Dublin based alternative pop band The Crayon Set have released two new singles: ‘Summer Song’ / ‘Rock Star’, taken from their upcoming album ‘Downer Disco’. Filled with the diverse and infectious sound of The Crayon Set, ‘Summer Song’ and ‘Rock Star’, showcases two different facets of the band’s style to create a dynamic listening experience for listeners to enjoy.
Boasting twinkling guitars, a steady beat and dreamy melodies, ‘Summer Song’ displays the sweet psychedelic side of The Crayon Set’s sound. This light ditty flows upon subtle bright soundscapes while ethereal keys chime throughout, creating a soft hue within the song’s atmosphere. The Crayon Set showcase their ability to capture emotion and a suspenseful sense of euphoria within ‘Summer Song’ and it is simply divine.
Showcasing jangly jazz stained keys, jaunty guitar refrains and punchy drums, ‘Rock Star’ exudes the band’s swaggered, indie rock bravado. Kate Dineen’s vocals are the constant throughout both releases. She sweetly coos with a lulling compelling tone in ‘Summer Song’ and croons with a slight edgy rasp for the energetic ‘Rock Star’. Her beautiful vocal blends perfectly with each tracks instrumentation and highlights the bands refined musicianship.
The Crayon Set are developing their sound beautifully, crafting songs that surge with vivid emotion and glorious lush instrumentation. Their ability to produce irresistible earworms that ooze edgy, indie rock sensibilities is awe-inspiring and marks them as a band to keep an eye on.
The Academic have released the video for their new single, ‘Not Your Summer’. The track is lifted from the band’s new ‘Community Spirit’ EP, which was released in July. I caught up with Craig Fitzgerald and Stephen Murtagh to talk about the new EP, the inspiration behind their new video, and fun facts about their song ‘Smart Mouth’ as well as how ageing can make you less fearless and more self-critical.
‘Community Spirit’ marks the band’s debut as a producer. The pandemic and lockdown gave the band the opportunity to try their hand at producing. Stephen and Craig told me how they found the process.
Stephen: “So the first thing to say I guess is that it wasn’t planned. It was brought about by the times that we live in and the lack of opportunity to travel and collaborate with producers and invite outside people into our bubble. Basically, in order to stay safe and follow the rules we ended up stepping into, and Craig especially stepped into the producer role. “
Craig: “It was daunting enough having to do it. We spend a lot of time demoing and we all have knowledge of trying to get music together but we were lucky we’ve worked with really great producers like Tim Pagnotta and Nick Hodgson along the way, and I’ve always had an interest in it so I picked up a lot of tips and tricks on what some of the pros do and I think that’s a privileged situation to be in which was great. But in terms of it [Self-producing], it was very DIY. We weren’t following any rules”
Stephen: “We were just trusting our ears and going, “oh that’s starting to sound like us, that’s good”, not necessarily that it was the correct way. I’m sure, if you gave our homemade EP ‘Community Spirit’ to a pro of forty years they’d probably laugh and throw it back at us, but it sounds good to us so it’s fine.”
The Academic released ‘Acting My Age’ EP and ‘Community Spirit’ EP in a time of chaos surrounding the pandemic. Releasing music has been a difficult decision for artists, especially because they cannot tour, and for the band, these releases were a way of keeping themselves sane during this time by creating something for them and their fans.
Stephen: “Yeah, it’s so funny, the first EP ‘Acting My Age’ was, I guess, we’ll just continue to do what we’ve always done and released music. Then therewas a gap of nearly a year between the EP’s, and yeah the second one ‘Community Spirit’ was very much for our sanity, for our mental health just to kind of reclaim that lifestyle that we knew before the pandemic of what it’s like to write, record, release. Usually, the next step is tour but obviously, we couldn’t do that step of the cycle.“
Craig: “We were more aware of it on ‘Community Spirit’. ‘Acting My Age’ we had prepared to tour and we had big plans for live shows, and that got rippedfrom underneath us. There’s nothing anybody could have done about it but this time we were fully aware we weren’t going to be touring it – it was very much for our fans but also for our mental health so we didn’t go crazy in the meantime.”
