Dublin based noisy introverts, Stupid Son have released the video for their new single ‘Bread’. Fresh out of college the band self-produced their video with a budget of €15.
‘Bread’ is a raw anguish stricken blast or organic home grown garage rock as a legion of distorted guitars pierce, shrill and crash through pummeling drums and distressed mournful vocals. This explosive track whines and blasts through a moody melody and mopey atmosphere while the rooted bass and shredding guitars add a dash of spice and razor sharp vigor. The guitars thrash and batter through the track rebounding and ricocheting off the brawny drums and infectious buoyant rhythm showing a refined quality to the mayhem of Stupid Son’s musicianship. It’s a thrilling, barbed debut.
We had a chat with Oliver Dobrian drummer and backing vocalist for power trio Filmspeed to talk about their music, touring and how they form their tasty tunes.
Tell us about Filmspeed and how the band came about?
Nick and Craig have actually been playing music together for over a decade under various names and projects. Through the magic of the Internet, I joined the band about 2 and a half years ago and we haven’t looked back since! We are a rock n’ roll band based in Southern California, trying to keep the dying art alive.
Your tunes are so slick and very rock n’ roll with a nice dash of indie, pop-punk and hard rock thrown in. How do you keep coming up with these hook filled tunes?
Wow, that’s nice to hear, thanks! We are always
striving to write catchy earworms that get stuck in your head. I think it just
comes from our collective love of music and our various influences manifesting
in whatever we play. By listening to as much different stuff as possible, it
gives us a large pool to draw from when we’re making our own stuff.
You recently released ‘Bless My Soul’ and ‘Shakey Love’ two kick-ass swagger drenched catchy tracks. Tell us about the writing process for these tunes?
The two processes couldn’t be more different! For
“Bless My Soul,” we wrote the tune and showed the demo to Jason Hollis from
Punk Aristocrats, who gave us a few rounds of notes and we hammered it into
what you hear on the record. We recorded it with him up in LA. For “Shakey
Love,” we knew we needed a B-side for the single, but didn’t really have any
ideas, so the song more or less got written on the drive up to the studio! We
recorded it in Santa Monica at Manifest Music, and I believe the take we used
on the record is maybe the fourth or fifth time we had ever played the entire
song through, since it had been “finished” just minutes before.
Do you follow a certain format when writing your tracks or does it just flow organically?
We don’t technically follow a format, but it does
generally follow the trend of Craig bringing in a riff or an idea, and Nick and
me working around it from there. We’re all good enough friends to critique and
suggest ideas to each other without our egos getting in the way, so we just
strive to serve the song rather than ourselves, and make it as best as
possible.
There are many shredding, gritty riffs throughout your tracks tell us how you come up with these?
You’d have to ask Craig, haha! He’s just an endless
fountain of cool riffs and melodies. I think he just is constantly making memos
to himself and humming into his phone whenever he gets an idea. He’s got quite
the database by now.
Your songs are full of swagger and confidence does this reflect on your personality?
We like to think so, but probably not as much in
actuality as we give ourselves credit for. We try to stay humble and silly for
the most part.
Which of your songs are you most proud of?
I try not to play favorites in order to give each song
its due when performing it. If I play a song, I love it! I think the same goes
for Nick and Craig too, we don’t tend to do anything we don’t like to do,
musically speaking.
You guys embarked on your first West Coast tour, kicking off in Los Angeles and made notable stops in Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco before wrapping up in Anaheim. How did the tour go?
It was amazing! We had such a great time, met such
great people, played some really fun shows. It was everything we hoped it would
be and more.
Do you have a favourite memory or pinnacle high moment from the tour?
It’s impossible to pick just one! From me getting sick
and my face swelling up at our last show, to Craig’s backpack getting stolen by
junkies in Vancouver, to the transmission leaking on our van. Oh wait, did you
say HIGH point? Just kidding, while all those things did indeed happen, we were
laughing the whole way through and had the time of our lives. We didn’t call it
the “Consistently Off” tour for no reason! We’re pretty good at taking
everything in stride and staying content in the moment. Honestly the high
points are always gonna be the shows. That’s the reason we even do the thing.
From listening to your tunes there is an energetic vibe and high intensity, I get a sense that these songs would be epic performed live, what is a live show with you guys like?
