A lot of Irish music comes Nialler9’s way and there’s little time to feature everything we think is worthy of a thumbs up or more ears. Every week, we collate the songs that pass our writers that deserve to be heard by you. For more extensive Irish, and Northern Irish coverage, follow our Spotify playlist or hit up the Irish section for individual track features.
1.
Alex Gough
Game Face
From the Waterford MC and drummer’s Forever Classic mixtape, ‘That’s My Job’ walks a fun live P-funk rap vibe.
2.
USNA
Throw Up
Usna MacErlane is a 21-year-old singer, rapper, writer and multi-instrumentalist, stylised as USNA, who displays a clear American pop rap influence – i’m thinking Brockhampton or Mac Miller. It’s got an impressive confident sway to it – with a strong hook to boot.
3.
Jehnova, lod, Uly
hwlcky
Jehnova back in hotseat with friends for ‘hwlcky’ (“how lucky”) for a twilit soul beat from Dublin-born producer lod and Uly on the hook.
4.
Kynsy
Happiness Is A Fixed State
Should you run from your problems, if you’re problem is an ex and you bump into them on the street? Probably.
For Kynsy’s second single (first was ‘Cold Blue Light’), the artist explores the push and pull between positive and negative feelings after a relationship ends and does so with a sprightly guitar jam called ‘Happiness Isn’t A Fixed State’ and a fun video.
Kynsy performs at Ireland Music Week on Wednesday night.
5.
Wyvern Lingo
Things Fall Apart
I don’t think I’ve ever compared Wyvern Lingo to Billie Eilish before but I can’t escape the comparison during ‘Things Fall Apart’ amongst the band’s trademarks harmonies and live band atmospherics.
In the trio’s words, the song is “an acute observation of a friend enduring a heated, toxic relationship”, likely to appear on their upcoming second album, following ‘Don’t Say it’ and ‘Brutal Lottery’
6.
Seba Safe
In Waiting
After a recent feature on the AE MAK track ‘I Dance In The Kitchen‘, Seba Safe steps into the breach with a zeitgeisty delicate indie/electronic pop track.
7.
Rooue
What You Want
Really smart electronic pop music from twin sisters Rooue here. ‘What You Want’ Immediately impresses with its rich production with the interplay between the sisters vocally one of the song’s finest attributes. Rooue are Ro and Lou, born in London and living in Dublin. and the song is inspired by the experiences as women in the music industry:
‘What You Want’ is about how we as women within the music industry and within everyday life have felt the pressures to conform within societies expectations. The storyline stems from our experience studying in music college, on one hand being forced to be authentic, yet being criticised when not fulfilling their mould whilst reaching our authentic sound.’
8.
Lūna
Ballad Of Harley Quinn
With an introduction that began “spawned from the boglands of the midlands and fostered by the forest’s fauna,” the electronic duo of Lūna piqued my interested. This tune cemented it – a dark pulsating slice of hybrid acid–darkwave-techno with vocals.
9.
Jar Jar Jr
Easel or Spit
I love that sample. Cork producer and recent convert to the MC table, Jar Jar Jr has been doing breakdowns of this track on his Youtube. Hans Zimmer told him how to apparently.
10.
Mount Alaska
Undulate
A piano-spun contemporary new track from Dublin duo, Stephen Shannon and Cillian Mc Donnell aka Mount Alaska from their forthcoming EP Coordinates. Despite normally operating out of Shannon’s studio, the pair have been making music remotely.
11.
Jeag
The Breath
James Eager had that worst of fates for any digital creative. All his work as Jeag was wiped by water damage to a hard drive. So the producer and engineer for Lankum, Royal Yellow, and Enemies started all over again, remade from memory, which is noble in itself.
It was worth the effort if ‘The Breath’ is anything to go by, with its wonky tribal drum beat and snatches of turntablist-style vocal samples and pinging synths, the song was one of the last things that Eager put together while isolating in the Wicklow mountains.
12.
A. Smyth
Don’t Let Me Down
There’s a very gentle throwback indie vibe to A. Smyth’s new single, as if it’s beamed from a different time, namely the ’90s. It’s the second single from a forthcoming album, the release of which was halted due to you know what.
A.Smyth is also playing Ireland Music Week tonight.
“Don’t Let Me Down” is a kind of sliding-doors affair. The song ruminates on time, the future, our choices and regrets. As A. Smyth expands “It’s about the idea that there are two different worlds – the one we’re in now and the one we don’t know yet. And how every minute of every day we’re presented with a million choices – and the weight of our future selves begging us not to f-ck it up”.
13.
Autumns
Almost With A Brick
Autumns has been hammering out industrial metal punk electro jams all year it seems and the latest release is no exception.
14.
Paddy Chambers
Emerald Acid
Acid and disco combining on the headspinning string-assisted banger from 23 year-old producer from Ballycastle in North Antrim.
15.
Aural Air & Patrick Mc Eleney
Memory
Laura Rai aka Aural Air and Patrick Mc Eleney’s collaboration ‘Memory’ is a collaboration aimed at raising funds for the The Alzheimer Society of Ireland (The ASI). With that subject matter as a backdrop, the song’s stirring piano chords and swirling instrumentation would bring a tear to the eye.
It’s a moving, melancholic and orchestral track that was recorded in Attica Studios in Donegal as part of the Earagail Arts Festival recording studio residency last year.