‘Community Spirit’ is a five-track EP of vibrant hook-filled tunes. Each song is superbly crafted and flows into the next with ease. The pair told me choosing the songs for the EP wasn’t easy.
Stephen: “Yeah there was big playlists, and these five just seem to work together”
Craig: “ Yeah we have album two very much in our sights but, these five tracksdidn’t feel in any way where we’ll go with the album. This felt like another experimentation “
Stephen: “Yeah like a bridge between. We did think that ‘Acting My Age’ would be the bridge between the two albums but then the pandemic happened and we were like okay maybe there should be another step in between the last album and our next album. So that’s where these five tracks came from. It just seemed to suit the vibe of ‘Community Spirit’, and what we’re doing, and the idea of like homecoming and self-production. These seem to be the five songs for us to bring our band in that direction.”
‘Not Your Summer’ kicks off the Community Spirit EP. It’s the perfect opening track. With a twangy guitar hook and nostalgic chorus, it’s a proper anthem that captures the tone of the EP and the band’s sound spectacularly.
Stephen:“ If we had to pick one song that sums up the sound and the spirit of the EP it probably would be ‘Not Your Summer’. I think it might be a little bit more mature maybe than anything we’ve released in the past, and a bit more self-reflective and melancholic. If you have to pick one song to be like the true representation of where the band’s at now and what we were trying to say with ‘Community Spirit’ – yeah that’s the reason ‘Not Your Summer’ found itself at the top. Hopefully, if fans sat down to listen to the EP when it came out and they heard that song first, I’d like to think that they would see what we were getting at”
The Academic have released a video for ‘Not Your Summer’. The video was directed by Hope Kemp and Ronan Corrigan from Tearjerker Films, who have worked with The Academic on previous singles Kids (Don’t End Up Like Me), Acting My Age, and Anything Could Happen. It was shot at the derelict Waterworld in Portrush, Northern Ireland. The video depicts the band in various parts of Waterworld which was once bursting with life and energy and now is deserted and empty, capturing a lot of peoples feelings at the moment as holidays and summer plans are limited.
Stephen: “It definitely wasn’t always the idea for the video but we collaborate with two incredible directors called Hope Kemp and Ronan Corrigan, and we shot our last two music videos with them. We wanted to capture how cinematic we felt the songs were and we were talking about influences – we were basically trying to get like a Richard Linklater meets David Lynch kind of style. We wanted it to be weird and kind of off-kilter and stuff but we also wanted to have that, coming of age angsty feel to it as well, and then in the ‘Not Your Summer’ video with all the stock footage of Irish holidays, all the old school stuff that plays into the whole ‘Community Spirit’ and the idea of all these small villages that we grew up in and kind of the old Ireland and stuff”
Craig: “And obviously the metaphor of being in what was once a fun place for families to go, and we’re in it and it’s completely derelict and rundown and you know people are sleeping in there in sleeping bags, it was pretty dark. That suited the darkness of the song even though there’s darkness masked with very summery bright sounding music I think.”
The Academic are known for creating catchy earworm melodies. But their ability to pen sharp, thought-provoking lyrics is perhaps one reason the band relate so well with their audience. Within ‘Community Spirit’ The Academic capture life as a twenty-something perfectly. The lyrics seem as if they are an overspill of spontaneous thought or an honest attempt to digest personal emotions.
Craig: “Completely what I was going through at the time. I was really struggling for any new songs, and it was January just gone, and Ireland had slipped back into complete lockdown and we couldn’t go anywhere. That was the first song and I started feeling down, and bad for everybody – everybody was meant to be doing things, people were finishing college and not getting to experience that type of stuff. Especially my little sister, that’s what kind of birthed the song like the title, ‘Not Your Summer’. It was just very much in my head that it was like we’re being forced to live with ourselves and when you want to get away from that and you can’t, it’s quite difficult. It was actually an easy song lyrically to write.”
