started doing runs and stuff like that.That was really good and then the gym’s opened back up, I did a bit in the gym. I stopped running. And now I’m just like, I’m just so unfit. I’m doing this circuit thing at home, I’ll do like 10 minutes and then I’ll do this pull up or push ups. It’s just not the same, when you go to the gym, you’re going somewhere to get something done. But here it’s like you’re in your kitchen. It’s close to the fridge.”

Breheny’s debut body of work ‘The Early Hurts’ EP featured lead track ‘Like I Do’, this debut radio single (released in Sept 2019) received extensive airplay across national radio racking up nearly 12 million audience impressions and 5 million streams. The success of the single and EP led to Moncrieff selling out his first headline show in Dublin in less than 3 hours. His growing reputation also landed support slots touring with headline Irish acts Picture This and Walking on Cars. His new EP ‘Class of 2020’ shows a different facet to Breheny as an artist. The EP was co-produced by Breheny and his friend Toby Scott who has a home studio in Brighton. The result is a collection of songs unconfined by genre that captures the zeitgeist of an ever changing musical and cultural landscape. However one theme that keeps popping up in Moncrieff’s lyrics is how Breheny is terrified to die. In ‘F*CK It – Dance’ (strong in the running for my favourite track on the EP) he contrasts an upbeat, vibrant soundscape with dark lyrical undertones. This mesmerising song is the result of a crazy lockdown.

“Basically, I had a very weird lockdown. I ended up getting close with a friend of mine. She’s a very good friend of mine and I was like, ‘this shouldn’t be a thing’ and she was in agreement. Then things just got really weird, she kind of, got feelings, I thought I had feelings…maybe just not as much as was on her level. Basically long story short, that song, I was right in the middle of it,..writing this song and was kind of, inspired by her.”

The lyrics in this EP are particularly well crafted, highlighting Breheny’s lyrical prowess and songwriting ability – phrases such as “this 2020 depression” can be interpreted many ways, for example, the obvious depressive mental state the world has experienced with isolation and loneliness due to Covid but also a financial depression for many people, especially musicians.

“They take time but the lyrics are always good lyrics. I always have certain phrases stuck in my head for weeks at a time. I have a couple of phrases running in my head and sometimes they’ll fit into a song. I was really worried about putting in 2020 depression because it then frames the song and that year. I’m like, ‘How will that feel in five years’ time when people listen to it?’… I was gonna put in something like “this 20 something depression”, but I just feel this year is such a weird year that it deserves to be named. Each song was written in 2020, and was written during lockdown. It’s been written about the year so there’s no better time to release the EP other than now.”

It all started this year with the release of ‘In My Room‘ however on ‘The Class of 2020’ EP ‘In My Room’ is the last track on the EP. 

” I just liked it as a demo. I always like having a demo at the end. It almost feels like, on CDs where the album the last track would be super long, you’d have to skip forward like a minute of silence and then there’d be the secret track. So yeah, it’s just that kind of idea.”

The songwriting is candid as Breheny expresses through his lyrics what he was going through emotionally and physically. Again in ‘imsadandhorny’ he places dark and honest lyrics into an upbeat and extremely catchy tune. 

” Yeah, both the last two tracks I produced myself so I wanted to make it like a Selena Gomez type record you know what I mean, like super pop. The melodies are all super pop, but I wanted to inject this overwhelming existential thing in there for the laugh”

“They do feel like singles. But, yeah, producing was painstaking because I’m so slow, but I had a lot of time to produce them”

The EP reflects on a difficult year through the eyes of Moncrieff as he ruminates on feelings and emotions a lot of people have had to cope with however within this EP he digs deep and finds himself looking at how he is living his life and spending his time, The experience has been an eye opener for him.

“Yeah, definitely to a certain degree, it should be an eye opener. If you let it go by, and it doesn’t teach you something about yourself, you certainly missed out. You realize what’s really important when your whole world is brought to a standstill. Anybody going to college doing a degree they have no idea why they are really doing it, they just did it because their parents thought it was a good idea, and not really living up to their own standards. When they realize you could be going to college for a job that could come to an absolute standstill just because of a virus, then you have to really look at how you’re spending your time and what sort of person you want to be.”

”Having none of those distractions (social media)  you really have to be cool with being on your own. It’s been a tough year but you should try use it as a learning experience to find out more about yourself and what’s important to you.”

I’ve met Breheny in person and he is a charming and charismatic person. I was surprised to hear how tough he is on himself at times on the EP. 

” I guess the side I put out in public is quite extroverted, upbeat and happy, but I don’t really talk. I need to be able to talk more when I’m having trouble and stuff. When I’m going through tough times I don’t bring it to anybody and that’s a really bad thing. My music is where I get it out, that’s where I need to get that kind of stuff out in some way.”

Each song on ‘The Class of 2020’ is catchy, vibrant and polished. When I first heard the EP as a whole I thought it would sit very well with an American audience. I wondered if Breheny had his sights set on America.

“Most of my fans on Spotify are from the States. I’ve 10 times as many followers on Spotify in America as I do in Ireland. The dream is to move to LA and be signed out there. I don’t want to go to LA and be like scraping and trying to like…I’m better doing what I have here. It’s going well and not like super super struggling, but if I go to LA without a proper deal or whatever things in place, it’s going to be a really difficult time. But America is the dream.”