Thanks! We actually like to consider ourselves more of
a live band anyway. Our constant goal is to get people to support live music
and just get out of the house to come see a show. All three of us feel most at
home onstage when we’re sharing music with people. So if you come to a
Filmspeed show, you’ll see three guys leaving it all out on the stage and
having the time of our lives every time. It doesn’t matter if we’re playing to
1 person or 100,000, we aim to entertain.
What is your Favourite song to perform live and why?
Personally, I like to treat each time I play a song
like the first time I’m playing it. It helps me keep things fresh and allows me
to elaborate on songs I’ve played hundreds of times. I’m just so happy and
grateful to be onstage whenever I am, it doesn’t matter what I’m playing. So I
guess they’re all my favorite!
Will you guys ever venture over here to Ireland for a show?
Of course! When’s the show? We’re there! We’re aiming to conquer the world, and Ireland’s in the world, right?
Dublin experimental, alternative rock band Runway Lights have released their new single ‘Broad Strokes’. In their short time together they have already graced the stages of a number of prestigious Dublin venues including The Workman’s Club, Whelan’s and The Button Factory, earning a reputation for their ferocious live sound. The band’s debut single ‘Crash’ was released in July and was marked by an appearance at the Whelan’s ‘Summer Watch’ festival.Their new single ‘Broad Strokes’ tells a dark tale of an unwanted encounter. It’s release was followed by an appearance at Whelan’s Ones To Watch festival and is the first track to be taken from their debut EP, due for release in early 2019.
With it’s soothing purr of delicacy and ominous mystery ‘Broad Strokes’ is a sweet daydream that has a chilling undertone. Twinkling guitars gently pepper the lulling verses while swirling soundscapes wisp about, luring behind the cooing vocals. The track builds becoming more sinister and compelling as sharp guitars whine and distort over the hypnotic rhythm and icy soundscape. The melody flutters and innocently dances between the biting entrapment of the instruments. With beautiful and compelling guitar lines meandering through the biting soundscapes Runway Lights create a unique and compelling track that immerses you in their mesmerising sound.
Navan four piece fuzz punk band Chinese Newspaper have released the new video for their single ‘Are You Bored?’. This blustery, battering track is brimming with aggro and the turbulent punk rock these guys do so well. Chinese Newspaper provide a deluge of fuzz-filled punk laced in soaring distorted guitars as they meander from mind crashing to psychedelic whines. The pulverising drums batter and pound throughout with relentless stamina and fire fueled intensity as the howling, gritty and moody vocals exclaim the lyrics of boredom and isolation. There are some really refined moments within this track. Its outer shell appears boisterous, bitter and outraged and for the most part it is however, the band provide glimpses and flickers of finesse through the sublime nimble guitar work- adding a multi texture to this blistering number. ‘Are You Bored?’ is another fierce,infectious and raw track from Chinese Newspaper.
Badhands have released their new single ‘Voices’. Badhands is the musical project of Dublin songwriter and musician Dan Fitzpatrick. Having played for years with artists such as The Mighty Stef, The Last Tycoons, Paddy Hanna and Maud in Cahoots, he recently released his critically acclaimed debut album ‘Predictable Boy’. The record features musicians Tom Cosgrave, Aoife Ruth, Chris Barry and Ken Mooney, and upon release received much praise from critics.The band’s first two singles, ‘Waves’ and ‘Monday Morning’, have both received considerable airplay on national radio and have been performed live in session on shows such as Arena on RTE Radio 1.
‘Voices’ is a dark contorted number that chills with eerie instrumentation as Fitzpatrick’s vocals haunt through the psychedelic backdrop. With its heat stricken, western, lone ranger vibe and sliding guitar whines this track is compelling and extremely absorbing. The song travels on a dream-like delusional vibe with pulsating drums and strong piano chords strengthening the ominous foundation for the curdling bass lines to twist around. Filled with plenty of passion and rich emotional tones- this track is a spine chilling beauty with country hues and tumbleweed lonesome vibes peering through the hallucinogenic atmosphere and sweltering instrumental stings.
After a busy year of gigs in 2018, including two packed headline shows at The Workman’s Club Dublin, and supports slots with acts such as Michael McDonald, the band began work on album number two at the start of 2019 and is set for a headline show on April 13th in Whelan’s along with several dates around the country to be announced soon. These shows will feature songs from Predictable Boy, and also new material from the recently begun second album.
Dublin singer songwriter Jake Regan has released his debut single ‘Over It’. Regan who was previously in the band Segrasso has now gone out on his own and is recording his debut album where he plays all the instruments on the recording.