Stephen: “A big thing for us, we never try and force a subject matter if it’s not coming naturally to us, we won’t sit down and be like, let’s write a political anarchist masterpiece. A saying that I always come back to is ‘write what you know’. I think you won’t go wrong if you just write what you know.”
Interesting turn of phrases are commonplace within the bands’ songs and this has become more prominent as they have progressed. The synth-laced nostalgic gem ‘Smart Mouth’ has an intriguing comparison between relationships and tennis with the use of a quirky lyrical reference “It’s love fifteen to you”.
Craig: “Yeah fun fact about that song there was a different song and it had the love fifteen thing. But I listened to it and I probably showed people and it actually was just a song about tennis, basically, with a slight relationship metaphor inside it and I always liked the idea but, every time I listened to it I was like, this just sounds like I’m trying to get on Wimbledon “
Stephen: “Yeah too tennis heavy”
Craig: “Way too tennis heavy”
Stephen: “You need to get the balance right. They are very comparable [relationships and tennis] you get a lot of back and forth.”
Craig: “But if it’s too on the nose you sound like an idiot, you know, “
Stephen: “I think we got it right.”
‘I Don’t See Good’ is a darker song compared to the rest on the EP. It’s probably my favourite tune on ‘Community Spirit’. The band perfectly balances dark sultry moments of pulsing bass and smoky synths with a sense of confusion and turmoil – these musical elements, teamed with a shredding guitar solo, make the track a delight on the ears.
Craig: “ It’s a really old song. It’s one of the first. We were a band way back and I wasn’t the singer and then we kind of took a little break, and I started demoing songs on a laptop, and we got back together as what would be The Academics for the first time and we used to play that. I always liked the idea of the song, and it just took years and years to get it into that place and it actually just took demoing it with just an acoustic guitar and a little drum machine doing a kick and snare”
Stephen: “ Yeah, kind of bringing it back to basics “
Craig: “Literally the very basics and it then became completely bass-heavy, and in a much darker way. I think that was the one where we didn’t record that first, that was kind of in the middle of it all. We got around to it and we were in our comfort zones and we started just really serving the song rather than trying to fill it up with too much stuff and keep the tenderness of the lyrics and that kind of forbidden romance that you can have at a younger age. Again it was quite reflective because we look back on it as older guys now, and the lyrics didn’t change too much, it still had that naivety to it and the guitar solo wasn’t written in total, we played a bunch of solos and chopped it all up “
Stephen: “And then put it together to create, like a Frankenstein’s monster. “
Craig: “ But Matt’s [Murtagh] physically able to play it live so fair play to him”
The Academic aren’t afraid to revisit old songs. In fact, they have proven that reimagining a song written years ago can result in a refined and more mature tune. Some artists cringe at their older lyrics and find the thought of approaching old scribbles on a paper or notebook from their youth embarrassing, but the pair told me it’s an important part of songwriting.
Craig: “ I think it’s important because when you’re younger, like we were fearless as kids. I think the older you get – I get more paranoid about stuff now and I second-guess lyrics way longer and notebooks become longer and scribbles become larger, and it’s just like, I don’t know what that is, is that anxiety I don’t know”
Stephen: “You can look back at lyrics that we have from when we were teenagers and weirdly they make more sense now than they did back then. Yeah, it’s more of a stream of consciousness when you’re younger. “
Craig: “Yeah, and there’s something great about it and I think because we’ve been a band for so long, anytime we put up anything online and go oh what song should we play? There are fans that would say songs that we used to play that have never been released and they are like oh play this song from when we played one gig in like a truck in the middle of nowhere. Then one random day you might find that file on your phone or something, and you listen to it and you kinda go, oh we weren’t bad back then you know, there might be something in that“
Stephen: “We did a thing on our Instagram yesterday. We were trying to get fans to suggest what songs they think should go on the setlist and someone said a song called ‘Werewolf’, which was a YouTube video we did I want to saysometime in 2014 maybe, no, it was 2013 and an interesting thing is, that song Werewolf we have nicked a line from that and put it in our single ‘Different’”
Craig: “yeah it’s like the last bit of ‘Different’ so we’ve been doing it all the time. It’s just the pandemic’s made us do it a little bit more this time round.”