Speaking of America our chat ventured onto the infectious The Fun Boys Three’s snippet of  “it ain’t what you do ( it’s the way that you do it)” in his track ‘AMERICA’ and how it made it’s way onto the song

“That actually wasn’t my idea. I write with a guy called Paul Harris, I had the actual instrumental made, which is the beat that I made. I brought that to my mate, and next thing I know, we’re like, we could do this, and…. it just turns into such a sarcastic, like, weird vibe, and it just worked out. If that song went to Imagine Dragons, that’d be a f*cking hit.”

Though the songs take a different slant on the Moncrieff style, Breheny maintains the velvety soul tone of his voice, especially in ‘AMERICA’. The satirical side is quirky and very witty but his vocals never compromise on quality and richness.

 ” It was a weird one, because you want it to sound laid back and kind of, weird and cool but you don’t want to rap at the same time, you’re still a singer, you know. At first, I’m using auto tune as a kind of effect like an artistic thing. Auto tune is kind of the done thing in pop now.”

With Covid and lack of shows the whole promotion of a new EP is different but Breheny is getting the hang of it and creating mesmerising content, although understandably he is missing gigging terribly. 

“Yeah, not ideal. I miss gigging. The songs are designed for when you’re allowed back into a venue without a mask without social distancing and you just want to let loose, having been deprived of a gig. When I do the songs live for the first time properly I’m just gonna go mad, just run down the venue for no reason. Promoting has been weird because, the fact the promoter can’t tour, can’t go into a radio station and then the fact that you can’t make any money from touring. All the videos I’ve done this year have been like 500 pounds ( Sterling ) or less. That is insanely cheap and they’re all independent, indie, low budget music videos. People haven’t gigged, all my money comes from gigs. People think ‘Moncrieff is getting radio play and stuff in Ireland” – that’s all cool – but at the end of the day, it’s me and my manager, no buffer, no label, no nothing, just music that people connect to and my own wallet.”

Breheny has suffered literal pain for his art creating videos where he is hanging upside down in ‘PLAYLOUD’ and hanging from a clothes rail in ‘AMERICA’

“Clothes rail was way worse than hanging upside down. I thought it was gonna be super chill,  I had to do the photo shoot and video shoot in one day.The video shoot was done in like an hour, whereas last year it was like three days and by the end of that hanging upside down, I felt really unwell.Then I had to do another shoot and my face is all pale and s**t. But the America one I didn’t think was gonna be that bad. It was just gonna be – get some rope, make a loop at the end of it, put myself into the loop and cut a hole at the back of my jacket and have the rope out through the back. I was going to get some towels or some sponges and wrap it around the rope so that when I hang out of it, it wouldn’t be that painful. But, oh my god ! – it was so f***ing painful. We couldn’t even do a full take of the song. We actually did it in 30 second stretches and put a box underneath me to stand on, in between. It was just so bad, so yeah no more hanging. Next time I’m just gonna sit down with a cup of tea.”

 I wondered what Breheny had planned for the coming months.

” I am back in Ireland right now so I’ll be at home writing. I’m looking forward to January to be honest because I have a writing camp scheduled. I’m going to be writing with Pat ( Walking on Cars ) and Conor O’Donohoe ( Wild Youth ), I’ve been writing some stuff with him lately and that’s been really cool. I want to get as many cool writers in Ireland as possible and then rent a house in Dingle for a week, and just go there, set up a camp and write during the day. Then just like, I don’t know, play Xbox at night. I’ve got a couple of live stream recording things. Then, I’m planning a load of tracks for release next year. I’ve got a bunch of tracks coming next year that I’m really excited about. I’m trying to save up my money to release those as well. I’m like, I gotta do a video for that song. I can’t get takeaway this weekend.” 

Breheny is a talented songwriter and musician. It’s exciting to see him push boundaries to create music that is universal, fun and honest. His deft melodic prowess and witty character make each track a joy to listen to. Moncrieff is one of the most exciting artists to watch as he develops his sound. Each release is more compelling than the last. ‘The Class Of 2020’ is set for release on 11th December but until then check out his recent single ‘AMERICA’ below


Author : Danu

Model Society ‘Are You For Real?’

Model Society have released their new single ‘Are You For Real?.’It’s the first single from Model Society’s brand new EP ‘Entertainment’ and is released through London-based Indie label Kitchen Disco Records. The band have recorded tracks with the likes of Paul Tipler (Idlewild, Placebo) and Fraser Smith (Shed Seven), they’ve also featured as BBC 6 Music’s Band Of The Week and made an appearance on Steve Lamacq’s Roundtable. With additional radio backing coming from BBC 6 Music’s Chris Hawkins, BBC Introducing’s Gary Crowley and Radio X’s John Kennedy.The band also has a successful list of live shows under their belt including festival appearances at Bestival, The Great Escape, Guilfest and a main stage performance at Northbound.

‘Are You For Real?’ is a blazing indie rock track doused in Model Society’s energetic, earnest songwriting and instrumental vigor. The track travels on sharp guitar lines which create a shoegaze -esque soundscape while punchy drums tie down the atmospheric keys. The song is richly layered as the band provide ethereal moments within a raw indie rock backdrop. Building to a dynamic blistering crescendo, Model Society display their refined musical prowess through this biting indie rock number. 

Watch the video for ‘Are You For Real? below


Author : Danu

Indie: (n) an obscure form of rock which you only learn about from someone slightly more hip than yourself.

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