‘Over It’ is the first taste of Regan’s solo work. With nonchalant vocals breezing over a crashing backdrop of grungy shoegaze this track is a charming biter. He blends the laid back hazy vibes of the verses perfectly with the shredding chorus. Blistering guitars lacerate through the punchy drums with knife edged precision while Regan sweetly broods over this raw backdrop. There are some refined moments as the track takes a unique sweet turn half way through. The guitars spiral into a luscious melodic motif that features sublime guitar work from Regan as he meanders through a tight piece of musicianship filled with honeyed tones and gritty elements. This is meticulously blended to create a mind melting listening experience. This track frizzles and distorts while soothing with its sweetly melodic moments and moody tones. It’s quite the roller coaster.
Photo credit : Nicholas O’Donnell Photography Design: Stuart Hayes Photography
Mullingar rock n’ roll artist Scally has released his intense video for his new single ‘Filthy Animal’. The video which was directed by Karl O’Reilly of Bunsen Media stars Sorcha Herlihy, Dmitry Vinokurov and Ethan Scally himself. The visual tells the frenzied story of lust, jealousy and rage.
The track itself is another riveting rock n ‘roll number from Scally. With a hypnotic bass groove creeping in behind the thumping drum beats and sultry guitars, this track travels on an exhilarating frisson of hysteria. It’s another in your face, swagger dripping track doused in the exceptional instrumentation we have come to expect from this band. These guys blend the sweltering enticing vibes with all out anarchy meticulously to create a mosh ready blood curdling number that will have you hanging on the edge of your seat craving and frothing for more. With panache plunged vocals and an invigorating wall of sound driving that body moving beat and vaporous sizzle this is one well crafted track. A shredding guitar solo blisters through the punchy slick backdrop – Scally has created another searing number that seeps shrewdly under your skin itching right to your bones.
Wolverhampton based duo Broozer have released their new single ‘Son of Man’. This blistering track stomps about with meaty drums pounding through hefty riffs and attitude soaked vocals. Its swagger drenched persona struts in while the pulverizing wall of sound shatters through your ear drums with relentless energy and mighty stamina. Filled with gusto and rowdy power, the drums assault and throttle through the slinky blues-flavoured sharp guitars with a no nonsense attitude and charisma. With screaming vocals and rough rawness in tow- it’s a lean mean machine from Broozer.
Nottingham alternative rock band Distant Blue are set to release their new single ‘Tongue Tied’. The track is taken from their EP which is going to be out later this year. ‘Tongue Tied’ is a boisterous wallop to the jugular of exhilarating alternative rock. Luring darkly hued verses smoulder through an intense backdrop of angular guitars and buoyant, punchy drums as Distant Blue whack out a slick, swagger soaked number. With muscular riffs, riot-inducing breakdowns, and a ferocious chorus these guys clock you around the head with their brawny slick sound. Raspy vocals growl through the catchy sing along ready chorus while a crashing wall of sound and sublime bass line pummels its vigorous sound into your brain. It’s thrilling material that will evoke carnage in a live setting and sounds pretty impressive blasting through your ears. Keep an eye out for these guys.
‘Tongue Tied’ is set for release on the 25th February make sure to have a listen when its released – its a cracker.
Dublin based psychedelic rock band Jooce have released their new double A side release ‘Lazarus/Disarray’. ‘Lazarus’ and ‘Disarray’ take Jooce’s blissful psychedelic rock down two different trippy avenues.
‘Lazarus’ cruises along with vibrant swirling soundscapes while hazy guitars weave a warm toned golden thread through this ethereal track.It’s prismatic layers create an enthralling lustrous listening experience as the track wanders off into a glorious and hypnotic instrumental piece. The raspy vocals coo and dynamically call out the anthemic chorus and punchy verse as a buoyant rhythm bounces through the swirling lush soundscapes.
‘Disarray’ mellows the tone as it ventures down a delicate ballad side to Jooce. Soft guitar strums between emotional and fairy-like light soundscapes. It’s a sweet reverb laced dreamy number that builds as it progresses. The guitars jangle with a zesty biting sting through the chilling atmosphere and sway-like melody. They weave the psychedelic tones through this track sublimely while sprinkling a dash of pop over the melody.
Moving and deeply enthralling Jooce showcase their fine musicianship and exquisite melodies through both these mesmerising tracks.They are instantly addictive.
Stream ‘Lazarus’ and ‘Disarray’ below
Indie: (n) an obscure form of rock which you only learn about from someone slightly more hip than yourself.