The Academic are set to return to the stage later this summer. The return of shows is an exciting prospect for all artists and The Academic have jumped right into the deep end with their first show, a spot on the main stage at this year’s Reading & Leads Festival ahead of their own full tour in Spring 2022.
Stephen: “Yeah it’s weird. Our first gig back in front of a crowd will be Reading and Leeds. We’ll be really nervous for that one. We’re opening the mainstage as well both days…. nervous, excited, live music is what we missed the most and not just the performance, the whole lifestyle that goes along with it. The whole spirit of jumping in the back of a van with your pals and the crew that we love so much.“
Craig: “ Seeing other bands we know and everything.”
Stephen: “The whole backstage atmosphere, the pre-show nerves, the post-show breakdowns, all of it, we miss every single bit of it. Can’t wait to get it back.”
Before we finished our interview Stephen and Craig gave some wise words of advice for anyone who is starting a band or a career in music.
Craig: “Well, hang in there at the minute.”
Stephen: “I would say trust your gut, no one knows the type of artist that you want to be more than you do, and there’s no point in fighting for someone else’s vision, I’d say trust your gut, follow your instincts.”
‘Community Spirit’ is bursting from the seams with melodious musical gems. The Academic have an awe-inspiring ability to create hook-filled melodies that ooze charm and beckon repeat plays. However, when you dig a little deeper, you will find their lyrics speak of angst, conflicting emotions and deeper, sometimes darker subject matters than their bight indie sound displays. These guys are growing their sound and deft songwriting superbly, and ‘Community Spirit’ is a first-rate example of this. For the band’s debut at producing, it’s a triumph, and as a body of work, it’s an absolute joy to the ears.
Villa In France has released their new single ‘Burned Out’.Villa In France are a three-Piece Indie-Rock band from the North Coast of Northern Ireland consisting of Aidan Davidson (Vocals, Rhythm Guitar), Nino Morelli (Lead Guitar, Backup vocals) and Matthew Gillan (Drums).
‘Burned Out’ presents Villa In France’s earnest songwriting through chilling indie rock. The verses brood and ferment within a hypnotic and eerie guitar melody as Davidson croons “living in sandcastles, blood on their hands to get to the top” before the crashing chorus interjects with a spectacular abrasive sonic assault. The band showcase their refined and evocative musical prowess within the track’s dynamic soundscape – the song meanders between haunting verses, searing interludes and a corrosive crescendo while acid-soaked guitar embellishments and ground shaking drums create an intense and irritated atmosphere throughout. The result is an immersive and exciting wall of sound that is a joy to listen to again and again. ‘Burned Out’ is a compelling new tune from Villa In France.
East Manchester indie band Palava have released their new single ‘Just Look into My Eyes’.The track is the first single off the bands upcoming EP. This swagger steeped rock n roll number boasts the raw and vigorous sound of Palava in all its glory. With mammoth riffs paving the way for the brawny drums and fiery bassline, this track surges with adrenaline. The band create a hyper raw backdrop to accompany the catchy melody and majestic guitar embellishments leaving the listener pumped and craving to hear the song live. Showcasing a mosh-ready chorus and shredding guitar solo ‘Just Look into My Eyes’ is a tantalizing assault on the senses – a must listen.
God Knows has released his first single, ‘Glory’ on narolane records. God Knows is one of the founders of Ireland’s most prolific and exciting labels, narolane records. As a collective, narolane’s creative output conveys their ethos with surety, authenticity and unapologetic ambition. That ethos is to be true to what is right, what is excellent and what is unexpected. This commitment to excellence has caught the attention of the world’s most revered cultural commentators and music media, with The NME, NPR, France 24, The Irish Times, The BBC, The Guardian, RTÉ, The Fader, Vice and The New York Times all turning their attention to this revolutionary collective.
Featuring the vocal stylings of Senita Appiakorang, ‘Glory’ is a musically lush and infectious tune from God Knows. The song ebbs and flows with jazz elements while bubbling beats create a buoyant dance-infused foundation. God Knows’ punchy lyrics rapidly flow over a backdrop of soul-sprinkled synths as the song unfolds beautifully with heavy house rhythms and irresistible melodies. Senita’s warm and smooth vocals caress the silken melody with incomparable charm, her vocal delivery is a joy to listen to as the track builds to its dynamic chorus. Showcasing deft production and vibrant musicianship, ‘Glory’ is a stunning new single from God Knows. The track is an ambitious display of musical prowess from the talented artist.
Since he first began making music, God Knows has been held up as a mentor of the rap scene in Ireland. Although this is a role he relishes, having encouraged so many along the way, ‘Glory’ is all about bringing it back to his roots. Produced by his brother, Godwin Jonas, God Knows explains the importance of the song’s message. “Glory means to bring honour. It means having the courage to risk it all. It means not blinking first. To take advantage of everything that has ever been taken for granted. To find the places where we have abandoned ourselves. To accept that you’ll get punched in the face and smile while your nose bleeds, knowing that we never fight for victory. We fight from victory. And so we give honour to the people who give us joy. Unapologetically black, Irish, diasporan, complex, fluid, and grounded. Glory is not a feeling, not ego worship, not insecurity. A lifestyle of praise and truth. Excellence, honour, praise, celebration, power, respect, integrity, purpose. “This is what it means to walk in the Knowledge of God. “Glory.”
Irish artist Rory & the Island has released his new summer single ‘Donna Don’t Take My Summer’.The single is released one week ahead of Rory and the Island returning to the live music scene with two sold-out shows in the Dublin Castle Camden, London on 13th and 14th August, and follows his two most recent singles hitting the Number 1 spot on iTunes Ireland in 2021. Recorded in Distant City Studios in Yorkshire, ‘Donna Don’t Take My Summer’ was mixed by Joss Worthington and Paul Gallagher, then remastered by John Davies who has received huge acclaim for his recent work with The Killers, U2 and Years & Years.
‘Donna Don’t Take My Summer’is a glorious groovy gem from Rory & The Island. The artist drifts a sweet melody over funky guitar flexes and rich shaking rhythms to create a strut filled soundscape for listeners to indulge in. Rory’s smooth vocals glissade over the catchy chorus “Donna Don’t Take My Summer away”, while a soulful 70’s/80’s backdrop exudes an upbeat hazy atmosphere. Rory & The Island is a melody wizard who has a knack for creating perfect earworms and musically lush tunes for listeners to enjoy and ‘Donna Don’t Take My Summer’ follows this trend superbly. Press play and enjoy.
Speaking of the single Rory & The Island said: “After releasing 2 quite introverted melancholic songs during the pandemic I decided that with a bit of light at the end of the tunnel to just go crazy with a feel-good bubblegum pop summer song!”
After returning in recent weeks to share his vibrant new single ‘Picture Perfect’, fast-rising Irish artist Curtis Walsh is back once again to unveil the uplifting new video for his latest offering. Directed by acclaimed Irish filmmaker Donnagh Fitzpatrick, the new visuals for ‘Picture Perfect’ aims to highlight the rich and joyous aesthetics Curtis brought to his original performance. Giving us upbeat and enticing images of summer fun, the new video looks to project a warm and inviting texture throughout, perfectly illustrating all of our desires to break free from these recent lockdowns. Curtis Walsh will also be heading out on the road for a number of headline shows across Ireland later this year, as well as a performance at Hit The North Festival in the UK in October.
‘Picture Perfect’ is a shimmering alternative pop anthem. The track captures a sense of nostalgia and fun throughout as Curtis Walsh spreads a smooth, dreamy melody over a bubbling beat and ethereal electronic soundscape. Fusing dance elements with sweet pop sensibilities and infectious grooves, the song leads beautifully into its catchy chorus while lush harmonies ensure this earworm won’t leave your head easily. Filled with summer vibes and showcasing Walsh’s velvety vocals, the track is the perfect sun-kissed bop sure to have you singing along in no time.
Speaking about the new video, he said, “This song really meant a lot to me so I wanted to make sure the video really complemented the whole vibe of the song. It had to be uplifting and have a good happy energy to it. There was a little bit of back and forth on the ideas and treatment for this video, but quickly enough we got to a place where the song and video really linked nicely with each other! I was really impressed with the way it came together and can’t wait to see what everyone thinks!’
In collaboration with Internet Money, Jackson Wang has released a new single, ‘Drive You Home’. Wang uses a bubbling hip hop beat, twinkling guitars and bittersweet melody to create a gripping backdrop for listeners to indulge in. This easy on the ears gem cruises with subtle R&B tones mixed between pop hues and soft 80’s embellishments while Wang’s silken vocals drift upon the delicate melody. Wang has been knocking it out of the park with emotive and musically lush singles lately. His previous single ‘LMLY’ fleshed out his glistening 80’s synth-pop sound, while ‘Drive You Home’ now presents a melodious and guitar infused R&B soundscape. It’s exciting to hear what he will release next.
‘Drive You Home’ comes with a spectacularly cinematic video check that out below
Pa Sheehy has released his second solo single, ‘Róisín’, alongside announcing the release of his debut EP ‘The Art Of Disappearing’ on 24 September and dates for his first solo tour.’The Art Of Disappearing’ EP is available to Pre-save/Pre-order via pasheehy.com and Golden Discs now. Fans who pre-order the physical EP will have access to the pre-sale for the live shows on 4th August at 10 am. Tickets will go on general on sale on 6th August at 10 am via Ticketmaster.ie and Pasheehy.com.
‘Róisín’ presents Pa Sheehy’s earnest and emotive songwriting through beautiful musicianship and refined arrangements. Sheehy spreads cinematic soundscapes over vivid lyrics to create a heartfelt and goosebump-inducing tune that surges with emotion as he captures timeless mental images of Róisín, “It’s your touch, It’s your face, It’s your cause, It’s like the rest of the world is on pause”. A delicate piano laments over pulsing beats creating a sense of unease and tension as the song builds, becoming more vibrant with ethereal guitars leading the way to the captivating crescendo. Sheehy has a knack for crafting evocative music filled with passionate melodies and honest lyrics and ‘Róisín’ illustrates this perfectly. The track is a first-rate tune and a fine example of Pa Sheehy’s compelling songwriting.
Speaking about his new single ‘ Pa Sheehy said: “How many times can you let down the one you love before they say goodbye?.. when I went to college I had it all! Captain of the local soccer team, I had a little car and a beautiful girlfriend. Róisín. Fast forward 18 months. I didn’t play sport, dropped out of college and I had made it impossible for Róisín to stay. Why? Alcohol. I loved what it gave me and I put it before everything and everyone. I never labelled myself an alcoholic, but after going to a bunch of councillors it became obvious that I was. A reluctant me did everything I could to keep tabs on it but after spending my rent money on a piss up and couch surfing around Cork I finally asked for help. Everything I had was gone. I spent a month in a rehabilitation centre. The first one to visit me was Róisín. I stayed sober for a while but In the end, we had decided to call it quits, not because of a lack of love but I couldn’t put her through this again. I was lost, so was she. This song is a gift to her. Some people deserve to have their name sung from a stage.”
Barbara Craig has released her debut single, ‘Air That We Breathe’. An emotional tribute to those that have lost their lives during the pandemic. Barbara Craig is an Irish contemporary music composer, producer and artist from Dublin, Ireland.
‘Air That We Breathe’ is an atmospheric debut from Craig as she uses airy electronics blended between choppy piano melodies to create a fascinating listening experience. Craig crafts an experimental tune that showcases contrasting musical elements to portray the turbulent year the world has faced due to the pandemic. Her haunting vocals echo between sticky beats and weaving layers of supple electronics creating a spacious soundscape before a jibing piano melody adds an agitated tone to the track. ‘Air That We Breathe’ displays Craig’s unique sound and is a sublime debut from an intriguing artist.
Stream ‘Air That We Breathe’ below
Author: Danu
Indie: (n) an obscure form of rock which you only learn about from someone slightly more hip than yourself.
